Cultivation of Ulva lactuca with manure for simultaneous bioremediation and biomass production

The potential of liquid manure as sole nutrient source for cultivation of was investigated with the perspective of utilizing the produced biomass for feed and/or energy. Algae grown with manure demonstrated equal growth rates to algae grown with standard f/2-medium. The optimum manure concentration, expressed as ammonium concentration, was 25 mu M. At these conditions, the biomass produced was potentially suitable for anaerobic digestion, due to a relative high carbon/nitrogen ratio (approximately 19). At higher manure concentrations, tissue concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorus, proteins, and amino acids increased, making the biomass less suitable for anaerobic digestion but potentially interesting as a feed supplement. Cultivating with manure as nutrient source has potential in terms of bioremediation as well as production of bioenergy and protein-feed.