International. Tokyo Tech researchers found that algae residues, the material left over after extracting oil from algae for biofuel, can be used to produce key industrial chemicals.
Microalgae have received a lot of attention in biomass production due to many strains that have high biomass productivity per unit of time and per unit area.
Algae produce high levels of oil, as well as carbohydrates, which are mainly produced in the form of starch. They can survive in unfavorable, nutrient-deficient conditions, and can spread industrially without using farmland.
Algae-derived oil has recently been adopted for use in aircraft fuels and biodiesel. However, previously the starch that remained in the algae cells after oil extraction was overlooked. Tokyo Tech researcher Sho Yamaguchi and colleagues found that this starch can be converted into alkyl lactate and alkyl levulinate, important chemicals in the production of pharmaceuticals, additives and polyesters.
Two lactic acid molecules can be dehydrated to lactone lactide and subsequently polymerized into atactic or syndiotactic polylactide, which are biodegradable polyesters.
The researchers found that using homogeneous Sn (OTf) 2 leads to an increase in alkyl levulinate yield, while the use of SnBr4 allowed selective production of alkyl lactate.
Their results show that algae can be used not only as a source of biofuel, but also as a carbon resource for chemicals that are applied in a wide range of industries. This could lead to algae biomass becoming a new alternative carbon resource for fossil fuels.
Source: Tokyo Tech.
