Evaluation of sugarcane vinasse as a medium for enhanced Chlorella sp. growth, lipids production, and process integration

The sugarcane industry generates vinasse waste that could have serious environmental effects if not properly disposed of. This study investigated the use of vinasses generated in the sugarcane industry in Arequipa, Peru, as a growth medium for the microalga Chlorella sp. and lipid production. The results demonstrate that the best culture conditions for this microalga in a 4-L photobioreactor included a pretreatment of crude vinasse and an inoculum size of 1.0 x 10(6) cells mL(-1). In these conditions, Chlorella sp. attained a growth rate of 1.19 day(-1), showing high efficiency in nutrient removal from this residue and attaining a lipid content of 11.5 mg L-1 when cultured with a vinasse concentration of 10%. However, the highest lipid productivity (2.6 mg L-1 day(-1)) was recorded in cultures of 20% vinasse. Overall, our results suggest that it is possible to integrate microalgae culture as a biological strategy to properly dispose of the vinasse generation of Arequipa's sugarcane industry; thus, modern technologies can be used for the purpose of valorizing this agro-industrial residue.