(132c) Bio-Crude Production from Local Marine Microalgal Consortium Via Hydrothermal Liquefaction

Increased global population and the issue of running out of traditional fossil fuels have drawn attention to alternate technologies for energy production. Due to constant hikes in oil prices and an increase in fossil fuel demand, researchers are being pushed to find alternative sources of renewable and sustainable energy at global scale. Biofuel produced from microalgae is a useful carbon-neutral product for future sustainability. Microalgae, is a renewable feedstock for production of a range of products in the agricultural, paint and biofuel industries. This study aim to produce bio-oil from local marine microalgal consortium through hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL). This is a promising process and worked in the presence of high moisture to convert the microalgal biomass conversion into biocrude. For biocrude production through HTL, 4g of local mixed microalgal consortium biomass was kept at 300◦C for 30 mins with 2.5 MPa pressure and 700rpm mixing speed in reaction vessel. HTL byproducts obtained were separated and their yields were also calculated. The bio-crude obtained from this process was calculated as 9.86 wt % of total yield. This crude was further characterized by using FTIR and GC-MS. The black solid (Biochar) obtained after HTL was measured as 3.986% wt. of the total yield and that was further analyzed for XRD. The amount of biogas produced in this process was observed as 86.154% wt. of total yield. The overall conversion of biomass in HTL was calculated as 96.014 %. HTL helps to convert wet biomass directly to biocrude without intensive drying. HTL a promising pathway for sustainable fuel production.