The Effects of Sodium Phosphate on the Production of Biofuels in Algae Growth

Abstract

The balance of nutrients, especially nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium plays a large role in algae productivity. We questioned how these different nutrients—more specifically sodium phosphate—can affect the growth of algae. We hypothesized that the algae used would display greater densities in relation to the increase in sodium phosphate given to each sample. Our study consisted of two series of experiments that had varying levels of sodium phosphate placed in Photobioreactors containing algae where they set for a week. Our data showed that only 3 ml of sodium phosphate resulted in a higher algae growth rate, proving our hypothesis incorrect.