Current Research and Perspectives of Lipid Extraction from Wet Microalgae

Abstract

Lipid extraction process claimed about 10-20% of the total cost of microalgal fuels. Cell disruption (bead beater, a high-pressure homogenizer, ultrasoniaction, etc) followed with solvent extraction (hexane, chloroform and methyl, etc) are commonly used in lab-scale experiments. However, it is time consuming and costly to apply these methods in large-scale production. Recently, some innovative methods, such as microwave-assisted process and enzyme treatment are also found effective in lipid extraction from wet microalgae biomass. This article reviewed the current techniques commonly used in lipid extraction from wet microalgae.