Cultivation and Biorefinery of Microalgae (Chlorella sp.) for Producing Biofuels and Other Byproducts: A Review

Microalgae-based carbon dioxide (CO2) biofixation and biorefinery are the most efficient methods of biological CO2 reduction and reutilization. The diversification and high-value byproducts of microalgal biomass, known as microalgae-based biorefinery, are considered the most promising platforms for the sustainable development of energy and the environment, in addition to the improvement and integration of microalgal cultivation, scale-up, harvest, and extraction technologies. In this review, the factors influencing CO2 biofixation by microalgae, including microalgal strains, flue gas, wastewater, light, pH, temperature, and microalgae cultivation systems are summarized. Moreover, the biorefinery of Chlorella biomass for producing biofuels and its byproducts, such as fine chemicals, feed additives, and high-value products, are also discussed. The technical and economic assessments (TEAs) and life cycle assessments (LCAs) are introduced to evaluate the sustainability of microalgae CO2 fixation technology. This review provides detailed insights on the adjusted factors of microalgal cultivation to establish sustainable biological CO2 fixation technology, and the diversified applications of microalgal biomass in biorefinery. The economic and environmental sustainability, and the limitations and needs of microalgal CO2 fixation, are discussed. Finally, future research directions are provided for CO2 reduction by microalgae.

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Simultaneous microalgal biomass production and CO2 fixation by cultivating Chlorella sp. GD with aquaculture wastewater and boiler flue gas

Bioresource Technology ◽

10.1016/j.biortech.2016.09.014 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 221 ◽

pp. 241-250 ◽

Cited By ~ 40

Author(s):

Chiu-Mei Kuo ◽

Jhong-Fu Jian ◽

Tsung-Hsien Lin ◽

Yu-Bin Chang ◽

Xin-Hua Wan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Biomass Production ◽

Flue Gas ◽

Co2 Fixation ◽

Microalgal Biomass ◽

Chlorella Sp ◽

Aquaculture Wastewater

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The BIOCEM Project: The Industrial Valorization of a Patent Through the “Proof of Concept” Program

International Journal of Design & Nature and Ecodynamics ◽

10.18280/ijdne.150607 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 15 (6) ◽

pp. 821-827

Author(s):

Tiziana Cardinale ◽

Corradino Sposato ◽

Maria Bruna Alba ◽

Andrea Feo ◽

Giorgio Leter ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Environmental Sustainability ◽

New Technologies ◽

Scale Up ◽

Co2 Reduction ◽

Quality Parameters ◽

Industrial Plant ◽

Proof Of Concept ◽

National Agency ◽

Aeration System ◽

Concrete Blocks

The aim of BIO-CEM project is focused to test an innovative patented concrete aeration system in scale-up pre-industial production of aerated autoclaved concrete blocks. The aeration system refers to the Bio-Aerated Autoclavated Concrete (BAAC) international patent n°102017000101039 - WO/2019/049005, developed by the ENEA researchers. This activity research is included in the “Proof of Concept Program” granted by ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development) in 2018, aiming to reduce the gap between research results and industrial application. The targets of BAAC innovation are addressed to energy saving, CO2 reduction and environmental sustainability, obtained also by complete recycling of waste materials. In this regard, preliminary experiments were conducted in laboratory to test different types of mix design for the optimization of quality parameters such as: mechanical strength, thermal insulation and environmental impact. These tests are the first step of the industrial scale up, made in partnership with EKORU srl that has contributed with its own expertise and industrial plant facility.

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Mini-review of waste shell-derived materials’ applications

Waste Management & Research ◽

10.1177/0734242x19897812 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 38 (5) ◽

pp. 514-527 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Abarasi Hart

Keyword(s):

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Scale Up ◽

Blended Cement ◽

Mineral Elements ◽

Future Research ◽

Carbonate Content ◽

Concrete Aggregate ◽

Manufacturing Cost ◽

High Calcium ◽

Waste Shell

This mini-review reports curbing waste shells (i.e. seashells, eggshells, snail shells, etc.), environmental health issues and liabilities by using them as material for heterogenous catalysts, blended cement manufacture, concrete aggregate, ceramics and plastics additives, biofilter medium and biomedical applications. The traditional materials used in the manufacture of these products could be relatively cheap; however, there are considerable environmental issues (i.e., ecological damage, disruption of eco-system and air contamination) as well as intense energy consumption associated with the exploitation of depleting natural resources. Waste shells are a renewable and cheap alternative, and will simultaneously decrease manufacturing cost while reducing their burden on the environment. This paper emphasizes environmental sustainability by summarizing articles published on various applications of waste shell-derived biomaterials. The properties of waste shell-derived biomaterials are presented and discussed. The materials’ properties suggest they are similar to limestone and their biological–natural origin and the high calcium carbonate content with a trace amount of other mineral elements makes them highly favorable for cement production, heterogenous catalysts and hydroxyapatite manufacture for biomedical and wastewater treatment applications. The purpose of this work is to offer new perspectives and direction for future research on waste shell-derived biomaterials while existing areas of applications demanding scale up are highlighted.

