14 The Bioeconomy of Production of Microalgal Pigments
331
bioactive components that are extracted from microalgae are reported to possess
ability to protect skin against harsh environment as well as microbial attack and
regenerate them. Microalgal bioactive compounds, including exopolysaccharides,
chrysolaminarin, glucan, carotenes, asthaxanthin, lycopene, phycocyanin, ectoine,
and biopterin glucose are used in the cosmetic product formulation. These biocompounds from microalgae possess enhanced properties to be used as moisturizers, sunscreen lotions, free radical collector, antioxidants, lipsticks, deodorants,
eye shadows, UV protectors, and for collagen repair which are beneficial to produce
personal care products. These microalgal bioactive compounds are also used in
thalassotherapy which utilizes seawater and marine elements including microalgae
for skin care. Products such as Blue Retinol
TM from D. salina for skin cell development and propagation, SILIDINE
® from Porphyridium cruentum for improving
skin aspect and decreasing redness and effects of rosacea and protein-rich Arthrospira
extract as products for repairing skin damages. The advancements in the downstream
processing of commercial microalgae have led to the emergence of skin and care,
personalized cosmetic products such as GoldenChlorella
TM and AlgaPur
TM algae
oils. In future, the bioeconomy based on microalgae for cosmetic applications are
expected to increase about three times as these products are comparatively less toxic
and highly effective in skin care, compared to chemical-based cosmetic products
(Mourelle et al. 2017).
14.2.6 Energy
The ability of microalgae to produce highly valuable and essential lipids has been
mentioned in the previous sections. The ability of microalgae to accumulate lipid
similar to vegetable oil, in their cell, makes them highly beneficial in biofuel production as an alternate fuel. It is noteworthy that the microalgae possesses potential to
synthesize and store, 100 times higher quantity of lipids than any other organisms,
especially plants (Mubarak et al. 2015). These lipids obtained from microalgae are
processed and are widely used as biodiesel to encounter the growing fuel demand
throughout the world. However, the production of microalgal biodiesel, specifically
dimethyl ether, is still in its infancy and lab-scale stage. After the in situ transesterification process with methanol for biodiesel production from microalgal oil, the
residual microalgal oil are also used for the biogas production (Salam et al. 2016).
Microalgae are used to produce ethanol, methanol, hydrogen, and biodiesel as efficient biofuels. It has been reported that the biofuel production is high in green algae,
compared to red, blue-green and yellow-green algae. Microalgal species, namely,
Chlorella and Chlorococcum are proved to be extensively utilized for the distinctly
classifiable biofuel production (Faried et al. 2017). Due to the depletion of conventional, non-renewable fossil fuels and demand for novel green fuels, the bioeconomy
based on the microalgal biofuel are expected to increase gradually in the near future.
331
bioactive components that are extracted from microalgae are reported to possess
ability to protect skin against harsh environment as well as microbial attack and
regenerate them. Microalgal bioactive compounds, including exopolysaccharides,
chrysolaminarin, glucan, carotenes, asthaxanthin, lycopene, phycocyanin, ectoine,
and biopterin glucose are used in the cosmetic product formulation. These biocompounds from microalgae possess enhanced properties to be used as moisturizers, sunscreen lotions, free radical collector, antioxidants, lipsticks, deodorants,
eye shadows, UV protectors, and for collagen repair which are beneficial to produce
personal care products. These microalgal bioactive compounds are also used in
thalassotherapy which utilizes seawater and marine elements including microalgae
for skin care. Products such as Blue Retinol
TM from D. salina for skin cell development and propagation, SILIDINE
® from Porphyridium cruentum for improving
skin aspect and decreasing redness and effects of rosacea and protein-rich Arthrospira
extract as products for repairing skin damages. The advancements in the downstream
processing of commercial microalgae have led to the emergence of skin and care,
personalized cosmetic products such as GoldenChlorella
TM and AlgaPur
TM algae
oils. In future, the bioeconomy based on microalgae for cosmetic applications are
expected to increase about three times as these products are comparatively less toxic
and highly effective in skin care, compared to chemical-based cosmetic products
(Mourelle et al. 2017).
14.2.6 Energy
The ability of microalgae to produce highly valuable and essential lipids has been
mentioned in the previous sections. The ability of microalgae to accumulate lipid
similar to vegetable oil, in their cell, makes them highly beneficial in biofuel production as an alternate fuel. It is noteworthy that the microalgae possesses potential to
synthesize and store, 100 times higher quantity of lipids than any other organisms,
especially plants (Mubarak et al. 2015). These lipids obtained from microalgae are
processed and are widely used as biodiesel to encounter the growing fuel demand
throughout the world. However, the production of microalgal biodiesel, specifically
dimethyl ether, is still in its infancy and lab-scale stage. After the in situ transesterification process with methanol for biodiesel production from microalgal oil, the
residual microalgal oil are also used for the biogas production (Salam et al. 2016).
Microalgae are used to produce ethanol, methanol, hydrogen, and biodiesel as efficient biofuels. It has been reported that the biofuel production is high in green algae,
compared to red, blue-green and yellow-green algae. Microalgal species, namely,
Chlorella and Chlorococcum are proved to be extensively utilized for the distinctly
classifiable biofuel production (Faried et al. 2017). Due to the depletion of conventional, non-renewable fossil fuels and demand for novel green fuels, the bioeconomy
based on the microalgal biofuel are expected to increase gradually in the near future.