scholarly journals Introducing a Marine Biorefinery System for the Integrated Production of Biofuels, High-Value-Chemicals, and Co-Products: A Path Forward to a Sustainable Future

Processes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 1841
Author(s):  
Abdelrahman Saleh Zaky
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
Economic Feasibility ◽  
Biofuel Production ◽  
Marine Yeasts ◽  
Marine Microorganisms ◽  
Production Chain ◽  
Marine Biomass

Biofuels have many environmental and practical benefits as a transportation fuel. They are among the best alternatives to fossil fuels- thanks to their capacity for negative carbon emissions, which is vital for archiving the global ambition of a net-zero economy. However, conventional biofuel production takes place on inland sites and relies on freshwater and edible crops (or land suitable for edible crop production), which has led to the food versus fuel debate. It also suffers technical and economical barriers owing to the energy balance and the cost of production compared with fossil fuels. Establishing a coastal integrated marine biorefinery (CIMB) system for the simultaneous production of biofuels, high-value chemicals, and other co-products could be the ultimate solution. The proposed system is based on coastal sites and relies entirely on marine resources including seawater, marine biomass (seaweed), and marine microorganisms (marine yeasts and marine microalgae). The system does not require the use of arable land and freshwater in any part of the production chain and should be linked to offshore renewable energy sources to increase its economic feasibility and environmental value. This article aims to introduce the CIMB system as a potential vehicle for addressing the global warming issue and speeding the global effort on climate change mitigation as well as supporting the world’s water, food and energy security. I hope these perspectives serve to draw attention into research funding for this approach.

scholarly journals Introducing a Marine Biorefinery System for the Integrated Production of Biofuels, High-Value-Chemicals and Co-products: A Path Forward to a Sustainable Future

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdelrahman Saleh Zaky
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
Biofuel Production ◽  
Marine Yeasts ◽  
Marine Microorganisms ◽  
Transportation Fuel ◽  
Production Chain ◽  
Marine Biomass

Biofuels have many environmental and practical benefits as a transportation fuel. They are among the best alternatives to fossil fuels due to their capacity for negative carbon emissions, which is vital for archiving the global ambition of a Net-Zero Economy. However, conventional biofuel production takes place on inland sites and relies on freshwater and edible crops (or land suitable for edible crop production), which has led to the food vs fuel debate. It also suffers technical and economical barriers due to the energy balance and the cost of production compared to fossil fuels. Establishing a coastal integrated marine biorefinery (CIMB) system for the simultaneous production of biofuels, high-value chemicals, and other co-products could be the ultimate solution. The proposed system is based on coastal sites and relies on marine resources including seawater, marine biomass (seaweed) and marine microorganisms (marine yeasts and marine microalgae). The system will not require the use of arable land and freshwater in any part of the production chain and will be linked to offshore renewable energy sources to increase its economic and environmental value. This article aims to introduce the CIMB system as a potential vehicle for addressing global warming and speeding the global effort on climate change mitigation as well as increasing global water, food and energy security. I hope this perspective may serve to draw attention into research funding for this approach.

scholarly journals Computational Approaches for Microalgal Biofuel Optimization: A Review

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph Koussa ◽  
Amphun Chaiboonchoe ◽  
Kourosh Salehi-Ashtiani
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Metabolic Networks ◽  
Target Genes ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Deep Understanding ◽  
Biological Data ◽  
Economic Feasibility ◽  
Production Optimization ◽  
Biofuel Production ◽  
Metabolic System

The increased demand and consumption of fossil fuels have raised interest in finding renewable energy sources throughout the globe. Much focus has been placed on optimizing microorganisms and primarily microalgae, to efficiently produce compounds that can substitute for fossil fuels. However, the path to achieving economic feasibility is likely to require strain optimization through using available tools and technologies in the fields of systems and synthetic biology. Such approaches invoke a deep understanding of the metabolic networks of the organisms and their genomic and proteomic profiles. The advent of next generation sequencing and other high throughput methods has led to a major increase in availability of biological data. Integration of such disparate data can help define the emergent metabolic system properties, which is of crucial importance in addressing biofuel production optimization. Herein, we review major computational tools and approaches developed and used in order to potentially identify target genes, pathways, and reactions of particular interest to biofuel production in algae. As the use of these tools and approaches has not been fully implemented in algal biofuel research, the aim of this review is to highlight the potential utility of these resources toward their future implementation in algal research.

scholarly journals The significance of nitrous oxide emission from biofuel crops on arable land: a Swedish perspective

2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 6743-6774
Author(s):  
Å. Kasimir Klemedtsson ◽  
K. A. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Nitrous Oxide ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Crop Yields ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
N2o Emission ◽  
Biofuel Production ◽  
N2o Emissions ◽  
Agricultural Crop ◽  
The Eu

