Chapter 5
Microalgae Biorefineries for Energy
and Coproduct Production
Pierre-Louis Gorry, León Sánchez and Marcia Morales
Abstract The 2015 Conference of the Parties (COP21) marked a turning point for
global actions to mitigate atmospheric greenhouse gases, reduce the carbon dioxide
emissions from fossil fuel combustion, and stabilize the global climate. On the other
hand, the increase in energy demand asks for renewable sources and robust systems
to supply energy and obtain product diversity like that obtained from a petroleum
refinery. A biorefinery is the sustainable processing of biomass into a spectrum of
profitable products and energy. Microalgal biomass is considered one of the most
promising biorefinery feedstock providing alternatives for different areas, such as
food, feed, cosmetics and health industries, fertilizers, plastics, and biofuels
including biodiesel, methane, hydrogen, ethanol. Furthermore, microalgae can also
be used for the treatment of wastewater and CO 2 capture. However, microalgal
biofuels are not currently cost competitive at large scale and to develop a sustainable and economically feasible process, most of the biomass components should
be valorized. High-value coproducts from microalgae include pigments, proteins,
lipids, carbohydrates, vitamins, and antioxidants, and they can improve the process
economics in the biorefinery concept. Therefore, mild and energy-efficient downstream processing techniques need to be chosen to maintain product properties and
value. In this chapter, the existing products and microalgae biorefinery strategies
will be presented, followed by new developments, sustainability assessments, and
techno-economic evaluations. Finally, perspectives and challenges of microalgal
biorefineries will be explored.
Keywords Biorefinery Á Downstream processing Á Biofuels Á Microalgae products
LCA
P.-L. Gorry Á M. Morales (&)
Processes and Technology Department and Doctoral Program in Natural Sciences and
Engineering, Metropolitan Autonomous University Campus Cuajimalpa, Vasco de Quiroga,
4871, Col. Santa Fe, Cuajimalpa, 05300 Mexico City, Mexico
e-mail: mmorales@correo.cua.uam.mx
L. Sánchez
Doctoral Program in Biotechnology, Metropolitan Autonomous University Campus
Iztapalapa, San Rafael Atlixco 186, Col.Vicentina, 09340 Iztapalapa, Mexico City, Mexico
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
E. Jacob-Lopes et al. (eds.), Energy from Microalgae, Green Energy
and Technology, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69093-3_5
89
Microalgae Biorefineries for Energy
and Coproduct Production
Pierre-Louis Gorry, León Sánchez and Marcia Morales
Abstract The 2015 Conference of the Parties (COP21) marked a turning point for
global actions to mitigate atmospheric greenhouse gases, reduce the carbon dioxide
emissions from fossil fuel combustion, and stabilize the global climate. On the other
hand, the increase in energy demand asks for renewable sources and robust systems
to supply energy and obtain product diversity like that obtained from a petroleum
refinery. A biorefinery is the sustainable processing of biomass into a spectrum of
profitable products and energy. Microalgal biomass is considered one of the most
promising biorefinery feedstock providing alternatives for different areas, such as
food, feed, cosmetics and health industries, fertilizers, plastics, and biofuels
including biodiesel, methane, hydrogen, ethanol. Furthermore, microalgae can also
be used for the treatment of wastewater and CO 2 capture. However, microalgal
biofuels are not currently cost competitive at large scale and to develop a sustainable and economically feasible process, most of the biomass components should
be valorized. High-value coproducts from microalgae include pigments, proteins,
lipids, carbohydrates, vitamins, and antioxidants, and they can improve the process
economics in the biorefinery concept. Therefore, mild and energy-efficient downstream processing techniques need to be chosen to maintain product properties and
value. In this chapter, the existing products and microalgae biorefinery strategies
will be presented, followed by new developments, sustainability assessments, and
techno-economic evaluations. Finally, perspectives and challenges of microalgal
biorefineries will be explored.
Keywords Biorefinery Á Downstream processing Á Biofuels Á Microalgae products
LCA
P.-L. Gorry Á M. Morales (&)
Processes and Technology Department and Doctoral Program in Natural Sciences and
Engineering, Metropolitan Autonomous University Campus Cuajimalpa, Vasco de Quiroga,
4871, Col. Santa Fe, Cuajimalpa, 05300 Mexico City, Mexico
e-mail: mmorales@correo.cua.uam.mx
L. Sánchez
Doctoral Program in Biotechnology, Metropolitan Autonomous University Campus
Iztapalapa, San Rafael Atlixco 186, Col.Vicentina, 09340 Iztapalapa, Mexico City, Mexico
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
E. Jacob-Lopes et al. (eds.), Energy from Microalgae, Green Energy
and Technology, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-69093-3_5
89