Comparative life cycle assessment of biodiesel from algae and jatropha: a case study of India

High Efficient Biosynthesis 2-Ethylhexyl Palmitate in a Rotating Packed Bed Reactor

2-Ethylhexyl palmitate (2-EHP) is one of the important chemical products. Normally, 2-EHP is produced through the esterification. Since 2-EHP has a high viscosity, the mass transfer is significantly influenced with the product accumulation. In this work, a rotating packed bed reactor with intensive mixing was employed to solve the problem in the mass transfer during the enzymatic reaction. Under the optimal conditions, compared with the traditional continuous stirred-tank reactor (CSTR), the RPB reactor enhanced the final yield of 2-EHP, and shortened the reaction time to 1 h. In addition, the enzyme has a longer life-time in the RPB reactor, with production yield of closing to 99% after 9 batches. The results of this research indicated that the RPB has a great potential to be applied in the enzymatic production of 2-EHP. Application of the rotating packed bed in synthesis of 2-ethylhexyl palmitate.

Environmental sustainability of biofuels: a review

Biofuels are being promoted as a low-carbon alternative to fossil fuels as they could help to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the related climate change impact from transport. However, there are also concerns that their wider deployment could lead to unintended environmental consequences. Numerous life cycle assessment (LCA) studies have considered the climate change and other environmental impacts of biofuels. However, their findings are often conflicting, with a wide variation in the estimates. Thus, the aim of this paper is to review and analyse the latest available evidence to provide a greater clarity and understanding of the environmental impacts of different liquid biofuels. It is evident from the review that the outcomes of LCA studies are highly situational and dependent on many factors, including the type of feedstock, production routes, data variations and methodological choices. Despite this, the existing evidence suggests that, if no land-use change (LUC) is involved, first-generation biofuels can-on average-have lower GHG emissions than fossil fuels, but the reductions for most feedstocks are insufficient to meet the GHG savings required by the EU Renewable Energy Directive (RED). However, second-generation biofuels have, in general, a greater potential to reduce the emissions, provided there is no LUC. Third-generation biofuels do not represent a feasible option at present state of development as their GHG emissions are higher than those from fossil fuels. As also discussed in the paper, several studies show that reductions in GHG emissions from biofuels are achieved at the expense of other impacts, such as acidification, eutrophication, water footprint and biodiversity loss. The paper also investigates the key methodological aspects and sources of uncertainty in the LCA of biofuels and provides recommendations to address these issues.

Bio-oil extraction of Jatropha curcas with ionic liquid co-solvent: Fate of biomass protein

The fate of oil-seed biomass protein has been tracked through all steps of a multi-phase extraction process using an ionic liquid based co-solvent system previously demonstrated to extract bio-oil and phorbol esters and to recover fermentable sugars from Jatropha oil seed. These analyses, however, did not address the fate of biomass protein. This work demonstrated that the majority of protein (∼86%) tracked with the biomass with the balance lost to co-solvent (∼12%) and methanol (∼2%) washes. A significant portion of the ionic liquid remained with the treated biomass and required aggressive methanol washes to recover. A system analysis showed a net-positive energy balance and thus the potential of this system to produce both bio-oil and protein-rich toxin-free biomass. While these results further support Jatropha as an oil seed crop, the additional costs of solvent recovery will need to be addressed if commercialization is to be realized.

Manipulation of Auxin Response Factor 19 affects seed size in the woody perennial Jatropha curcas

Seed size is a major determinant of seed yield but few is known about the genetics controlling of seed size in plants. Phytohormones cytokinin and brassinosteroid were known to be involved in the regulation of herbaceous plant seed development. Here we identified a homolog of Auxin Response Factor 19 (JcARF19) from a woody plant Jatropha curcas and genetically demonstrated its functions in controlling seed size and seed yield. Through Virus Induced Gene Silencing (VIGS), we found that JcARF19 was a positive upstream modulator in auxin signaling and may control plant organ size in J. curcas. Importantly, transgenic overexpression of JcARF19 significantly increased seed size and seed yield in plants Arabidopsis thaliana and J. curcas, indicating the importance of auxin pathway in seed yield controlling in dicot plants. Transcripts analysis indicated that ectopic expression of JcARF19 in J. curcas upregulated auxin responsive genes encoding essential regulators in cell differentiation and cytoskeletal dynamics of seed development. Our data suggested the potential of improving seed traits by precisely engineering auxin signaling in woody perennial plants.

LCA of bioethanol and furfural production from vetiver

In this study a prospective life cycle assessment of biorefinery system from vetiver leaves was carried out to know the environmental benefits of this system over conventional systems considering the geographical context of India. The composition of vetiver leaves from the experimental analysis revealed that vetiver is rich in cellulose (32.6%), hemicellulose (31.5%) and lignin (17.3%) that could be used as a feedstock for biorefinery. The comparative life cycle assessment results show that the carbon dioxide emission and fossil oil depletion could be reduced by 95% and 23% respectively in case of standalone bioethanol system, and 99% and 17% respectively in case of bioethanol and furfural system compared to that of conventional petrol and furfural systems. The sensitivity study indicates that the impact could be further reduced if vetiver biomass is used as a source of energy in biorefinery plant instead to the coal.

Photosynthesis at the forefront of a sustainable life

The development of a sustainable bio-based economy has drawn much attention in recent years, and research to find smart solutions to the many inherent challenges has intensified. In nature, perhaps the best example of an authentic sustainable system is oxygenic photosynthesis. The biochemistry of this intricate process is empowered by solar radiation influx and performed by hierarchically organized complexes composed by photoreceptors, inorganic catalysts, and enzymes which define specific niches for optimizing light-to-energy conversion. The success of this process relies on its capability to exploit the almost inexhaustible reservoirs of sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to transform photonic energy into chemical energy such as stored in adenosine triphosphate. Oxygenic photosynthesis is responsible for most of the oxygen, fossil fuels, and biomass on our planet. So, even after a few billion years of evolution, this process unceasingly supports life on earth, and probably soon also in outer-space, and inspires the development of enabling technologies for a sustainable global economy and ecosystem. The following review covers some of the major milestones reached in photosynthesis research, each reflecting lasting routes of innovation in agriculture, environmental protection, and clean energy production.