Screening and optimising metal salt concentration for harvesting nannochloropsis sp.by flocculation. Journal of Engineering and Technology, 6 (2). pp. 109-120. ISSN 2180-3811 (2015)
Abstract
Biodiesel is a renewable fuel that is non-toxic, biodegradable, and constantly increasing in demand as the reservoir of fossil fuel is depleting. The microalgae biomass with high oil content is significant as a sustainable resource for biodiesel production. Production of biodiesel using microalgae biomass appears to be a feasible alternative due to no confliction with food supply compared with the first generation biofuels. This report deals with the screening and optimization of metal salts for harvesting marine microalgae by flocculation. The metal salts studies are ferric chloride, aluminium sulphate and ferric sulphate. Wild Nannochloropsis strains of microalgae were cultivated aseptically in seawater for seven days, after that the microalgae was harvested by using flocculation step with different concentration of metal salt. In order to monitor the efficiency of the metal salt,the turbidity region of microalgae in glass cylinder before and after flocculation was observed. Besides that cell, dry weight was also compared for three-flocculation agent used. The most efficient metal salt was then further optimized for its best-performed concentration and pH. Chloride salts (FeCl3) was found to be more efficient in comparison with sulfate salts (Al2(SO4)3and Fe2(SO4)3) in harvesting microalgae. Ferric Chloride was further optimized, where the optimum pH and concentration of FeCl3 are 8.5 M and 1.0M, with flocculation efficiency of 90%andcell dry weight of 3.8 g. In conclusion,1.0M ferric chloride salt at pH 8.5 is optimum in harvesting Nannochloropsis sp. microalgae by flocculation.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | Microalgae, Flocculation, pH, Nannochloropsissp, Biodiesel |
| Taxonomy: | By Subject > College of Engineering > Chemical Engineering > Biofuel |
| Local Content Hub: | Subjects > College of Engineering |
| Depositing User: | Eza Eliana Abdul Wahid |
| Date Deposited: | 19 Jul 2022 08:47 |
| Last Modified: | 19 Jul 2022 08:47 |
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