Nitrogen depletion to enhance yield of oil through triglyceride accumulation

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Nitrogen depletion for intracellular triglyceride accumulation to enhance liquefaction yield of marine microalgal cells into a fuel oil

Publisher - Springer New York
Issue - Volume 6, Number 1 / January, 1998
SpringerLink Date - Thursday, February 19, 2004
Authors - Keiko Yamaberi, Mutsumi Takagi, Toshiomi Yoshida

Abstract

Correspondence to: M. Takagi. Fax: +81-6-879-7454.-->Abstract. The lipid content of Nannochloris sp. UTEX LB1999 cells grown in a nitrogen-limited medium (0.9 mM KNO3) was 1.5 times as high as when grown in a modified NORO medium containing 9.9 mM KNO3. However, the cell concentration was too low for production of fuel oil by liquefaction of cell mass at high temperature and pressure. During cultivation using the modified NORO medium, neither growth nor lipid accumulation were influenced by nitrogen depletion in the late logarithmic growth phase. The triglyceride content remained constant during the stationary phase in cultures periodically supplemented with nitrogen source. However, triglycerides accumulated to a greater extent during the stationary phase in the nitrogen depleted culture. The final triglyceride content was 2.2 times that of the nitrogen sufficient culture. The increase in triglyceride content was associated with a decrease in chlorophyll content. In the liquefaction reactions, the cells with a higher triglyceride content produced a higher yield of oil.

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