Microalgae as an Efficient Feedstock Biomass for Biofuel Production

Abstract

Solar, biomass, and wind are the main renewable energy resources to fulfill the need of modern society. Biofuels include bio-diesel, bio-methane, bio-ethanol, bio-methanol, bio-ethers, and bio-hydrogen. The nonfood feedstocks such as agricultural wastes, municipal wastes, microalgae, and other microbial sources are most suitable to produce biofuels. Microalgae cultivation for biofuel production can utilize the wastewater as substrate, reduces the greenhouse effect (sequestration of CO 2), and also releases O 2. By utilizing this technology, one can produce bio-ethanol, bio-methanol, biodiesel, and bio-hydrogen along with oxygen release. Microalgae contemplated as substrates for the generation of bio-diesel together with other sources of biomass, such as lignin-cellulose materials, organic wastes that are characterized by high yielding potential, are not utilized as a source of human food. Various steps involved in the bioprocessing of the valuable products and downstream processing techniques along with their merits and demerits have been revealed in this chapter.