Production of Microalgal Biomass in Photobioreactors as Feedstock for Bioenergy and Other Uses: A Techno-Economic Study of Harvesting Stage

• Main Authors: Esveidi Montserrat Valdovinos-García, Moisés Abraham Petriz-Prieto, María de los Ángeles Olán-Acosta, Juan Barajas-Fernández, Adriana Guzmán-López, Micael Gerardo Bravo-Sánchez
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-05-01
• Series: Applied Sciences
• Subjects: microalgae; production scenarios; techno-economic evaluation; tubular photobioreactor; CO₂ capture
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/11/10/4386

The cultivation of microalgae has become a viable option to mitigate increase in CO₂ in the atmosphere generated by industrial activities since they can capture CO₂ as a carbon source for growth. Besides, they produce significant amounts of oils, carbohydrates, proteins, and other compounds of economic interest. There are several investigations related to the process, however, there is still no optimal scenario, since may depend on the final use of the biomass. The objective of this work was to develop a techno-economic evaluation of various technologies in harvesting and drying stages. The techno-economic estimation of these technologies provides a variety of production scenarios. Photobioreactors were used considering 1 ha as a cultivation area and a biomass production of 22.66 g/m²/day and a CO₂ capture of 148.4 tons/ha/year was estimated. The production scenarios considered in this study have high energy demand and high operating costs (12.09–12.51 kWh/kg and US $210.05–214.59/kg). These results are mainly a consequence of the use of tubular photobioreactors as a biomass culture system. However, the use of photobioreactors in the production of microalgal biomass allows it to be obtained in optimal conditions for its use in the food or pharmaceutical industry.