Progress 10/01/11 to 09/30/14
Outputs
Target Audience: The target audience of this research includes individuals and companies who are stakehoders in the biofuels industry. This would also include those in educational institutions whose interest are in biofuels and alternative energy such as listed below: 1. This project was used to support four graduate students including one Ph.D. in energy and environmental systems, one Ph.D. in computational science and engineering, and two M.S. students in chemical engineering. 2. This project provided training and research opportunities to three undergraduate students including two in biological engineering and one in mechanical engineering. 3. Four high school students, who participated in the Research Apprenticeship Program (RAP) at NC A&T, were able to learn the knowledge of microalgal technologies. 4. PI, Co-PIs and four graduate students were educated through workshops and professional conferences, including the ASABE and AIChE annual meeting, the International Conference on Algal Biomass, Biofuels and Bioproducts, managing microalgal culture workshop (University of Texas at Austin), and Introduction to ANSYS Fluent 14.0 (Mallett technology). 5. A special topic course of advanced biorefinery design and analysis was created and offered to the Ph.D. students in energy and environmental systems. 6. Researchers in the field of microalgae cultivation and processing through lab visits and conferences. 7. Biofuel companies (Red Birch Energy and Commercial Algae Management, Inc.) 8. Collaborators at other universities (e.g., University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Wake Forest University, University of Kansas, Arizona State University, University of Texas at Austin, and North Carolina State University) Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? 1. The project was used to support and train four graduate students in 2013/2014. Two M.S. students and one Ph.D. student have graduated. The thesis and dissertation topics of the four graduate students are: • M.S., Rifat Hasan, chemical engineering, Thesis title: Systemic optimization of microalgae grown on swine wastewater as a biofuel feedstock, graduation date: December 2013 • M.S., Quazi M. Rahman, chemical engineering, Thesis title: Sustainable production of biofuels and biochemicals from aquatic biomass, graduation date: May 2014. • Ph.D., Dan Cheng, Energy and Environmental Systems, Dissertation topic: Characterization and catalytic upgrading of crude bio-oil produced by hydrothermal liquefaction of swine manure and pyrolysis of biomass, graduation date: June 2014. • Ph.D. student, Hossein Amini, Computational Science and Engineering, Dissertation topic: Computer-aided design and analysis of a microalgae-based biorefinery for wastewater treatment and bioenergy production, expected graduation date: December 2015 2. The project was used to support and train three undergraduate students in 2013/2014 (Jacqueline Batts and Bilal A. Riddick in biological engineering and Justin Able in mechanical engineering) 3. One high school student, who participated in the Research Apprenticeship Program (RAP) on the campus, was able to learn the knowledge of microalgal technologies. 4. One postdoc research associate was partially supported to conduct the research of life cycle assessment of microalgae based biorefinery for the treatment of swine wastewater and production of biofuels. 5. This grant provided travel funds to one PI and one graduate student who presented their research results at the 2014 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) annual meeting and 2014 American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) annual meeting. 6. With the support of this project, the PI, Lijun Wang, offered a special topic course of Advanced Biorefinery Design and Analysis to Ph.D. students in the interdisciplinary Ph.D. program of energy and environmental systems at NC A&T State University. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? During the three-year project duration, the project resulted in 7 peer-reviewed journal articles, 3 book chapters, one identified DNA sequence, 10 presentations at the national and international conferences. The results were presented to the communities at 5 different conferences including the ASABE annual Meeting, AIChE annual meeting, the National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology, and the 17th Biennial Research Symposium of the Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc., and the 3rd International Conference on Algal Biomass, Biofuels and Bioproducts. The PI gave one seminar at the School of Agriculture and Environmental Science and the Center for Energy Research and Technology at North Carolina A&T State University. The communication office at NC A&T has written an article to report this research in its Research Magazine. The videos of the operation of the algal raceway ponds were distributed at the website of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NJasw3fMTE. