A two-part method for the preparation of biofuel from unicellular algae is presented. Neutral lipids are extracted from dried algal biomass using chloroform and methanol and transesterified at room temperature in sodium hydroxide and methanol. The experiment also includes analysis of the mixed methyl ester products by 1H NMR. This laboratory exercise is designed to exemplify aspects of carbonyl chemistry and NMR analysis in the context of the popular topic of renewable fuels from plants and algae.

Biofuels for the undergraduate organic chemistry laboratory

245th National Meeting (2013)

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