Investigation on phototrophic growth of an indigenous Chlorella vulgaris for biodiesel production

Microalgae are foreseen as a promising alternative source to produce biodiesel due to the potential high oil content in their cells and fast generation to yield a higher biomass. Hence, this study is focused in exploring the feasibility and potential of a locally isolated C. vulgaris strain in producing biodiesel. This comprises of cell growth, biomass productivity, lipid extraction and biodiesel analysis. The results show that C. vulgaris growth is influenced by light intensity whereby cultures illuminated with 2000 lux produces the highest number of cells and biomass. It is found that the combination of chloroform/methanol solvent extracts higher amount of lipid compared to hexane/ether or hexane. The biodiesel produced complies with ASTM standards. Based on this study, C. vulgaris strain is found to be a viable feedstock in the production of biodiesel. ? 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 34: 1215?1220, 2015