Vaibhav's PhD research focuses on understanding symbiotic interactions between algae and bacteria in order to be able to grow algae on a large scale in open pond systems and in the dense cultures necessary for industrial cultivation.
Algae are an important source of important molecules such as vitamins and they have also risen to prominence as a source of biofuel as an alternative to using of food crops for fuel production. One of the challenges of growing algae on a large scale is contamination by bacteria and other protozoans. The ultimate aim of his work is to advance our understanding of large scale algae production and make biofuels produced by algae into a competitive alternative energy source.
