• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.25 no.6
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• pp.553-558
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• 2014

Microalgae are a promising alternative feedstock for biodiesel production because their growth rates and oil contents are higher than those of conventional energy crops. Microalgal lipid is mainly triacylglyceride that can be converted to biodiesel as fatty acid methyl esters through trans-esterification. In this paper, the influence of several important lipid inducing factors such as nutrient limitation and changes in salinity and metallic components in microalgae and their potential strategies to be used for biodiesel production are reviewed. Depending upon strains/species that we use, microalgae react to stresses by producing different amount of triacylglyceride and/or by altering their fatty acids composition. Although the most widely applied method is the nitrogen starvation, other potential factors, including nutrient surplus conditions and changes in salinity, pH, temperature and metal concentrations, should be considered to increase biodiesel productivity.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.46-51
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• 2011

Distributional patterns of benthic microalgae were studied in the tidal flats of Saemangeum lake, Korea, from March 2007 to October 2009. As benthic microalgae of tidal flats of Saemangeum lake, 44 species belong to 5 classes were identified. Diatoms predominated the benthic microalgal flora with 75.0% of total species occurred. Dominant species were Achnanthes lanceolata, Aulacoseira granulata, Cymbella tumida, Fragilaria construens var. ventor, Melosira varians, Navicula cryptocephala, Navicula cryptocephala var. veneta, Nitzschia palea, and Paralia sulcata. The cell density and biomass of benthic microalgae were highest in 2009, and clear tendency of increment was observed at D1 and D2 sites. In vertical profiles, cell density and biomass of the benthic microalgae showed maximum cells and biomass at 0~1 mm depth of sediments from all sampled sites.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.186-191
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• 1999

The three speices of miroalgae (Chlorella vulgaris, Dunaliella salina and Porphyridium purpureum) were immobilized in Ca-alginate capsules as a basic study for development of economic cultivation process, and then were cultivated in an air-bubble column bioreactor. Under the batch culture of aerobic conditions, the thickness of the capsule membrane and $CO_2$ supply did not affect the growth of the immobilized microalga, Chlorella vulgaris. Cell concentration of immobilized microalgae in the capsule was higher than those of imobilized microalgae in beads and free cells. The cell concentration of microencapsulated Dunaliella salina was greater about 5 times than that of free cells. Based on these results, it is concluded that the application of microencapsulation technology to the culture of microalgae was an effective method for high-density cultivation.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.283-287
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• 2014

Cultivation of microalgae using wastewater exhibits several advantages such as nutrient removal and the production of high valuable products such as lipid and pigments. With this study, two types of wastewater from instant noodle factory; mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS) and effluents after sedimentation tank were investigated for green microalga Scenedesmus sp. cultivation under laboratory condition. Optimal wastewater dilution percentage was evaluated in 24 wells microplate. MLSS and effluent without dilution showed the highest specific growth rate (${\mu}$) of $1.63{\pm}0.11day^{-1}$ and $1.57{\pm}0.16day^{-1}$, respectively, in which they were significantly (p < 0.05) higher than Scenedesmus sp. grown in BG11 medium ($1.08{\pm}0.14day^{-1}$). Ten days experiment was also conducted using 2000 ml Duran bottle as culture vessel under continuous light at approximately 5000 lux intensity and continuous aeration. It was found that maximum biomass density of microalgae cultivated in MLSS and effluent were $344.16{\pm}105.60mg/L$ and $512.89{\pm}86.93mg/L$ respectively and there was no significant (p < 0.05) difference on growth to control (BG11 medium). Moreover, cultivation microalgae in wastewater could reduce COD in wastewater by 39.89%-73.37%. Therefore, cultivation of Scenedesmus sp. in wastewater from instant noodle factory can yield microalgae biomass production and wastewater reclamation using photobioreactor simultaneously.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.1039-1048
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• 2020

