potential use of the microalgae for production of biofuels by using industrial waste fertilizer

IRJMST Volume 5 Issue 3 [Year 2014] Online ISSN 2250 - 1959

International Research Journal of Management Science & Technology http:www.irjmst.com Page 44

Potential use of the microalgae for production of biofuels by using industrial

waste fertilizer

Manjeet Singh1*, Mr. Vaibhav Nagaich2,

Mr. Pushpendra Singh3, Dr. Mahavir Yadaw

4,

Dr. Archana Tiwari5, Dr Rajesh Mujoriya

6

School Of Biotechnology Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya, Bhopal, (M.P.)

1,2,3,4,5

Agnihotri College of Pharmacy, Wardha6

CORRESPONDING AUTHOR

MANJEET SINGH1*;

SCHOOL OF BIOTECHNOLOGY;

Rajiv Gandhi Proudyogiki Vishwavidyalaya, Bhopal, (M.P.);

PHONE - 09713226337

Abstract

Biodiesel is the name given to fuel for Diesel engines created by the chemical alteration

of animal, fats or vegetable oils. Biodiesel is a clean burning; renewable fuel made from

vegetable oils, animal fats and recycled cooking oil and greases. Biodiesel is a renewable

diesel fuel alternate that can be made by chemically combining any natural oil or fat with

an alcohol such as methanol or ethanol. Methanol has been the most commonly used

alcohol in the commercial production of biodiesel. Algae fuel or algal biofuels is a

substitute to fossil fuel that uses algae as its source of natural deposits. Microalgae are at

present cultivated commercially for human dietary products around the world in several

dozen small to medium scale production systems, producing a few tens to a several

hundreds of tons of biomass annually. Microalgae produce natural oils needed for

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fossil_fuel

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algae



biofuels at a higher rate than any other terrestrial plant. The fertilizer has the different

nutrients and other substrates which provide the nutrients for the growth of microalgae.

Introduction

In our day to day life, the erg for energy is increasing swiftly. We rely on various sources

of energy like electricity and fuels for industries, household activities, automobiles and

many other fundamental necessities. Among these sources, the fossil fuels includes about

88% of primary energy production (Brennan & Owende, 2010). Fossil fuels being limited

resources of energy are fast depleting due to the continuous exploitation by mankind

(Srivastava & Prasad, 2000). Studies reveal that, these energy sources are expected to be

extinct by the year 2042 (Shafiee & Topal, 2009). So, the swap energy sources like

Biofuels which are renewable and capable of maintaining environmental and economic

sustainability (Prasad, Singh et al. 2007). Biodiesel is the name given to energy for Diesel

engines formed by the chemical change of animal fats or vegetable oils. Biodiesel is a

hygienic burning; renewable fuel made from microalgae, vegetable oils, mammal fats and

recycled cooking oil and greases. The manufacturing process for biodiesel combines oils

and fats with methanol and a catalyst to produce fatty acid methyl ester, which is

commonly referred to as biodiesel. Biodiesel is an environmentally friendly, efficient

alternative to conventional petroleum based diesel and can be used in a variety of ways.

Biodiesel has physical and chemical properties similar to conventional petroleum based

diesel (www.CrimsonRenewable.com).

Most fertilizers that are commonly used in agriculture contain the three basic plant

nutrients: nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Some fertilizers also contain certain

"micronutrients," such as zinc and other metals, that are necessary for plant growth

(Roberts, Fortier, Sturm, & Stagg-Williams, 2013).

Microalgae, a broad category encompassing eukaryotic microalgae and cyan bacteria, can

be cultivated to produce biomass for a wide range of applications, including animal and

human nutrition, the health sector, cosmetics and agriculture (bio fertilizers) (Tan, 2007).

http://www.crimsonrenewable.com/



In parallel, an important application for the cultivation of microalgae is the production of

biomass for energy purposes. Microalgae produce biomass, which can be converted into

energy or an energy carrier through a number of energy conversion processes (Brennan &

Owende, 2010).

Microalgae biomass contains considerable amounts of proteins (Becker, 2007) and on the

basis of biomass composition the quantity of nitrogen (N) required as fertilizer is

estimated to be 8–16 tons N/ha, which means that microalgae production involves

enormous amounts of N fertilizers. The use of such large quantities of fertilizer for

microalgae cultivation raises questions about their environmental impact(Sialve, Bernet,

& Bernard, 2009).

Furthermore, the use of fertilizer contributes to the cost of algal biomass production. For

example the use of fertilizer constitutes nearly half of the overall cost of Spirulina

cultivation (Venkataraman, Madhavi Devi, Mahadevaswamy, & Mohammed Kunhi,

1982).

The use of diesel is increasing in day by day, so the Biodiesel is an alternate source of the

diesel. The micro alga is more suitable for production of biodiesel due to its high growth

rate. The use of fertilizer contributes to the cost of algal biomass production.

