Carbon Dioxide Sequestration Performance of Nostoc linckia Cultivated in a Modular Photobioreactor at the Interior-Landscape Interface

Abstract

This research addresses the need for climate-resilient architecture through a biotechnological intervention at the indoor-landscape interface. It presents a modular system utilizing the cyanobacterium Nostoc linckia to regulate air quality in enclosed spaces. Grounded in biophilic design principles, the study conceptualizes photosynthetic systems as modular living interfaces that integrate metabolic processes, environmental performance, and spatial experience. Functioning as an active environmental buffer, the system relates measurable carbon sequestration performance to spatial integration and esthetic qualities. Experimental performance was evaluated using a closed atmospheric test chamber with three different CO2 regimes: low (400–1000 ppm), medium (1000–2000 ppm), and high (2000–5000 ppm). Biomass productivity was assessed via optical density measurements at 570 nm and 650 nm and dry weight analysis. The results show that the system maintains effective carbon sequestration and biomass growth in all regimes, demonstrating its capacity to adapt to fluctuating atmospheric loads, with sequestration efficiency increasing 2.15-fold under elevated CO2 availability. Furthermore, experimental data were used to model scaling scenarios across various workspace typologies, projecting an annual CO2 sequestration of 1.9–27.0 kg/year and biomass production of 1.0–14.8 kg/year. These findings define the photobioreactor as a circular interface and demonstrate that biotechnological modules can contribute to ecological regenerative cycles by transforming interior-derived carbon into productive biomass for reuse at the landscape scale, validating the system as a viable circular environmental infrastructure.