Kolawole B. H. E Boni^1,, Fayu Zhang¹, Wu Kang¹, Jiaquan Wang¹

This research was carried out to extract and purify phycocyanin from blue algae in Chaohu Lake by utilizing salting out methods. Thus a two-step salting out was performed using Ammonium sulphate, Triammonium citrate, Sodium citrate and Sodium sulfate. The phycocyanin and the impurity solution collected at each phase were subjected to analysis by using UV-Vis spectrophotometer to identify the optimal dose of ammonium sulfate, triammonium citrate, sodium citrate and sodium sulfate. The optimal molar concentration for Ammonium sulphate, Triammonium citrate_, Sodium citrate and Sodium sulfate in the first and second salting out process were 1.0 mol/L and 1.7mol/L for Ammonium sulphate (NH₄)₂SO_4, 0.7, mol/L and 1.3 mol/L for Triammonium citrate C₆H₁₇N₃O₇, 0.5mol/L and 0.9 mol/L for Sodium citrate C₆H₅Na₃O₇, 1.0mol/L and 1.3 mol/L for Sodium sulfate Na₂S0₄. After the two-step salting out processes, it was observed that higher molar concentrations can remove impurities in large quantities, and both purity and yield was greatly increased. The results indicate a purity of phycocyanin above 2.0 with a phycocyanin recovery relatively high. This was carried out to affirm and estimate if the result from the salt use will vary from a previous experiment carried out on the same river by the authors with three (3) different kinds of salt K₃C₆H₅O₇H₂O, C₆H₅O₇(NH₄)₃ and (NH₄)₂SO₄ as compared to the four (4) salt compound used in this experiment.

cyanobacteria, phycocyanin, purity, salting-out, yield