Overview of Carbon Capture Technology: Microalgal Biorefinery Concept and State-of-the-Art

Abstract

The impending danger of climate change and pollution can now be seen on the world panorama. The concentration of CO 2 , the most important Green House Gas (GHG), has reached to formidable levels. Although carbon capture and storage (CCS) methods have been largely worked upon, they are cumbersome in terms of economy and their long term environmental safety raises a concern. Alternatively, bio-sequestration of CO 2 using microalgal cell factories has emerged as a promising way of recycling CO 2 into biomass via photosynthesis which in turn could be used for the production of bioenergy and other value-added products. Despite enormous potential, the production of microalgae for low-value bulk products and bulk products such as biofuels, is heretofore, not feasible. To achieve economic viability and sustainability, major hurdles in both, the upstream and downstream processes have to be overcome. Recent technoeconomic analyses and life-cycle assessments of microalgae-based production systems have suggested that the only possible way for scaling up the production is to completely use the biomass in an integrated biorefinery setup wherein every valuable component is extracted, processed and valorized. This article provides a brief yet comprehensive review of the present carbon sequestration and utilization technologies, focusing primarily on biological CO 2 capture by microalgae in the context of bio-refinery. The paper discusses various products of microalgal biorefinery and aims to assess the opportunities, challenges and current state-of-the-art of microalgae-based CO 2 bioconversion, which are essential to the sustainability of this approach in terms of the environment as well as the economy.

A General Vision for Reduction of Energy Consumption and CO2 Emissions from the Steel Industry

“…The captured CO 2 can then displace the gas produced from fossil origin for that purpose. Another example is saline algae cultivation, which could utilize and bind CO 2 and produce raw materials for various bioproducts [57]. Captured CO 2 is already in use for natural gas processing and urea fertilizer production [50].…”

Preliminary Investigation of CO2 Sequestration by Chlorella sorokiniana TH01 in Single and Sequential Photobioreactors

“…However, most of the developed technologies are costly and unsustainable. Biological method of capture CO2 using microalgae have been considering as a promising technology [3]. Microalgae mostly grow via photosynthesis by consuming CO2 and using solar energy at a rate of ten times greater than terrestrial plants with higher daily growth rate [4].…”

“…Microalgae mostly grow via photosynthesis by consuming CO2 and using solar energy at a rate of ten times greater than terrestrial plants with higher daily growth rate [4]. Capturing CO2 by microalgae can be simultaneously integrated with wastewater treatment for nutrient removal while producing high-added value biomass which is promising feedstock for energy-related and bioproductsrelated industries [3,5].…”

Carbon Mass Balance in Arthrospira platensis Culture with Medium Recycle and High CO2 Supply

“…Due to the CO 2 requirement, algae mass-cultivation is considered as a key technology for CO 2 bio-capture from CO 2 containing gas sources such as flue gas, steel mills, and biogas [11,12], meriting both mass-culture cost reduction and environmental impact. With the recent demands for a reduction in CO 2 emission to prevent global climate change, algae are considered as one of the key organisms for CO 2 capture and utilization (CCU) processes [13,14]. In these processes, captured CO 2 is utilized for algal photosynthesis to produce bioproducts such as biofuel, bioplastics, and other materials [13].…”

“…With the recent demands for a reduction in CO 2 emission to prevent global climate change, algae are considered as one of the key organisms for CO 2 capture and utilization (CCU) processes [13,14]. In these processes, captured CO 2 is utilized for algal photosynthesis to produce bioproducts such as biofuel, bioplastics, and other materials [13]. Although the carbon footprint differs depending on the use of algal biomass [14], carbon utilization for microalgal biodiesel production is one of the best options compared to chemical production.…”