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Articles

Application of nutrient stress conditions for hydrocarbon and oil production by Botryococcus braunii

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Pages 271-277 | Received 14 Aug 2015, Accepted 12 Dec 2015, Published online: 18 Jan 2016
 

ABSTRACT

The influence of main nutrient stress conditions KNO3, MgSO4, K2HPO4 and KCl on biofuel production from biomass by two Botryococcus braunii strains has been investigated. Low concentrations of KNO3 and MgSO4 exhibited positive effect on hydrocarbon, oil contents and their relative ratios without much affecting the growth. Most of the saturated hydrocarbons were identified in the range of C15 to C44, the major ones being C17H34, C19H38, C21H44, C24H50 and C27H56. Fatty acids ranged from C12 to C28, with palmitic, linoleic, oleic and stearic acids being the major ones. The relative proportion of the desirable biofuel component, palmitic acid, was significantly increased under NO31−, PO43− and potassium stress conditions. These findings suggest that monitoring of concentration of a few nutrients may enhance the quantity and desirable types of biofuel components together with substantial growth of Botryococcus braunii for bioenergy production and for commercial large scale cultivation.

Acknowledgements

This study was carried out by T. Manchanda and R. Tyagi at The Northcap University, Gurgaon, India, and IIT-Delhi, N. Delhi, India. GC-MS was performed in Advanced Instrumentation Facility, JNU, New Delhi, India.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

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