Growth Inhibition

This study examined the effects of vinegar on the growth of two freshwater microalgae: Scenedesmus sp. and Chlamydomonas sp.. The experiment was setup in triplicates of different concentrations of vinegar ( 0% (control), 1%, 5%,10%,15%,20% and 25%) in a culture media and monitored for 14 days. The samples were analyzed every two days to monitor growth using a visible spectrophotometer at a wavelength of 750nm as well as other physicochemical parameters such as pH, conductivity, turbidity, total dissolved solids and dissolved oxygen. The results were analyzed using statistical two way analysis of variance ANOVA repeated measures, paired t-test, microsoft excel and descriptive statistics. The result showed that the growth of Scenedesmus sp. and Chlamydomonas sp. were affected by the different concentrations of vinegar with a significant difference (p<0.05) across all parameters. The control (0% vinegar) recorded the highest growth, yield and dissolved oxygen while the 10%vinegar concentration produced the lowest values, indicating that increasing acidity inhibited algal growth and photosynthetic activity. The comparative percentage yield between both species showed no significant difference (p>0.05), suggesting comparable productivity under mild acidity