Comparative life cycle assessment study on environmental impact of oil production from micro-algae and terrestrial oilseed crops.

In this study the LCA methodology is applied in order to satisfy two goals: i) to evaluate the hot spots in site-specific production chain of biodiesel from terrestrial and micro-algae feedstock; ii) to compare quantitatively, utilizing primary data, the impacts of the first generation in respect to the third generation bio-fuels. Results show that micro-algae are neither competitive yet with traditional oil crops nor with fossil fuel. The use of renewable technologies as photovoltaics and biogas self production might increase the competitiveness of micro-algae oil. Further investigations are however necessary to optimize their production chain and to increase the added value of co-products.

[1]  John Beardall,et al.  Living in a high CO2 world: impacts of global climate change on marine phytoplankton , 2009 .

[2]  Keri B Cantrell,et al.  Livestock waste-to-bioenergy generation opportunities. , 2008, Bioresource technology.

[3]  A. Kiperstok,et al.  Comparative energy life-cycle analyses of microalgal biomass production in open ponds and photobioreactors. , 2010, Bioresource technology.

[4]  David Parlevliet,et al.  Efficient conversion of solar energy to biomass and electricity , 2014, Aquatic biosystems.

[5]  Olivier Bernard,et al.  Anaerobic digestion of microalgae as a necessary step to make microalgal biodiesel sustainable. , 2009, Biotechnology advances.

[6]  Lucas Reijnders,et al.  Do biofuels from microalgae beat biofuels from terrestrial plants? , 2008, Trends in biotechnology.

[7]  C. Lan,et al.  Closed photobioreactors for production of microalgal biomasses. , 2012, Biotechnology advances.

[8]  Susan E. Powers,et al.  Sustainable Algae Biodiesel Production in Cold Climates , 2010 .

[9]  T. Gomiero.  Are Biofuels an Effective and Viable Energy Strategy for Industrialized Societies? A Reasoned Overview of Potentials and Limits , 2015 .

[10]  R. S. Dhillon,et al.  Biomass Conversion: The Interface of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Materials Science , 2012 .

[11]  M. Huntley,et al.  CO2 Mitigation and Renewable Oil from Photosynthetic Microbes: A New Appraisal , 2007 .

[12]  W. Warta,et al.  Solar cell efficiency tables (Version 45) , 2015 .

[13]  Razif Harun,et al.  Microalgal biomass as a fermentation feedstock for bioethanol production , 2009 .

[14]  Hui Lui,et al.  Ability of different microalgae species in synthetic high‐strength wastewater treatment and potential lipid production , 2016 .

[15]  Michael Taylor,et al.  An overview of second generation biofuel technologies. , 2010, Bioresource technology.

[16]  F. Malcata.  Microalgae and biofuels: a promising partnership? , 2011, Trends in biotechnology.

[17]  Steven G. Hall,et al.  An analysis of energy consumption for algal biodiesel production: Comparing the literature with current estimates , 2014 .

[18]  L. Lardon,et al.  Life-cycle assessment of microalgae culture coupled to biogas production. , 2011, Bioresource technology.

[19]  Riccardo Basosi,et al.  LCA of 1,4-Butanediol Produced via Direct Fermentation of Sugars from Wheat Straw Feedstock within a Territorial Biorefinery , 2016, Materials.

[20]  Riccardo Basosi,et al.  Integrated Environmental Assessment of sunflower oil production , 2012 .

[21]  V. Fogliano,et al.  Productivity and biochemical composition of Tetradesmus obliquus and Phaeodactylum tricornutum: effects of different cultivation approaches , 2016, Journal of Applied Phycology.

[22]  C. Howe,et al.  Life-Cycle Assessment of Potential Algal Biodiesel Production in the United Kingdom: A Comparison of Raceways and Air-Lift Tubular Bioreactors , 2010 .

[23]  J. Perales,et al.  Freshwater microalgae selection for simultaneous wastewater nutrient removal and lipid production , 2017 .

[24]  M. Thring.  World Energy Outlook , 1977 .

