Nanotechnology: A New Tool for Biofuel Production

Abstract

Rapid depletion of fossil fuel reserves has posed a serious challenge to meet future energy requirement. Biodiesel with low carbon footprint has emerged as a potential candidate that can replace the need of fossil fuels. Biofuel derived from algae offers best alternative due to their high lipid content, robust nature, and noncompetitive nature toward food crops. The downstream production of biodiesel from feedstock is, however, facing challenges due to energy-intensive nature and higher production cost. A new and rapidly emerging field of nanotechnology has given a choice to built robust nanobiocatalytic systems with long-term stability and low input cost. Earlier studies reported that the addition of nanomaterials in algal culture system improved microalgal growth as well as induced lipid accumulation. Moreover, with the application of nanomaterials, the lipid extraction efficiency could also be enhanced. This chapter is aimed to review the current and significant applications of nanotechnology in the field of algal biodiesel production. Development of innovative technologies dealing with nanotechnological application in algal cultivation, lipid accumulation, harvesting, and transesterification has been critically reviewed.