Annual productivity and lipid composition of native microalgae (Chlorophyta) at a pilot production facility in Southern California
2021
Fields, Francis J. | Hernandez, Ritchie E. | Weilbacher, Ethan | Garcia-Vargas, Edgar | Huynh, Justin | Thurmond, Mason | Lund, Richard | Burkart, Michael D. | Mayfield, Stephen P.
Microalgae are an efficient platform for the sustainable production of foods, fuels, and bioproducts. Due to the vast natural diversity of microalgae, choosing an ideal species for production can be challenging, and laboratory-derived productivity data may be misleading. In the present study, nine species of green algae (Chlorophyta) were isolated directly from an outdoor pilot production facility, identified via sequencing and microscopy, cultured under standard laboratory conditions to assess lipid content, and then cultivated in 80-L cultures in a greenhouse over the course of a year to assess productivity. Analysis of lipid content from laboratory-grown cultures revealed that these strains had high concentrations of C16 and C18 fatty acids and lipid content not exceeding 30% of dry weight during growth phase. In the greenhouse, Parachlorella kessleri-SD23 had the highest annual productivity, yielding an annual average of approximately 19 g/m²/d and 88 mg/L/d of biomass productivity. Additionally, P. kessleri-SD23 had a total lipid content equal to about 19% of dry weight during growth phase under laboratory conditions with the highest concentration of C18:2 and C18:3 fatty acids among the isolates.
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