High selectivity of erythritol production from glycerol by Yarrowia lipolytica

The effect of different vitamins and nitrogen sources on the yield, productivity and selectivity of erythritol production from glycerol in batch and fed-batch cultures by Yarrowia lipolytica Wratislavia K1 strain was examined in the study.Thiamine was a vitamin necessary for efficient erythritol production and the yeast extract (YE) turned out to be its best source. The YE was additionally a very good source of nitrogen in this process. Erythritol production may be efficient in the media containing only yeast extract and crude glycerol. The application of a high substrate concentration (325 kg m⁻³) in the fed-batch system with pulsed addition of glycerol resulted in erythritol production of 201.2 kg m⁻³ after 168 h of cultivation. The mass fraction of by-products, such as other polyols and organic acids, did not exceed 10%. The study showed that by-products formation could be significantly reduced by the addition of a nitrogen source after glycerol depletion from the media. Wratislavia K1 strain does not utilize erythritol in the presence of other carbon sources and this feature was used in order to increase product selectivity up to 99.7% and protein content in yeast biomass up to 28.7%. The factors determining the use of biomass as animal feed, i.e. protein concentration and presence of metal ions, were discussed as well.     

Biodiesel potential of the seed oils from some Brazilian native Euphorbiaceae species

In the present study, the oil content, fatty acid composition and physicochemical properties of seed oils and biodiesel from seven species of Euphorbiaceae were analyzed. The oil content from seven Brazilian native Euphorbiaceae species ranged from 25.4 to 48.5%. Nine primarily unsaturated fatty acids were identified in seed oils. Actinostemon concolor and Stillingia trapezoidea seeds accumulated mainly oleic and linoleic acids, whereas in the seeds of Croton floribundus, Croton nepetifolius, Euphorbia comosa and Microstachys corniculata, linoleic and linolenic acids were the main constituents identified. Palmitic and oleic acids were predominantly detected in the seeds of Sapium glandulosum. In general, the oils showed low acidity, viscosity and free fatty acids. The results suggest that the seed oils from A. concolor, S. glandulosum and S. trapezoidea might be a viable alternative for biodiesel production, while those from C. floribundus, C. nepetifolius, E. comosa and M. corniculata seeds have great potential for application in the paint, varnish and lubricant industries. Due to the high content of saturated fatty acids, the seeds of S. glandulosum could also be used to produce soaps and detergents. For most species analyzed, the biodiesel specifications are in accordance with EN 14214 and ASTM D6751 standards.     

Exploring the photocatalytic hydrogen production potential of titania doped with alumina derived from foil waste

The multifunctional potential of a catalyst previously synthesised for thermal processes is explored by investigating its activity for photocatalytic production of H₂ from glycerol, a by-product from the manufacture of bio-diesel. The studied catalyst contains TiO₂ doped with Al₂O₃ that was derived from aluminum foil waste. This catalyst showed higher photocatalytic activity than the analogous catalyst prepared with a commercial Al₂O₃. Pt and Pd act as electron traps while the Al₂O₃ demonstrated a promotional effect, partially through proton donation. Under optimum conditions, a steady-state of 4.2 mmol H₂ gTiO₂⁻¹ hr⁻¹ was produced, which is comparable to the 4.7 mmol H₂ gTiO₂⁻¹ hr⁻¹ obtained with Pt–TiO₂, which is a standard photocatalytic material. It should be noted that the reported Pt/Pd/TiO₂-ANFL catalyst has not yet been optimised and so this result is encouraging. It is hoped that these findings can inspire more sustainable and less expensive hydrogen production, including from biomass feedstocks such as glycerol.     

Development of high surface area bulk W2N catalysts for hydrogen production from ammonia decomposition

High surface area tungsten nitride catalysts synthesized from ammonium meta-tungstate and employed as catalysts for ecofriendly H₂ production from NH₃. A series of tungsten nitride catalysts synthesized by using CiA (citric acid) as chelating agent with different molar ratio of W and CiA. The synthesized materials characterized using BET-surface area, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and SEM techniques. The BET value of as-synthesized tungsten nitride was raised from 25 to 80 m² g⁻¹. The influence of amount of CiA in preparation on the catalyst's surface area was investigated. The catalyst performance measured within the desired range of temperature 300–600 °C. A pure phase of tungsten nitride was formed by this preparation method. The catalyst with the ratio of CiA/W = 3 exhibited the best catalytic performance. The increased activity of WN-31 catalyst was mainly due to increased surface area, decreased particle size and high surface concentration. The WN-31 catalyst showed stable performance during time on study for 25 h. These bulk tungsten-based materials are easy to synthesize and highly stable material in the reaction atmosphere.     

