Dissolved Oxygen from Algae with Different pH Levels

Abstract

Algae is an aquatic organism which attains its nutrients through photosynthesis. Our study is determining how different pH levels affect the growth of algae samples from nearby Boomer Lake. We hypothesize that if a water sample containing algae is placed in a solution with a pH above 7, it will maintain a higher growth rate. To test the growth rate of algae we planned to record the level of dissolved oxygen in one acidic solution, one neutral solution used as a control and one alkaline solution. The trial for each water sample will be measured over a two week time period. We discovered that out hypothesis was supported. We believe we received these results because it is possible the acid in the acidic solution killed the algae.