THE POTENTIAL OF LOCALLY ISOLATED MICROALGAE IN LIPID PRODUCTION

Microalgae is fast becoming a promising biofuel feedstock due to their high lipid
content and fast growing rate. However, the prospect of using microalgae in biofuel
production needs extensive research as its potential sorely depends on the type of
strain. This study therefore focuses on locally isolated microalgae to determine their
potential in lipid production and carbon dioxide fixation. The freshwater samples
were extracted from various locations in Malaysia which are at the Perak River, a
pond at Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP) Mosque, and a lake in front of UTP.
After performing microscopic observation, one strain of local microalgae which is
referred to as BA due to its similar characteristics to the Botrydiopsis Arrhiza species
is chosen for comparison with a commercial alga- Chlorella Fusca (CF) on growth,
lipid content and carbon dioxide fixation.