Algae+15-16



Hi! We are the algae team for the 2015-16 school year. Our names are Matthew,Tommy, Jonathan, and Kenny. Our goal in the algae team is to capture carbon by turning it into polysaccharide or remove and collect heavy metal ions from the industrial wastewater through the mass growth of algae.

During the first week, we came up with some ideas about the usage of algae and design a basic setup for the growth of algae. We did some research on the best conditions for algae to reach their optimum.

Impact GOAL: to grow algae culture to purify industrial waste water by decreasing the heavy metal ions, toxins, etc.
Factors that control the growth of algae: Nutrients promote and support the growth of algae. The eutrophication (nutrient enrichment) of waterways is considered as a major factor. The main nutrients contributing to eutrophication are phosphorus and nitrogen. When dissolved oxygen concentration is low in the water (anoxic), sediments release phosphate into the water column. This phenomenon encourages the growth of algae. Water temperatures above 25°C are optimal for the growth of Cyanobacteria. At these temperatures, blue–green algae have a competitive advantage over other types of algae whose optimal growth temperature is lower (12-15°C). Turbidity is caused by the presence of suspended particles and organic matter (flocs) in the water column. Low turbidity can be due to slow moving or stagnant water that allows suspended articles to settle out of the water column. When turbidity is low, more light can penetrate through the water column. This creates optimal conditions for algal growth. In return, growing algae create a turbid environment.
 * ** Nutrients **
 * ** Temperature **
 * ** Light **
 * 1) Blue–green algae populations are diminished when they are exposed to long periods of high light intensity (photo-inhibition) but have optimal growth when intermittently exposed to high light intensities. These conditions are met under the water surface where light environment is fluctuating.
 * 2) Even under low light conditions, or in turbid water, blue–green algae have higher growth rates than any other group of algae. This ability to adapt to variable light conditions gives cyanobacteria a competitive advantage over other algal species.
 * ** Stable Conditions **
 * 1) Most of blue–green algae prefer stable water conditions with low flows, long retention times, light winds and minimal turbulence; other prefer mixing conditions and turbid environments.
 * 2) Drought, water extraction for irrigation, human and stock consumption and the regulation of rivers by weirs and dams all contribute to decreased flows of water in our river systems. Water moves more slowly or becomes ponded, which encourages the growth of algae.
 * 3) When a water body is stratified, bottom waters often become depleted with oxygen (anoxia) which may lead to increased nutrient release from the sediments. Pulses of nutrient from the colder bottom layer may fuel up the algal growth in the top layer.
 * ** Turbidity **

In order to get the supplies, we decided on our final objective: to grow algae culture to purify industrial waste water by decreasing the heavy metal ions and toxins. We will make the basic setup for the first month to observe the optimum conditions of algae. Then, we will mix certain elements into the water to mimic an environment that contains waste water and try pumping the waste into the algae to detect the concentration of heavy metal ions. We could also pursue side benefits from the algae we are going to grow.
 * 12/14/15 **

We are waiting for out stuff. The order was placed last Friday. Also Today we are going to present our progress in this ongoing project. Xi is checking all of the pipes again making sure all the equipment is sterilized. The algae cannot die. We can't start over more than once. Time is key with algae.
 * 12/21/15 **

This is our primary procedure for industrial wastewater treatment through Chlorella. We contacted a professor from Rice University, but haven't got any reply yet. Probably 3rd stage, which includes microstraining, needs very advanced equipment and seems unrealistic, so we'll try our best to figure out how to do the first two stages. ---Side Note/Alternate impact goal: to make safe and affordable cosmetics through massive algae growth.
 * 1/4/15 **

**Week of 1/11**
Unfortunately our algae hasn't arrived yet, so we rearrange our set up again, leaving more space for algae growth because only in massive growing condition will algae function well. Besides, we found some old equipment left by team last year and clean the oily stuff with acetone. During then some weird kids got in and broke two test tubes :( but more is on the way! we are sure we can start up immediately after the algae arrives to make up the lost time!

Matt's cleaning:

So we had a lock down on Tuesday. F-Block was cut in half. We only had a thirty minute class. Now on 1/20/16 we still haven't heard from this college professor who grows algae by the ton. I do not know what is taking so long. We might just contact some more professionals. Reference: https://www.terrapub.co.jp/journals/GJ/pdf/4104/41040235.pdf http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3838398/ http://www.chemguide.co.uk/inorganic/transition/iron.html http://www.oilgae.com/non_fuel_products/non_fuel_products_from_algae.html http://www.oilgae.com/non_fuel_products/algae_wastewatertreatment.html http://bioscience.oxfordjournals.org/content/61/6/434.full http://extension.uga.edu/publications/detail.cfm?number=B1419#Mass http://news.rice.edu/2015/04/02/rice-u-study-algae-from-wastewater-solves-two-problems-2/ http://extension.uga.edu/publications/detail.cfm?number=B1419 http://www.enviroalternatives.com/watermethods.html Last year's algae team:here
 * Week of 1/19/16**
 * Photos of week of 2/8/16**