A novel pre-treatment for the methane production from microalgae by using N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide (NMMO)

Bioresour Technol. 2016 Feb:201:370-3. doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2015.11.069. Epub 2015 Dec 2.

Abstract

The aim of this work was to study the effect of the solvent N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide (NMMO) to pre-treat Nannochloropsis oculata before the anaerobic digestion process. The results indicated that the pre-treatment affects the characteristics of the cell wall, which consequently becomes more susceptible to the microorganisms attack during anaerobic digestion. The methane production was increased by 43% after the pre-treatment, from 238±6mLCH4/gVS until 339±4mLCH4/gVS. On the contrary, the methane production from Chlorella vulgaris decreased after the pre-treatment from 251±4mLCH4/gVS to 231±3mLCH4/gVS. The failure on the pre-treatment was attributed to the particular characteristics of the substrate in consequence of a previous drying step.

Keywords: Chemical pre-treatment; Chlorella vulgaris; Methane; N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide (NMMO); Nannochloropsis oculata.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Biotechnology / economics
  • Biotechnology / methods*
  • Chlorella vulgaris / metabolism
  • Cyclic N-Oxides / metabolism*
  • Lipids / isolation & purification
  • Methane / biosynthesis*
  • Microalgae / metabolism*
  • Morpholines / metabolism*

Substances

  • Cyclic N-Oxides
  • Lipids
  • Morpholines
  • 4-methylmorpholine N-oxide
  • Methane