Lipid Content of Various Microalgal Species found in Lake Lanier Caitlin McMullan, Courtney Vaeth and Melba Horton player-Qualitas-goes-head-to-head-with-krill

Significance  Potential in biofuel production  Help achieve 40% cut in CO 2 emissions by 2030 (Alternative Energy, 2009)  Diminish environmental impact; pollution  Unrest in oil exporting countries; “energy independence” (Littlefield, 2013)

Importance of Microalgae  Biomass emits low quantity of methane and carbon dioxide than fossil fuels  Algal growth helps eliminate atmospheric carbon dioxide  Require less water than terrestrial crops  Can be grown in non-arable land  Fertilizers can be received from waste-waters  Biomass can be manipulated by altering growth conditions (Gouveia & Oliveira, 2009)

Objective  To determine the lipid content of the different species of microalgae that are locally found in Lake Lanier waters Source:

Null Hypothesis  There is no significant difference in the lipid content of the different species of microalgae that are locally found in Lake Lanier

Methodology Species of Algae  Mixture of algae found in Lake Lanier waters: Anabaena, Chlamydomonas, Chlorella, Closterium, Euglena gracilis, Oedogonium foveolatum, Oscillatoria, Synedra, Volvox aureus  Monoculture of Scenedesmus dimorphus  Monoculture of Spirogyra  (UTEX) Algal Cultivation  Controlled Chamber  20°C  Cool-white fluorescent bulbs; 3200 lux  12/12h L/D periodicity  Cells grown in 250 mL flasks  Proteose Medium:  1 L Bristol Medium  10 mL Sodium Nitrate; 10 mL Calcium Chloride; 10 mL Magnesium Sulfate; 10 mL Potassium Phosphate; 10 mL Potassium Phosphate Monobasic; 10 mL Sodium Chloride; Fill with dH 2 O  1g/L Proteose Peptone

Culture Change by Centrifugation Voila! Algae pellets Set centrifuge to desired speed and time 1200 rpm for 2 minutes Pour algae into 50 mL tubes Make sure tubes are evenly distributed

Large Biomass for Extraction  Modified the Dyer & Bligh (1959) model using solvents chloroform and methanol in a 2:1 ratio (Zhu, & et. al., 2002)  1 g microalgae: 3 mL solvent mixture  Allow biodiesel and sediment layers to settle  Filter sample through filter paper  Transfer sample to beaker l

Lipid Content Determination  Portion of lipid extract was dried, and solvent evaporated by heated water bath at 40°C  Lipid residue was dried  Total lipid content = (weight of lipid in aliquot x volume of chloroform layer) / (volume of aliquot) (Bligh & Dyer, 1959)

Results

Implications  Null hypothesis is rejected  Highest lipid content from mixed algal species than monocultures of S. dimorphus and Spirogyra  Algal species found in Lake Lanier has very good potential for biofuel production

Future Plans  Repeat extractions to be able to determine statistical significance of results  Investigate the effect of pressure gradient on the lipid production of algae from Lake Lanier

Literature Cited  Alternative energy. (2009). Petroleum Economist, 22.  Bligh, E.G., & Dyer, W.J. (1959). A Rapid Method of Total Lipid Extraction and Purification. Canadian Journal of Biochemistry and Physiology. 37(8) doi: /o  Gouveia, L., & Oliveira, A. (2009). Microalgae as a Raw Material for Biofuels Production. Journal Of Industrial Microbiology & Biotechnology, 36(2), doi: /s  Littlefield, S. (2013). Security, independence, and sustainability: Imprecise language and the manipulation of energy policy in the United States. Energy Policy Special Section: Transition Pathways to a Low Carbon Economy, 52, Retrieved November 1, 2014, from Science Direct.  Mercer, P., & Armenta, R. E. (2011). Developments in Oil Extraction from Microalgae [electronic resource]. European Journal Of Lipid Science And Technology, 113(5),  Sharif Hossain, A. M., Salleh, A., Boyce, A., Chowdhury, P., & Naqiuddin, M. (2008). Biodiesel Fuel Production from Algae as Renewable Energy. American Journal Of Biochemistry & Biotechnology, 4(3),  UTEX The Culture Collection of Algae. (n.d.). UTEX The Culture Collection of Algae. Retrieved September 21, 2014, from culturemaintenance.aspxhttp://  Visser, A. W., & Jónasdottir, S. H. (1999). Lipids, Buoyancy and the Seasonal Vertical Migration of Calanus finmarchicus. Fisheries Oceanography, 8100  Zhu, M., Zhou, P., & Yu, L. (2002). Extraction of Lipids From Mortierella alpina and Enrichment of Arachidonic Acid from the Fungal Lipids. Bioresource Technology, 84(1),