Abstract
This chapter discusses the characteristics of algal (macroalgae and microalgae) biomass, potential of algal biomass for biofuel (biogas, bioethanol, biodiesel) production, challenges in cultivation, technologies to enhance the biogas yield, life cycle assessment and strategies to make algal biomass to bioenergy production a commercially feasible option. Physical, enzymatic and chemical pretreatment is the most common pretreatment methods. Steam explosion and ultrasonic pretreatment were extensively utilised physical pretreatments. Biodiesel is the liquid biofuel that comprises methyl esters of long-chain fatty acids. It is generally derived from transesterification of vegetable oils, waste cooking oils, animal fats or lipids of algal biomass using alcohol and alkali and acids as a catalyst. Fractionation is performed to separate the desired material from a mixture having impurity of undesired material, based on product size, solubility, volatility and ionic strength. Macroalgae is much suitable for bioethanol and biogas production than biodiesel production as most of the macroalgae species do not contain triglycerides.
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