Title:
Glycerol Production by Halophytic Microalgae: Strategy for Producing Industrial Quantities in Saline Water
Author(s):
Harvey, P.J., Psycha, M., Kokossis, A, Abubakar, A.L., Trivedi, V., Swamy, R., Cowan, A.K., Schroeder, D., Highfield, A., Reinhardt, G., Gartner, S., McNeil, J., Day, P., Brocken, M., Varrie, J., Ben-Amotz, A.
Document(s):
Paper
Abstract:
Our aim is to increase the range of commercially viable biofuels by developing a low¬cost system for producing industrial quantities of glycerol from the halophytic microalga, Dunaliella, cultivated on saline water. Glycerol can be combusted at very high efficiencies and with very low emissions without chemical alteration or the addition of combustion enhancers using a new commercial CHP technology based on the McNeil cycle, and holds the key to developing an entirely new, environmentally¬sustainable biofuel industry sector. Glycerol will also serve as an intermediate to replace various fossil oil¬based bulk chemicals in the biorefineries of the future. Glycerol is currently available from biodiesel manufacture, but is also synthesised de novo by natural halophytic microalgae that grow in highly saline environments (salt pans and desalination non¬potable waters) across the globe. In this paper new strains of halophytic microalgae from Namibia were characterised for glycerol productivity and the data used in engineering models to optimise production and process designs. Our preliminary data indicate that in water¬based biorefineries the economic potential of the venture will improve dramatically as one shifts from single¬product into multiproduct processes. Based on current prices of glycerol, both glycerol and ߬carotene need to be extracted from Dunaliella for profitability.
Keywords:
biofuels, biorefinery, cultivation, microalgae, supply chain
Topic:
Biomass Resources
Subtopic:
Algae production systems
Event:
20th European Biomass Conference and Exhibition
Session:
1BO.2.2
Pages:
85 - 90
ISBN:
978-88-89407-54-7
Paper DOI:
10.5071/20thEUBCE2012-1BO.2.2
Price:
FREE
