Conference Session C10
Paper #2
Disclaimer — This paper partially fulfills a writing requirement for first year (freshman) engineering students at the
University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering. This paper is a student, not a professional, paper. This paper is
based on publicly available information and may not be provide complete analyses of all relevant data. If this paper is used
for any purpose other than these authors’ partial fulfillment of a writing requirement for first year (freshman) engineering
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CHLORELLA SACCHAROPHILA FOR THE PRODUCTION OF BIODIESL IN
WASTE WATER TREATMENT CENTERS
Jake Johanni, jmj70@pitt.edu, Bursic 2:00, Ethan Silver, ers137@pitt.edu, Mena 4:00
Revised Proposal — We would like to write our conference
paper on, Chlorella saccharophila, a specific type of algae
that is grown in wastewater for the production of biofuel that
can be used in the place of gasoline or diesel in any
transportation used today. Chlorella saccharophila is a type
of algae that grows best in the wastewater of sewage
treatment plants. This algae breaks down wastewater into
clean water and biomass, which can later be processed into
biofuel. Since Chlorella saccharophila uses photosynthesis to
create biomass, it also has the byproduct of taking carbon
dioxide from the environment and turning it into oxygen,
which will reduce the amount of greenhouse gasses in our
atmosphere. When the biomass is furthered processed into a
fuel source and burned, it releases carbon dioxide back into
the air, making it a carbon neutral fuel source as opposed to
burning fossil fuels. The use of Chlorella saccharophila in
wastewater treatment plants is important to engineers and
other relevant professionals because it is a system that could
easily be implemented into withstanding wastewater
treatment plants worldwide to create a renewable fuel source
that is better for our environment than burning existing fossil
fuel reserves. Switching to biodiesel would also solve the
problem of the rapidly depleting fossil fuel reserves.
In order to write this conference paper, we plan to
use many sources related to our topic. We will include a
couple of sources that are detailed studies specifically
focused on Chlorella saccharophila and its growth rate in
wastewater as well as its yield. Another resource that we plan
to include in our paper is an article that explains why algae
is considered to be a suitable source for biodiesel production.
We will make sure to find a source that compares the
efficiency and cost of biodiesel to other fuel types used,
mainly gasoline and diesel. Other resources of ours will help
explain why biodiesel would be better for the environment
and reduce our reliance on foreign oil.
The paper will first include a step by step
explanation on how biomass is produced in waste treatment
centers as well as an explanation of how modern wastewater
treatment centers are currently set up. We will then include a
section that describes the process of converting biomass to
biodiesel. After this, we plan to compare Chlorella
saccharophila to other related strains of algae that are used
in the production of biofuel. Lastly, we will talk about the
University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering 1
2016/01/29
advantage of biofuel compared to gasoline and diesel and the
positive effects of switching to a renewable energy source.
REFERENCES
[1] S. Chinnasamy, A. Bhatnagar, R. Hunt, K. Das (2009,
Dec. 26). “Microalgae cultivation in a wastewater dominated
by carpet mill effluents for biofuel applications.” Bioresource
Technology. (online article).
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S096085240
901654X
[2] B. Coxworth (2015, April,16). “Algae could both provide
biofuel and clean up wastewater.” Gizmag. (online article).
http://www.gizmag.com/algae-wastewater/36875/
[3] N. Hempel, I. Petrick, F. Behrendt (2012, Feb. 12).
“Biomass productivity and productivity of fatty acids and
amino acids of microalgae strains as key characteristics of
suitability for biodiesel production.” Journal of Applied
Phycology. (online article).
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3478515/
[4] V. Herrera-Valencia, P. Contreras-Pool, S. López-Adrián,
S. Peraza-Echeverría, L. Barahona-Pérez (2011, June 3).
“The Green Microalga Chlorella saccharophila as a Suitable
Source of Oil for Biodiesel Production.”Current
Microbiology. (online article).
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00284-011-99567/fulltext.html
[5] R. Hunt, A. Dunn, B. Gandy, P. Kolar, U. Jena (2008).
“Microalgal Biomass Production Using Industrial
Wastewater.” University of Georgia. (online article).
http://openwetware.org/images/2/2e/09Microalgal_Biomass_Production_Chinnasamy.pdf
[6] J. Pittman, A. Dean, O. Osundeko (2011 Jan.). “The
potential of sustainable algal biofuel production using
wastewater resources.” Bioresource Technology. (online
article). http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S09
60852410010163
[7] N. Rashid, M. Rehman, M. Sadiq, T. Mahmood, J. Han
(2014 Dec.). “Current status, issues and developments in
microalgae derived biodiesel production.” “Renewable and
Sustainable Energy Reviews.” (online article).
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S136403211
4005565
Jake Johanni
Ethan Silver
Source of Oil for Biodiesel Production.”Current
Microbiology.
(online
article).
