Microalgal-Bacterial Consortia as Future Prospect in Wastewater Bioremediation, Environmental Management and Bioenergy Production

Indian Journal of Microbiology (2021)Cite this article

Abstract

In the recent years, microalgae have captured researchers’ attention as the alternative feedstock for various bioenergy production such as biodiesel, biohydrogen, and bioethanol. Cultivating microalgae in wastewaters to simultaneously bioremediate the nutrient-rich wastewater and maintain a high biomass yield is a more economical and environmentally friendly approach. The incorporation of algal–bacterial interaction reveals the mutual relationship of microorganisms where algae are primary producers of organic compounds from CO2, and heterotrophic bacteria are secondary consumers decomposing the organic compounds produced from algae. This review would provide an insight on the challenges and future development of algal–bacterial consortium and its contribution in promoting a sustainable route to greener industry. It is believed that microalgal-bacterial consortia will be implemented in the near-future for sub-sequential treatment of wastewater bioremediation, bioenergy production and CO2 fixation, promoting sustainability and making extraordinary advancement in life sciences sectors.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme, Malaysia [FRGS/1/2019/STG05/UNIM/02/2] and MyPAIR-PHC-Hibiscus Grant [MyPAIR/1/2020/STG05/UNIM/1].

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Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Nottingham Malaysia, Jalan Broga, 43500, Semenyih, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia

    Kuan Shiong Khoo, Wen Yi Chia & Pau Loke Show

  2. School of Energy and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University Malaysia, Jalan Sunsuria, Bandar Sunsuria, 43900, Sepang, Selangor, Malaysia

    Kit Wayne Chew

  3. College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, Fujian, China

    Kit Wayne Chew

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  1. Kuan Shiong Khoo
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  2. Wen Yi Chia
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Correspondence to Pau Loke Show.

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Khoo, K.S., Chia, W.Y., Chew, K.W. et al. Microalgal-Bacterial Consortia as Future Prospect in Wastewater Bioremediation, Environmental Management and Bioenergy Production. Indian J Microbiol (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12088-021-00924-8

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Keywords

  • Microalgal-bacteria consortium
  • Bioenergy
  • Environmental management
  • Wastewater bioremediation
  • Bioeconomy