title: Preferential technological and life cycle environmental performance of chitosan flocculation for harvesting of the green algae Neochloris oleoabundans.
abstract: Dewatering of the green algae Neochloris oleoabundans by flocculation was investigated for chitosan biopolymer, ferric sulfate, and alum. Chitosan was found to be most effective flocculant, with an optimum dose of 100mg/L algae broth. Zeta potential measurements suggest the mechanism involves both adsorption and charge neutralization processes. Life cycle assessment (LCA) was used to compare the chitosan method to other flocculation methods as well as centrifugation and filtration/chamber press processes. LCA showed that among these techniques, flocculation by chitosan is the least energy intensive and had the lowest impacts across all other categories of environmental impacts. The results are discussed in the overall context of biofuel production from algal biomass.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Yale University, 225 Prospect St., New Haven, CT 06511, USA.
authors.forename: Evan S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Beach
authors.forename: Matthew J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Eckelman
authors.forename: Zheng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Brentner
authors.forename: Julie B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Zimmerman
mesh_terms: D000534:Alum Compounds; D056804:Biofuels; D018533:Biomass; D001709:Biotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D002498:Centrifugation / Q000379:methods; D048271:Chitosan / Q000737:chemistry*; D000460:Chlorophyta / Q000254:growth & development*; D004777:Environment; D005290:Ferric Compounds; D005374:Filtration / Q000379:methods; D005427:Flocculation
chemical_list: D000534:Alum Compounds; D056804:Biofuels; D005290:Ferric Compounds; C041524:aluminum sulfate; C024823:ferric sulfate; D048271:Chitosan