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Name: Leslie
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Question:
I am trying to get microalgae to grow in saline water. What is the best way for me to provide a CO2 source to the algae? I have a CO2 gas bubbler now, but should I use another source instead?

Replies:
Leslie

A CO2 bubbler should work fine. Unless you're planning to grow it very dense you don't even need a bubbler. If you get too zealous with bubbling you might lower the pH- marine algae normally grow in somewhat alkaline water (pH 7.5-8) so unless you're using filtered seawater you may need to add a bit of bicarbonate/carbonate to get the pH balanced and buffered.

http://ccmp.bigelow.org is a research institute that grows and maintains many stocks of algae. They have a listing of references/recipes for various culture media- many of them are based on filtered natural seawater, but some synthetic ones ( e.g. YBC-II medium) made from scratch using freshwater.

Don


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