Optimal Growth Strategies for Sustainable Cultivation of Chlorella Vulgaris Microalgae for the Application of Bioenergy: A Review
a comprehensive review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71330/thenucleus.2025.1485Abstract
Chlorella vulgaris, a green microalga, is attracting significant attention for its uses in food production, biofuel production, and environmental sustainability due to its high nutritional value and high growth rate. The current review discusses ideal methods for the cultivation of Chlorella vulgaris in an eco-friendly manner and also explores optimal growth strategies for cultivating C. vulgaris with a focus on maximizing bioenergy. Key factors affecting its growth, including the provision of light, nutrient content, temperature, and pH levels, are discussed in relation to biomass productivity and biochemical composition. Different cultivation methods, such as open pond cultivation and closed photobioreactors, are discussed in terms of efficiency and ecological implications. Contamination and high cost are discussed as challenges, alongside suggested solutions such as using nutrient media as a nutrient source. Through synthesis of existing studies, the article attempts to provide easy and practical recommendations to researchers and agriculturalists who are interested in the sustainable cultivation of microalgae for the production of bioresources.
References
C. Safi, et al. "Morphology, composition, production, processing and applications of Chlorella vulgaris: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, vol. 35, pp. 265-278, 2014.
S. Kumar, A. Verma, and R. Singh, "Innovative strategies for enhancing biomass and lipid productivity of Chlorella vulgaris in photobioreactors," Bioresource Technology, vol. 375, p. 128912, 2024.
P. Spolaore, et al. "Commercial applications of microalgae," Journal of Bioscience and Bioengineering, vol. 101, no. 2, pp. 87-96, 2006.
T. M. Mata, A. A. Martins, and N. S. Caetano, "Microalgae for biodiesel production and other applications: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 217-232, 2010.
M. F. Blair, B. Kokabian, and V. G. Gude, "Light and growth medium effect on Chlorella vulgaris biomass production," Journal of Environmental Chemical Engineering, vol. 2, no. 1, pp. 665-674, 2014.
L. Brennan and P. Owende, "Biofuels from microalgae-A review of technologies for production, processing, and extractions of biofuels and co-products," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, vol. 14, no. 2, pp. 557-577, 2010.
L. Christenson and R. Sims, "Production and harvesting of microalgae for wastewater treatment, biofuels, and bioproducts," Biotechnology Advances, vol. 29, no. 6, pp. 686-702, 2011.
T. Cai, S. Y. Park, and Y. Li, "Nutrient recovery from wastewater streams by microalgae: Status and prospects," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, vol. 19, pp. 360-369, 2013.
L. Zhu, "Biorefinery as a promising approach to promote microalgae industry: An innovative framework," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, vol. 41, pp. 1376-1384, 2015.
T. Miller and S. Green, "Emerging trends in microalgae cultivation for sustainability," Algal Research, vol. 60, p. 101, 2024.
J. Masojídek, M. Koblížek, and G. Torzillo, "Photosynthesis in microalgae," in Handbook of Microalgal Culture: Applied Phycology and Biotechnology, Wiley-Blackwell, pp. 21-36, 2011.
M. T. Guarnieri and P. T. Pienkos, "Algal omics: Unlocking the potential of algae for biotechnological applications," Current Opinion in Biotechnology, vol. 33, pp. 146-152, 2015.
A. Kazbar, et al. "Effect of dissolved oxygen on the production of Chlorella vulgaris in outdoor conditions," Algal Research, vol. 39, p. 101447, 2019.
C. Y. Chen, et al. "Cultivation, photobioreactor design and harvesting of microalgae for biodiesel production: A critical review," Bioresource Technology, vol. 102, no. 1, pp. 71-81, 2011.
M. A. Borowitzka, "High-value products from microalgae—Their development and commercialisation," Journal of Applied Phycology, vol. 25, no. 3, pp. 743-756, 2013.
H. Wang, et al. "The contamination and control of biological pollutants in mass cultivation of microalgae," Bioresource Technology, vol. 128, pp. 745-750, 2013.
L. D. Zhu, et al. "Microalgal biofuels: Flexible bioenergies for sustainable development," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, vol. 30, pp. 1035-1046, 2014.
J. Seyfabadi et al., "Effect of light intensity and quality on growth rate and composition of Chlorella vulgaris," Plants, vol. 9, no. 1, p. 31, 2020.
X. Li et al., "Growth conditions and growth kinetics of Chlorella vulgaris cultured in domestic sewage," Sustainability, vol. 13, no. 20, p. 11256, 2021.
H. Chen et al., "Mixotrophic cultivation of Chlorella vulgaris for enhanced biofuel production," Algal Research, vol. 71, p. 103056, 2024.
