Studies on enhanced cultivation of microalgae at various light conditions for biodiesel production

Abstract

Biodiesel is a promising renewable energy source and is emerging as an alternative to fossil fuel use in transportation. Biodiesel production supports the goal of carbon neutrality, that is, achieving a net zero carbon emission, because biodiesel balances the carbon release and absorption processes in photosynthesis. Eco-friendly biodiesel may be derived from a variety of biomass sources. Among these, microalgae are considered to be one of the most promising feedstocks for biodiesel due to their rapid growth and high lipid content. Unlike the biomass that originates from conventional forestry, agricultural crops, and other terrestrial plants, microalgal biomass production does not require large land areas for cultivation and does not conflict with food sources.Microalgal cultivation incurs the highest production costs and poses significant barriers to achieving economic feasibility and commercialization. It is, therefore, necessary to identify cultivation methods that significantly reduce the costs typically incurred during microalgal cultivation. The costs associated with mi-croalgal cultivation can arise from a variety of factors, including the nutrients and environmental conditions that maintain and support growth. The optimization of the bioprocess of microalgal cultivation is essential for the commercialization of biodiesel production from microalgae in terms of light and nutrient conditions.In chapter 3, microalgal cultivation has been limited by the efficiency and costs associated with providing light energy, the most expensive and essential element needed for microalgal growth, to a culture, particularly to cultures grown in a photobioreactor (PBR). This study examined the economic benefits of us-ing flashing illumination conditions in the context of microalgal cultivation. Chlamydomonas reinhardtii was cultivated under various conditions, including various inoculum sizes, light intensities, and durations of the light and dark periods. Our results show...