Use of acetate in fed-batch mixotrophic cultivation of Arthrospira platensis

Arthrospira platensis has been photoautotrophically cultivated for the production of high quality biomass. It contains satisfactory contents of protein, pigments, and fatty acids. The use of organic compounds as a carbon source has been studied, aiming to improve the biomass productivity in a mixotrophic process. In this study, A. platensis was cultivated by fed-batch process with the addition of sodium acetate, evaluating the effect of different concentrations and feeding time of this organic carbon source by the use of response surface methodology. Addition of sodium acetate was shown to be suitable for increasing the maximum cell concentration. The optimum condition was estimated by the model to be achieved with 387 mg L−1d−1 of sodium acetate for 6.5 days. Employing this condition, average Xm of 1769 ± 71 mg L−1 was achieved. This Xm value had an increase of almost 39 % in comparison with the standard cultivation, without acetate addition (1275 mg L−1).