Seaweed Sargassum sp. as material for biogas production

Biogas refers to the final product of the organic material conversion through the anaerobic digestion process. Its main components include methane (55-65%), carbon dioxide (33-40%), hydrogen sulfide (>1%), other gases and water vapour. This research aims to determine and observe the potential of Sargassum casifolium as material for biogas production and determine the gas pressure that seaweed S. casifolium can produce as a new energy alternative. This research was conducted in the waters of Ternate Island, in which the samples of seaweed were collected from the waters of Kastela Beach. The analysis of seaweed material for biogas was conducted at the Laboratory Alkalis, Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Science, Khairun University, Ternate, Indonesia, within 6 months. The results of the research show that the following gasses can be obtained from S. casifolium: methane 24.56%, nitrogen 5.85%, hydrogen sulfide 0.006% and CO2 3.29%. This showed that methane is the biogas compound with the highest level in S. casifolium. Meanwhile, the observations on biogas pressure showed good values. Hence, based on the biogas composition of S. casifolium, the seaweed has the potential to be used as biogas material.