Sustainable and Selective Extraction of Lipids and Bioactive Compounds from Microalgae

Abstract

The procedures for the extraction and separation of lipids and nutraceutics from microalgae using classic solvents have been used many times. However, these production methods usually require expensive and toxic solvents. Based on our studies involving the use of eco-sustainable methodologies and alternative solvents, we select ethanol (EtOH) and cyclopentyl methyl ether (CPME) for extracting bio-oil and lipids from algae. Different percentage of EtOH in CPME favors the production of an oil rich of SFA useful to production biofuel or rich of compounds bioactive. The proposed method for obtain a rich extract of saturated or unsaturated fatty acids from dry algal biomass is disclosed is eco-friendly and allows a good extraction yield. The method is compared both in extracted oil percentage yield and in extracted fatty acids selectivity to extraction by supercritical carbon dioxide.

Sustainable resource production for manufacturing bioactives from micro‐ and macroalgae: Examples from harvesting and cultivation in the Nordic region

“…With applications in the food and feed areas, we look for “green extraction” alternatives to avoid unhealthy chemicals (Dixon & Wilken, 2018; Santoro et al, 2019) and instead use high temperature or pressure to increase the extraction yield. Supercritical fluid extraction using CO 2 has been investigated with micro‐ and macroalgae and may work well to extract nonpolar or low‐polarity compounds (Gallego et al, 2018; Silva et al, 2020).…”

Systematic metabolome profiling and multi-omics analysis of the nitrogen-limited non-model oleaginous algae for biorefining

“…The fact that FC2 accumulates PUFAs during nitrogen-limitation could be exploited to lower the biodiesel production cost by co-extracting with TAG. Industriallycompatible method for co-extracting phytochemicals was attempted (Delbrut et al, 2018;Santoro et al, 2019). Still, extensive research is needed to optimize the PUFA accumulation in stress-condition and extraction of phytochemicals to its fullest.…”

A novel Penicillium sumatraense isolate reveals an arsenal of degrading enzymes exploitable in algal bio-refinery processes

“…Indeed, the recalcitrant cell wall of several microalgal species negatively impacts the extractability of triacylglycerol and carotenoids from the algal cell [ 7 , 8 ], whereas the poor digestibility of microalgae strongly limits their use as additives in feed industry [ 9 , 10 ]. Moreover, the low extractability of triacylglycerols from microalgae by physical methods negatively impacts the yield of biodiesel from algal-source at industrial scale [ 11 ], whereas lipid extraction by chemical (and polluting) methods clashes with the rationale of using microalgae to produce cleaner fuels. Compared to chemical and physical methods employed to break the algal cells, the biological method is an eco-friendlier option and it is easily extendible to large-scale; moreover, the residual biomass from solvent-free extraction techniques can be further valorized by conversion into animal feed or other forms of fuels [ 12 ].…”