Abstract. The current regulations governing biofuel production in the European Union require that they have to mitigate climate change, by producing >35 % less greenhouse gases (GHG) than fossil fuels. There is a risk that this may not be achievable, since land use for crop production inevitably emits the strong GHG nitrous oxide (N2O), due to nitrogen fertilisation and cycling in the environment. We conclude that efficient agricultural crop production resulting in a good harvest and low N2O emission can fulfill the EU standard, and is possible under certain conditions for the Swedish agricultural and refinery production systems. However, in years having low crop yields total GHG emissions can be even higher than those released by burning of fossil fuels. In general, the N2O emission size in Sweden and northern Europe is such that there is a >50 % chance that the 35 % saving requirement will not be met. Thus ecosystem N2O emissions have to be convincingly assessed. Here we compare Swedish emission data with values estimated by means of statistical models and by a global, top-down, procedure; the measurements and the predictions often show higher values that would fail to meet the EU standard and thus prevent biofuel production development.

scholarly journals Biomass and lipid induction strategies in microalgae for biofuel production and other applications

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hossein Alishah Aratboni ◽  
Nahid Rafiei ◽  
Raul Garcia-Granados ◽  
Abbas Alemzadeh ◽  
José Rubén Morones-Ramírez
Keyword(s):  
Lipid Content ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Lipid Production ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
Economic Cost ◽  
Biofuel Production ◽  
Scale Production ◽  
Microalgae Biomass

Abstract The use of fossil fuels has been strongly related to critical problems currently affecting society, such as: global warming, global greenhouse effects and pollution. These problems have affected the homeostasis of living organisms worldwide at an alarming rate. Due to this, it is imperative to look for alternatives to the use of fossil fuels and one of the relevant substitutes are biofuels. There are different types of biofuels (categories and generations) that have been previously explored, but recently, the use of microalgae has been strongly considered for the production of biofuels since they present a series of advantages over other biofuel production sources: (a) they don’t need arable land to grow and therefore do not compete with food crops (like biofuels produced from corn, sugar cane and other plants) and; (b) they exhibit rapid biomass production containing high oil contents, at least 15 to 20 times higher than land based oleaginous crops. Hence, these unicellular photosynthetic microorganisms have received great attention from researches to use them in the large-scale production of biofuels. However, one disadvantage of using microalgae is the high economic cost due to the low-yields of lipid content in the microalgae biomass. Thus, development of different methods to enhance microalgae biomass, as well as lipid content in the microalgae cells, would lead to the development of a sustainable low-cost process to produce biofuels. Within the last 10 years, many studies have reported different methods and strategies to induce lipid production to obtain higher lipid accumulation in the biomass of microalgae cells; however, there is not a comprehensive review in the literature that highlights, compares and discusses these strategies. Here, we review these strategies which include modulating light intensity in cultures, controlling and varying CO2 levels and temperature, inducing nutrient starvation in the culture, the implementation of stress by incorporating heavy metal or inducing a high salinity condition, and the use of metabolic and genetic engineering techniques coupled with nanotechnology.

Analysis of Sustainable Cassava Biofuel Production in Nigeria

2012 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 599-618 ◽  
Author(s):  
I.O. Ogundari ◽  
A.S. Momodu ◽  
A.J. Famurewa ◽  
J.B. Akarakiri ◽  
W.O. Siyanbola
Keyword(s):  
Crop Production ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Sole Source ◽  
Petroleum Products ◽  
Policy Option ◽  
Environmental Benefits ◽  
Biofuel Production ◽  
Bioethanol Production ◽  
Engineering Economy ◽  
The Government

Nigeria's biofuels policy advocates the adoption of cassava as feedstock for a 10%-biofuel substitution option in Nigerian transport fuel demand. This policy option is expected to address energy security and environmental consequences of using fossil fuels as the sole source of transport energy in the country. This paper appraised the technological and economic factors necessary for achieving Nigeria's cassava-based biofuel initiative at different substitution levels of 5, 10, and 15% by the Year 2020. A multi-stage energy forecasting and project analysis framework adapted from Coate's structure for technology assessment, as well as engineering economy methodology was used for the study. Technological analysis entailed determining petrol consumption projection, R&D capability, input feedstock requirements, environmental considerations and land requirement for feedstock crop production while engineering economy analysis evaluated the economic viability of the project. The results showed that petrol consumption in Nigeria and bioethanol substitution requirements were in the range of 18,285.7 – 19,142.84 thousand tons and 914.28 (5% low demand) – 2871.43 (15% high demand) thousand tons, respectively by 2020. Cassava feedstock and landmass requirements for bioethanol production were in the range of 4.64 – 14.53 million tons and 4.08 – 12.80 thousand sq. km, respectively while carbon dioxide savings were between 1.87 – 5.89 million tons by 2020. The recovery price for cassava bioethanol was estimated to be US$ 0.74/litre [Formula: see text]. Petrol being subsidised presently is harmful to the environment though it ‘oils’ the economy. Nigeria currently subsidizes petroleum products to the tune of 28% of 2011 budget. The government plans to remove this by 2012. Thus we conclude that weighing both economic and environmental benefits of bioethanol substitution in petrol consumption in Nigeria, the study showed that bioethanol production from cassava feedstock would be both technically and economically viable, provided subsidy, which depends on political will on the side of the government, is introduced for the first ten years of its implementation.

