title: A geographical assessment of vegetation carbon stocks and greenhouse gas emissions on potential microalgae-based biofuel facilities in the United States.
abstract: The microalgae biofuels life cycle assessments (LCA) present in the literature have excluded the effects of direct land use change (DLUC) from facility construction under the assumption that DLUC effects are negligible. This study seeks to model the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of microalgae biofuels including DLUC by quantifying the CO2equivalence of carbon released to the atmosphere through the construction of microalgae facilities. The locations and types of biomass and Soil Organic Carbon that are disturbed through microalgae cultivation facility construction are quantified using geographical models of microalgae productivity potential including consideration of land availability. The results of this study demonstrate that previous LCA of microalgae to biofuel processes have overestimated GHG benefits of microalgae-based biofuels production by failing to include the effect of DLUC. Previous estimations of microalgae biofuel production potential have correspondingly overestimated the volume of biofuels that can be produced in compliance with U.S. environmental goals.
authors.affiliation: Mechanical Engineering, 1374 Campus Delivery, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80524, USA. Electronic address: carlos.quiroz@fulbrightmail.org.
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Quiroz Arita
authors.affiliation: Civil and Environmental Engineering, 1372 Campus Delivery, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA.
authors.forename: Özge
authors.initials: Ö
authors.lastname: Yilmaz
authors.affiliation: Civil and Environmental Engineering, 1372 Campus Delivery, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA.
authors.forename: Semin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Barlak
authors.affiliation: Civil and Environmental Engineering, 1372 Campus Delivery, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA.
authors.forename: Kimberly B
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Catton
authors.affiliation: Mechanical Engineering, 1374 Campus Delivery, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80524, USA.
authors.forename: Jason C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Quinn
authors.affiliation: Mechanical Engineering, 1374 Campus Delivery, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80524, USA.
authors.forename: Thomas H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Bradley
mesh_terms: D056804:Biofuels; D018533:Biomass; D002244:Carbon / Q000032:analysis*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D005740:Gases / Q000032:analysis*; D005843:Geography; D017752:Greenhouse Effect; D006801:Humans; D058086:Microalgae / Q000378:metabolism; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D010944:Plants / Q000737:chemistry*; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry; D014481:United States; D064091:Waste Disposal Facilities
chemical_list: D056804:Biofuels; D005740:Gases; D012987:Soil; D002244:Carbon
keywords: Carbon stocks; Direct land use change; Greenhouse gas emissions; Microalgae facilities