title: Biofuels from microalgae.
abstract: Microalgae are a diverse group of prokaryotic and eukaryotic photosynthetic microorganisms that grow rapidly due to their simple structure. They can potentially be employed for the production of biofuels in an economically effective and environmentally sustainable manner. Microalgae have been investigated for the production of a number of different biofuels including biodiesel, bio-oil, bio-syngas, and bio-hydrogen. The production of these biofuels can be coupled with flue gas CO2 mitigation, wastewater treatment, and the production of high-value chemicals. Microalgal farming can also be carried out with seawater using marine microalgal species as the producers. Developments in microalgal cultivation and downstream processing (e.g., harvesting, drying, and thermochemical processing) are expected to further enhance the cost-effectiveness of the biofuel from microalgae strategy.
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Chemical Engineering, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
authors.forename: Yanqun
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Horsman
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Christopher Q
authors.initials: CQ
authors.lastname: Lan
authors.forename: Nathalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Dubois-Calero
mesh_terms: D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D001674:Bioelectric Energy Sources / Q000191:economics*; D001709:Biotechnology / Q000191:economics*; D003246:Conservation of Energy Resources / Q000191:economics; D000458:Cyanobacteria / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D056890:Eukaryota / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D005740:Gases / Q000378:metabolism; D008386:Marine Biology / Q000191:economics
chemical_list: D005740:Gases