Journal
BIORESOURCE TECHNOLOGY
Volume 150, Issue -, Pages 513-522Publisher
ELSEVIER SCI LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2013.08.044
Keywords
Microalgae; (Exergetic) life cycle assessment; Resource footprint; Carbon footprint; Aquaculture
Funding
- EnAlgae, a 4-year Strategic Initiative of the INTERREG IVB North West Europe programme
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The environmental sustainability of microalgae production for aquaculture purposes was analyzed using exergy analysis (EA) and life cycle assessment (LCA). A production process (pilot 2012, 240 m(2)) was assessed and compared with two upscaling scenarios (pilot 2013, 1320 m(2) and first production scale 2015, 2,5 ha). The EA at process level revealed that drying and cultivation had the lowest efficiencies. The LCA showed an improvement in resource efficiency after upscaling: 55.5 MJ(ex,CEENE)/MJ(ex) DW biomass was extracted from nature in 2012, which was reduced to 21.6 and 2.46 MJ(ex,CEENE)/MJ(ex) DW in the hypothetical 2013 and 2015 scenarios, respectively. Upscaling caused the carbon footprint to decline by factor 20 (0.09 kg CO2,eq/MJ(ex) DW in 2015). In the upscaling scenarios, microalgae production for aquaculture purposes appeared to be more sustainable in resource use than a reference fish feed (7.70 MJ(ex,CEENE) and 0.05 kg CO2,eq per MJ(ex) DW). (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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