Intrinsic kinetic model of photoautotrophic microalgae based on chlorophyll fluorescence analysis

Influence of Light Intensity and Photoperiod on the Photoautotrophic Growth and Lipid Content of the Microalgae Verrucodesmus verrucosus in a Photobioreactor

Microalgal biomass has the capacity to accumulate relatively large quantities of triacylglycerides (TAG) for the conversion of methyl esters of fatty acids (FAME) which has made microalgae a desirable alternative for the production of biofuels. In the present work Verrucodesmus verrucosus was evaluated under autotrophic growth conditions as a suitable source of oil for biodiesel production. For this purpose BG11 media were evaluated in three different light:dark photoperiods (L:D; 16:08; 12:12; 24:0) and light intensities (1000, 2000 and 3000 Lux) in a photobioreactor with a capacity of three liters; the evaluation of the microalgal biomass was carried out through the cell count with the use of the Neubauer chamber followed by the evaluation of the kinetic growth parameters. So, the lipid accumulation was determined through the lipid extraction with a Soxhlet system. Finally, the fatty acid profile of the total pooled lipids was determined using gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS). The results demonstrate that the best conditions are a photoperiod of 12 light hours and 12 dark hours with BG11 medium in a 3 L tubular photobioreactor with 0.3% CO2, 25 °C and 2000 Lux, allowing a lipid accumulation of 50.42%. Palmitic acid is identified as the most abundant fatty acid at 44.90%.

Screening of native microalgae species for carbon fixation at the vicinity of Malaysian coal-fired power plant

Global warming has become a serious issue nowadays as the trend of CO₂ emission is increasing by years. In Malaysia, the electricity and energy sector contributed a significant amount to the nation’s CO₂ emission due to fossil fuel use. Many research works have been carried out to mitigate this issue, including carbon capture and utilization (CCUS) technology and biological carbon fixation by microalgae. This study makes a preliminary effort to screen native microalgae species in the Malaysian coal-fired power plant’s surrounding towards carbon fixation ability. Three dominant species, including Nannochloropsis sp., Tetraselmis sp., and Isochrysis sp. were identified and tested in the laboratory under ambient and pure CO₂ condition to assess their growth and CO₂ fixation ability. The results indicate Isochrysis sp. as the superior carbon fixer against other species. In continuation, the optimization study using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was carried out to optimize the operating conditions of Isochrysis sp. using a customized lab-scale photobioreactor under simulated flue gas exposure. This species was further acclimatized and tested under actual flue gas generated by the power plant. Isochrysis sp. had shown its capability as a carbon fixer with CO₂ fixation rate of 0.35 gCO₂/L day under actual coal-fired flue gas exposure after cycles of acclimatization phase. This work is the first to demonstrate indigenous microalgae species' ability as a carbon fixer under Malaysian coal-fired flue gas exposure. Thus, the findings shall be useful in exploring the microalgae potential as a biological agent for carbon emission mitigation from power plants more sustainably.