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Holistic valorization of microalgal slurry into biofuels via integrated simultaneous saccharification and fermentation using co-immobilized tri-enzymes

Authors: Ha GSBasak BAhn HJBaek GHwang JHRoh HSChung WJJeon BH


Affiliations

1 Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Concordia University, Montreal, QC, Canada; Department of Integrative Biotechnology, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 16419, South Korea.
2 Center for Creative Convergence Education, Hanyang University, 222 Wangsimni-ro, Seongdong-gu, Seoul 04763, South Korea; Department of Earth Resources and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, 222 Wangsimni-ro, Seongdong-gu, Seoul 04763, South Korea.
3 Department of Earth Resources and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, 222 Wangsimni-ro, Seongdong-gu, Seoul 04763, South Korea.
4 Department of Integrative Biotechnology, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 16419, South Korea.
5 Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Concordia University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
6 Department of Environmental and Energy Engineering, Yonsei University, 1 Yonseidae-gil, Wonju, Gangwon 26493, South Korea.
7 Department of Environmental Energy Engineering, Kyonggi University, 154-42 Gwanggyosan-ro, Yeongtong-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do 16227, South Korea.
8 Department of Earth Resources and Environmental Engineering, Hanyang University, 222 Wangsimni-ro, Seongdong-gu, Seoul 04763, South Korea. Electronic address: bhjeon@hanyang.ac.kr.

Description

The commercial viability of microalgal biorefineries is currently constrained by high energy demands during pretreatment and incomplete biomass valorization arising from cell wall recalcitrance. To overcome these challenges, this study developed a high-efficiency simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) strategy using an immobilized tri-enzyme (ITE) system to convert high-solids microalgal slurries (100-120 g/L) into biofuels. A strategic low-energy microwave pretreatment (MP, 9.9-10.6 MJ/kg) was optimized to permeabilize the cell wall while preserving proteins. Subsequently, the ITE-mediated SSF facilitated rapid hydrolysis, drastically reducing the lag phase from 24 h to a negligible < 0.01 h during carbohydrate fermentation (CF). This integrated process achieved high production titers and yields for bioethanol (28.4-36.4 g/L; 0.47-0.48 g/g), higher alcohols (6.5-7.9 g/L; 0.43-0.44 g/g), and biodiesel (15.4-61.5 g/L; 0.90 g/g). Overall, approximately 90% of the biomass was utilized, corresponding to a total conversion efficiency of 50-69%. Collectively, these results demonstrate the feasibility of comprehensive microalgal valorization into multiple energy carriers with minimal waste generation, thereby providing a highly efficient and potentially sustainable conceptual framework for advanced microalgal biorefineries.


Keywords: BiofuelsEnzymatic hydrolysisFermentationMicroalgaePretreatment


Links

PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41997248/

DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2026.134642