title: Aminoclay-induced humic acid flocculation for efficient harvesting of oleaginous Chlorella sp.
abstract: Biofuels (biodiesel) production from oleaginous microalgae has been intensively studied for its practical applications within the microalgae-based biorefinement process. For scaled-up cultivation of microalgae in open ponds or, for further cost reduction, using wastewater, humic acids present in water-treatment systems can positively and significantly affect the harvesting of microalgae biomass. Flocculation, because of its simplicity and inexpensiveness, is considered to be an efficient approach to microalgae harvesting. Based on the reported cationic aminoclay usages for a broad spectrum of microalgae species in wide-pH regimes, aminoclay-induced humic acid flocculation at the 5g/L aminoclay loading showed fast floc formation, approximately 100% harvesting efficiency, which was comparable to the only-aminoclay treatment at 5g/L, indicating that the humic acid did not significantly inhibit the microalgae harvesting behavior. As for the microalgae flocculation mechanism, it is suggested that cationic nanoparticles decorated on macromolecular matters function as a type of network in capturing microalgae.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Engineering, College of Engineering, Inha University, Incheon 402-751, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Young-Chul
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Engineering, College of Engineering, Inha University, Incheon 402-751, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Seo Yeong
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: Division of Materials Science, Korea Basic Science Institute (KBSI), Daejeon 305-333, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Hyun Uk
authors.initials: HU
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Clean Fuel Department, Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER), 152 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-343, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Bohwa
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Clean Fuel Department, Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER), 152 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-343, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: So Yeun
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Beauty and Cosmetology, Graduate School of Industry, Chosun University, Gwangju 501-759, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Moon-Hee
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.affiliation: Testing and Certification Center, Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER), 152 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-343, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Go-Woon
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Clean Fuel Department, Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER), 152 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-343, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Ji-Yeon
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Park
authors.affiliation: Clean Fuel Department, Korea Institute of Energy Research (KIER), 152 Gajeong-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-343, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: You-Kwan
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: Rare Metals Research Center, Korea Institute of Geoscience & Mineral Resources, Daejeon 305-350, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Taegong
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ryu
authors.affiliation: Department of Energy and Materials Engineering, Dongguk University-Seoul, Seoul 100-715, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Young-Kyu
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: Rare Metals Research Center, Korea Institute of Geoscience & Mineral Resources, Daejeon 305-350, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: ksc@kigam.re.kr.
authors.forename: Kang-Sup
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Chung
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Engineering, College of Engineering, Inha University, Incheon 402-751, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: yunsuk.huh@inha.ac.kr.
authors.forename: Yun Suk
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Huh
mesh_terms: D000538:Aluminum Silicates / Q000494:pharmacology*; D002708:Chlorella / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development*; D000077215:Clay; D005427:Flocculation / Q000187:drug effects; D006812:Humic Substances / Q000032:analysis*; D007501:Iron / Q000494:pharmacology; D007700:Kinetics; D008055:Lipids / Q000737:chemistry*; D008274:Magnesium / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D000538:Aluminum Silicates; D006812:Humic Substances; D008055:Lipids; D007501:Iron; D008274:Magnesium; D000077215:Clay
keywords: Aminoclay; Flocculation; Harvesting; Humic acid; Microalgae