The relationship of microalgae and bacteria in wastewater treatment
School Name
Spring Valley High School
Grade Level
11th Grade
Presentation Topic
Environmental Science
Presentation Type
Non-Mentored
Oral Presentation Award
3rd Place
Abstract
Algae has been proven to have many uses. One common use of algae in the scientific community is for oils useful in the creation of biofuels. However, another lesser known use for algae is wastewater treatment. This research was aimed to determine if there was a significant difference when the algae and bacteria were both grown in the wastewater. The research was to cultivate the microalgae and bacteria in wastewater and determine if it had an effect on removing significant amounts of phosphate. It was hypothesized that growing the microalgae and bacteria in the same environment, particularly wastewater, would help remove significant amounts of waste in the wastewater. There were four experimental groups during the experiment. One was wastewater containing only the microalgae, the second was the wastewater only containing bacteria, the third was wastewater containing both the microalgae and bacteria, and the last group was the control with nothing being grown in it. The solution was grown for 2 ½ weeks in a homemade bioreactor and was placed under grow lights. Presence of phosphate in the wastewater was measured using the phosphate detector kit. Statistical results showed that there was no significant difference (p=0.090) in the amount of phosphate removed from each treatment. Statistical analysis showed no significant differences, however the data itself showed a pattern that suggests that the microalgae does a good job at removing toxic waste, such as phosphate, from wastewater .
Recommended Citation
Alipio, Kaouri Marie, "The relationship of microalgae and bacteria in wastewater treatment" (2018). South Carolina Junior Academy of Science. 157.
https://scholarexchange.furman.edu/scjas/2018/all/157
Location
Lassiter 222
Start Date
4-14-2018 11:00 AM
Presentation Format
Oral and Written
The relationship of microalgae and bacteria in wastewater treatment
Lassiter 222
Algae has been proven to have many uses. One common use of algae in the scientific community is for oils useful in the creation of biofuels. However, another lesser known use for algae is wastewater treatment. This research was aimed to determine if there was a significant difference when the algae and bacteria were both grown in the wastewater. The research was to cultivate the microalgae and bacteria in wastewater and determine if it had an effect on removing significant amounts of phosphate. It was hypothesized that growing the microalgae and bacteria in the same environment, particularly wastewater, would help remove significant amounts of waste in the wastewater. There were four experimental groups during the experiment. One was wastewater containing only the microalgae, the second was the wastewater only containing bacteria, the third was wastewater containing both the microalgae and bacteria, and the last group was the control with nothing being grown in it. The solution was grown for 2 ½ weeks in a homemade bioreactor and was placed under grow lights. Presence of phosphate in the wastewater was measured using the phosphate detector kit. Statistical results showed that there was no significant difference (p=0.090) in the amount of phosphate removed from each treatment. Statistical analysis showed no significant differences, however the data itself showed a pattern that suggests that the microalgae does a good job at removing toxic waste, such as phosphate, from wastewater .
