The reliance of fossil fuel for industrial and energy sectors has resulted in its depletion. Therefore, enormous efforts have been considered to move-out from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources based industrial process developments. Recently, biohydrogen (bio-H2) has been recognised as a clean source of fuel with high-energy efficiency, which can be produced via different routes. Among them, biological fermentation processes are highly recommended due to eco-friendly and economically viable approaches compared to that of thermochemical processes. However, the low H2 yield and high production cost are major bottlenecks for commercial scale operations. Thus, this review proposed an integrated microalgae-based H2 production process, which will provides a possible route for commercialization in near future. Furthermore, process integration to improve efficiency and implementation of advanced strategies for the enhancement of bio-H2 production, economic viability, and future research needs are discussed.
Keywords: Biohydrogen; Integrated-biorefinery system; Microalgae; Microbial photolysis; Renewable energy.
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