Inicio  /  Clean Technologies  /  Vol: 3 Par: 4 (2021)  /  Artículo
ARTÍCULO
TITULO

Key Targets for Improving Algal Biofuel Production

Gareth Griffiths    
Abul Kalam Hossain    
Vikas Sharma and Ganesh Duraisamy    

Resumen

A number of technological challenges need to be overcome if algae are to be utilized for commercial fuel production. Current economic assessment is largely based on laboratory scale up or commercial systems geared to the production of high value products, since no industrial scale plant exits that are dedicated to algal biofuel. For macroalgae (?seaweeds?), the most promising processes are anaerobic digestion for biomethane production and fermentation for bioethanol, the latter with levels exceeding those from sugar cane. Currently, both processes could be enhanced by increasing the rate of degradation of the complex polysaccharide cell walls to generate fermentable sugars using specifically tailored hydrolytic enzymes. For microalgal biofuel production, open raceway ponds are more cost-effective than photobioreactors, with CO2 and harvesting/dewatering costs estimated to be ~50% and up to 15% of total costs, respectively. These costs need to be reduced by an order of magnitude if algal biodiesel is to compete with petroleum. Improved economics could be achieved by using a low-cost water supply supplemented with high glucose and nutrients from food grade industrial wastewater and using more efficient flocculation methods and CO2 from power plants. Solar radiation of not <3000 h·yr-1 favours production sites 30° north or south of the equator and should use marginal land with flat topography near oceans. Possible geographical sites are discussed. In terms of biomass conversion, advances in wet technologies such as hydrothermal liquefaction, anaerobic digestion, and transesterification for algal biodiesel are presented and how these can be integrated into a biorefinery are discussed.

 Artículos similares

       
 
Muhammad Atiq Ur Rehman Tariq, Maha Hussein and Nitin Muttil    
A key driver of Australia?s economic development is through promoting migration. A strong bottleneck to achieve the targets is a disproportional concentration of population in the metropolitan cities. To avoid congestion in these cities, emphasis is bein... ver más
Revista: Infrastructures

 
Wei Su, Jiapeng Wu, Bei Zhu, Kaiqi Chen, Wenqi Peng and Baoyue Hu    
Health assessment and risk factor identification represent the premise and foundation of scientific management and ecological restoration of urban lakes. Based on in-depth understanding of the nature?society duality of urban lakes, a framework for evalua... ver más
Revista: Water

 
João Valente, Juan Jesús Roldán, Mario Garzón and Antonio Barrientos    
This paper presents a novel tool capable of collecting thermal signatures inside a building by using low-cost IR temperature sensors mounted on-board an aerial platform. The proposed system aims to facilitate the detection of heat loss inside buildings, ... ver más
Revista: Drones

 
Andrzej Stateczny, Witold Kazimierski, Pawel Burdziakowski, Weronika Motyl and Marta Wisniewska    
Autonomous surface vehicles (ASVs) are becoming more and more popular for performing hydrographic and navigational tasks. One of the key aspects of autonomous navigation is the need to avoid collisions with other objects, including shore structures. Duri... ver más

 
In the last several decades, Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) reverse supply chain management has increasingly gained more attention due to the development of an environmental awareness, the rapid raise of e-wasted products and the EU reg... ver más
Revista: Sustainability