Thermocatalytic Pyrolysis of Exhausted Arthrospira platensis Biomass after Protein or Lipid Recovery

Elena Spennati, Alessandro Alberto Casazza, Attilio Converti and Guido Busca
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Elena Spennati: Department of Civil, Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Genoa, via Opera Pia, 16145 Genova, Italy
Alessandro Alberto Casazza: Department of Civil, Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Genoa, via Opera Pia, 16145 Genova, Italy
Attilio Converti: Department of Civil, Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Genoa, via Opera Pia, 16145 Genova, Italy
Guido Busca: Department of Civil, Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Genoa, via Opera Pia, 16145 Genova, Italy

Energies, 2020, vol. 13, issue 20, 1-17

Abstract: Microalgae and cyanobacteria are unicellular microorganism that contain high-added-value compounds. To make their extraction economically feasible, the biorefinery concept is the only solution. In this study, the residues resulting from lipid or protein extraction from Arthrospira platensis biomass were valorized by catalytic pyrolysis using ZSM5 zeolite or amorphous silica–alumina as catalyst. The reaction was performed in a quartz reactor, and the catalysts were placed in a fixed bed, to force the reaction gases to pass through it. The reaction products were analyzed by FTIR and GC–MS analyses. The reaction gases and liquids obtained from the extraction residues had higher hydrocarbon contents compared with the untreated biomass. Moreover, the pyrolysis of biomass after protein extraction led to fractions with lower nitrogenated component contents, while that after lipid extraction to fractions with lower oxygenated component contents. This study showed that the pyrolysis process could be used to valorize the microalgae extraction residues, aiming to make biofuels production and extraction of high-added-value products more economically feasible.

Keywords: biofuels; silica–alumina; zeolite; microalgae; FTIR; GC–MS (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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