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Impact of mixing duration on growth and nutrient removal efficiency of Scenedesmus sp. in a novel raceway pond system

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Abstract

Raceway ponds are regarded as a popular and cost-effective method for microalgae cultivation; however, their performance is strongly influenced by hydrodynamic conditions. Conventional paddlewheel driven systems are restricted to low operating velocities to avoid culture spilling out which often leads to reduced mixing and stagnant zone formation. In this study, a raceway pond was designed with the inclusion of curved slits at the bent zones and submersible pump as an alternative mixing device to prevent culture overflow, improve flow stability and minimize dead zones. This novel integration of structural modifications and pump-based mixing represents a significant advancement over traditional paddlewheel systems by providing higher velocities, enhanced circulation and more uniform algal growth conditions. Experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of mixing durations in 6 L raceway ponds under identical environmental conditions. The raceway systems permitted a broader velocity range (0.10–0.45 m s−1) without spillage. The system with continuous 24 h mixing compared to 20 and 16 h mixing resulted in the highest biomass productivity of 1.01 g L−1 d−1 and maximum nutrient removal rates of 5.18 mg L−1 d-1 and 3.41 mg L−1 d−1 for NO3− and PO43−, respectively. Submersible-pump configured open raceway pond achieved comparable or higher biomass yield, lower energy consumption with a net energy efficiency of 62%, demonstrating its practicality and cost-effectiveness as a viable alternative to conventional paddlewheel driven systems for large-scale Scenedesmus sp. cultivation.

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Data availability

Data will be made available on request. Requests for data should be directed to Dr. Rashid Iftikhar ([email protected]; [email protected]).

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Funding

This research was funded by Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University Researchers Supporting Project number (PNURSP2025R589), Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Environmental Sciences and Engineering (IESE), School of Civil and Environmental Engineering (SCEE), National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, 44000, Pakistan

    Muhammad Umer Abbas, Rashid Iftikhar, Nadeem Ullah & Faras Ahmad Shahbaz

  2. Department of Sciences, School of Interdisciplinary Engineering & Science (SINES), National University of Science and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan

    Sahar Saleem

  3. Department of Teaching and Learning, College of Education and Human Development, Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, 11671, Saudi Arabia

    Sarah Bader Alotaibi & Mashael M. Alfgeh

  4. Institute of Water Resources and Water Supply, Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Am Schwarzenberg-Campus 3, 21073, Hamburg, Germany

    Muhammad Ali Inam

  5. Department of Chemistry “Giacomo Ciamician”, University of Bologna, Via Selmi 2, Bologna, 40126, Italy

    Ahmad Aakash

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  1. Muhammad Umer Abbas
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Contributions

Muhammad Umer Abbas: Writing—original draft, Writing—review & editing, Methodology, Validation, Conceptualization. Rashid Iftikhar: Writing—review & editing, Conceptualization, Validation, Project administration, Funding acquisition, Supervision. Sahar Saleem: Writing—review & editing and Methodology. Sarah Bader Alotaibi: Funding, resources & review. Nadeem Ullah: Resources and Review. Mashael M. Alfge: Funding & review. Muhammad Ali Inam: Methodology, Supervision, Validation, Investigation, final approval. Faras Ahmad Shahbaz: Writing—review & editing. Ahmad Aakash: Writing—review & editing.

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Rashid Iftikhar.

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Abbas, M.U., Iftikhar, R., Saleem, S. et al. Impact of mixing duration on growth and nutrient removal efficiency of Scenedesmus sp. in a novel raceway pond system.
Sci Rep (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-31982-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-31982-3

Keywords

  • Nutrient recovery; evaporation loss; energy efficiency
  • Submersible pump
  • Reactor design
  • Hydrodynamics

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