Periodic Reporting for period 1 - ALGAESOL (Sustainable aviation and shipping fuels from microalgae and direct solar BES technologies)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2024-05-01 al 2025-10-31
Faced with the pressing challenges of climate change, resource depletion and energy security, it is of utmost importance to work towards a more sustainable and diversified energy landscape. Amongst others, we need to harness the power of the sun to generate clean and renewable energy. This will help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, mitigate climate change, as well as foster technological innovation, job creation, and energy independence.
Within this context, the EU project ALGAESOL aims to develop cost-effective, sustainable and renewable aviation and shipping fuels based on game-changing microalgae and direct solar fuel production and purification technologies to accelerate utilisation of renewable fuels in energy technologies.
ALGAESOL will improve efficiency of converting solar energy, carbon dioxide and organic wastes into renewable methanol, methane and biooils, forming the basis for aviation and shipping fuels. Various systems (biologic, photoelectrochemical, electrochemical and bioelectrochemical) will be evaluated and smart reactor design will be combined with process improvements. Targets are increasing solar to chemical energy conversion efficiencies, microbial contamination control strategies, and improved algal strains to generate lipid superproducers that will facilitate extraction, followed by innovative purification and hydro-processing technology to deliver the fuels. Enhanced sustainability of the developed fuels is also based on a circular bio economy approach by using waste streams and residual biomass generated in the ALGAESOL value chain will be re-circulated as input for the conversion process. The economic and environmental, as well as social sustainability will guide the design and scale-up at process level and for the whole value chain in alignment with the European Green Deal priorities. Computational modelling, process simulations, and sustainability assessments will be used as well as practical engineering approaches.
Within this context, the EU project ALGAESOL aims to develop cost-effective, sustainable and renewable aviation and shipping fuels based on game-changing microalgae and direct solar fuel production and purification technologies to accelerate utilisation of renewable fuels in energy technologies.
ALGAESOL will improve efficiency of converting solar energy, carbon dioxide and organic wastes into renewable methanol, methane and biooils, forming the basis for aviation and shipping fuels. Various systems (biologic, photoelectrochemical, electrochemical and bioelectrochemical) will be evaluated and smart reactor design will be combined with process improvements. Targets are increasing solar to chemical energy conversion efficiencies, microbial contamination control strategies, and improved algal strains to generate lipid superproducers that will facilitate extraction, followed by innovative purification and hydro-processing technology to deliver the fuels. Enhanced sustainability of the developed fuels is also based on a circular bio economy approach by using waste streams and residual biomass generated in the ALGAESOL value chain will be re-circulated as input for the conversion process. The economic and environmental, as well as social sustainability will guide the design and scale-up at process level and for the whole value chain in alignment with the European Green Deal priorities. Computational modelling, process simulations, and sustainability assessments will be used as well as practical engineering approaches.
The work in the ALGAESOL project started with establishing the technical, sustainability and system foundations for developing solar- and algae-based biofuels for shipping and aviation. Fuel quality requirements were defined, suitable waste and carbon dioxide streams as inputs for bioelectrochemical and electrochemical processes were identified, process flow and component interfaces for system modelling were specified, and the methodological framework for the sustainability assessments were set.
In the ALGAESOL project, two parallel routes are being developed: 1) the direct solar conversion pathway, using photo(bio)electrochemical technologies, and 2) the microalgae-based conversion pathway, where bioelectrochemical technologies are directly linked to microalgae production. Route one encompasses two main pathways: i) photo-bioelectrochemical (P-BE) production of methane gas, and its purification process, and ii) photo-electrochemical (P-EC) production of methanol, and its purification process.
During this reporting period, work has advanced on the development of photoelectrodes for sunlight harvesting. Various scalable fabrication routes have been explored and optimised, leading to improved performance, fewer defects and higher photocurrents. Moreover, the cathodes for the electrocatalytic and bioelectrochemical processes have been developed and are being optimised, showing stable performance for over 100 hours, increased efficiencies and high production rates of methane and methanol.
