Young talent competitionWinner of 'Jugend forscht 2018' chosen
The winners of the national final of 'Jugend forscht 2018' have been announced: at the end of May, Federal Education Minister Anja Karliczek presented the awards to the talented youngsters. The winners from technology, computer science, earth and space sciences and physics, including special prize winners, in a photo gallery.
Microalgae such as Chlorella vulgaris produce energy-containing lipids in their cells. But how do you harvest the valuable metabolic products and how do you get from lipids to generally usable biodiesel? In his research project, Moritz Hamberger - the winner of the best interdisciplinary project at Jugend forscht 2018 - found answers to these questions. He constructed and tested various bioreactors in which algae grow. He also tested physical and chemical processes to extract the substances from the cells and convert them into fuel. The young researcher is convinced that Chlorella vulgaris can be cultivated stably and supply raw materials for biodiesel on a technical scale. However, the prerequisites for profitable production processes are the availability of sunlight as an energy source, large reactors and continuous harvesting of the lipids.