Switchable hydrophilicity solvents for lipid extraction from microalgae for biofuel production.
A switchable hydrophilicity solvent (SHS) was studied for its effectiveness at extracting lipids from freeze-dried samples of Botryococcus braunii microalgae. The SHS N,N-dimethylcyclohexylamine extracted up to 22 wt.% crude lipid relative to the freeze-dried cell weight. The solvent was removed from the extract with water saturated with carbon dioxide at atmospheric pressure and recovered from the water upon de-carbonation of the mixture. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) showed that the extracted lipids contained high concentrations of long chain tri-, di- and mono-acylglycerols, no phospholipids, and only 4-8% of residual solvent. Unlike extractions with conventional organic solvents, this new method requires neither distillation nor the use of volatile, flammable or chlorinated organic solvents.
Department of Chemistry, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada K7L 3N6.
Alaina R
AR
Boyd
Pascale
P
Champagne
Patrick J
PJ
McGinn
Karen M
KM
MacDougall
Jeremy E
JE
Melanson
Philip G
PG
Jessop
D056804:Biofuels / Q000382:microbiology*; D001709:Biotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D003514:Cyclohexylamines / Q000737:chemistry*; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D008055:Lipids / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D058086:Microalgae / Q000378:metabolism*; D012997:Solvents / Q000737:chemistry*
D056804:Biofuels; D003514:Cyclohexylamines; D008055:Lipids; D012997:Solvents; C038336:N,N-dimethylcyclohexylamine