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Harnessing Chlorella vulgaris - Aspergilus niger Interactions for Effective Microplastic Removal in Aquatic Ecosystems
Summary
Combining the green alga Chlorella vulgaris with Aspergillus niger fungal pellets removed up to 95% of PET microplastics and 88% of polypropylene microplastics from water through a natural bioflocculation process. This low-cost, eco-friendly biological approach could offer a scalable alternative to chemical treatments for removing microplastics from wastewater and aquatic environments.
This study presents a novel bioremediation approach for microplastic removal using C. vulgaris and Aspergillus niger fungal pellets. The effects of polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) microplastics on algal growth and extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) production were investigated. Results showed that microplastic presence, particularly PET, enhanced EPS production, promoting microplastic aggregation. Removal efficiencies were 55.7% for PP and 95.0% for PET. The addition of A. niger pellets at 3.5% (w/v) concentration improved microalgae and microplastic flocculation, removal efficiencies with A. niger pellets were 88 ± 0.010% for the control, 90 ± 0.031% for PP, and 94 ± 0.015% for PET, confirming the effectiveness of this bioflocculation approach. The control group without microplastics yielded 3,788 ± 3.535 mg/L biomass, while with the addition of PP and PET microplastic resulted 4,982 ± 5.65 mg/L, and 5,122 ± 8.48 mg/L, respectively. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) analyses confirmed the formation of hetero-aggregates of algae, EPS, and microplastics, with EPS playing a crucial role in binding microplastics. This study demonstrates that the combination of C. vulgaris and A. niger provides an eco-friendly, efficient method for microplastic removal, offering a promising solution to address microplastic pollution in aquatic systems. This study highlights the innovative integration of Aspergillus niger fungal pellets with C. vulgaris microalgae to enhance microplastic removal efficiency in aquatic systems. The addition of A. niger not only increases the adsorption capacity of C. vulgaris but also stabilizes its performance under toxic conditions, significantly improving microplastic removal. Moreover, the fungal pellets facilitate the decomposition of organic materials surrounding microplastics and modify their surface structure, making them more amenable to adsorption by algae. This synergistic approach addresses the challenges of microplastic degradation, offering a groundbreaking biotechnological solution with potential environmental scalability.