Microalgae Bioproduction – Feeds, Foods, Nutraceuticals, and Polymers

Merz, Clifford R.; Main, Kevan L.

doi:10.1002/9781119117193.ch5

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 123 publications

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“…In addition, since diatoms are characterized by an almost pure, amorphous hydrated silica shell (frustule), they can also serve as a potential source of biogenic silica for high quality applications 39,40 . Finally, C. cryptica is also known to produce β-chitin nanofibrils (fibers) 3,41 , which may have use in the manufacture of biomembranes and bioplastics that have better biodegradability than plastics [42][43][44] . The production of biobased plastics from natural resources with high levels of protein and carbohydrate-based polymers present a biodegradable alternative for replacing or complementing traditional petroleum-based plastics 45,46 .…”

Section: Algal Growth Rate In Ac-pbrsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although these 4Rs of sustainability are not new concepts, never have they been more important than today in a world whose estimated 2050 population of 9.8 billion reflects an increase of nearly 2 billion people over the most recent 30-year period. Presuming the population trends play out, the production of microalgae will be increasingly needed to ensure a sufficient supply of nutritious protein and other bioproducts to the world's population 2,3 .…”

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confidence: 99%

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Microalgal cultivation characteristics using commercially available air-cushion packaging material as a photobioreactor

Merz

Arora

Welch

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

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Air-cushion (AC) packaging has become widely used worldwide. ACs are air-filled, dual plastic packaging solutions commonly found surrounding and protecting items of value within shipping enclosures during transit. Herein, we report on a laboratory assessment employing ACs as a microalgal photobioreactor (PBR). Such a PBR inherently addresses many of the operational issues typically encountered with open raceway ponds and closed photobioreactors, such as evaporative water loss, external contamination, and predation. Using half-filled ACs, the performance of microalgal species Chlorella vulgaris, Nannochloropsis oculata, and Cyclotella cryptica (diatom) was examined and the ash-free dry cell weight and overall biomass productivity determined to be 2.39 g/L and 298.55 mg/L/day for N. oculata, 0.85 g/L and 141.36 mg/L/day for C. vulgaris, and 0.67 g/L and 96.08 mg/L/day for C. cryptica. Furthermore, maximum lipid productivity of 25.54 mg/L/day AFDCW and carbohydrate productivity of 53.69 mg/L/day AFDCW were achieved by C. cryptica, while maximum protein productivity of 247.42 mg/L/day AFDCW was attained by N. oculata. Data from this work will be useful in determining the applicability and life-cycle profile of repurposed and reused ACs as potential microalgal photobioreactors depending upon the end product of interest, scale utilized, and production costs.

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Section: Algal Growth Rate In Ac-pbrsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Microalgal cultivation characteristics using commercially available air-cushion packaging material as a photobioreactor

Merz

Arora

Welch

et al. 2023

Sci Rep

Self Cite

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“…86 Just like plants, these organisms can produce carbohydrates, lipids and proteins as well as other interesting compounds such as astaxanthin and β-carotene. 87 The cellular contents of microalgae vary from species to species (Table 3). Microalgae can synthesize between 30-70% of oil (by weight) in biomass.…”

Section: Microalgae: the 3 Rd Generation Biofuel Better Than Plantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microalgae: the next best alternative to fossil fuels after biomass. A review

Bhagea

Bhoyroo

Puchooa

2019

Microbiol Res (Pavia)

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It is expected that 84% of the global energy demands will be met through fossil fuels in 2030 due to increasing energy needs. However, due to their impact on the environment through the emission of anthropogenic green house gases, biofuels were introduced as alternative sources of energy. Biofuels of plant origin for the transport sector proved to be controversial due to competition for food production, fertile land and expensive production processes. As a secondary alternative, microalgae such as Scenedesmus obliquus, Chlorella vulgaris and Nannochloropsis sp. were found to be suitable candidates for liquid biofuels production. This review describes the production of transportation liquid biofuels from plant biomass and microalgae. Information is provided on how the controversies related to plant biomass lead to the use of algal biomass. The production processes involved in both generations are discussed and highlighted. Furthermore, details on the production of secondary products such as pigments, feed additives and valuable secondary metabolites are also provided.

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“…Chitin is the most abundant natural polymer in the ocean and thereby provides an enormous reservoir of organic carbon and nitrogen to draw from. − Global fisheries contribute significantly to satisfying the world’s need for protein; however, crustacean and cephalopod seafood processing can generate between 35 and 75% biowaste by weight consisting of the shell, head, and viscera . With increasing demands in both the human population and protein needs, continued improvement in sustainable seafood biowaste management through new market development is essential.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Physicochemical and Colligative Investigation of α (Shrimp Shell)- and β (Squid Pen)-Chitosan Membranes: Concentration-Gradient-Driven Water Flux and Ion Transport for Salinity Gradient Power and Separation Process Operations

Merz

2019

ACS Omega

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Chitin, and its derivative chitosan, is a naturally occurring biopolymer and an abundant polysaccharide containing acetylated units of N-acetyl-d-glucosamine. Chitosan membranes produced from shrimp shell (α) and squid pen (β) biowaste were prepared by solvent-casting, after which water flux and ionic transport diffusion experiments were conducted using a side-by-side concentration test cell under differing salinity concentration gradients. Physicochemical and experimental investigations were conducted, which confirmed that β-chitin possesses differing and enhanced performance characteristics than α-chitin with respect to diffusive water flux and ionic transport capabilities. In addition, novel colligative investigations through osmotic equilibrium were conducted to determine electrochemical characteristics for the evaluation of salinity gradient power generation suitability. Electrochemical test results under a salinity gradient revealed extremely low energy density values, thereby limiting consideration for commercial utility-scale salinity gradient power renewable energy operations. However, the tested membranes possessed high water and ion flux permeability characteristics that could find use in industrial separation process operations such as those used in the extraction of economically valuable materials from seawater or highly saline industrial fluids, or reduction in the saline content of mining fluids during dewatering and hazardous waste treatment and disposal operations, thereby potentially fostering new market developments, which will drive continued improvements in the responsible biowaste management of this valuable marine bioresource.

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Microalgae Bioproduction – Feeds, Foods, Nutraceuticals, and Polymers

Cited by 7 publications

References 123 publications

Microalgal cultivation characteristics using commercially available air-cushion packaging material as a photobioreactor

Microalgal cultivation characteristics using commercially available air-cushion packaging material as a photobioreactor

Microalgae: the next best alternative to fossil fuels after biomass. A review

Physicochemical and Colligative Investigation of α (Shrimp Shell)- and β (Squid Pen)-Chitosan Membranes: Concentration-Gradient-Driven Water Flux and Ion Transport for Salinity Gradient Power and Separation Process Operations

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