With regard to the microalgae-based conversion pathway, work has focussed on improving Chlorella sorokiniana strains towards increased lipid productivity, microbial contamination control strategies, as well as combining the photo-bioelectrochemical production of acetate with the mixotrophic production of C. sorokiniana. This lipid-rich biomass has been subsequently tested in newly developed microfiltration membranes for pre-concentrating the algae solution and thereafter used for the development of novel lipid extraction technologies. In the next reporting period, the side stream generated after the lipids have been extracted from the microalgal biomass will then be tested in an anaerobic digestion process, connected to a bioelectrochemical technology to increase methane production. Moreover, the processes for turning the intermediate products into the end-products: fuels for aviation and shipping, will be developed in the next reporting period.
Finally, the data collection for the process modelling and process simulations as well as the sustainability assessments has started. This will allow to develop and model scale-up strategies, demonstrate the performance of the ALGAESOL integrated systems and implement and virtually demonstrate the viability of the project solution within use-case scenarios for aviation and shipping, and evaluate the environmental, economic and social sustainability of the proposed technologies, innovations and products developed.
In the ALGAESOL project, two parallel routes are being developed: 1) the direct solar conversion pathway, using photo(bio)electrochemical technologies, and 2) the microalgae-based conversion pathway, where bioelectrochemical technologies are directly linked to microalgae production. Route one encompasses two main pathways: i) photo-bioelectrochemical (P-BE) production of methane gas, and its purification process, and ii) photo-electrochemical (P-EC) production of methanol, and its purification process.
During this reporting period, work has advanced on the development of photoelectrodes for sunlight harvesting. Various scalable fabrication routes have been explored and optimised, leading to improved performance, fewer defects and higher photocurrents. Moreover, the cathodes for the electrocatalytic and bioelectrochemical processes have been developed and are being optimised, showing stable performance for over 100 hours, increased efficiencies and high production rates of methane and methanol.
With regard to the microalgae-based conversion pathway, work has focussed on improving Chlorella sorokiniana strains towards increased lipid productivity, microbial contamination control strategies, as well as combining the photo-bioelectrochemical production of acetate with the mixotrophic production of C. sorokiniana. This lipid-rich biomass has been subsequently tested in newly developed microfiltration membranes for pre-concentrating the algae solution and thereafter used for the development of novel lipid extraction technologies. In the next reporting period, the side stream generated after the lipids have been extracted from the microalgal biomass will then be tested in an anaerobic digestion process, connected to a bioelectrochemical technology to increase methane production. Moreover, the processes for turning the intermediate products into the end-products: fuels for aviation and shipping, will be developed in the next reporting period.
Finally, the data collection for the process modelling and process simulations as well as the sustainability assessments has started. This will allow to develop and model scale-up strategies, demonstrate the performance of the ALGAESOL integrated systems and implement and virtually demonstrate the viability of the project solution within use-case scenarios for aviation and shipping, and evaluate the environmental, economic and social sustainability of the proposed technologies, innovations and products developed.
- Newly developed photoanodes with superior crystallinity, fewer defects and higher photocurrents
- Electrochemical cathode with an efficiency up to 70% and stable, long-term operation.
- Biocathode for electromethanogenesis with >65% efficiency, and higher methane production rate than state-of-the-art at the start of the process (1,1-11x times higher depending on adopted materials and conditions).
- 3 mutant C. sorokiniana strains with 50-114% increase in lipid content compared to the wild-type
- Optimised sterilization protocols and production protocols to decrease contamination issues for production of C. sorokiniana, stable, long-term acetate production using BES, and successful growth of C. sorokiniana on the BES-acetate effluent.
- High extraction yields of lipids from C. sorokiniana.
- A customised biofuels systems analysis, and preliminary inventory databases and unit process models that estimate productivity, energy consumption and costs.
- Electrochemical cathode with an efficiency up to 70% and stable, long-term operation.
- Biocathode for electromethanogenesis with >65% efficiency, and higher methane production rate than state-of-the-art at the start of the process (1,1-11x times higher depending on adopted materials and conditions).
- 3 mutant C. sorokiniana strains with 50-114% increase in lipid content compared to the wild-type
- Optimised sterilization protocols and production protocols to decrease contamination issues for production of C. sorokiniana, stable, long-term acetate production using BES, and successful growth of C. sorokiniana on the BES-acetate effluent.
- High extraction yields of lipids from C. sorokiniana.
- A customised biofuels systems analysis, and preliminary inventory databases and unit process models that estimate productivity, energy consumption and costs.