Effects of concentrations of NaCl and organic acid on generation of hydrogen from magnesium metal scrap

The study systematically investigates a catalyst-free method of producing H₂ by mixing low-grade Mg scraps (LGMS) in aqueous organic acids. A concave downward relationship exists between the hydrogen yield and the citric acid concentration in seawater. The H₂ yield was highest when the seawater contained 30 wt% citric acid. Activation energy for the H₂ generation in citric acid-added seawater was calculated. H⁺ mobility and H⁺ concentration in citric acid aqueous affect the total H₂ yield, causing that the highest yield occurred at some intermediate citric acid concentration. A concave downward relationship existed between the H₂ yield and NaCl concentration in citric acid solution. NaCl concentration had strong effect on H₂ yield in citric acid solution but did not have the effect on the H₂ yield in acetic acid solution. The H₂ generation rate from the Mg scraps in 15 wt% acetic acid solution evidently exceeded that in 15 wt% citric acid solution although the two solutions each had approximately equal moles of dissociable hydrogen atoms.     

Recent advances in renewable hydrogen production by thermo-catalytic conversion of biomass-derived glycerol: Overview of prospects and challenges

Glycerol is the main by-products obtained from the transesterification of vegetable oils and animal fats to produce biodiesel which is an important biofuel used for transportation. The increase in the global energy demand has pushed up the production of biodiesel with a corresponding increase in glycerol production over the years. The thermo-catalytic process is gaining wide popularity as sustainable technical routes of converting glycerol to renewable hydrogen. There exists a great potential of utilizing hydrogen as a critical part of a more sustainable and secure energy mix. Hence, this study focusses on the review of the recent advances and development in the thermo-catalytic conversion of glycerol to renewable hydrogen in the last one decade. The analysis of the reviewed articles showed that substantial efforts had been made in the application of thermo-catalytic process for the conversion of glycerol to renewable hydrogen. Glycerol reforming using steam, carbon dioxide (CO₂) and oxygen (O₂) have received significant research attention and have been found to have great potential as technological routes for hydrogen production. Whereas, the use of the photocatalytic glycerol reforming has the advantages of energy-saving by utilizing the vast available solar resources and suitable photocatalysts. However, each of the thermo-catalytic processes exhibits inherent challenges which have been a bottleneck to the development of the process to industrial scales. Nevertheless, the prospect of employing each of the thermo-catalytic processes for hydrogen production via glycerol conversion was identified with the possible suggestion of strategies of overcoming the challenges.     

Evolution of hydrogen from magnesium alloy scraps in citric acid-added seawater without catalyst

This work employed a mixture of low-grade Mg scraps (LGMS) and citric acid-added seawater to generate hydrogen gas. Metal catalyst was not required for accelerating the reaction of H₂ generation in the Mg scraps/citric acid solution. LGMS in 20 wt% citric acid-added seawater could produce substantially higher H₂ volume than the LGMS in 5 wt% citric acid-added seawater. Purity of the generated H₂ was about 99% (after dehumidification). By filling H₂-production reactor every 30 min with fresh seawater to which citric acid has been added, ∼70 l of hydrogen could be produced in 100 min.     

Recognising the potential for renewable energy heating and cooling

Heating and cooling in the industrial, commercial, and domestic sectors constitute around 40–50% of total global final energy demand. A wide range of renewable energy heating and cooling (REHC) technologies exists but they are presently only used to meet around 2–3% of total world demand (excluding from traditional biomass). Several of these technologies are mature, their markets are growing, and their costs relative to conventional heating and cooling systems continue to decline. However, in most countries, policies developed to encourage the wider deployment of renewable electricity generation, transport biofuels and energy efficiency have over-shadowed policies aimed at REHC technology deployment. This paper, based on the findings of the International Energy Agency publication Renewables for Heating and Cooling—Untapped Potential, outlines the present and future markets and compares the costs of providing heating and cooling services from solar, geothermal and biomass resources. It analyses current policies and experiences and makes recommendations to support enhanced market deployment of REHC technologies to provide greater energy supply security and climate change mitigation. If policies as successfully implemented by the leading countries were to be replicated elsewhere (possibly after modification to better suit local conditions), there would be good potential to significantly increase the share of renewable energy in providing heating and cooling services.     

