Microalgal-based refinery for circular economy society
Microalgal production of functional ingredients and bioplastic materials
A robust microalgal species, Euglena gracilis, can accumulate immune-functional paramylon. Particularly, efficient paramylon production could be achieved via the cultivation with food industrial byproducts as substrates and/or CO2 in flue gas from power plants using fossil fuels. Paramylon can be used for fermentation processes producing organic acids such as lactic acid or succinic acids, which can be polymerized into bioplastics. Bioplastics are available in the food industry as packaging materials, and the byproducts from the food industry can be recycled as the substrates of E. gracilis. Therefore, microalgal-based resource recycling technology can contribute to achieving a sustainable circular economy.
In LEME, we are cultivating microalgae with various type of cultivation reactors including Erlenmeyer flask, glass bottle, fermenter, flat photobioreactor, and open ponds. These reactors are equipped with a mixed CO2 gas flow control system and automated control systems for pH, temperature, light intensity, and aeration.