Is their some chemical that can absorb sugars from algae?

Question

I'm doing a science fair experiment and i need a way to remove sugar in algae produced from photosynthesis. If there is a substance or something i can do to remove the sugar, please tell me.

Answer 1

If you want to keep the algae alive, then this might be next to impossible. If you do not care if the algae dies, then the you can disrupt the cell walls (several methods are available including an ultrasonic bath).

The chemicals inside can then be adsorbed onto silica gel and separated by using first non-polar solvents, then polar solvents and finally water. The water should remove the carbohydrates.

If you just want something to measure the amount of photosynthesis that took place for different batches of algae, then the problem is even simpler. You can break the cell walls and then measure the amount of glucose present (either a colorimetric method or use a glucometer).