Assessment of the potential for hydrogen production from renewable resources in Argentina

The potential for hydrogen production from three major renewable resources (wind energy, solar energy and biomass) in Argentina is analyzed. This potential for the annual production of wind, solar and biomass hydrogen is represented with maps showing it per unit area in each department. Thus, by using renewable resource databases available in the country, a new Geographic Information System (GIS) of renewable hydrogen is created. In this system, several geographic variables are displayed, in addition to other parameters such as the potential for renewable hydrogen production per department relative to transport fuel consumption of each province or the environmental savings that would imply the production of hydrogen required to add 20% V/V to CNG, with the aim of developing the cleaner alternative CNG + H₂ fuel. In order to take into account areas where energy development would be restricted, land use and environmental exclusions were considered.     

Biomass and lipid productivities of marine microalgae isolated from the Persian Gulf and the Qeshm Island

In this work, the screening of 147 microalgal strains from the Persian Gulf and the Qeshm Island (Iran) were done in order to choose the best ones, in terms of growth (biomass) rate and lipid content for biodiesel production. A methodology, combining experiments in lab-scale and pilot plant (open pond) used to produce and evaluate biomass and lipid productivity is presented for the systematic investigation of the potential of different microalgae species. The culture conditions, including photo flux (180 ??E m⁻² s⁻¹), photoperiod (12 h light/dark), temperature (25 °C), pH (≈8), air (carbon dioxide) and growth medium, were kept constant for all experiments. Microalgae were screened in two stages using optical density (for evaluation of biomass concentration) and Nile red and gas chromatography (for determination of lipid content and fatty acid fractions). In general, maximum specific growth rate and the maximum biomass productivity were obtained after 8-12-day culture. Nannochloropsis sp. and Neochloris sp. were selected from the marine microalgal culture collection, due to their high biomass (50 and 21.7 g L⁻¹, respectively) and oil content (52% and 46%, respectively). If the purpose is to produce biodiesel only from one species, Nannochloropsis sp. presented the most adequate fatty acid profile, namely linolenic and other polyunsaturated fatty acids. However, the microalgae Chlorella sp. can also be used if associated with other microalgal oils. In addition, selected strains could be potent candidates for commercial production in the open pond culture.     

Production and quality analysis of pellets manufactured from five potential energy crops in the Northern Region of Costa Rica

Modifications to a pellet manufacturing process must be made based on the characteristics of raw material used. The purpose of this work was to determine the alternations required to a wood pellet manufacturing process and the quality of the pellets produced using this process from five energy crops. Quality measurements include: the caloric value, the loss of moisture content in each production stage, the efficiency index of particle-pellet, ash content and quality as defined using the quantity of cracks and the transversal density and longitudinal density determined using X-ray radiography. The crops analyzed were rhizomatous plants, with caloric values ranging between 17.1 and 20.3 MJ kg⁻¹. This work determined that it was possible to produce pellets with Gynerium sagittatum and Phyllostachys aurea using the same production process for wood; however, Arundo donax and Pennisetum purpureum needed pre-air-drying and the Sorghum bicolor required mechanical dewatering before drying. A. donax, P. purpureum and G. sagittatum provided the highest efficiency index. When evaluating the pellet quality P. aurea and G. sagittatum hard a large quantity of cracks, unlike A. donax, P. purpureum and S. bicolor. The transversal and longitudinal pellet density varied from 1129 to 1294 kg m⁻³. The highest values of bulk density were obtained in A. donax and P. purpureum, followed by G. sagittatum and P. aurea, and the lowest bulk density was obtained in S. bicolor. Althogh out, some species produced cracks and high ash content, this work demonstrated that it is possible to produce pellets with moderate quality.     

Utilization of molasses and akalona hydrolyzate for glycerol production using a local yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)

Glycerol production from alcoholic fermentation of glucose, a by-product of cane sugar molasses, and wheat-milling residues (akalona) was studied. Experiments were run for the three different substrates under the same operating conditions. The highest glycerol production was obtained from molasses (24.35%), followed by glucose (22.92%) after 48 h. Maximum glycerol production was obtained from akalona hydrolyzate (17.47%) after 58 h. Stirring increased the glycerol production by about 18.5%. The effect of calcium on glycerol production was studied. The time courses of the fermentation processes are presented.     

