Outdoor Cultivation of Marine Diatoms for Year-Round Production of Biofuels

• Published in: Marine drugs Vol. 15; no. 4; p. 94
• Main Authors: Matsumoto, Mitsufumi, Nojima, Daisuke, Nonoyama, Tomomi, Ikeda, Kiichi, Maeda, Yoshiaki, Yoshino, Tomoko, Tanaka, Tsuyoshi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 25-03-2017; MDPI
• Subjects: Algae; Aquatic Organisms - growth & development; Aquatic Organisms - metabolism; Biodiesel fuels; Biofuels; Biomass; Bioreactors; Crop production; Cultivation; Diatoms; Diatoms - growth & development; Diatoms - metabolism; Lipids; Lipids - physiology; Microalgae; Microalgae - growth & development; Microalgae - metabolism; Seasonal variations; Seasonality; Spring; Winter; cold-tolerant microalgae; outdoor cultivation; diatoms; biofuel; Mayamaea sp. JPCC CTDA0820; F. solaris; open-pond bioreactor
• ISSN: 1660-3397; 1660-3397
• DOI: 10.3390/md15040094

Biofuel production using microalgae is believed to have the advantage of continuous year-round production over crop plants, which have strong seasonality. However, actual year-round production of microalgal lipids using outdoor mass cultivation has rarely been demonstrated. In our previous study, it was demonstrated that the oleaginous diatom,
, was culturable in outdoor bioreactors from spring to autumn, whereas biomass and lipid production in winter failed because
did not grow below 15 °C. Therefore, another candidate strain that is culturable in winter is required. In this study, a cold-tolerant diatom,
sp. JPCC CTDA0820, was selected as a promising candidate for biofuel production in winter. Laboratory-scale characterization revealed that this diatom was culturable at temperatures as low as 10 °C. Subsequently,
(April-October) and
sp. JPCC CTDA0820 (November-March) were cultured in outdoor open-pond bioreactors, wherein year-round production of diatom lipids was successfully demonstrated. The maximal values of areal productivities of biomass and lipids reached to 9.79 and 1.80 g/(m² day) for
, and 8.62 and 0.92 g/(m² day) for
sp. JPCC CTDA0820, respectively. With the combined use of these two diatom species, stable year-round production of microalgal lipids became possible.