Abstract
Population growth and changes in dietary patterns place an ever-growing pressure on the environment. Feeding the world within sustainable boundaries therefore requires revolutionizing the way we harness natural resources. Microbial biomass can be cultivated to yield protein-rich feed and food supplements, collectively termed single-cell protein (SCP). Yet, we still lack a quantitative comparison between traditional agriculture and photovoltaic-driven SCP systems in terms of land use and energetic efficiency. Here, we analyze the energetic efficiency of harnessing solar energy to produce SCP from air and water. Our model includes photovoltaic electricity generation, direct air capture of carbon dioxide, electrosynthesis of an electron donor and/or carbon source for microbial growth (hydrogen, formate, or methanol), microbial cultivation, and the processing of biomass and proteins. We show that, per unit of land, SCP production can reach an over 10-fold higher protein yield and at least twice the caloric yield compared with any staple crop. Altogether, this quantitative analysis offers an assessment of the future potential of photovoltaic-driven microbial foods to supplement conventional agricultural production and support resource-efficient protein supply on a global scale.
Highlights
Population growth and changes in dietary patterns place an evergrowing pressure on the environment
We considered a PV-single-cell protein (SCP) system that converts solar energy into energy stored in food by the following four generalized steps (Fig. 1): Solar energy →(1) Electricity →(2) Electron Donor →(3) Biomass →(4) Feed=Food
We compared photovoltaic-driven SCP (PV-SCP) production and agriculture according to the expected annual nutritional yield per land area
Summary
Population growth and changes in dietary patterns place an evergrowing pressure on the environment. Per unit of land, SCP production can reach an over 10-fold higher protein yield and at least twice the caloric yield compared with any staple crop This quantitative analysis offers an assessment of the future potential of photovoltaic-driven microbial foods to supplement conventional agricultural production and support resource-efficient protein supply on a global scale. This study sought to answer how productive photovoltaic-driven SCP (PV-SCP) systems can be in terms of calorie and protein production per unit time and land area in comparison to other SCP systems and to conventional crops, focusing on the effect that solar irradiance has on PV-SCP yields This quantitative comparison can assist in planning the future allocation of limited land resources toward feed and food production. We show that PV-SCP technologies can substantially outperform conventional staple crops in terms of both calorie and protein yield
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