Cultured High Oil Yield Algae

1. Cultured High Oil Yield Algae Centrifuged to Remove Water Used for the Base Catalyst (n=6) Used for the Acid Catalyst (n=6) Used for the Enzyme Catalyst (n=6) Base catalyst will be added as a solid to methanoluntil dissolved Acid synthesized from hydrated zirconia and 12-TPA added to methanol Novozyme 435 added to methanol Methanol, algal oil, and catalyst for each group are put into a beaker with a stirrer for the reaction to occur Reaction will take place on a hot plate at room temperature for 15 minutes Reaction will take place on a hot plate at room temperaturefor 15minutes Reaction will take place at room temperature on a hot plate for 15 minutes Amount of biodiesel produced, specific gravity, pH and concentration of impurities measured One-way ANOVA followed by Scheffe post-hoc test and cost analysis Methodology Synthesis of Biodiesel Using Acid, Base, and Enzyme Catalysts Picture 6: A centrifuge was used to extract the algae oil used for trials (Photo by Author) Picture 7: The biodiesel was extracted by decanting (Photo by Author) Results Graph 5: Volume of Biodiesel Produced - In order for a titration to be properly done, the volume of biodiesel produced needed to be measured. The x-axis represents the catalyst used and the y-axis represents the volume produced when reacted. The blue bar represents the average volume produced by the acid, which was 28mL. The red bar represents the average volume produced by the base, which was 24.5mL. The orange bar represents the average volume produced by the enzyme, which was 29.5mL Graph 4:Specific Gravity of Biodiesel Produced – To compare the density of biodiesel, specific gravity would quantify the density of biodiesel for each catalyst against water. The x-axis represents the catalyst used and the y-axis represents this ratio against water. The blue bar represents the average ratio by the acid, which was 0.69. The red bar represents the average ratio by the base, which was 0.68. And the orange bar represents the average ratio by the enzyme, which was 0.71. Graph 6: Impurities in the Biodiesel Produced - This graph represents the molarity of the impurities after the titration was completed. The x-axis represents the catalyst used and the y-axis represents the concentration of impurity in molarity. Greater impurity means that the biodiesel is less refined and less biodiesel was produced. The blue bar represents the average impurity in the biodiesel produced by the acid catalyst, which was .064M. The red bar represents the average impurity of the biodiesel produced by the base catalyst, which was .074M. The orange barrepresents the impurity of the biodiesel produced by an enzyme catalyst, which was .025M. Graph 7: Cost Per Liter - Data was extrapolated to determine the cost per liter for pure biodiesel with no impurities. The x-axis represents the catalyst used and the y-axis represents the production price per liter. The blue bar represents the cost per liter of the biodiesel produced by the acid catalyst, which was $26.24. The red bar represents the cost per liter of the biodiesel produced by the base catalyst, which was $31.96. The orange bar represents cost per liter of the biodiesel produced by the enzyme catalyst, which was $27.41