Changes for the Future

Throughout our project, there were many opportunities where we could have done something different. Firstly, we could have tested across more types of algae and more fermenting agents in order to have a broader spectrum, and also possibly yield better results. Secondly, we should have tried different locations of where we put our algae, to see if its surroundings affected it. Thirdly, we should have tested the pH levels of our algae to see if the amount of ethanol mass correlates with the pH levels of the solution. Finally, we wanted to recreate the steps shown in the Exxon Mobil video, in order to produce biofuel, not merely just test for ethanol levels. In fact, this was our original plan, to bloom the algae, blend it into seawater, strain it, and extract the oils found in the lipids of algae. However, due to constraints such as time, budget, and our knowledge, we were not able to complete this project. If we were to do this again, we would make this experiment a long term project. For example, we would test across various types of algae, while testing it using pH strips. Then, after the algae bloomed, we would blend it with seawater, to accelarate its growth, and then we would blend and strain the solution. Later, after extracting the oil, we would find a mechanism to test it in. In the videos, they use things such as wind power, using the oil as fuel for heat, and much more. It would be out of the question to test this on a car, as we would have to make alot. Some possiblities could be electricity, and powering a set of lights, powering a mechanic train, the options are endless. Although we regret not being able to accomplish all of this for this competition, we are so happy that we were able to complete the basic part of this experiment in a short amount of time.