[25]  Y. Oh,et al.  Removal of Nitrogen and Phosphorus from Piggery Wastewater Effluent Using the Green Microalga Scenedesmus obliquus , 2013 .

[26]  Matteo Prussi,et al.  Energy balance of algal biomass production in a 1-ha “Green Wall Panel” plant: How to produce algal biomass in a closed reactor achieving a high Net Energy Ratio ☆ , 2015 .

[27]  Luca Lazzeri,et al.  The role of co-products in biorefinery sustainability: energy allocation versus substitution method in rapeseed and carinata biodiesel chains. , 2015 .

[28]  Riccardo Basosi,et al.  Life Cycle Assessment of second generation bioethanol produced from low-input dedicated crops of Arundo donax L. , 2016, Bioresource technology.

[29]  V. Makarevičienė,et al.  GREEN ENERGY FROM MICROALGAE: USAGE OF ALGAE BIOMASS FOR ANAEROBIC DIGESTION , 2014 .

[30]  Yusuf Chisti,et al.  Response to Reijnders: Do biofuels from microalgae beat biofuels from terrestrial plants? , 2008 .

[31]  David Lewis,et al.  Anaerobic digestion of algae biomass: A review , 2014 .

[32]  Riccardo Basosi,et al.  Environmental and life cycle analysis of a biodiesel production line from sunflower in the Province of Siena (Italy) , 2013 .

[33]  J. Qazi,et al.  Theoretical Considerations for Economics of Second- and Third- Generation Biofuels , 2017 .

[34]  Daniele Spinelli,et al.  Life-Cycle Assessment of Microalgal-Based Biofuels , 2014 .

[35]  Martin A. Green,et al.  Solar cell efficiency tables (version 39) , 2012 .

[36]  Annachiara Forte,et al.  Measurements of CO2 and N2O Emissions in the Agricultural Field Experiments of the MESCOSAGR Project , 2012 .

[37]  Kullapa Soratana,et al.  Evaluating industrial symbiosis and algae cultivation from a life cycle perspective. , 2011, Bioresource technology.

[38]  Jacinto F. Fabiosa,et al.  Use of U.S. Croplands for Biofuels Increases Greenhouse Gases Through Emissions from Land-Use Change , 2008, Science.

[39]  Mark A. White,et al.  Environmental life cycle comparison of algae to other bioenergy feedstocks. , 2010, Environmental science & technology.

[40]  Y. Chisti.  Biodiesel from microalgae. , 2007, Biotechnology advances.

[41]  G. Ying,et al.  Simultaneous removal of inorganic and organic compounds in wastewater by freshwater green microalgae. , 2014, Environmental science. Processes & impacts.

[42]  Nils Lerche.  Biomass Conversion – the Interface of Biotechnology, Chemistry and Materials Science, Baskar. Springer (2012), 465 pp., Price $229, ISBN: 978-3-642-28418-2 , 2016 .

[44]  Arnaud Hélias,et al.  Life-cycle assessment of biodiesel production from microalgae. , 2009, Environmental science & technology.

[45]  Riccardo Basosi,et al.  LCA of Arundo donax L. lignocellulosic feedstock production under Mediterranean conditions , 2015 .

[46]  Ganti S. Murthy,et al.  Effects of Environmental Factors and Nutrient Availability on the Biochemical Composition of Algae for Biofuels Production: A Review , 2013 .

[47]  P. Schenk,et al.  High Lipid Induction in Microalgae for Biodiesel Production , 2012 .

[48]  Poritosh Roy,et al.  A Review of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of Bioethanol from Lignocellulosic Biomass , 2012 .

[49]  Gassan Hodaifa,et al.  Use of industrial wastewater from olive-oil extraction for biomass production of Scenedesmus obliquus. , 2008, Bioresource technology.

[50]  G. Mamo,et al.  Microbial glycoside hydrolases for biomass utilization in biofuels application , 2013 .

[51]  Julie B Zimmerman,et al.  Combinatorial life cycle assessment to inform process design of industrial production of algal biodiesel. , 2011, Environmental science & technology.