Short and long-term experiments on the effect of sulphide on microalgae cultivation in tertiary sewage treatment.

•The effect of sulphide over a microalgae culture was studied.•Experiments at lab-scale (short-term) and pilot-scale (long-term) were performed.•Microalgae activity was reduced with increased sulphide concentration.•In long-term experiments, low sulphide did not significantly inhibit microalgae.•The presence of sulphide favoured the growth of Chlorella instead of Scenedesmus.