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Researchers completed all four research goals. Accomplishment 1: Researchers have accumulated knowledge in screening high-lipid production algae. Eight high lipid-producing algal strains were identified among over 200 algal strains that were screened and selected from local lagoons at the university farm. A green microalga of Chlamydomonas debaryana was further identified with sequence analysis of ITS1, ITS2, and 5.8s rDNA regions, and named as C. debaryana AT24. The obtained genomic sequence was deposited in the Gene Bank (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/nuccore/KM408604). Accomplishment 2: Researchers have accumulated knowledge and developed a systemically optimized microalgal process for the bioremediation of swine wastewater and biofuel production. Two microalgal strains of C. vulgaris and C. reinhardtii were able to effectively treat swine wastewater. The relationship between microalgae growth and the removal efficiency of nutrients was established. These microalgal biomass have high potentials as lipid feedstock for biodiesel production. Accomplishment 3: Researchers have accumulated necessary knowledge to characterize the bioremediation ability of microalgal strains that were identified through this project. When using C. debaryana AT24 for treating swine wastewater, the biomass yields are between 0.6 and 1.62 g/L with a median value of 1.11 g/L. By increasing mass transfer rate and providing sufficient light intensity, the microalgae growth could be intrinsically enhanced. The growth of C. debaryana could reduce most nutritional content of the wastewater except iron. The removal efficiency of COD, ammonia nitrogen, and phosphorous were 42-60%, 95-99%, and 32-50%, respectively. When combing the microalgal growth and nutrient removal, C. debaryana was able to utilize 1.3-1.6×103 mg COD/g biomass, 55-90 ppm ammonia/g biomass, and 48-89 ppm phosphorous/g biomass, respectively. The lipid content of C. debaryana AT24 is 19.9% of the cell dry mass, compared to 15.2% for C. vulgaris. The microalgal oil mainly consists of 14 fatty acids ranging from C5 to C22, which can be refined into renewable jet fuel or used as the sources of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. Accomplishment 4: Researchers have accumulated knowledge in improving the algal biomass yield, which is a critical barrier for the algae industry. The biomass yield of green microalgae was successfully enhanced by using the light saturation effect, response surface methodology, CO2 supplement, and photobioreactor design. Typically, 1) the circulation rate was a significant operation parameter. 2) The day time at North Carolina is between 10-14 hours, a 12-hour light illumination can lead to 1 g/L algal biomass in 15 days. 3) As a native species, C. debaryana could stand local cold weather, and keep fast growing at a temperature at low as ~15°C. If a covered photobioreactor system is applied during winter, the year around production of algal biomass can be realized. 4) A nearby CO2 source will be a perk for the biomass production, because a 5 vol% supply increased the biomass yields by 3 times. Accomplishment 5: Researchers have accumulated knowledge in designing the algal photobioreactors and cultivating microalgae in pilot-scale photobioreactors. Six 300-gallon raceway ponds (manufactured by Commercial Algae Management, Inc., Franklin, NC) were purchased and installed at the NC A&T State University. In addition, one 60-gallon tubular photobioreactor was designed and constructed at the NC A&T farm. These raceway ponds and photobioreactors are further modified to extend their operations year around. Accomplishment 6: Researchers have developed a Simultaneous Saccharification and Fermentation (SSF) process for fresh algae to produce biofuel ethanol by E. coli and to produce acetic acid by C. thermoaceticum. The highest ethanol yield of 77.7% theoretical value was obtained at 37oC with 0.5g/L E. coli concentration, with 15 FPU cellulase/g glucan and with 0.5% (w/v) biomass concentration. The protein content of fresh algae was increased by 10% after SSF experiment. Accomplishment 7: Researchers have developed a thermochemical process to simultaneously extract algal oil from fermentation residues, and convert the oil into biodiesel without supplying additional chemicals or catalyst. The thermochemical liquefaction process was operated at 240°C, and the formation of algal oil ethyl esters was confirmed using GC/MS analysis. The results proofed the concept of converting wet algal biomass into biodiesel by combining fermentation and thermochemical