Date of Award

12-2013

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Legacy Department

Biosystems Engineering

Committee Chair/Advisor

Drapcho, Caye M

Committee Member

Walker , Terry H

Committee Member

Speziale , Barbara J

Abstract

Algae are fascinating organisms that are receiving growing attention for their versatility on many fronts of research areas. Immense amounts of research is being conducted to find solutions to challenges in energy and climate change. A large portion of research is focused on algae as a potential solution to both of these issues. The focus of this research is to look at algae closer to home as a local, economical resource to aid in solving both of these problems. The algal genus Scenedesmus was tested for growth in a bi-phased scheme: photoautotrophically for carbon sequestration then heterotrophically on glycerol for lipid production. Lipids that could then be converted to biodiesel. The photosynthetic growth phase resulted in an increase in aqueous inorganic carbon concentrations and biomass growth. The heterotrophic phase did not result in glycerol consumption, however, there was an increase in lipid production.

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