An exposé of bioenergy and its potential and utilization in Turkey

Turkey is heavily dependent on expensive imported energy resources (oil, gas and coal) that place a big burden on the economy. Air pollution is also becoming a great environmental concern in the country. In this regard, renewable energy resources appear to be one of the most efficient and effective solutions for clean and sustainable energy development in Turkey. Turkey's renewable sources are the second largest source for energy production after coal. About two-thirds of the renewable energy produced is obtained from bioenergy, which is used to meet a variety of energy needs, including generating electricity, heating homes, fueling vehicles and providing process heat for industrial facilities. The amount of usable bioenergy potential of Turkey is approximately 17 Mtoe. This article not only presents a review of the potential and utilization of the bioenergy in Turkey but also provides some guidelines for policy makers.     

Hydrogen production from oil sludge gasification/biomass mixtures and potential use in hydrotreatment processes

Gasification of oil sludge (OS) from crude oil refinery and biomass was investigated to evaluate hydrogen production and its potential use in diesel oil hydrodesulphurization process. Gasification process was studied by Aspen Hysys^® tools, considering different kinetic model for main OS compounds. Air and superheated steam mixtures as gasifying agents were simulated. Gasification parameters like: temperature, syngas chemical composition and gas yield were evaluated. Results showed OS thermal conversion needs a working temperature above 1300 °C to ensure a high conversion (>90%) of OS compounds. Thermal energy requirement for gasification was estimated between 0.80 and 1.25 kWh/kg OS, considering equivalence air (ER) and steam/oil sludge (SOS) ratio between 0.25-0.37 and 0.2–1.5 kg steam/kg OS, respectively. The gas yield was 2.28 Nm³/kg OS, with a H₂ content close to 25 mol%, for a H₂ potential production about 1.84 Nm³ H₂/kg OS; nevertheless, when OS and biomass mixtures are used, hydrogen production increases to 3.51 Nm³ H₂/kg OS, meaning 37% of H₂ (from natural gas) required for diesel oil hydrodesulphurization could be replaced, becoming an added value technological alternative for OS waste conversion as a source of H₂, inducing a considerable reduction of greenhouse gases and non-renewables resources.     

Hydrogen production potential from agricultural biomass in Punjab province of Pakistan

Depleting resources and popping environmental concerns instigate the development of sustainable and clean energy solutions. Amongst others, Hydrogen (H₂) is an imperious alternative due to the lowest emissions, higher calorific value, and usability. It has great relevance in Pakistan due to sequester Agricultural biomass potential that can be used as feedstock for H₂ production. So, this study estimates the H₂ production potential from agricultural biomass (rice, sugarcane, cotton, wheat, and maize) of Punjab, Pakistan. In doing so, simulations are performed using Aspen Plus under various conditions to derive an optimal value of H₂ output. The results indicate significant heterogeneity across districts and crop residues types. Therefore, the Geographic Information System (GIS) is used to draw the spatial distribution of optimal H₂ production across crops and districts. The simulated results reveal that Punjab province has the potential to produce 2619.90 × 10³ Metric tons (MT)/year H_2, and the highest potential derives from sugarcane trash (1012.77 × 10³ MT/year), followed by maize straw (433.67 × 10³ MT/year). The estimated H₂ potential (2.62 million MT/year) can be used in industries, transportation, and urea production as a sustainable alternative in Pakistan.     

Methodology for improving the reliability of biomass energy potential estimation

This paper presents a novel approach to address uncertainty and improve reliability of the estimation of the biomass energy potential at a country level, particularly suitable for situations when quality and availability of data are limited. The proposed methodology improves the prediction reliability by following four steps: 1) using a simple accounting framework, 2) using a robust selection of probability density functions, 3) using a probabilistic propagation of uncertainty and 4) using sensitivity analysis to identify key variables contributing to uncertainty as well as a root cause analysis and a set of sub-models to improve estimation of key variables.The application of the methodology to the energy scenario in Colombia shows that the improved estimation of the theoretical energy potential has an almost identical mean value compared to the preliminary estimate, but the uncertainty is significantly lower (less than 50%). Moreover, the mean value of the technical energy potential obtained through the methodology is 25% lower than the preliminary potential and the uncertainty reduces by one third.     

