Kappaphycus alvarezii as semirefined carrageenan. "K. alvarezii" is affected by ice-ice, a disease that severely reduces its yield. This alga is an introduced species and a noxious aquatic weed in Hawaii. Kappaphycus alvarezii Kappaphycus alvarezii, the elkhorn sea moss, is a species of red algae. It is one of the most important commercial sources of carrageenans, a family of gel-forming, viscosifying polysaccharides. Farming methods affect the character of the carrageenan that can be extracted from the seaweed. This alga grows to two meters long and is green or yellow in color. It is very fast-growing, known to double its biomass in 15
Tyrian purple Tyrian purple Tyrian purple (, "porphúra"; ), also known as Tyrian red, Phoenician purple, royal purple, imperial purple or imperial dye, is a reddish-purple natural dye. It is a secretion produced by several species of predatory sea snails in the family Muricidae, rock snails originally known by the name "Murex". In ancient times, extracting this dye involved tens of thousands of snails and substantial labor, and as a result, the dye was highly valued. The main chemical is 6,6′-dibromoindigo. Tyrian purple may first have been used by the ancient Phoenicians as early as 1570 BC. The dye was greatly prized