Preliminary technical-economic analysis of biodiesel production from Haematococcus pluvialis residual biomass
Authors: Sanjurjo, C., Rodríguez, E., Viesca, J.L., Hernández Battez, A. and Oulego, P.
Journal: Heliyon
Volume: 11
Issue: 16
eISSN: 2405-8440
DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2025.e44158
Abstract:Haematococcus pluvialis ( H. pluvialis ) microalgae are renowned as one of the richest sources of the antioxidant astaxanthin. During the extraction of this antioxidant, a large amount of triglyceride-rich biomass is discarded each year, which can be valorised to produce biodiesel. From this perspective, this study evaluates the industrial viability of producing biodiesel from this waste, considering four main scenarios that assess the profitability of glycerol purification as a by-product and the use of centrifugation or decantation in the separation stages. In these scenarios, the unit cost of biodiesel production ranged from 0.48 to 0.63€/kg. In addition, shorter payback periods of 8.82–8.88 years were obtained for the scenarios involving the purification and sale of biodiesel. Differences between centrifugation and decantation were negligible in the short term, with decantation proving advantageous over the long term.
Source: Scopus