The Relevance of the CO2 Partial Pressure of Sodium Bicarbonate Solutions for the Mass Cultivation of the Microalga Spirulina

The Controlled Eutrophication Process: Using Microalgae for CO2 Utilization and Agricultural Fertilizer Recycling

Spirulina platensis is a cyanobacterium that has a high protein content and therefore, a high nutritional value. It can be cultivated either in a liquid or in a solid
culture. When cultivated in aqueous culture the cell growth can be determined by following the optical density. On the other hand, when produced by solid
cultivation the growth can be determined only indirectly, such as, through determination of the protein content of the fermenting solids. In this work the
possibility of estimating cell growth by pH determination was verified. From the results it was concluded that pH and protein production (solid or surface culture) or cell content (liquid culture) correlate well, therefore pH determination seems to be a good method to determine cell growth.

Semicontinuous cultivation of the cyanobacterium Spirulina platensis in a closed photobioreactor