From toilet to agriculture: Fertilization with mic... - BV FAPESP
Advanced search
Start date
Betweenand
(Reference retrieved automatically from Web of Science through information on FAPESP grant and its corresponding number as mentioned in the publication by the authors.)

From toilet to agriculture: Fertilization with microalgal biomass from wastewater impacts the soil and rhizosphere active microbiomes, greenhouse gas emissions and plant growth

Full text
Author(s):
Suleiman, Afnan Khalil Ahmad [1, 2] ; Lourenco, Kesia Silva [3, 1] ; Clark, Callum [1] ; Luz, Ronildson Lima [4] ; Ribeiro da Silva, Gustavo Henrique [5] ; Vet, Louise E. M. [6] ; Cantarella, Heitor [3] ; Fernandes, V, Tania ; Kuramae, Eiko Eurya [1, 7]
Total Authors: 9
Affiliation:
[1] Netherlands Inst Ecol NIOO, Microbial Ecol Dept, Droevendaalsesteeg 10, NL-6708 PB Wageningen - Netherlands
[2] KWR Watercycle Res Inst, Groningenhaven 7, NL-3433 PE Nieuwegein - Netherlands
[3] Agron Inst Campinas IAC, Soils & Environm Resources Ctr, Av Barao Itapura 1481, BR-13020902 Campinas, SP - Brazil
[4] Univ Estadual Maranhao, Dept Agroecol, BR-65055000 Sao Luis Maranhao - Brazil
[5] Sao Paulo State Univ UNESP, Dept Environm & Civil Engn, Ave Engenheiro Luiz Edmundo Carrijo Coube 14-01, BR-17033360 Bauru, SP - Brazil
[6] Netherlands Inst Ecol NIOO KNAW, Dept Terr Ecol, Droevendaalsesteeg 10, NL-6708 PB Wageningen - Netherlands
[7] Univ Utrecht, Inst Environm Biol, Ecol & Biodivers, Padualaan 8, NL-3584 CH Utrecht - Netherlands
Total Affiliations: 7
Document type: Journal article
Source: RESOURCES CONSERVATION AND RECYCLING; v. 161, OCT 2020.
Web of Science Citations: 4
Abstract

Human activities are pushing earth beyond its natural limits, so recycling nutrients is mandatory. Microalgae are highly effective in nutrient recovery and have strong potential as a sustainable wastewater treatment technology. Here, nutrients from black water (toilet wastewater) were recovered as microalgal biomass, which was dried and assessed as a fertilizer in pot experiments compared with inorganic fertilizer. We deciphered the effects of microalgal biomass as a biofertilizer on plant growth and quality and the biological processes linked to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In addition, we elucidated the assembly of the active microbiome in bulk soil and rhizosphere during barley development. Microalgal biomass application and inorganic fertilizer (NPK) resulted in similar plant productivity (16.6 g pot(-1)). Cumulative nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions were 4.6-fold higher in the treatment amended with microalgal fertilizer (3.1% of applied N) than that with inorganic fertilizer (0.5% of applied N). Nitrification by bacteria was likely the main pathway responsible for N2O emissions (R-2 = 0.7, p < 0.001). The application of nitrogen fertilizers affected the structures of both the active bacterial and protozoan communities, but these effects were less obvious than the strong plant effect, as the recruited microbiota varied among different plant developmental stages. Both treatments enriched similar bacterial and protozoan taxonomic orders but with different distributions through time across the plant developmental stages. Furthermore, the bacterial community showed a clear trend of resilience from the beginning of the experiment until harvest, which was not observed for protozoa. Our results indicate that the use of microalgal biomass as a fertilizer is a viable option for recycling nutrients from wastewater into plant production. (AU)

FAPESP's process: 13/50351-4 - Recovering nutrients and carbon from concentrated black water: a sustainable decentralized approach for wastewater treatment
Grantee:Luiz Antonio Daniel
Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
FAPESP's process: 18/20698-6 - Nitrification inhibitor as strategy to mitigate N2O emissions and its impacts on the active nitrifying and denitrifying soil microbial communities after concentrated vinasse and mineral N application
Grantee:Késia Silva Lourenço
Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
FAPESP's process: 14/24141-5 - Microbial networks in control of greenhouse gases emissions from soil with sugarcane as affected by regular or concentrate vinasse
Grantee:Késia Silva Lourenço
Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate