Evidence from preliminary experiments revealed drifted Ulva biomass has seedling and aquaculture potential

At high tide, free-floating and dislodged seaweeds got deposited on wrack zone of coastal sites. These seaweeds bleached, decomposed, and eventually died. The present study showed the utilization of this waste material for large biomass production. Ulva is one of the economically important green seaweed. In the present study, large biomass production of Ulva was achieved through a simple protocol for sporulation and growth without disturbing natural resources. The study evaluated the effect of different environmental factors (salinity, temperature, dehydration time, light-dark period etc.) on sporulation and growth. The germinated spores of U. lactuca were grown under controlled conditions by using different concentrations of nitrate and phosphate. The optimum physio-chemical parameters to achieve maximum specific growth rate (SGR) at laboratory conditions were 25 ppt salinity, 25 degrees C temperature, and 50 mu mol photons m(-2) s(-1) white fluorescent light. The highest SGR of 43.61 +/- 0.4% day(-1) and 33.11 +/- 0.5% day(-1) was obtained in the concentration of 60 mu mol L-1 of nitrate and 5 mu mol L-1 of phosphate respectively in germling, whereas in the combination of nutrients (10:40), the highest SGR was 37.41 +/- 0.09% day(-1). This study has huge potential in developing nursery culture for the successful and effective utilization of this species.

Automated summary

This study investigated the potential for large-scale biomass production using waste seaweeds. By developing a simple protocol for growth and sporulation, the study achieved successful cultivation of Ulva without disrupting natural resources. The findings offer significant potential for the successful and effective utilization of this species.