Lim, Hooi Ren
(2024)
Sustainable cultivation and harvesting strategy for Spirulina biorefinery: integrating internet-of-things monitoring and continuous cultivation.
PhD thesis, University of Nottingham.
Abstract
Spirulina biomass accounts for 30% of the total algae biomass production globally. In conventional process of Spirulina biomass production, cultivation using chemical-based culture medium contributes 35% of the total production cost. Moreover, the environmental impact of cultivation stage is the highest among all the production stages which resulted from the extensive usage of chemicals and nutrients. Thus, various types of culture medium such as chemical-based, modified, and alternative culture medium with highlights on wastewater medium is reviewed on the recent advances of culture media for Spirulina cultivation. This creates an opportunity for the development of sustainable practices for the cultivation of Spirulina.
This thesis explores various aspects of upstream bioprocessing applications of Spirulina platensis microalgae. The thesis begins by investigating sustainable water management approaches, including recycling culture medium, and utilizing rainwater resources, for the cultivation of Spirulina. Different pre-treatment methods such as microfiltration and UV-light are examined to treat rainwater and recycled medium, and their effects on Spirulina growth are evaluated. Furthermore, the study explores the effects of nutrient-deficient media and harvesting ratios on Spirulina cultivation, aiming to optimize biomass and phycocyanin production. Additionally, the potential of using spent coffee ground waste as a nutrient source for Spirulina cultivation was investigated, along with the feasibility and profitability of large-scale production of Spirulina tablets. The thesis also explores the application of real-time monitoring using Internet-of-things (IoT) technology in a Spirulina cultivation system. Sensors are used to monitor important parameters such as absorbance, temperature, light intensity, and water level, with data transmitted to a cloud-based platform for analysis. Overall, this thesis contributes to the understanding of sustainable cultivation practices, real-time monitoring technologies, and economic feasibility assessments in the Spirulina industry, paving the way for further advancements and applications in Malaysia.
| Item Type: |
Thesis (University of Nottingham only)
(PhD)
|
| Supervisors: |
Show, Pau Loke
Lim, Siew Shee |
| Keywords: |
spirulina; rainwater; pre-treament; recycle medium; phycocyanin; internet of things; sensors; ir 4.0; harvesting strategy; spent coffee grounds; protein; techno-economic |
| Subjects: |
T Technology > TP Chemical technology |
| Faculties/Schools: |
University of Nottingham, Malaysia > Faculty of Science and Engineering — Engineering > Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering |
| Item ID: |
77945 |
| Depositing User: |
Lim, Hooi
|
| Date Deposited: |
27 Jul 2024 04:40 |
| Last Modified: |
27 Jul 2024 04:40 |
| URI: |
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/id/eprint/77945 |
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