processes. Accomplishment 8: A CFD model was used to describe the fluid flow, mass transfer and heat transfer in the cultivation system. A light transmission and absorption model was developed to determine the local light intensity inside the cultivation system under various concentrations of algae and nutrients. The micro-environment for the microalgae growth inside the cultivation system was quantified by the CFD and lighting models. The integration of microalgae growth kinetic model, CFD model and light transmission and absorption model provided a tool to quantify the relationship between microalgae growth rate, and system design and operating parameters. The simulations by the CFD model were used to guide the modification and operation of the raceway ponds and photobioreactors. Accomplishment 9: The possibility of integrating the algal technology with the woody biomass gasification was explored. It was found that the ash obtained from a pine wood gasification process was mainly composed of carbon (15-25 wt %), mineral (~21%), and oxygen (52-63 wt %), and exhibited low surface areas (8.4-11.2 m2/g). Ca, K and Na were the 3 most dominant mineral elements. The ash alone neither possessed a value as the fertilizer for C. debaryana due to poorly absorbed oxide form of elements, nor showed significant toxicity due to the absence of heavy metals such as Pb, Cd, Cr, and Cu. Our results indicated that the algal culture may be combined with the syngas cleaning process, and provides positive effects in aquatic ecosystems. Accomplishment 10: Growth of microalgae Chlorella spp. using a byproduct from the biorefinery process of cattail (cattail juice) was investigated. The growth rate of microalgae increased with increasing juice concentration. Higher cattail juice concentration resulted in a higher microalgal growth rate. The highest growth rate was observed in a 10% juice medium, resulting in a similar OD value as the proteose medium. The results indicated that the byproducts from biorefinery of aquatic plants could be a good source of nutrients for microalgae. Accomplishment 11: Life cycle assessment (LCA) was performed to investigate the environmental impact of the microalgae biorefinery. Technical analysis shows that the biorefinery can produce 0.151 kg bio-diesel and 0.285 kg organic fertilizer (12.3% N and 3.5 % P) from the microalgae cultivated in 1 m3 swine wastewater each day. The inventory data for the LCA were obtained from the GaBi database (PE International), literature, and ASPEN Plus simulation. The preliminary results show that microalgae harvesting required the most non-renewable energy input, accounting for 62.9% of the total required non-renewable energy. The water usage rate for microalgae growth could be reduced from 6622.5 kg/ kg biodiesel to 16.6 kg water/kg biodiesel if the wastewater in the biorefinery was recycled.
Publications
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Rahman, Q., Zhang, B., Wang, L.J., and Shahbazi, A. 2013. Simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of green microalgae and biomass into ethanol and acetic acid, National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology, Greensboro, NC, September 12.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Zhang, B., Wang, L.J., Hasan, R. and Shahbazi, A. 2013. Screening of microalgal strains grown on swine wastewater for high lipid production. 17th ARD Biennial Research Symposium, Jacksonville, FL., April 7-10, 2013.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Hasan, R., Zhang, B., Wang, L.J., and Shahbazi, A. 2013. Microalgae grown on swine wastewater as a biofuel feedstock. 17th ARD Biennial Research Symposium, Jacksonville, FL., April 7-10, 2013.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Zhang, B. and Wang, L. Microalgae grown on swine wastewater as a biofuel feedstock. Global Biofuels & Bioproducts Summit, San Antonio, Texas, November 19-21.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Under Review
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Wang, L.J., Zhang, B., Amini, H., Shahbazi, A. 2015. Microalgae cultivation on swine wastewater for the recovery of energy, nutrients and water. The Journal of Negro Education
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Under Review
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Zhang, B., Wang, LJ. , Riddick, B.A., Li, R., Able, J. and Shahbazi, A. 2015. Improvement of biomass yield from green microalga Chlamydomonas debaryana using light saturation effect, response surface methodology, and bioreactor design, Biotechnology and Bioengineering
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Rahman, Q.M., Wang, L.J., Zhang, B., Xiu, S., and Shahbazi, A. 2015. Green biorefinery of fresh cattail biomass for microalgae culture and ethanol production, Bioresource Technology (in revision).
