Microalgae cultivation in wastewater from agricultural industries to benefit next generation of bioremediation: a bibliometric analysis.

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study was to provide a bibliometric analysis and mapping of existing scientific papers, focusing on microalgae cultivation coupled with biomass production and bioremediation of wastewater from agricultural industries, including cassava, dairy, and coffee. Using the Web of Science (WoS) database for the period 1996-2021, a search was performed using a keyword strategy, aiming at segregating the papers in groups. For the first search step, the keywords "wastewater treatment", AND "microalgae", AND "cassava" OR "dairy" OR "coffee" were used, resulting in 59 papers. For the second step, the keywords "wastewater treatment" AND "biomass productivity" AND "microalgae" AND "economic viability" OR "environmental impacts" were used, which resulted in 34 articles. In these papers, keywords such as "carbon dioxide biofixation" and "removal of nutrients by the production of biomass by microalgae" followed by "environmental and economic impacts" were highlighted. Some of these papers presented an analysis of the economic feasibility of the process, which reveal the state-of-the-art setup required to make the cultivation of microalgae economically viable. Researches focusing on the efficiency of microalgae biomass harvesting are needed to improve the integration of microalgae production in industrial eco-parks using wastewater to achieve the global goal of bioremediation and clean alternatives for renewable energy generation.