Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
TABLE 3.2
Annual Biomass Potential of Microalgae in Comparison to
Major Cultivated Crops
Biomass Alga
a
/
Crop
b
Annual
Production
Producer
Country
Division
Application
Spirulina
Cyanophyta
(cyanobacteria)
3,000 tonnes dry
weight
China, India,
USA,
Myanmar,
Japan
Human nutrition
Animal nutrition
Cosmetics
Phycobiliproteins
Chlorella
Chlorophyta
(green algae)
2,000 tonnes dry
weight
Taiwan,
Germany, Japan
Human nutrition
Aquaculture
Cosmetics
Dunaliella salina
Chlorophyta
(green algae)
1,200 tonnes dry
weight
Australia, Israel,
USA, China
Human nutrition
Cosmetics
β-Carotene
Aphanizomenon
os-aquae
Cyanophyta
(cyanobacteria)
500 tonnes dry
weight
USA
Human nutrition
Haematococcus
pluvialis
Chlorophyta
(green algae)
300 tonnes dry
weight
USA, India,
Israel
Aquaculture
Astaxanthin
Crypthecodinium
cohnii
Pyrrophyta
(dinoflagellates)
240 tonnes DHA
oil
USA
Docosahexaenoic
acid (DHA) oil
Schizochytrium
spp.
Labyrinthista
10 tonnes DHA
oil
USA
Docosahexaenoic
acid (DHA) oil
Zea mays
(maize)
Magnoliophyta
(flowering plants)
868 × 10
6
tonnes
dry weight
Global
production
Human nutrition
Animal nutrition
Glycine max
(soya)
Magnoliophyta
(flowering plants)
259 × 10
6
tonnes
dry weight
Global
production
Human nutrition
Animal nutrition
a
Adapted from Spolaore et al. (2006).
b
World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (2012).
at substantial levels, which is trivial when compared to the annual global produc-
tion of cultivated crops (Table 3.2). To propel algal biotechnological applications to
commercially significant sustainable levels, regional species should be investigated
for potential application to mass-scale cultivation. The idea of bioprospecting indig-
enous microalgae for high-value or bioactive products is not innovative. The Aquatic
Species Program of National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) stocks more
than 3,000 microalgal strains from the United States and Hawaii (Sheehan et al.,
1998). Microalgae capable of producing large quantities of docosahexaenoic acid
were isolated from marine environments of Western Taiwan (Yang et al., 2010).
Up to now, the key emphasis of microalgal biofuel research has focused on upstream
aspects such as bioreactor designs, biomass and lipid production from microalgae, and
downstream aspects such as biomass harvesting and the chemistry of oil production.
Microalgal bioprospecting includes isolation of exceptional microalgal strains from
aquatic environments for potential value-added products and fine chemicals (Olaizola,
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