Microalgae for biofuel production and removal of heavy metals: a review

Removal of heavy metals from wastewaters using microalgae is gaining interest because microalgae also assimilate carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus. Here, we review algal metabolism and cultivation; algal biomass conversion to biodiesel, bioethanol, biohydrogen, methane, electricity and fertilizers; an...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental chemistry letters 2020-11, Vol.18 (6), p.1905-1923
Main Authors: Pavithra, Kirubanandam Grace, Kumar, P. Senthil, Jaikumar, V., Vardhan, Kilaru Harsha, SundarRajan, PanneerSelvam
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Algae
Analytical Chemistry
Biodiesel fuels
Bioethanol
Biofuels
Biohydrogen
Bioremediation
Cultivation
Earth and Environmental Science
Ecotoxicology
Environment
Environmental Chemistry
Ethanol
Fertilizers
Geochemistry
Heavy metals
Inorganic wastes
Metabolism
Metals
Microalgae
Organic wastes
Phosphorus
Photobioreactors
Physiochemistry
Phytoplankton
Pollution
Removal
Review
Uptake
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Removal of heavy metals from wastewaters using microalgae is gaining interest because microalgae also assimilate carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus. Here, we review algal metabolism and cultivation; algal biomass conversion to biodiesel, bioethanol, biohydrogen, methane, electricity and fertilizers; and removal of metals with microalgae. The mixotrophic approach enables the effective treatment of both organic and inorganic wastes in water. For cultivation, photobioreactors are found efficient due to the control of operational conditions. Bioremediation of heavy metals by physiochemical processes appears to be more efficient than algal uptake.
ISSN:1610-3653
1610-3661
DOI:10.1007/s10311-020-01046-1