Waste from fertilizer industries

Waste from fertilizer industries are commonly spread myth originates from the legitimate

addition of phosphorus to agricultural fields. Phosphorus is one of the inorganic

macronutrients needed by all plants and microalgae for the manufacture of phosphate

containing nucleic acids, ATP and membrane lipids.This commonly spread myth

originates from the legitimate addition of phosphorus to agricultural fields. Some organic

fertilizers are suitable for greenhouse crops and can also fit the current ways of applying

fertilizers commercially. However, not much information is available on plant response,

nutrient supplying power, or the environmental impact of nutrient leaching with organic

fertilizers. Not surprisingly, because of their differences in the makeup, levels of success


International Research Journal of Management Science & Technology http:www.irjmst.com 7

in growing acceptable greenhouse crops with organic fertilizers can be quite variable

(Cox, 2010).

However, if stable and economical microalgae production can be developed, microalgae

will likely become one of the most important materials in bio industry. For mass

production of microalgae, reagents used for indoor culture would be inappropriate

because of their high cost. Instead, more economical resources, such as agricultural

fertilizers or Waste from fertilizer industries are frequently used (Lopez et al., 1995).

The fertilizer has the different nutrients and other substrates which provide the nutrients

for the growth of microalgae.

In India more than 1000 million tonnes of agro-industrial biomass and food processing

wastes are available (Viswanath, Sumithra Devi, & Nand, 1992)

Table no. 1

Wastes India Brazil Sudan USA Sweden

MSW 135.5 44.0 2.3 148.0 5.3

Sewage 44.9 8.02 1.4 16.0 0.6

Manure 653.0 470.0 68.0 306.0 13.2

Agricultur

al residues

200.0 47.0 8.1 573.0 12.6

Biomass 140.0 496.8 192.3 427.0 14.0

For mass production of microalgae, reagents used for indoor culture would be

inappropriate because of their high cost. Instead, more economical resources, such as

agricultural fertilizers, are frequently used (Pacheco‐Vega & Sánchez‐Saavedra, 2009).



In general, both nitrogen and phosphorus are the major sources of eutrophication,

therefore, high concentrations of nitrogen or phosphorus can cause algal blooms and

other hazardous environmental problems(Soeder, 1980)

Nutrient and fertilizer use

Algae cultivation requires the addition of nutrients, mainly Nitrogen, Phosphorus and

Potassium (some species, e.g. diatoms, also require silicon). Fertilization cannot be

avoided as the dry algal mass fraction consists of ~7% Nitrogen and ~1% Phosphorus.

Substituting fossil fuels with algal biomass would require a lot of fertilizer. As an

illustration, if the EU substituted all existing transport fuels with algae biofuels this

would need ~25 million tones of Nitrogen and 4 million tones of Phosphorus per

annum(Wijffels & Barbosa, 2010). Supplying this would double the current EU capacity

for fertilizer production (van Egmond, Bresser, & Bouwman, 2002). At a small scale,

recycling nutrients from waste water could potentially provide some of the nutrients

required, and there may be some scope to combine fuel invention and waste water

remediation. Some theoretical process designs also incorporate nutrient cycling as a

elementary aspect of system design and operation (Slade & Bauen, 2013).

Waste of fertilizer industries

Nitrogen fertilizer plant during the manufacturing processes generated, unhygienic liquid

effluents in addition to dust, gas emanation and solid by products. These wastes are

contaminate air, waster as well as impair soil. Hazardous wastes obtained from plant are

classified into following categories

(I) Hazardous gases (Air emissions)

(II) Waste water and liquid effluents

(III) Solid waste (spent catalyst) (Prajapati & Singhai, 2012)



Conclusions

In the literature reviewed the importance of Algal biofuels on commercially available

fuels. The scenario reveals that microalgae biofuels has the potential to replace fossil

fuels and offer added bonuses. Microalgae biofuels is a renewable energy resource that

can be cultivated through photo bioreactors. (Jackson Jae; 2012). However, the use of a

switchable solvent for the extraction of lipid oil from the microalgae reduces the

production cost because it can be reused and is easy to separate from the biomass. In

addition to biofuels, microalgae also offer other benefits in pharmaceutics and wastewater

treatment, therefore making microalgae one of the most useful organisms to humans

(Emma Suali, Rosalam Sarbatly).

The interest in microalgae, as for other alternative biofuels sources, is that there would, or

could, be less competition with food and feed production and that large-scale production

is possible. But along with production of biodiesel, produced micro algal biodiesel

requires large-scale and systems for harvesting and cultivation, and the challenged

reducing the cost per unit area (Mata et al., 2010).

For mass production of microalgae, reagents used for indoor culture would be

inappropriate because of their high cost. Instead, more cost-effective resources, such as

agricultural fertilizers or Waste from fertilizer industries are frequently used (Lopez et al.,

1995).

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potential use of the microalgae for production of biofuels by using industrial waste fertilizer

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