Mixotrophic cultivation of Chlorella vulgaris and its potential application for the oil accumulation from non-sugar materials

Microbial lipid accumulation to provide alternative oil resources is an exciting research area, obtaining increasing attentions recently for the biodiesel production due to its high production efficiency and less demand of agricultural land. The aim of this study is to optimize the lipid accumulation of Chlorella vulgaris by using various carbon sources in heterotrophic and mixotrophic cultures. Different cultivation factors were studied on their influences to the cell growth and oil accumulation.Our results revealed that C. vulgaris could grow on autotrophic, mixotrophic and heterotrophic modes; and the mixotrophic cultivation especially could produce more cell biomass than the autotrophic or heterotrophic cultures individually or combined. The substrate concentration significantly influenced the final cell yield of the mixotrophic cultivations while the cell lipid content remained relatively constant. Glycerol was inhibitive to the cell growth while the microalgae strain could actively utilize acetate as the carbon source. This provides a promising niche in reducing the overall cost of biofuel production since this substrate can be obtained from some waste processes such as anaerobic digestion.     

A derivative of mesoporous oxygen reduction reaction electrocatalysts from citric acid and dicyandiamide

It remains urgent to make continuous efforts on well-designed and highly active non-precious metal (NPM) electrocatalysts for the cathodic oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs), thus helping greatly reduce the fuel cell cost. Due to an unsatisfied stability caused by Fenton reaction for Fe-based materials, Co-based materials bear much more expectations as one type of NPM electrocatalysts to be applied in the ORR. Here we report a novel strategy to synthesize a series of mesoporous nitrogen-doped carbon-supported cobalt electrocatalysts (Co-DCD-CA), which takes full advantage of electrostatic interaction between carboxyl in citric acid (CA) and amidogen in dicyandiamide (DCD) as well as chelating interaction between citric acid and cobalt cation. When CA is employed as carbon source, the optimal derivative of the Co-DCD-2-CA-900 electrocatalyst exhibits a higher ORR activity with a half-wave potential at 0.75 V, which is 60 mV higher than that prepared using Ketjenblack EC 300 J (Co-DCD-2-EC-900) as the carbon support. Besides, the effects of pyrolysis temperature as well as DCD to CA ratio on the ORR activity are detailedly investigated.     

GIS-based assessment of the biomass potential from phytoremediation of contaminated agricultural land in the Campine region in Belgium

Dedicated energy crop cultivation is expected to be the prevalent form of biomass production for reaching renewable energy targets set by the European Union. However, there are some concerns with regard to its sustainability. This study demonstrates how this problem can be evaded by applying phytoremediation, i.e. the use of plants to remove pollutants from moderately contaminated soils. By selecting the appropriate plants a considerable biomass flow is produced without taking in scarce agricultural land, while simultaneously remediating the soil to levels of contamination below threshold values. Since phytoremediation is only applicable within a limited range of soil pollutant concentrations, the outer values of this range have to be determined at first. Subsequently, a Geographic Information System (GIS) is needed to perform further analyses. The contamination in the region is predicted using GIS, after which the agricultural area is determined that can be committed to energy crop cultivation. This way, the biomass potential and the resulting bioenergy potential from phytoremediation can be assessed. In this paper the Campine region in Belgium, a region diffusely contaminated with heavy metals like cadmium (Cd), is examined. It is illustrated that more than 2000 ha of agricultural land hold Cd concentrations exceeding guide values set by the Flemish Government. However, a large majority of these soils can be remediated by phytoremediation within a reasonable time span of 42 years. Concurrently, a significant amount of biomass is supplied for renewable energy production.     

Co-firing biomass with coal for electricity generation—An assessment of the potential in EU27

The European Union aims to increase bioenergy use. Co-firing biomass with coal represents an attractive near-term option for electricity generation from renewable energy sources (RES-E). This study assesses the near-term technical potential for biomass co-firing with coal in the existing coal-fired power plant infrastructure in the EU27 Member States. The total technical potential for RES-E from biomass co-firing amounts to approximately 50–90 TWh/yr, which requires a biomass supply of approximately 500–900 PJ/yr. The estimated co-firing potential in EU27 amounts to 20–35% of the estimated gap between current RES-E production and the RES-E target for 2010. However, for some member states the national co-firing potential is large enough to fill the national gap. The national biomass supply potential is considerably larger than the estimated biomass demand for co-firing for all member states. About 45% of the estimated biomass demand for co-firing comes from plants located close to the sea or near main navigable rivers and indicates the possibility for biomass import by sea transport. Thus, biomass co-firing has the potential to contribute substantially to the RES-E development in EU27.