Crescimento da microalga Scenedesmus sp. em diferentes meios de cultura

Abstract

Microalgae are aquatic unicellular organisms, which have attracted much biotechnological interest. This organisms have high protein, lipids and carbohydrates content if compared to other food sources, besides a high pigment content, which are important to the industry. They also show much potential regarding biofuel production, which are to replace fossil fuels. Microalgae cultivation show versatility, but it requires the control of parameters like light intensity, temperature, pH and nutrient concentration on medium. On this study, the growth of Scenedesmus sp. was evaluated in four different culture media, on bench scale and continuous aeration, through the construction of the growth curve, based on cellular and optical density. It was observed that WC and NPK 16:08:32 showed better growth, compared to the other media. WC and NPK 16:08:32 also showed the biggest pH variation between the tested media due to its higher CO2, which happens due to higher photosynthetic activity rates. NPK (19:19:19) and NPK (12:43:12) didn't show satisfatory growth. This study allowed the comprehension of the processes related to the bench scale cultivation of this microalgae, and also contributes to new strategies development in order to achieve a better exploration of microalgae potential.