(460f) The Relationship Between Growth PHASE, Macromolecular Content, and Biocrude YIELD For Chlorella Kessleri | AIChE

(460f) The Relationship Between Growth PHASE, Macromolecular Content, and Biocrude YIELD For Chlorella Kessleri

Authors 

Sturm, B. S. M. - Presenter, University of Kansas
Roberts, G. W., University of Kansas
Stagg-Williams, S., University of Kansas



Microalgae-based biofuel is one of the most promising new energy sources since the biomass can have high growth rates, grow on non-arable land, and utilize nutrients in wastewater. Wet algal biomass can also be thermochemically converted to biocrude oil using a process called hydrothermal liquefaction. We hypothesize that the quality of this crude oil depends on the macromolecular (lipid, carbohydrate, protein) and elemental (CHONS) content of the algal biomass, and that these can be manipulated by controlling the growth rate of the culture. The objective of this study is to determine how the macromolecular content of batch-cultured green microalgae Chlorella Kessleri varies with nutritional chemical composition in the medium and growth phases; biomass will also be converted to biocrude to determine the relationship of macromolecular content on biocrude yields. Two batch reactors (144 L) are operated with bristol media at two different pH (6.5 and 8.5), which will vary the available dissolved inorganic carbon for growth. When grown at a pH of 6.5, C. kessleri had a specific growth rate is 0.7 d-1. Macromolecular and biocrude analysis is pending, but previous studies indicate that biocrude yield is correlated to high cellular lipid content, which occurs at slow growth rates.