Study Confirms Micro-Algae’s Cleaning Ability in Wastewater Treatment

Environmental engineers have discovered that Chlorella vulgaris — a single-celled freshwater algae species — effectively removes pollutants from wastewater even at fluctuating levels, making it an effective tool for wastewater treatment. The study, published recently in Water Environment Research, indicates that Chlorella vulgaris continues to remove harmful elements like nitrogen and phosphorous from wastewater even after one type of pollutant is depleted. Some algae require both nitrogen and phosphorous to be present to function, which can limit its effectiveness in wastewater treatment. “One of the factors that significantly impacts algal wastewater treatment is nutrient availability,” says Wen Zhang, associate