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Under Review
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Li, R., Zhang, B., Xiu, S., Wang, H., Wang, L.J., Shahbazi, A., and Holmes, B. 2015. Investigation of biomass gasification ash characteristics and the ecotoxicity to Chlamydomonas debaryana, Applied Energy
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2015
Citation:
Wang, L.J., Agyemang, S.A., Amini, H., and Shahbazi, A. 2015. Mathematical modeling in bioenergy production. Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews, 43, 530-544.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Zhang, B., Wang, LJ. , Hasan, R. and Shahbazi, A. 2014. Characterization of a native algae species Chlamydomonas debaryana: strain selection, bioremediation ability and lipid characterization. BioResources, 9(4): 6130-6140, doi: 10.15376/biores.9.4.6130-6140.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Hasan, R., Zhang, B., Wang, L.J., and Shahbazi, A. 2014. Bioremediation of swine wastewater and biofule potential by using Chlorella vulgaris, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, and Chlamydomonas debaryana. Journal of Petroleum & Environmental Biotechnology, 5(3): 175, doi: 10.13140/2.1.3348.4168.
- Type:
Book Chapters
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Wang, L.J., Agyemang, S. and Shahbazi, A. (2014) Chapter 3 Mathematical modeling in biomass and bioenergy systems. In Sustainable Bioenergy Production (Ed. L. Wang). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, Taylor & Francis. pp. 67-97.
- Type:
Book Chapters
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Zhang, B. and Wang, L.J. (2014) Chapter 20 Anaerobic Digestion of Organic Wastes. In Sustainable Bioenergy Production (Ed. L. Wang). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, Taylor & Francis. pp. 407-421.
- Type:
Book Chapters
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Rifat Hasan, Zhang, B. and Wang, L.J. (2013) Chapter 16. Microalgae for Biodiesel Production and Wastewater Treatment, In Biomass Processing, Conversion and Biorefinery (Eds. B. Zhang, Y. Wang), New York: Nova Science Publishers, Inc. pp. 277-288.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Amini, H., Wang, L.J. and Shahbazi, A. 2014. Numerical analysis of the water depth of open raceway ponds on energy consumption and algal productivity using a computational fluid dynamics model. The AIChE annual meeting, Altanta, GA, USA, November 16-21, 2014
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Zhang, B. and Wang, L.J. 2014. An integrated microalgal process for bioremediation of swine wastewater and biodiesel production. ASABE Annual Meeting, Montreal, Quebec Canada, July 13-16.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Wang, L.J., Zhang, B., Hasan, R., and Shahbazi, A. 2013. Cultivation of Microalgae on Swine Wastewater as Feedstock for Production of Biofuels and Organic Fertilizer 3rd International Conference on Algal Biomass, Biofuels and Bioproducts, Toronto, Canada, June 16-19.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Amini, H., Wang, L.J., Zhang, B. and Shahbazi, A. 2013. Computational analysis of the growth of microalgae of swine wastewater in a bubble column photobioreactor. ASABE Annual Meeting, Kansas City, Missouri, July 21-24.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Zhang, B. and Wang, L.J. 2013. Swine wastewater treatment using local green microalgal strains. ASABE Annual Meeting, Kansas City, Missouri, July 21-24.
- Type:
Conference Papers and Presentations
Status:
Other
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Hasan, R., Zhang, B. and Wang, L.J. 2013. Growth kinetics of microalgae on swine wastewater. ASABE Annual Meeting, Kansas City, Missouri, July 21-24.
