Microalgae are increasingly being preferred as sustainable biomass feedstock for biofuels production due to their high growth rate and lipid yield. However, optimal production requires the use of economical native microalgal species which are well adapted to local climatic and ecological conditions. Therefore, this study’s main objective was to isolate and select local microalgal species for prospective biofuels production. Serial dilution and streak plate techniques were used to isolate four species: Chlorella, Scenedesmus, Oscillatoria and Microcystis from Manyame River, Zimbabwe. The isolates were evaluated for their biomass and lipid productivity under artificial lighting (8:16 h light/dark cycle) and a temperature of 25 ± 3°C. Lipid quantification was done gravimetrically, using hexane as an extraction solvent. Each isolate’s performance was compared against that of an imported Chlorella vulgaris strain. Amongst the isolates, Chlorella sp. exhibited a highly competitive growth rate of 0.26 d⁻¹ and lipid yield of 37.16% dry cell weight. In comparison, the imported C. vulgaris had a growth rate of 0.226 d⁻¹ and lipid yield of 35.74% dry cell weight. Although findings suggest that the native Chlorella sp. is the ideal candidate, growth enhancement and genetic engineering techniques may be used to further improve its biomass and lipid yield.

微藻由于其高的生长速率和脂质产量而越来越多地被优选作为用于生物燃料生产的可持续的生物质原料。然而，最佳生产需要使用经济的天然微藻种，它们非常适合当地的气候和生态条件。因此，这项研究的主要目的是分离和选择用于未来生物燃料生产的当地微藻种。连续稀释和条纹板技术用于分离四种小球藻，小球藻，颤藻和微囊藻。来自津巴布韦的曼雅梅河。在人工照明（光/暗周期为8:16 h）和温度为25±3°C的条件下，评估了分离物的生物量和脂质生产率。使用己烷作为萃取溶剂，通过重量分析法进行脂质定量。将每种分离物的性能与进口的小球藻菌株进行比较。在分离物中，小球藻属。表现出0.26 d ^-1的高度竞争性生长速率和37.16％干细胞重量的脂质产率。相比之下，进口的寻常小球藻的生长速率为0.226 d ^-1，脂质产量为干细胞重量的35.74％。虽然发现表明，天然小球藻属。 如果是理想的选择，可以使用生长增强和基因工程技术来进一步提高其生物量和脂质产量。