Mining of Algal Lipids for the Production of Biofuel Using Oedogonium tyrolicum

Fuel is the most significant need of the modern world but now the availability of fuel source has decreased alarmingly. Therefore, scientists are investigating the other alternative source as substitutes for fuel. Microalgae are considered as one of the best source for the fuel production because they are easily available, cheaper, easy to handle and eco-friendly. In this study, the Oedogonium tyrolicum was isolated from Sulur Lake. The isolated species were identified by morphological examination. It was cultivated for extraction of fatty acids by slight modification on Blight & Dryer method. Fatty acid content from the isoted microalgae was found to be 16%. Trans-esterification was carried out to the extracted fatty acids. Characterization of the biodiesel was done by UV Spectroscopy, FTIR and GCMS. In UV Spectroscopy analysis, the peak was observed at 275nm which refers the presence of FAME in extracted biodiesel. Three functional groups corresponding to Carboxylic acid, Alkane (Methyl group) and Ester are identified using FT-IR analysis and there were 21 type of mono esters present in biodiesel. 69.54% of FAME compounds were identified by GCMS analysis. These results conclude that Oedogonium tyrolicum can serve as a potential source for the biodiesel production. Thus Oedogonium tyrolicum can be used for large scale production of biofuels.