Carbon dioxide biofixation and biomass production from flue gas of power plant using microalgae

Nowadays greenhouse gas emission induces environmental problems such as climate change worldwide. According to statistics, atmospheric CO₂ concentration increased from 280 ppm in 1800 to 380 ppm in 2004 and power plants account for 22% of global CO₂ emission. Microalgae have potential for up taking inorganic carbon during photosynthesis. They have advantage in containing high oil content which can be used for biofuel production. The effect of other pollutants such as NOx and SOx gases on these microorganisms growth should be evaluated if power plant effluent gas is sought to be injected into a photobioreactor. Among three evaluated microalgae, Chlorella vulgaris, Dunaliella tertiolecta and Scenedesmus obliqus, higher biomass productivity obtained from C. vulgaris.