merged

Direct Transesterification of Microalgae Fresh Biomass for Fatty Acid
Profiling
Chen Mee Kee
Supervisor: Dr. Loh Saw Hong
Bachelor of Science (Analytical and Environmental Chemistry)
School of Marine and Environmental Sciences
Universiti Malaysia Terengganu
Transesterification is a process of converting lipids to fatty acid methyl esters (FAME)
for the fatty acid profiling of microalgae. Oil extraction from microalgae prior to
transesterification (OT) is commonly applied to determine the oil and fatty acid
compositions. These processes are costly and time-consuming due to high energy
input and organic solvents used. Direct transesterification (DT) of microalgae fresh
biomass was developed for real-time monitoring of total FAME and fatty acid profile
during the microalgae culturing. The total FAME of Chlorella vulgaris and
Ankistrodemus gracilis were higher when DT was applied as compared to the OT. This
indicated the DT was capable to release the fatty acids from membrane lipid and thus
contributing to higher total FAME. The difference in fatty acid profile was observed for
both species using both DT and OT methods. This revealed that both DT and OT can
be applied depending on the multidisciplinary applications.
1937 | UMT UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH DAY 2018