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Pursuing Frugal Innovation for Sustainability at the Grassroots Level

Management and Organization Review ◽

10.1017/mor.2020.53 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-8

Author(s):

Mokter Hossain ◽

Jarkko Levänen ◽

Marleen Wierenga

Keyword(s):

Developing Countries ◽

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Business Models ◽

Business Strategies ◽

Future Research ◽

Frugal Innovation ◽

New Business ◽

Grassroots Level ◽

Societal Problems ◽

New Business Models

ABSTRACT Firms are often criticized for their reluctance to embrace sustainability in their business strategies. Frugal innovation is a recent concept that represents a new way for firms to serve underserved customers in developing countries while also promoting sustainability. Based on three cases of frugal innovation at the grassroots level in India, this article demonstrates how frugal innovation presents a promising way to tackle some of today's pressing societal problems with new business models. We use a range of parameters for economic, social, and environmental sustainability to strengthen the case for frugal innovation. This article attempts to inspire scholars to consider frugal innovation further in their future research endeavors and encourage firms to integrate it into their existing business models.

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Optimisation of microalgal cultivation via nutrient-enhanced strategies: the biorefinery paradigm

Biotechnology for Biofuels ◽

10.1186/s13068-021-01912-2 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Gonzalo M. Figueroa-Torres ◽

Jon K. Pittman ◽

Constantinos Theodoropoulos

Keyword(s):

Kinetic Model ◽

Growth Dynamics ◽

Value Added ◽

Cost Effective ◽

Predictive Modelling ◽

Nitrogen And Phosphorus ◽

Predictive Capacity ◽

Microalgal Biomass ◽

Microalgal Cultivation ◽

Lipid Formation

Abstract Background The production of microalgal biofuels, despite their sustainable and renowned potential, is not yet cost-effective compared to current conventional fuel technologies. However, the biorefinery concept increases the prospects of microalgal biomass as an economically viable feedstock suitable for the co-production of multiple biofuels along with value-added chemicals. To integrate biofuels production within the framework of a microalgae biorefinery, it is not only necessary to exploit multi-product platforms, but also to identify optimal microalgal cultivation strategies maximising the microalgal metabolites from which biofuels are obtained: starch and lipids. Whilst nutrient limitation is widely known for increasing starch and lipid formation, this cultivation strategy can greatly reduce microalgal growth. This work presents an optimisation framework combining predictive modelling and experimental methodologies to effectively simulate and predict microalgal growth dynamics and identify optimal cultivation strategies. Results Microalgal cultivation strategies for maximised starch and lipid formation were successfully established by developing a multi-parametric kinetic model suitable for the prediction of mixotrophic microalgal growth dynamics co-limited by nitrogen and phosphorus. The model’s high predictive capacity was experimentally validated against various datasets obtained from laboratory-scale cultures of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii CCAP 11/32C subject to different initial nutrient regimes. The identified model-based optimal cultivation strategies were further validated experimentally and yielded significant increases in starch (+ 270%) and lipid (+ 74%) production against a non-optimised strategy. Conclusions The optimised microalgal cultivation scenarios for maximised starch and lipids, as identified by the kinetic model presented here, highlight the benefits of exploiting modelling frameworks as optimisation tools that facilitate the development and commercialisation of microalgae-to-fuel technologies.

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The Corporate Governance of Environmental Sustainability: A Review and Proposal for More Integrated Research

Journal of Management ◽

10.1177/0149206321991212 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 014920632199121

Author(s):

Ruth V. Aguilera ◽

J. Alberto Aragón-Correa ◽

Valentina Marano ◽

Peter A. Tashman

Keyword(s):

Corporate Governance ◽

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Boards Of Directors ◽

Global Dimension ◽

Top Management Teams ◽

Future Research ◽

Environmental Initiatives ◽

Integrative Framework ◽

Integrated Research ◽

Systematic Understanding

As corporations’ environmental impact comes under greater scrutiny by global financial, regulatory, and societal stakeholders, management scholars have increasingly focused on the role of corporate governance as a tool for driving environmental initiatives. Still, we lack a comprehensive and systematic understanding of this emergent body of inquiry and a holistic agenda for future research. To address this gap, our integrative framework relates the key corporate governance actors to environmental sustainability outcomes from the extant literature and highlights its main methodological approaches and theoretical arguments. Our framework provides a critical analysis of what we know and points to the knowledge gaps around owners, boards of directors, CEOs, top management teams, and employees as corporate governance actors. We then highlight limitations in the existing literature as significant opportunities for further research to resolve its ambiguous conceptualizations of environmental sustainability constructs, various methodological and theoretical challenges, incomplete engagement with the global dimension of environmental sustainability, and limited analysis of how corporate governance actors may interact to shape environmental sustainability outcomes. We conclude by proposing novel approaches for addressing these issues, which we believe could generate a better way forward on studying the corporate governance of environmental sustainability.

