Biodiesel Production from Mixed Culture Algae Via a Wet Lipid Extraction Procedure

Author

Ashik Sathish, Utah State University

Date of Award:

12-2012

Document Type:

Thesis

Degree Name:

Master of Science (MS)

Department:

Biological Engineering

Committee Chair(s)

Ronald Sims

Committee

Ronald Sims

Committee

Byard Wood

Committee

Charles Miller

Committee

Issa Hamud

Abstract

Development of renewable sources of energy has received significant interest due to the rising costs of energy and the environmental impact of using fossil fuels. Biodiesel production from renewable sources of oil has shown promise of helping to replace or reduce dependence on petroleum based diesel thereby reducing demand for crude oil. Microalgae have been considered as a strong candidate for the production of large quantities of renewable oil for biodiesel production.

Microalgae are single cell photosynthetic organisms that posses the capability to produce renewable oil at rates much faster than land based plants and crops. In addition, microalgae can be grown in non-arable land, use low quality water or wastewater, and do not require significant maintenance making algal biomass simpler to generate and help in avoiding the food versus fuel debate. However, the current cost of processing algae has prevented commercial production of algae biodiesel. Several hurdles exist that contribute to the production cost, some of which include: (1) the need to dry algal biomass prior to lipid extraction when using traditional methods of oil extraction, (2) large volumes of organic solvents commonly required to extract the algal oils, and (3) purification costs associated with generating usable biodiesel.

This research focused on developing a method of processing algal biomass to help directly address these hurdles. The wet lipid extraction procedure developed is capable of extracting oil from algal biomass with no drying, reduces the demand for organic solvents, and removes or reduces chlorophyll contamination from the produced biodiesel potentially reducing purification requirements. Additionally, the developed procedure produces several additional streams that can be utilized as feedstock material for the production of additional algae based bioproducts. Such advances in algal processing technology can aid in reducing the cost of producing renewable microalgae based biofuels and bioproducts.

Checksum

b0345a245764633f655593049f3731e2

Recommended Citation

Sathish, Ashik, "Biodiesel Production from Mixed Culture Algae Via a Wet Lipid Extraction Procedure" (2012). All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023. 1372.
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/1372