Lipid Accumulation by Flavodon flavus ATH Using Palm Oil Mill Effluent as Substrate

Large amount of palm oil mill effluent (POME) is generated annually. The waste would be potential for production of single cell oils (SCOs). The objective of this study was to evaluate lipid accumulation by fungi using POME as substrate. Seven filamentous fungi were initially isolated from various biomes. The study results showed that out of these 7 fungi, five of them produced endoglucanase and accumulated lipid about 34.3-87.5 persen of their dry cell mass using POME as substrate. The five fungi were identified as ATH, sp., sp., sp. 1 T30, and sp.2 T50. The highest lipid accumulation was obtained by ATH. The profile of trans-esterified SCOs revealed high content of saturated and mono-unsaturated fatty acids i.e., palmitic (C16:0), stearic (C18:0) and oleic (C18:1) acids similar to conventional vegetable oils used for biodiesel production. The strain that was able to use organic substrates in POME indicated that they are promising strain for biofuel feedstock as well as for fulfilling effluent quality for wastewater discharge. BIOTROPIA, Vol. 21, No. 2. Hal. 100-110