(322c) Effect of Growing Conditions On Algal Carbohydrate to Butanol Production

There are several environmentally sound reasons to use algae as a feedstock for biofuels. The fact that they are readily abundant, can absorb unwanted elements out of waste water, and can use carbon dioxide as a carbon source are just a few of the reasons that algae are being examined as one of the most likely medium to replace petroleum fuels. An issue of some concern is that microalgae have a high rate of growth in the summer and lower rates in the winter, which can cause a depletion of feedstock for a bioreactor. We are using a species of Clostridium bacteria to convert algal sugars to butanol in a bioreactor. In order to facilitate localized bioreactors that can operate year-round, we examined dried and stored stocks of algae taken during a six month harvesting period and examined the effects of climate, location, and processing on the amount of carbohydrates extracted from the algae and converted into butanol.