Techno-economic analysis of a food waste valorization process via microalgae cultivation and co-production of plasticizer, lactic acid and animal feed from algal biomass and food waste

Tsz Him Kwan; Daniel Pleissner; Kin Yan Lau; Joachim Venus; Aude Pommeret; Carol Sze Ki Lin

doi:10.1016/j.biortech.2015.09.003

Techno-economic analysis of a food waste valorization process via microalgae cultivation and co-production of plasticizer, lactic acid and animal feed from algal biomass and food waste

Bioresour Technol. 2015 Dec:198:292-9. doi: 10.1016/j.biortech.2015.09.003. Epub 2015 Sep 12.

Authors

Tsz Him Kwan¹, Daniel Pleissner², Kin Yan Lau¹, Joachim Venus³, Aude Pommeret¹, Carol Sze Ki Lin⁴

Affiliations

¹ School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong.
² School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong; Department of Bioengineering, Leibniz-Institute for Agricultural Engineering Potsdam-Bornim, Potsdam, Germany.
³ Department of Bioengineering, Leibniz-Institute for Agricultural Engineering Potsdam-Bornim, Potsdam, Germany.
⁴ School of Energy and Environment, City University of Hong Kong, Tat Chee Avenue, Kowloon, Hong Kong. Electronic address: carollin@cityu.edu.hk.

PMID: 26402872
DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2015.09.003

Abstract

A techno-economic study of food waste valorization via fungal hydrolysis, microalgae cultivation and production of plasticizer, lactic acid and animal feed was simulated and evaluated by Super-Pro Designer®. A pilot-scale plant was designed with a capacity of 1 metric ton day(-1) of food waste with 20 years lifetime. Two scenarios were proposed with different products: Scenario (I) plasticizer & lactic acid, Scenario (II) plasticizer & animal feed. It was found that only Scenario I was economically feasible. The annual net profits, net present value, payback period and internal rate of return were US$ 422,699, US$ 3,028,000, 7.56 years and 18.98%, respectively. Scenario II was not economic viable due to a deficit of US$ 42,632 per year. Sensitivity analysis showed that the price of lactic acid was the largest determinant of the profitability in Scenario I, while the impact of the variables was very close in Scenario II.

Keywords: Animal feed; Food waste valorization; Lactic acid; Microalgae; Plasticizer.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animal Feed*
Animals
Biomass*
Lactic Acid*
Microalgae*
Plasticizers*
Waste Management / methods*

Substances

Plasticizers
Lactic Acid