The effect of nitrogen starvation on lipid production of Scenedesmus dimorphus biofilm cultures

This study investigated the effect of the for lipid production in the Scenedesmus dimorphus biofilm form cultivation under nitrogen (N) starvation. The formation of planktonic and biofilm in the species of gren algaes (Chlorophyceae) S. dimorphus was inoculated at environments with both %100 N and %25 N. The aim of this study was to experiment the effects of nitrogen starvation and biofilm formation on dry cell weight (DCW), chlorophyll-a and total lipid production. Under laboratory conditions were modified a Rotating algal biofilm reactor (RABR) in order to investigate the formation of biofilm at S. dimorphus microalgae. Design process of the RABR was important for the purposes of microalgae production by S. dimorphus. During the design process, multiple materials were tested for their adhesion quality. Polyethylene robe was chosen for this experiment for its highest adhesion percentage along with the simple harvesting process. The highest dry biomass data recorded after the experimentwas 0,275 g/m2 and this result came from a biofilm formation that contained %100 N. When the effects of the nitrogen stress on total lipid concentration was examined, it was found that the highest amount % total lipid in DCW was 13,81 and this result was obtained from biofilm form containing %25 N.