scholarly journals Economic perspective of hybrid wind-diesel technology for commercial loads of Dhahran Saudi Arabia: A step towards sustainable future

2015 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 167-178
Author(s):  
S.M. Shaahid
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Hybrid Systems ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Energy Demand ◽  
Wind Farm ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Residential Buildings ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Economic Feasibility ◽  
Commercial Building

The governments world-wide are deliberating to promote renewable energy sources such as wind to mitigate increasing demand of energy and to overcome effects of pollution due to to use of fossil fuels. Integration of wind turbine generators (WTG) with the diesel plants is pursued widely to reduce dependence on fossil-fuels and to reduce carbon emissions. Literature indicates that commercial/residential buildings in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (K.S.A) consume an estimated 10 - 40% of the total electric energy generated. The aim of this study is to analyze wind-speed data of Dhahran (East-Coast, K.S.A.) to assess the economic feasibility of utilizing hybrid wind-diesel power systems to meet the load requirements of a typical commercial building (with annual electrical energy demand of 620,000 kWh). The monthly average wind speeds range from 3.3 to 5.6 m/s. The hybrid systems simulated consist of different combinations of 100 kW commercial WTG supplemented with diesel generators. NREL?s (HOMER Energy?s) HOMER software has been employed to perform the techno-economic analysis. The simulation results indicate that for a hybrid system comprising of 100 kW wind capacity together with 175 kW diesel system, the wind penetration (at 37 m hub-height, with 0% annual capacity shortage) is 25%. The cost of generating energy (COE, $/kWh) from this hybrid wind-diesel system has been found to be 0.121 $/kWh (assuming diesel fuel price of 0.1$/liter). The study exhibits that for a given hybrid configuration, the number of operational hours of diesel gensets decreases with increase in wind farm capacity. Emphasis has also been placed on wind penetration, un-met load, energy production and COE, excess electricity generation, percentage fuel savings and reduction in carbon emissions (relative to diesel-only situation) of different hybrid systems, cost break-down of wind-diesel systems, COE of different hybrid systems, etc.

scholarly journals From Energy Blues to Green Energy: Options Before Pakistan

2014 ◽  
Vol 53 (4II) ◽  
pp. 309-325
Author(s):  
Rafi Amir-Ud-Din
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Energy Use ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Green Energy ◽  
Economic Feasibility ◽  
Energy Sources ◽  
Energy Mix ◽  
Current Energy

Energy crisis in Pakistan had been brewing long before it became an important national issue with the potential to significantly affect the outcome of general elections of 2013. The looming crisis of depleting non-renewable energy sources combined with a feeble economy has lent a new urgency to the search for an energy mix which is sustainable, economically viable and environmentally least hazardous. Fossil fuels with their known adverse environmental impacts dominate the current energy mix of Pakistan. The renewable energy sources remain underutilised despite being cost effective and less hazardous for the environment. A substantial amount of literature has highlighted various dimensions of existing energy sources in Pakistan with a particular emphasis on the environmental impact, the sustainability and the efficiency of various energy sources [see Asif (2009); Basir, et al. (2013); Bhutto, et al. (2012); Mirza, et al. (2009, 2008, 2003); Muneer and Asif (2007); Sheikh (2010) for example]. This study analyses the environmental impact, economic feasibility and efficiency of various energy sources subject to various economic and noneconomic constraints. Section 2 discusses energy security by reviewing various tapped and untapped energy sources besides analysing current energy mix and its future prospects. Section 3 highlights the interaction of energy use and environment. Section 4 discusses two approaches to assess the feasibility of an energy mix: disaggregated and aggregated. The latter approach makes a multidimensional comparison of all the energy sources discussed in this study. Section 5 consists of discussion and concluding remarks.

scholarly journals Crop Agriculture of Bangladesh: Challenges and Opportunities

1970 ◽  
Vol 35 (2) ◽  
pp. 235-245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad H Mondal
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Population Growth ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Agricultural Research ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
Fair Price ◽  
Crop Agriculture ◽  
The Government

