ISBN 978-3-8439-5682-6

978-3-8439-5682-6, Reihe Verfahrenstechnik

Jonas Kollmen
New Approaches to Utilizing Cyanobacteria in the Agricultural Industry

150 Seiten, Dissertation Rheinland-Pfälzische Technische Universität Kaiserslautern-Landau (2025), Softcover, A5

Zusammenfassung / Abstract

Cyanobacteria are a source for the sustainable production of many valuable substances due to their ability to grow phototrophically and thus to fix CO2. Additionally, some cyanobacteria can fix nitrogen from the air and release it together with other growth-promoting substances to surrounding organisms such as plants. Therefore, one possible application is the use of cyanobacteria as biofertilizer or biostimulant, whereby the growth of many cyanobacteria in the form of biofilms is advantageous. They can either be used as dead biomass as fertilizer or grow symbiotically with plants in co-culture. Of particular interest is the use of cyanobacteria to fertilize industrially cultivated plants to maximize potential savings. The most widely cultivated cereal in Europe is wheat. In this dissertation, the co-culture of living cyanobacteria with wheat was successfully carried out and growth-promoting effects were demonstrated. Even under drought stress, cyanobacteria have a positive effect on plant growth, as was shown in experiments with Arabidopsis thaliana. For the application of cyanobacteria on fields, an aerosol-based photobioreactor for the cultivation of cyanobacteria on biodegradable carriers (Luffa) was developed. To improve the potential of using dead biomass as fertilizer, methods for extracting valuable substances (EPS, phycobiliproteins and pigments) from cyanobacteria were developed. These make it possible to extend the value chain in a biorefinery concept before the biomass is used as a biofertilizer. This dissertation thus demonstrates new potentials for the use of cyanobacteria in the agricultural industry.