Microalgae: a robust “green bio-bridge” between energy and environment

Chen, Yimin; Xu, Chaochao; Vaidyanathan, Seetharaman

doi:10.1080/07388551.2017.1355774

Cited by 56 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 167 publications

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“…The two main advantages of working with microalgae are: (1) they only need light, water, carbon dioxide, and some salts to grow; and (2) they do not compete with conventional crop cultivation [ 7 ]. Much research is currently being conducted on microalgae cultivation, and very promising results have been achieved in increasing the performance of production routes with different approaches [ 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ]. Particularly in open thin-layer cascade photobioreactors, which are more profitable from the economic point of view for large scale cultivation, cell densities as high as 50 g/L have recently been realized [ 12 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bare Iron Oxide Nanoparticles for Magnetic Harvesting of Microalgae: From Interaction Behavior to Process Realization

et al. 2018

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Microalgae continue to gain in importance as a bioresource, while their harvesting remains a major challenge at the moment. This study presents findings on microalgae separation using low-cost, easy-to-process bare iron oxide nanoparticles with the additional contribution of the upscaling demonstration of this simple, adhesion-based process. The high affinity of the cell wall for the inorganic surface enables harvesting efficiencies greater than 95% for Scenedesmus ovalternus and Chlorella vulgaris. Successful separation is possible in a broad range of environmental conditions and primarily depends on the nanoparticle-to-microalgae mass ratio, whereas the effect of pH and ionic strength are less significant when the mass ratio is chosen properly. The weakening of ionic concentration profiles at the interphase due to the successive addition of deionized water leads the microalgae to detach from the nanoparticles. The process works efficiently at the liter scale, enabling complete separation of the microalgae from their medium and the separate recovery of all materials (algae, salts, and nanoparticles). The current lack of profitable harvesting processes for microalgae demands innovative approaches to encourage further development. This application of magnetic nanoparticles is an example of the prospects that nanobiotechnology offers for biomass exploitation.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bare Iron Oxide Nanoparticles for Magnetic Harvesting of Microalgae: From Interaction Behavior to Process Realization

et al. 2018

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“…Ostreococcus tauri can provide convenient opportunities to define minimal and critical metabolic 47 pathways for C transformation 14,15,16 . O. tauri is the smallest known free-living eukaryote 48 (~0.8µm in thickness), lacks a cell wall, and thrives in varying photic, toxic and thermal 49 ecosystems [17][18][19] .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Microalgae are ubiquitous in oceans and maintain a major carbon sink in the complex 24 world-wide ecosystem. Spanning more than one-billion years of evolution, microalgae are pathways for C transformation 13,14 . O. tauri is the smallest known free-living eukaryote (~0.8µm 48 in thickness), lacks a cell wall, and thrives in varying photic, toxic and thermal ecosystems 15,16 .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Integrated systems biology and imaging of the smallest free-living eukaryote Ostreococcus tauri