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00284-011-99567/fulltext.html
This scientific analysis, published in Current
Microbiology, focuses on the Chlorella saccharophila as main
source for oil in biodiesel production. The data provided in
this article mainly focuses on the nitrogen depletion in cell
growth and lipid accumulation in the microalgae. This data
will be used to support our claim that Chlorella saccharophila
is the best algae strain to accumulate and convert the biomass
into biofuel.
[8] I. Ratwat, R. Ranjith Kumar, T. Mutanda, F.Bux (2011
Oct.). “Dual role of microalgae: Phycoremediation of
domestic wastewater and biomass production for sustainable
biofuels production.” “Applied Energy.” (online article).
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S030626191
0004885
ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
S. Chinnasamy, A. Bhatnagar, R. Hunt, K. Das (2009, Dec.
26). “Microalgae cultivation in a wastewater dominated by
carpet mill effluents for biofuel applications.” Bioresource
Technology.
(online
article).
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S096085240
901654X
This scientific article, published on Science Direct, tested
the feasibility of biodiesel production in wastewater treatment
plants. The article focused on the production of 15 native
algal species and outlined the nutrient removal percentages
associated with them. Additionally the study displayed how
productive each strain was in producing the oil necessary to
make biofuel. The article also calculated how many tons of
biofuel could be produced from each plant per year.
M. Hannon, J. Gimpel, M. Tran, B. Rasala, S. Mayfield
(2010 Sep.). “Biofuels from algae: challenges and potential.”
“Biofuels.”
(online
article).
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3152439/
This scientific article, published in the Biofuels
magazine, focuses on the main challenges associated with
producing biofuels from algae. Another important aspect of
this article is that it directly states that it hopes to get
engineers to address these issues and move algae biofuel into
a top fuel source. We plan on using this article to address the
issues facing the implementation of this technology into the
current wastewater treatment processes and prove that that
this technique solves the issues that are currently at the head
of this idea.
B. Coxworth (2015, April,16). “Algae could both provide
biofuel and clean up wastewater.” Gizmag. (online article).
http://www.gizmag.com/algae-wastewater/36875/
This online article lists some of the major advantages of
incorporating algae into wastewater treatment plants.
Specifically, it describes how productive algae is at breaking
down the nitrates and phosphorus in waste water. This article
also discusses many advantages of growing algae in waste
water over normal water, including not having to use
fertilizers. We will also use this article to describe which
environments implementing algae growth would be most
effective.
R. Hunt, A. Dunn, B. Gandy, P. Kolar, U. Jena (2008).
“Microalgal Biomass Production Using Industrial
Wastewater.” University of Georgia. (online article).
http://openwetware.org/images/2/2e/09Microalgal_Biomass_Production_Chinnasamy.pdf
This scientific report published by the University of
Georgia focuses on statistical data to show how wastewater
has great potential in being a growth medium for algae in
biomass production. This report also analyzes and compares
the many different strains of algae. This article will be key to
us in proving that the strain, Chlorella saccharophila, is the
best algae to use in regard to growth rate and yield. The data
in this source will add a logistics point of view.
N. Hempel, I. Petrick, F. Behrendt (2012, Feb. 12). “Biomass
productivity and productivity of fatty acids and amino acids
of microalgae strains as key characteristics of suitability for
biodiesel production.” Journal of Applied Phycology. (online
article).
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3478515/
This scientific article, published on the US National
Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, addresses
many stains, including the specific strain that we are focusing
our paper on, Chlorella saccharophila. We will use this article
to provide data on how much biomass this strain produces as
well as the growth compared to other strains. Lastly this
article describes the ideal conditions for growing Chlorella
saccharophila.
J. Pittman, A. Dean, O. Osundeko (2011 Jan.). “The potential
of sustainable algal biofuel production using wastewater
resources.”
Bioresource
Technology.
(online
article). http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S09
60852410010163
This scientific report, published in the Bioresource
Technology journal, contains current research on this topic
along with limitations and benefits of using wastewater with
microalgae biofuel production as a cost-effective alternative.
We would implement this article by addressing both the pros
and the cons of using wastewater as a resource for biomass
production. We would make sure to emphasize how the pros
greatly outweigh the cons in the production process.
V. Herrera-Valencia, P. Contreras-Pool, S. López-Adrián, S.
Peraza-Echeverría, L. Barahona-Pérez (2011, June 3). “The
Green Microalga Chlorella saccharophila as a Suitable
2
Jake Johanni
Ethan Silver
I. Ratwat, R. Ranjith Kumar, T. Mutanda, F.Bux (2011 Oct.).
“Dual role of microalgae: Phycoremediation of domestic
wastewater and biomass production for sustainable biofuels
production.”
“Applied
Energy.”
(online
article).
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S030626191
0004885
This scientific article, published in the Applied Energy
magazine, discusses the wastewater treatment using high rate
algae ponds along with the production of biomass from the
use of wastewater streams. It details specific ways in how to
extract the biomass. We will use this source to explain many
of the different methods of harvesting biomass along with the
process’s that are used to later turn it into biofuel, specifically
Chlorella saccharophila.
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