R. Sharma et al., "Production of Chlorella vulgaris under varying nutrient and abiotic conditions: A potential microalga for bioenergy feedstock," Journal of Applied Phycology, vol. 32, pp. 1587-1597, 2020.
T. Clark and M. Davis, "Wastewater as a nutrient source for Chlorella vulgaris," Sustainability Journal, vol. 17, pp. 567-574, 2025.
P. Kumar et al., "Evaluating the effect of various environmental factors on the growth of the marine microalgae, Chlorella vulgaris," Frontiers in Marine Science, vol. 9, p. 927315, 2022.
J. Harris and C. Lee, "Temperature effects on Chlorella vulgaris productivity," Journal of Algal Research, vol. 45, pp. 789-796, 2022.
M. Ahmed, S. Khan, and L. Verma, "Wastewater-grown Chlorella vulgaris for biofuel applications: A sustainable approach," Sustainability, vol. 16, no. 4, p. 2215, 2024.
F. Almomani et al., "Chlorella vulgaris cultivation in simulated wastewater for the biomass production, nutrients removal and CO₂ fixation simultaneously," Journal of Environmental Management, vol. 267, p. 110672, 2020.
J. Chen et al., "Hybrid cultivation systems for sustainable microalgal biomass production," Renewable Energy, vol. 184, pp. 628-638, 2022.
L. Thompson and S. Garcia, "Contamination challenges in open pond systems," Journal of Algal Research, vol. 47, pp. 567-574, 2023.
L. Wang et al., "Optimization of mixing strategies for Chlorella vulgaris cultivation in photobioreactors," Bioresource Technology, vol. 368, p. 128345, 2023.
Y. Zhang et al., "Effects of salinity and pH on Chlorella vulgaris growth and lipid production," Bioenergy Research, vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 892-901, 2021.
M. Patel and T. Sharma, "Culture density and shading management in microalgae cultivation," Journal of Applied Phycology, vol. 40, pp. 123-130, 2024.
J. Kim and R. Thompson, "Genetic engineering for enhanced microalgae growth," Bioresource Technology, vol. 58, pp. 345-352, 2023.
S. Lee and H. Kim, "Dissolved oxygen management in microalgae cultivation," Journal of Algal Research, vol. 50, pp. 567-574, 2023.
J. Chen et al., "Hybrid cultivation systems for sustainable microalgal biomass production," Renewable Energy, vol. 196, pp. 112-120, 2024.
R. A. Andersen, Algal Culturing Techniques. London, U.K.: Academic Press, 2005.
M. Gupta, P. Sharma, and D. Singh, "Circular bioeconomy: Integrating Chlorella vulgaris cultivation with wastewater valorization," Journal of Cleaner Production, vol. 420, p. 138421, 2024.
Y. Tanaka, H. Sato, and M. Fujii, "Artificial intelligence-assisted optimization of photobioreactors for Chlorella vulgaris," Algal Research, vol. 72, p. 103122, 2024.
K. Patel, S. Roy, and M. Das, "Advances in contamination control strategies for outdoor Chlorella vulgaris cultivation," Bioresource Technology Reports, vol. 25, p. 101678, 2024.
J. Liu, W. Zhao, and Q. Chen, "Net-zero strategies: Role of Chlorella vulgaris biofuels in sustainable energy transitions," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, vol. 188, p. 113298, 2024.
A. Singh and P. Gupta, "Eco-friendly applications of Chlorella vulgaris," Sustainability Journal, vol. 32, pp. 123-130, 2024.
S. Kim and J. Park, "Fine-tuning cultivation parameters for microalgae," Bioresource Technology, vol. 62, pp. 345-352, 2023.
J. Harris and C. Lee, "Critical parameters for Chlorella vulgaris growth," Journal of Algal Research, vol. 52, pp. 567-574, 2024.
A. Patel and P. Singh, "Biomass and lipid synthesis in microalgae," Bioenergy Research, vol. 27, pp. 789-796, 2025.
L. Thompson and S. Garcia, "Sustainable nutrient substrates for microalgae," Environmental Science & Technology, vol. 64, pp. 234-241, 2024.
N. Roy, H. Mehta, and V. Choudhary, "Machine learning approaches in optimizing Chlorella vulgaris cultivation," Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, vol. 8, p. 145678, 2025.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 The Nucleus
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
For all articles published in The Nucleus, copyright is retained by the authors. Articles are licensed under an open access licence [CC Attribution 4.0] meaning that anyone may download and read the paper for free. In addition, the article may be reused and quoted provided that the original published version is cited properly.
