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Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Bioresource and Agricultural Engineering

Lipid Extraction From Spirulina Sp. And Schizochytrium Sp. Using Supercritical Co2 With Methanol, Shihong Liu, Husam A. Abu Hajar, Guy Riefler, Ben J. Stuart Dec 2018

Lipid Extraction From Spirulina Sp. And Schizochytrium Sp. Using Supercritical Co2 With Methanol, Shihong Liu, Husam A. Abu Hajar, Guy Riefler, Ben J. Stuart

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Microalgae are one of the most promising feedstocks for biodiesel production due to their high lipid content and easy farming. However, the extraction of lipids from microalgae is energy intensive and costly and involves the use of toxic organic solvents. Compared with organic solvent extraction, supercritical CO2 (SCCO2) has demonstrated advantages through lower toxicity and no solvent-liquid separation. Due to the nonpolar nature of SCCO2, polar organic solvents such as methanol may need to be added as a modifier in order to increase the extraction ability of SCCO2. In this paper, pilot scale lipid …


Investigation Of Electrolytic Flocculation For Microalga Scenedesmus Sp Using Aluminum And Graphite Electrodes, Shihong Liu, Husam A. Abu Hajar, Guy Riefler, Ben J. Stuart Dec 2018

Investigation Of Electrolytic Flocculation For Microalga Scenedesmus Sp Using Aluminum And Graphite Electrodes, Shihong Liu, Husam A. Abu Hajar, Guy Riefler, Ben J. Stuart

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Electrolytic flocculation using non-sacrificial electrodes with flocculants added was studied on harvesting Scenedesmus sp. In order to optimize the operating conditions of the electrolytic flocculation process and to quantify the amount of flocculants added, aluminum electrodes were first used in the process. It was found that under optimal conditions, the microalgae removal efficiency using aluminum electrodes could reach 98.5%, while 34.2 mg L-1 of aluminum ions were released during the process. Different metal electrodes were also studied, but high microalgae removal efficiency was witnessed only using aluminum electrodes, indicating the influence of the aluminum ion in flocculation. When non-sacrificial …


Electrochemical Hydrogenation Of Acetone To Produce Isopropanol Using A Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Reactor, Chen Li, Ashanti M. Sallee, Xiaoyu Zhang, Sandeep Kumar Oct 2018

Electrochemical Hydrogenation Of Acetone To Produce Isopropanol Using A Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Reactor, Chen Li, Ashanti M. Sallee, Xiaoyu Zhang, Sandeep Kumar

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Electrochemical hydrogenation (ECH) of acetone is a relatively new method to produce isopropanol. It provides an alternative way of upgrading bio-fuels with less energy consumption and chemical waste as compared to conventional methods. In this paper, Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC) hardware was used as an electrochemical reactor to hydrogenate acetone to produce isopropanol and diisopropyl ether as a byproduct. High current efficiency (59.7%) and selectivity (>90%) were achieved, while ECH was carried out in mild conditions (65 degrees C and atmospheric pressure). Various operating parameters were evaluated to determine their effects on the yield of acetone and …


Review Of Us And Eu Initiatives Toward Development, Demonstration, And Commercialization Of Lignocellulosic Biofuels, Venkatesh Balan, David Chiaramonti, Sandeep Kumar Jan 2013

Review Of Us And Eu Initiatives Toward Development, Demonstration, And Commercialization Of Lignocellulosic Biofuels, Venkatesh Balan, David Chiaramonti, Sandeep Kumar

Civil & Environmental Engineering Faculty Publications

Advanced biofuels produced from lignocellulosic biomass offer an exciting opportunity to produce renewable liquid transportation fuels, biochemicals, and electricity from locally available agriculture and forest residues. The growing interest in biofuels from lignocellulosic feedstock in the United States (US) and the European Union (EU) can provide a path forward toward replacing petroleum-based fuels with sustainable biofuels which have the potential to lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The selection of biomass conversion technologies along with feedstock development plays a crucial role in the commercialization of next-generation biofuels. There has been synergy and, even with similar basic process routes, diversity in the …