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Sustainability in Participatory Sports Events: The Development of a Research Instrument and Empirical Insights

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13116034 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (11) ◽

pp. 6034

Author(s):

Ine Hugaerts ◽

Jeroen Scheerder ◽

Kobe Helsen ◽

Joris Corthouts ◽

Erik Thibaut ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sustainable Development ◽

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Online Survey ◽

Three Dimensions ◽

Future Research ◽

Validity And Reliability ◽

Research Instrument ◽

Sports Events ◽

The Social ◽

Development Goals

The United Nations (UN) considers sports as an important enabler of sustainable development. The popular and fast-growing Participatory Sports Event (PSE) sector can play an important role in this regard, however, research that measures and reports sustainability in PSEs is scarce. Therefore, the aim of this paper was to construct and validate a research instrument based on the UN’s sustainable development goals, and to examine sustainability in PSEs. To this end, an online survey was administered among a representative sample of 303 PSE organisers, located in Flanders, Belgium. A confirmatory factor analysis affirmed the social, economic and environmental dimensions of the instrument and provided evidence for its validity and reliability. The results reveal significant discrepancies between the three dimensions, with a noticeable lower score for environmental sustainability compared to social and economic sustainability. Furthermore, challenges are highlighted in the field of the civil society sector and in walking sports events. The findings also indicate that large-sized events are more likely to be sustainable. The current study can act as a foundation for future research on sustainability in PSEs and can assist PSE organisers and policymakers to increase the sustainability-related performance of the sector.

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Microalgae Cultivation in Different pH, Temperature and Media for Lipid Production

International Journal of Life Sciences ◽

10.3126/ijls.v8i2.10227 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 13-17 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Dakshayini Jayaramareddy ◽

Ravikumar Krishnappa ◽

Girisha Sirangala Thimmappa

Keyword(s):

Lipid Production ◽

Life Sciences ◽

Nutrient Supply ◽

Polar Lipids ◽

Microalgae Cultivation ◽

Microalgal Biomass ◽

Chlorella Sp ◽

Nonpolar Lipids

Lipids produced by microalgal biomass can be grouped into nonpolar lipids and polar lipids, which can be easily converted into biofuels. Microalgal samples were collected from three different ponds of Bangalore and cultured in the laboratory to find the effect of different pH, temperature and media on the production of biomass and lipids. Among these, pH-9, temperature -25°C and Beneck’s media was most suitable for production of biomass (35.80 g/L) and lipids from the isolated microalgae Chlorella sp. compare to Chladospora sp. (13.33 g/L). Chlorella sp. Showed 0.32 (OD) at pH-9, 0.43 (OD) at temperature-25°C and 2.94 (OD) in Beneck’s media. Our result revealed that nutrient supply along with measured variables affects the production of biomass and lipids in different microalgae.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/ijls.v8i2.10227 International Journal of Life Sciences Vol.8(2): 2014; 13-17

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Folk Theories of Artifact Creation: How Intuitions About Human Labor Influence the Value of Artifacts

Personality and Social Psychology Review ◽

10.1177/1088868320905763 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 24 (3) ◽

pp. 195-211 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Madeline Judge ◽

Julian W. Fernando ◽

Angela Paladino ◽

Yoshihisa Kashima

Keyword(s):

Environmental Sustainability ◽

Industrial Production ◽

Production Systems ◽

Future Research ◽

Folk Theory ◽

Folk Physics ◽

Lay Beliefs ◽

Human Labor ◽

Sociohistorical Context ◽

Material Artifacts

What are the consequences of lay beliefs about how things are made? In this article, we describe a Western folk theory of artifact creation, highlighting how intuitive dualism regarding mental and physical labor (i.e., folk psychology) can lead to the perceived transmission of properties from makers to material artifacts (i.e., folk physics), and affect people’s interactions with material artifacts. We show how this folk theory structures the conceptual domain of material artifacts by differentiating the contemporary lay concepts of art/craft and industrial production, and how it influences people’s evaluations of different types of artifacts and their makers. We propose that the folk theory and lay concepts of art/craft and industrial production are best understood within a specific sociohistorical context, and review potential sources of cross-cultural and cross-temporal variation. We conclude by making recommendations for future research and examining the implications for promoting environmental sustainability and social justice in production systems.

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