Mixotrophic Growth of Algal Biomass for the Production of Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (PUFAs)
The aim of the project is to explore the transition from traditional biowaste treatment methods to next generation recycling technologies integrating one of the most advanced concepts of “white” biotechnology: the algal biorefinery (AB). AB has been proposed as a sustainable technology to produce food, biofuels and valuable chemicals, through photo/autotrophic conditions resulting in net reduction of carbon dioxide. Nevertheless, cultivation of algae on waste under mixo/heterotrophic conditions is gaining increasing attention due to simultaneous generation of products associated to the photosynthetic and heterotrophic metabolic modes of cells at high rates yielding elevated lipids and biomass concentrations. The project will develop a sustainable AB technology for the valorization of biowaste aiming to form high added-value products (PUFAs) at high yields as well as bioethanol.