Abstract
Microalgae have gained attention as feedstock for value-added chemicals production. The extraction potential of four different organic solvents such as methanol, chloroform, dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO) and acetone was assessed for obtaining chlorophyll (Chl a and Chl b), and total carotenoids over 48 h at every 4 h intervals utilizing mixed microalgal consortium. Maximum of 4.62 μg/ml of Chl a, 4.78 μg/ml of Chl b and 1.76 μg/ml of total carotenoids were obtained with DMSO, methanol and 80% acetone after 16 h, 40 h and 36 h respectively. Maximum astaxanthin yield of 0.82 μg/ml was obtained with DMSO after 20 min, which was found to decline on further increase in extraction time. Supplementing the solvent extraction process with microwave and ultrasound increased the pigment yield. The study would facilitate utilization of natural microalgal pigments as an eco-friendly and economical alternative for synthetic colorants used in the feed and agricultural industries.
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