Food waste causes various economic losses and environmental pollution problems such as soil pollution and groundwater pollution. Food waste has been used as a resource in various forms and has been used mostly for feed and composting. This study compared microalgal nutrient medium (BG-11) with food waste compost to determine the possibility of using it as a culture medium. Scenedesmus quadricauda was isolated and cultured in an eutrophic reservoir and incubated for 3 days in distilled water before laboratory use. Food waste compost was produced in two food waste processing facilities, and hot water was extracted in the laboratory to be used for microalgae cultivation. The growth curve of the microalgae was analyzed based on the Chl-a concentration measured during the experiment, and the growth rate of the microalgae grown in the food waste compost was compared with the growth rate of those grown in the nutrient medium. Food waste compost showed a similar growth rate to that of the nutrient medium, and there was a difference depending on the manufacturing facility. The growth of microalgae in such food waste was further amplified when trace elements were added and showed better growth than that of the nutrient media. Particularly, when trace elements were added, the growth rate increased, and the growth period was further extended. Therefore, food waste compost can be sufficiently utilized as a microalgal culture medium, and if trace elements are added, it is considered that microalgae can be more effectively cultured compared to the existing nutrient medium.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.8 no.6
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• pp.360-367
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• 2003

Our research objectives are to determine under what conditions microalgal-based $CO_2$capture from flue gases is economically attractive. Specifically, our objective here was to select microalgae that are temperature, pH and flue gas tolerant. Microalgae were grown under five different temperatures, three different pH and five different flue gas mixtures besides 100% $CO_2$(gas concentrations that the cells were exposed to ranged 5.7-100% $CO_2$, 0-3504ppm SO$_2$, 0-328ppm NO, and 0-126ppm NO$_2$). Our results indicate that the microalgal strains tested exhibit a substantial ability to withstand a wide range of temperature (54 strains tested), pH (20 strains tested) and flue gas composition (24 strains tested) likely to be encountered in cultures used for carbon sequestration from smoke stack gases. Our results indicate that microalgal photosynthesis is a limited but viable strategy for $CO_2$capture from flue gases produced by stationary combustion sources.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.8 no.6
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• pp.354-359
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• 2003

$CO_2$fixation by microalgae has emerged as a promising option for $CO_2$mitigation. In-tensive research work has been carried out to develop a feasible system for removing $CO_2$from industrial exhaust gases. However, there are still several challenging points to overcome in order to make the process more practical. In this paper, recent research activities on three key technologies of biological $CO_2$fixation, an identification of a suitable algal strain, development of high efficient photobioreactor and utilization of algal cells produced, are described. Finally the barriers, progress, and prospects of commercially developing a biological $CO_2$fixation process are summarized.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.338-343
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• 2000

The growth capabilities of three $highly-CO_2-tolerant$ microalgae under high concentrations of $CO_2$ were compared for their tolerance to $SO_2$ and NO, the major inhibitory compounds present in flue gases. Although all strains showed good growth with 15% $CO_2$, Chlorella KR-1 exhibited the most desirable properties for $CO_2$ fixation among the strains compared. While Chlorella sp. HA-1 exhibited the best tolerance to NO among the other strains tested, Chlorella sp. KR-1 showed higher tolerance to $SO_2$ than the other two strains tested.

• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.34-39
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• 2006

Molecular biology and microalgal biotechnology have the potential to play a major role in improving the production efficiency of a vast variety of products including functional foods, industrial chemicals, compounds with therapeutic applications and bioremediation solutions from a virtually untapped source. Microalgae are a source of natural products and have been recently studied for biotechnological applications. Efficient genetic transformation systems in microalgae are necessary to enhance their potential to be used for human health. A microalga such as Chlarella is a eukaryotic organism sharing its metabolic pathways with higher plants. This microalga is capable of expressing, glycosylating, and correctly processing proteins which normally undergo post-translational modification. Moreover, it can be cultured inexpensively because it requires only limited amount of sunlight and carbon dioxide as energy sources. Because of these advantages, Chlarella may be of great potential interest in biotechnology as a good candidate for bioreactor in the production of pharmaceutical and industrial compounds for human functional foods. Here, we briefly discuss recent progress in microalgal transgenesis that has utilized molecular biology to produce functional proteins and bioactive compounds.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.25-32
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• 2015

The growth of the algae strains Neochloris oleabundans, Botryococcus Braunii and Dunaliella sp. under mixotrophic conditions in the presence of different concentrations of crude glycerol was evaluated with the objective of increasing the biomass growth and algal oil content. A high biomass concentration was characteristic of these strains when grown on crude glycerol compared to autotrophic growth, and 5 g/L glycerol yielded the highest biomass concentration for these strains. Mixotrophic conditions improved both the growth of the microalgae and the accumulation of triacylglycerols (TAGs). The maximum amount of TAGs in the algal strains was obtained in the 5 g/L glycerol growth medium. The fatty acid profiles of the oil for the cultures met the necessary requirements and are promising resources for biofuel production.