Crop agriculture in Bangladesh is constrained every year by challenges, such as a) Loss of Arabie Land, b) Population Growth, c) Climate Changes, d) Inadequate Management Practices, e) Unfair Price of Produces, and f) Insufficient Investment in Research. In Bangladesh, about 80,000 ha of arable land are going out of production every year. The loss is alarming and needs to be addressed immediately. The land use policy of the government should be updated and implemented immediately to stop further loss of arable land. Another problem to agriculture is the increase in the growth of population. The twin problem of arable land loss and population growth needs to be addressed simultaneously to ensure sustainable crop production. Country's crop production is also affected frequently by flood, drought, and salinity. Varieties/technologies tolerant to these natural hazards need to be developed. Renewable energy, reduction in the use of fossil fuels, and afforestation are recommended to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change. To sustain crop production, chemical fertilizers must be integrated with organic manure and costly non-urea fertilizers should continue to be subsidized. Incidence of pests and diseases has lately become severe due to climate change impacts. Therefore, more varieties resistant to the pests should be evolved. Small and marginal farmers of Bangladesh have limited access to institutional credit. They are not eligible for microcredit of NGOs either. Establishment of a new institution/foundation in line with PKSF is recommended to meet their needs. These farmers do not have farmers' associations or cooperatives to bargain for fair price of their produces. Government might encourage establishment of farmers' cooperatives to ensure fair price of their produces. To make such cooperatives successful, top-down approach by the influentials must be avoided. Investment in agricultural research should as well be raised to at least 2% of GDP to help generate technologies to cope with climate change hazards and disseminate such technologies at farmer's level. Keywords: Crop agriculture; challenges; opportunities. DOI: 10.3329/bjar.v35i2.5886Bangladesh J. Agril. Res. 35(2) : 235-245, June 2010

scholarly journals β-Glucosidases from the FungusTrichoderma: An Efficient Cellulase Machinery in Biotechnological Applications

2013 ◽  
Vol 2013 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pragya Tiwari ◽  
B. N. Misra ◽  
Neelam S. Sangwan
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Structural Parameters ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Glycosyl Hydrolase ◽  
Cellulosic Biomass ◽  
Biofuel Production ◽  
Industrial Biotechnology ◽  
Genomics And Proteomics ◽  
Commercial Applications ◽  
Near Future

β-glucosidases catalyze the selective cleavage of glucosidic linkages and are an important class of enzymes having significant prospects in industrial biotechnology. These are classified in family 1 and family 3 of glycosyl hydrolase family.β-glucosidases, particularly from the fungusTrichoderma,are widely recognized and used for the saccharification of cellulosic biomass for biofuel production. With the rising trends in energy crisis and depletion of fossil fuels, alternative strategies for renewable energy sources need to be developed. However, the major limitation accounts for low production ofβ-glucosidases by the hyper secretory strains ofTrichoderma. In accordance with the increasing significance ofβ-glucosidases in commercial applications, the present review provides a detailed insight of the enzyme family, their classification, structural parameters, properties, and studies at the genomics and proteomics levels. Furthermore, the paper discusses the enhancement strategies employed for their utilization in biofuel generation. Therefore,β-glucosidases are prospective toolbox in bioethanol production, and in the near future, it might be successful in meeting the requirements of alternative renewable sources of energy.

scholarly journals Role of Microalgae as a Source for Biofuel Production in the Future: A Short Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 396-412
Author(s):  
Mustafa Jawad Nuhma ◽  
Hajar Alias ◽  
Ali A. Jazie ◽  
Muhammad Tahir
Keyword(s):  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
Short Review ◽  
Biofuel Production ◽  
Advantages And Disadvantages ◽  
Microalgae Oil ◽  
Chemical Products ◽  
Major Chemical ◽  
Open Access Article

The continued burning of fossil fuels since the beginning of the last century led to higher emissions of greenhouse gases and thus leads to global warming. Microalgae are one of the most important sources of green hydrocarbons because this type of algae has a high percentage of lipids and has rapid growth, consumes the carbon dioxide in large quantities. Besides, the cultivation of these types of algae does not require arable land. This review aims to explain the suitability of microalgae as a biofuel source depending on the fat content, morphology, and other parameters and their effect on the conversion processes of microalgae oil into biofuels by different zeolite catalytic reactions. It also discusses in detail the major chemical processes that convert microalgae oil to chemical products. This review sheds light on one of the most important groups of microalgae (Chlorella vulgaris microalgae). This review includes a historical overview and a comprehensive description of the structure needed to develop this type of algae. The most important methods of production, their advantages and disadvantages are also deliberated in this work. Copyright © 2021 by Authors, Published by BCREC Group. This is an open access article under the CC BY-SA License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). 

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