Smallwood

Chen

Kumar

et al. 2018

Preprint

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1Ostreococcus tauri is an ancient phototrophic microalgae that possesses favorable 2 genetic and cellular characteristics for reductionist studies probing biosystem design and 3 dynamics. Here multimodal bioimaging and multi-omics techniques were combined to 4 interrogate O. tauri cellular changes in response to variations in bioavailable nitrogen and 5 carbon ratios. Confocal microscopy, stimulated Raman scattering, and cryo-soft x-ray 6 tomography revealed whole cell ultrastructural dynamics and composition while proteomic and 7 lipidomic profiling captured changes at the molecular and macromolecular scale. 8Despite several energy dense long-chain triacylglycerol lipids showing more than 40-fold 9 higher abundance under N deprivation, only a few proteins directly associated with lipid 10 biogenesis showed significant expression changes. However, the entire pathway for starch 11 granule biosynthesis was highly upregulated suggesting much of the cellular energy is 12 preferentially directed towards starch over lipid accumulation. Additionally, three of the five most 13 downregulated and five of the ten most upregulated proteins during severe nitrogen depletion 14 were unnamed protein products that warrant additional biochemical analysis and functional 15 annotation to control carbon transformation dynamics in this smallest eukaryote. 16 17 19 triacylglycerol, lipid, starch, carbon transformation, lipid droplet, nitrogen scavenging, soft x-ray 20 tomography, stimulated raman scattering microscopy, fluorescence microscopy 21 22 phylogenetically diverse and exhibit varying cellular phenotypes that naturally produce high 26 value metabolites, proteins, carbohydrates and energy dense lipids that can be exploited for a 27 wide array of industrial applications 1-3 . Due to their high photosynthetic efficiency for energy 28 conversion, and minimal growth requirements consisting of sustainable resources such as 29 marine or brackish media, light, CO2 and trace vitamins, microalgae are prime bioproduction 30 platforms 4,5 . 31 Triacylglycerol (TAG) lipids are significantly enhanced when microalgae are subjected to 32 cellular stressors such as light, temperature, and nutrient deprivation 6 . TAG lipids possess 33 nonpolar character and are stored in anhydrous, high-density organelles called lipid bodies, 34 which are desirable for industrial lipid feedstock applications 7 . For other oleaginous algae, TAG 35production can be triggered by nutrient deprivation of iron, sulfur, nitrogen, phosphate, or silicon 36 6 . In most eukaryotes, combinatorial reduction of these nutrients results in altered levels of 37 growth-associated structural lipids (phospholipids) and energy storage lipids (TAG) products 8,9 . 38 Unfortunately, in most cases starvation or deprivation can be detrimental to cell viability and 39 overall growth capacity thereby limiting cell biomass yields needed for viable lipid feedstock 40 industrial applications 10 . While several reports have shown that supplementing additional C 41 sources when combined wit...

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“…We review the application of T. varibilis in bioenergy production from the perspective of liquid (biodiesel, bioethanol) and gaseous (biohydrogen, biomethane) biofuels. Applying microalgae systems for bioenergy production has several environmental advantages, such as reduction of pollutant emissions and soil erosion, and economic benefits such as tax credits and grants without competing with agricultural produce for freshwater and arable land . In addition to these general advantages, T. variabilis has enhanced capacity for auto‐flocculation, which is one of the most important characteristics to decrease energy consumption during algae biomass harvesting.…”

Section: Bioenergy Production Using T Variabilismentioning

confidence: 99%

Bioenergy production using Trichormus variabilis – a review

Abedi

Astaraei

Ghobadian

et al. 2019

Biofuels Bioprod Bioref

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Fossil-fuel processing and consumption contaminates air, soil, and water resources through the release of hazardous chemicals. The harnessing of renewable energy resources and development of sustainable technologies have become prime targets of research and increased investment to protect the environment. The use of bio-based feedstocks in energy production provides a valuable pollutioncurbing pathway with sustainability credentials, especially when wastewater is used to provide the nutrient requirements. The filamentous cyanobacterium Trichormus variabilis has attracted substantial attention from researchers due to its potential for dual industrial functions in bioenergy production and bioremediation. This species can use the power of sunlight energy efficiently to fix atmospheric CO 2 and to generate valuable chemical compounds, such as carbohydrates and fatty acids, which can be converted to biofuels. As it grows in nutrient-rich wastewater (industrial effluent) it can serve as a bioabsorbant and replace costly chemical catalysts and nano-materials traditionally used for the removal of nutrients and metals. However, no recent review has presented the potential for state-of-the-art T. variabilisdriven phycoremediation-bioenergy production systems. This review suggests possible routes from phycoremediation to energy production as a strategy for developing the industrial application of T. variabilis. It brings important research results on this species together and highlights major related challenges and opportunities. It explores the current status of the use of algae in bioremediation and the production of liquid and gaseous fuels utilizing wild-type and mutants of T. variabilis. Finally, key points underlying the potential for future research on optimization of robust technologies for supplying sustainable bioenergy using this organism are presented.

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Microalgae: a robust “green bio-bridge” between energy and environment

Cited by 56 publications

References 167 publications

Bare Iron Oxide Nanoparticles for Magnetic Harvesting of Microalgae: From Interaction Behavior to Process Realization

Bare Iron Oxide Nanoparticles for Magnetic Harvesting of Microalgae: From Interaction Behavior to Process Realization

Integrated systems biology and imaging of the smallest free-living eukaryote Ostreococcus tauri

Bioenergy production using Trichormus variabilis – a review

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