Life Cycle Assessment of Algae Biofuels: Needs and challenges

Chiaramonti, David; Maniatis, K.; Tredici, Mario R.; Verdelho, Vítor; Yan, Jinyue

doi:10.1016/j.apenergy.2015.06.006

Cited by 20 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…However, there is still work needed in harmonizing LCA results of algal biofuels. Due to differences in production pathways, assumptions, parameters, and data quality, the consequence is a large variability of results, which makes it difficult to compare results, given changing geographical or technological conditions (Chiaramonti et al, 2015). Despite these challenges, LCA is an effective decision-making tool for developing solutions toward sustainable algal fuels.…”

Section: Life Cycle Assessmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of Microalgae for Advanced Wastewater Treatment and Sustainable Bioenergy Generation

Hwang

ChurchJared

LeeSeung-Jin

et al. 2016

Environmental Engineering Science

122

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Given that sustainable energy production and advanced wastewater treatment for producing clean water are two major challenges faced by modern society, microalgae make a desirable treatment alternative by providing a renewable biomass feedstock for biofuel production, while treating wastewater as a growth medium. Microalgae have been known to be resilient to the toxic contaminants of highly concentrated organic wastewater (e.g., organic nitrogen, phosphorus, and salinity) and are excellent at sorbing heavy metals and emerging contaminants. Economic and environmental advantages associated with massive algae culturing in wastewater constitute a driving force to promote its utilization as a feedstock for biofuels. However, there are still many challenges to be resolved which have impeded the development of algal biofuel technology at a commercial scale. This review provides an overview of an integrated approach using microalgae for wastewater treatment, CO 2 utilization, and biofuel production. The main goal of this article is to promote research in algae technologies by outlining critical needs along the integrated process train, including cultivation, harvesting, and biofuel production. Various aspects associated with design challenges of microalgae production are described and current developments in algae cultivation and pretreatment of algal biomass for biofuel production are also discussed. Furthermore, synergistic coupling of the use of microalgae for advanced wastewater treatment and biofuel production is highlighted in a sustainability context using life cycle analysis.

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Section: Life Cycle Assessmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of Microalgae for Advanced Wastewater Treatment and Sustainable Bioenergy Generation

Hwang

ChurchJared

LeeSeung-Jin

et al. 2016

Environmental Engineering Science

122

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…The scarcity of natural resources and particularly the exhaustion of fossil fuels are a global challenge to be addressed in forthcoming decades [1][2][3] [5,13], some aspects of environmental sustainability, such as the energy balance or greenhouse gas emissions, are still liable to improve, especially for the use of microalgae for energy applications [3,5]. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) has the potential to be used as a guiding tool for decision-making in process design [8,14]. LCA may contribute to identify the main bottlenecks to be addressed during the scale up towards sustainable industrial facilities.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparative life cycle assessment of real pilot reactors for microalgae cultivation in different seasons

et al. 2017

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International audienceMicroalgae are promising natural resources for biofuels, chemical, food and feed products. Besides their economic potential, the environmental sustainability must be examined. Cultivation has a significant environmental impact that depends on reactor selection and operating conditions. To identify the main environmental bottlenecks for scale-up to industrial facilities this study provides a comparative life cycle assessment (LCA) of open raceway ponds and tubular photobioreactors at pilot scale. The results are based on experimental data from real pilot plants operated in summer, fall and winter at AlgaePARC (Wageningen, The Netherlands). The energy consumption for temperature regulation presented the highest environmental burden. The production of nutrients affected some categories. Despite limited differences compared to the vertical system, the horizontal PBR was found the most efficient in terms of productivity and environmental impact. The ORP was, given the Dutch climatic conditions, only feasible under summer operation. The results highlight the relevance of LCA as a tool for decision-making in process design. Weather conditions and availability of sources for temperature regulation were identified as essential factors for the selection of geographic locations and for microalgal cultivation systems based on environmental criteria. Simulation of large-scale reactors with optimized temperature regulation systems lead to environmental improvements and energy demand reductions ranging from 17% up to 90% for systems operated in favorable summer conditions

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“…Increasing depletion of fossil fuels and the rising concern for environmental pollution have attracted focus on renewable energy sources . Among the new types of biomass, marine macroalgae are considered attractive renewable resources over terrestrial plants, because of high productivity, non‐requirement of arable land and fertilizers, and greater potential for carbon dioxide fixation . Anaerobic digestion is a technique for successful commercialization of biogas and is widely used for treating organic matters with high moisture content (80–90% moisture) .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of salinity on the microbial community and performance on anaerobic digestion of marine macroalgae

Zhang

Alam

Kong

et al. 2017

J of Chemical Tech & Biotech

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BACKGROUND: The main obstacle associated with methane production in anaerobic digestion processes from marine macroalgae is inhibited by the sea salts. This study aims to investigate the anaerobic digestion performance of marine macroalgae by acclimating inoculum to varying salinity, and to analyze the influence of salinity on microbial community by high-throughput gene sequencing. RESULTS:The relationship between specific methane yield and salinity followed the third-order polynomial equation: y = 271.533 + 6.449X − 0.261X 2 + 0.002X 3 . The acclimating inoculum produced methane efficiently at 35 g L −1 with a specific methane yield of 220.88 mL CH 4 g −1 VS. Methanogenesis was considerably impeded at salinity greater than 55 g L −1 . The bacterial phyla Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, and Proteobacteria and the Methanobacterium, Methanosaeta, and Methanosarcina genera in archaea were predominant at different salinities. Hydrogenotrophic methanogens such as Methanobacterium can tolerate salinity up to 85 g L −1 , whereas acetoclastic methanogens, Methanosaeta and Methanosarcina were severely inhibited at salinity greater than 65 g L −1 . CONCLUSION:The acclimating inoculum can be used as anaerobic microbial resources for efficient methane production from marine macroalgae under seawater conditions of 35 g L −1 . The hydrolytic, acidogenic, acetogenic bacteria and hydrogenotrophic methanogens normally metabolized at different salinities, whereas acetoclastic methanogens were severely inhibited at high saline conditions.

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Life Cycle Assessment of Algae Biofuels: Needs and challenges

Cited by 20 publications

References 10 publications

Use of Microalgae for Advanced Wastewater Treatment and Sustainable Bioenergy Generation

Use of Microalgae for Advanced Wastewater Treatment and Sustainable Bioenergy Generation

Comparative life cycle assessment of real pilot reactors for microalgae cultivation in different seasons

Effect of salinity on the microbial community and performance on anaerobic digestion of marine macroalgae

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