The whole process of biofuel production from Desmodesmus sp. EJ 8-10 cultivated in anaerobic digested wastewater (ADW) under the optimal temperature was evaluated by using the method of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The energy efficiency and environment emissions were under considerable for the corresponding parametric study. The functional unit was 1 kg microalgae. It was concluded that the harvest stage was responsible for the main energy consumption during the microalgal whole pyrolysis process. The energy conversion efficiency of the whole process was larger than 1, which indicated that the process was profitable. The environmental impact of the whole process was 1165.67 mPE T2000 , among which the primary impact on the environment was eutrophication that accounts for 57.36%, followed by photochemical ozone synthesis (22.56%), acidification (17.36%); and global warming (2.73%), respectively.

This article summarizes the recent progress of nutrient removal from wastewater via microalgae. Removal of nitrogen and phosphorous compounds from wastewater are of great importance, while those compounds are suitable for growth of some microalgae species. Such a combination provides more opportunities for anaerobic digestion facilities, which are producing large amount of wastewater with high nitrogen and phosphorous contents. However, in order to optimize and maximize the performance and durability of the nutrient removal process, it is suggested that the basic principles about nitrogen and phosphorous migration should be investigated thoroughly, especially from the fundamentals of substance transfer mechanism between water environment and algal cells.