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Progress 01/01/13 to 09/30/13
Outputs
Target Audience: Students of all ages and levels were served by this project, including four graduate students, including one from the interdisciplinary Ph.D. program in energy and environmental systems; one from the interdisciplinary Ph.D. program in computational science and engineering; and two M.S. students from chemical engineering; two undergraduate students of Biological Engineering, who will have better opportunities to be hired in the algae industry; the PI (Lijun Wang), a co-PI (Bo Zhang) and co-PI (Abolghasem Shahbazi), who were educated through workshops and professional conferences, including the 2013 ASABE Annual Meeting and the 3rd International Conference on Algal Biomass, Biofuels and Bioproducts; and three high school students, who participated in the Research Apprenticeship Program (RAP), who were taught microalgal technologies. Other target audiences included: researchers in the field of microalgae cultivation; a biofuel company, Red Birch Energy; the Biofuels Center of North Carolina; collaborators in other universities, including the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Wake Forest University, Ohio State University, University of Texas at Austin, North Carolina State University and Arizona State University, Iowa State University, and University of Kansas. Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? 1. The project has been used to support and train four graduate students in 2013, including two M.S. students: Master of Science, Rifat Hasan, Chemical Engineering, Thesis title: Systemic Optimization of Microalgae Grown on Swine Wastewater as a Biofuel Feedstock, graduation date: October 2013 Master of Science, Quazi M. Rahman, Chemical Engineering, Thesis title: Sustainable Production of Biofuels and Biochemicalsfrom Aquatic Biomass, graduation date: December 2013. Ph.D. student, Hossein Amini, Computational Science and Engineering, Dissertation topic: Computer-aided design and analysis of a microalgae-based biorefinery for wastewater treatment and bioenergy production, expected graduation date: December 2015 Ph.D. student, Dan Cheng, Energy and Environmental Systems, Dissertation topic: Investigation of a reactive distillation process for upgrading bio-oil into transportation fuels (microalgae processing), expected graduation date: May 2014 2. The project has been used to support and train two undergraduate students in 2013 (Bilal A. Riddick and Justin Able, Biological Engineering) 3. Three high school students, who participated in the Research Apprenticeship Program (RAP) on the campus, are able to learn the knowledge of microalgal technologies. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? During 2013, the project resulted in four peer-reviewed publications and manuscripts, two book chapter, one conference paper, and seven presentations at national and international conferences. The results were presented to the communities at four conferences, including the ASABE annual Meeting, the National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology, and the 17th Biennial Research Symposium of the Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc., and the 3rd International Conference on Algal Biomass, Biofuels and Bioproducts. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? We successfully accomplished the first 2 goals and the task 3.1 of this project. During the next 10 months, we will focus on the task of 3.2 (modeling and simulation of the microalgae cultivation system) and t goal 4, which is to complete technoeconomic analysis and lifecycle assessment of an algae-based wastewater treatment system.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Researchers have completed Goal 1, “to screen and select fast growing microalgae strains which can use both organic and inorganic carbons in wastewater,” and Goal 2, “to optimize the growth environment of microalgae in swine wastewater and determine the growth kinetics,” and part of goal 3, “to develop and evaluate low-capital cost, low maintenance cost and highly scalable cultivation systems for year-round production of algae.” Two large scale algal photobioreactors were constructed, while modeling and simulation of the microalgae cultivation system will be done within next 10 months, as well as goal 4, “to complete technoeconomic analysis and lifecycle assessment of an algae-based wastewater treatment system.” Major accomplishments and accumulation of new knowledge are summarized as follows: 1. We have developed a systemically optimized microalgal process for bioremediation of swine wastewater through biofuel production. 2: We have identified and screened new high lipid strain of green microalgae that we named Chlamydomonas debaryana AT24. The lipid content of C. vulgaris was determined as 15.2% of the cell dry weight, consisting of 14 fatty acids ranging from C5 to C22, which can be refined into renewable jet fuel or used as the sources of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. 3: We have developed a 60-gallon tubular photobioreactor, and a 300-gallon microalgal photobioreactor, and operated them between August and early December 2013. These bioreactors will be further used to treat swine wastewater. 4: We have developed a Simultaneous Saccharification and Fermentation (SSF) process for fresh algae to produce biofuel ethanol by E. coli and to produce acetic acid by C. thermoaceticum. We have identified how to get an ethanol yield of 77.7% theoretical value. The protein content of fresh algae was increased by 10% after our SSF experiment. 5: We have invented a systemically optimized microalgal process for bioremediation of swine wastewater and production of multi-products. In this process, a) We improved the wastewater pretreatment process by coupling the heat from other possible processes. The swine wastewater is pretreated in a practical way, and we avoid sterilizing it. b) By using a two-stage cultivation process, we are able to effectively clean up the nutrients in the wastewater. This process will also work for other microalgae. c) We use this IP to protect the algal/other strains that we locally isolated. The strains include several Chlorella spp., Chlamydomonas spp., Chlamydomonas debaryana AT24 and a yeast. d) We developed a novel thermochemical process to simultaneously extract algal oil and convert the oil into biodiesel, by integrating a fermentation process, and avoiding the need for additional chemicals or catalysts.
