Microbubble Aeration: The Effects on the Nursery Stage of Litopenaeus Vannamei Biofloc Culture System

This study presents the effects of nano/micro bubble (MB) aeration on Litopenaeus vannamei (whiteleg shrimp) for 30 days of nursery stage. Similar studies were carried out using conventional aquarium air stones that produce larger air bubbles (LB) as a point of reference. The water quality parameters: dissolved oxygen (DO), temperature, ammonia (TAN), nitrite, nitrate, and settleable solids (SS) were recorded throughout the culture days. The shrimp growth parameters in terms of body weight and length, feed conversion ratio (FCR), and survival rate for 30 days of culture were compared. The results showed that microbubble aeration significantly improved the DO of the water, accelerated TAN to nitrate conversion and yielded a higher amount of biofloc than the LB system. Despite the microbubble considerably raising the temperature and lowering the pH, the water quality parameters of MB aeration remained consistent and within the acceptable range. The growth of shrimps in the MB aeration system was significantly larger (increased by 34%) and had achieved a lower FCR value (reduced by 26%) in comparison to that of the LB aeration system. This study found that MB aeration promotes the production of biofloc and the growth of L. vannamei.