Publications
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Under Review
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Zhang, B., Wang, L., Hasan, R., and Shahbazi, A. (2014) Characterization of a Native Microalgae Species Chlamydomonas debaryana for Swine Wastewater Utilization and Biodiesel Production, under review.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Under Review
Year Published:
2014
Citation:
Hasan, R., Zhang, B., Wang, L., and Shahbazi, A. (2014) Optimization of Microalgae Growth for Bioremediation of Swine Wastewater and Biodiesel Production, under review.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Awaiting Publication
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Zhang, B. (2013) New Golden Age of the Algal Technology, Journal of Petroleum & Environmental Biotechnology, 4: e120. doi:10.4172/2157-7463.1000e120.
- Type:
Journal Articles
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2012
Citation:
Zhang, B. and Wang, L. (2012) Microalgae grown on swine wastewater as a biofuel feedstock, Journal of Petroleum & Environmental Biotechnology, 3:7. doi: 10.4172/2157-7463.S1.002.
- Type:
Book Chapters
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Zhang, B. and Wang, L., (2013) Chapter 20 Anaerobic Digestion of Organic Wastes. In Sustainable Bioenergy Production (Ed. L. Wang). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, Taylor & Francis. pp. 407-421.
- Type:
Book Chapters
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Wang, L., Agyemang, S. and Shahbazi, A. (2013) Chapter 3 Mathematical modeling in biomass and bioenergy systems. In Sustainable Bioenergy Production (Ed. L. Wang). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press, Taylor & Francis. pp. 67-97.
- Type:
Book Chapters
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2013
Citation:
Rahman, Q., Zhang, B. and Wang, L., (2013) Fermentation of Green Microalgae by Escherichia coli, the Proceeding of the National Conference on Advances in Environmental Science and Technology.
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Progress 01/01/12 to 12/31/12
Outputs
OUTPUTS: Output 1: A lab has been well established to conduct this project. Specifically, (1) An AlgaeTron environmental chamber was purchased from Qubit Systems Inc. to screen and culture microalgal strains; (2) a multicultivator with 8 tubular photobioreactors was purchased from Qubit Systems Inc. to optimize microalgae growth environment and determine microalgae growth kinetics; (3) a Guava easyCyte 5HT flow Cytometer was purchased to measure the lipid content in cells; (4) a Fluorescence microscope was purchased from Carl Zeiss MicroImaging to identify microalgal cells; (5) A -86C ultra-low temperature freezer was purchased from Fisher Scientific, Inc. to store microalgal strains; and (6) A GC-MS was purchased from Agilent Technologies, Inc to determine the fat acid profiles of microalgae and the compositions of the products from microalgae. Output 2: Three graduate students including one Ph.D. student in computational science and engineering, one Ph.D. student in energy and environmental systems and one M.S. in chemical engineering have been recruited to work on this project; and one undergraduate student was trained by the project. Output 3: Eight high-lipid producing algal strains have been identified from among more than 200 algal strains that were screened and selected from hog lagoons at the N.C. A&T University Farm. Output 4: Researchers have optimized the growth of commercial algal stains Chlorella vulgaris and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, which were utilized to determine the growth kinetics of algae assimilating nutrients in wastewater, with the aim of applying this finding to swine wastewater treatment and bioenergy production. Output 5: The PI and Co-PI have attended a 2-day training in managing microalgal culture provided by University of Texas at Austin, June 21-22, 2012; and the PI and one Ph.D. student have attended a 4-day workshop provided by Mallett Technology, Inc., October 16-19, 2012, to be trained in computational fluid dynamics software that is used as a tool for the design and analysis microalgal cultivation systems. PARTICIPANTS: 1. The project has been used to support and train four graduate students in 2012 including: - Ph.D. student, Hossein Amini, Computational Science and Engineering, Dissertation topic: Computer-aided design and analysis of a microalgae-based biorefinery for wastewater treatment and bioenergy production, expected graduation date: December 2015 - M.S. student, Rifat Hasan, Chemical Engineering, Thesis title: Systemic optimization of microalgae grown on swine wastewater as a biofuel feedstcok, expected graduation date: July 2013. - M.S. student, Quazi M. Rahman, Chemical Engineering, Thesis title: Production of acetic acid from xylose and lignocellulosic hydrolysate using Clostridium thermoaceticum (microalgae processing), expected graduation date: July 2013. - Ph.D. student, Dan Cheng, Energy and Environmental Systems, Dissertation topic: Investigation of a reactive distillation process for upgrading bio-oil into transportation fuels (microalgae processing), expected graduation date: May 2014 2. The project has been used to support and train one undergraduate student in 2012 (Matthew Todd, Biological Engineering) 3. The PI (Lijun Wang) and Co-PI (Bo Zhang) attended the Managing Microalgal Culture Workshop at University of Texas at Austin, June 21-22, 2012 (the main purpose of attending this workshop was to accumulate knowledge and skills for the development and cultivation of microalgal strains). 4. The PI (Lijun Wang) and a Ph.D. student (Hossein Amini) attended the workshop of Introduction to ANSYS Fluent 14.0 (computational fluid dynamics) at Mallett Technology, Inc., October 16-19, 2012 (the main purpose of attending this workshop was to learn the Fluent CFD simulation platform which is used for the design and analysis of the microalgal cultivation system). TARGET AUDIENCES: 1. Four graduate students including one from interdisciplinary Ph.D. program of energy and environmental systems, one from interdisciplinary Ph.D. program in computational science and engineering and two from chemical engineering 2. Undergraduate students in biological engineering 3. PI (Lijun Wang) and Co-PI (Bo Zhang) 4. Researchers in the field of microalgae cultivation 5. Biofuel companies (Red Birch Energy) 6. Biofuels Center of North Carolina 7. Collaborators in other universities (University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Wake Forest University, Ohio State University and North Carolina State University) PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Not relevant to this project.
Impacts
Outcome 1: Researchers have produced new knowledge leading to the development of protocols to isolate and culture microalgal strains from local lagoons and lakes. As a result, 8 high lipid-producing algal strains were identified from among over 200 algal strains that were selected from local lagoons that could have potential for use in sustainable transportation biofuels. Outcome 2: Researchers have contributed new knowledge that has enabled development of an experimental plan to optimize microalgae growth and determine microalgae growth kinetics. Researchers optimized processes and parameters for commercial algal stains Chlorella vulgaris and Chlamydomonas reinhardtii that were utilized to determine growth kinetics of algae, so as to apply this knowledge to the cultivation of algae on swine wastewater. Outcome 3: Knowledge gained through attendance at workshops enabled researchers to develop a mathematical model and computer simulation platform for the design and analysis of a microalgal cultivation system. Outcome 4: This project has significantly enhanced our research capacity in microalgae cultivation, waste water treatment and bioenergy products from microalgae by providing the financial support to establish a well-equipped lab. Outcome 5: This project has provided training opportunities to four graduate students and one undergraduate student in the year of 2012, who will be better able to serve the workforce needs of bio-based industries. Outcome 6: This project has provided preliminary research data and enhanced our research capability for us to submit another research proposal in the field of microalgae bio-refinery for additional external funds for the continuation of this project beyond this support.
Publications
- Zhang, B. and Wang, L. Microalgae Grown on Swine Wastewater as a Biofuel Feedstcok, Global Biofuels & Bioproducts Summit, November 19-21, 2012, San Antonio, Texas
- Rifat Hasan, Zhang, B. and Wang, L. Biofuel Production from Microalgae, in Biomass Processing, Conversion and Biorefinery, 2013, Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
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