Plasticizer and surfactant formation from food-waste- and algal biomass-derived lipids.

The potential of lipids derived from food-waste and algal biomass (produced from food-waste hydrolysate) for the formation of plasticizers and surfactants is investigated herein. Plasticizers were formed by epoxidation of double bonds of methylated unsaturated fatty acids with in situ generated peroxoformic acid. Assuming that all unsaturated fatty acids are convertible, 0.35 and 0.40 g of plasticizer can be obtained from 1 g of crude algae- or food-waste-derived lipids, respectively. Surfactants were formed by transesterification of saturated and epoxidized fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs) with polyglycerol. The addition of polyglycerol would result in a complete conversion of saturated and epoxidized FAMEs to fatty acid polyglycerol esters. This study successfully demonstrates the conversion of food-waste into value-added chemicals using simple and conventional chemical reactions.

Techno-economic analysis of a food waste valorization process via microalgae cultivation and co-production of plasticizer, lactic acid and animal feed from algal biomass and food waste.

A techno-economic study of food waste valorization via fungal hydrolysis, microalgae cultivation and production of plasticizer, lactic acid and animal feed was simulated and evaluated by Super-Pro Designer®. A pilot-scale plant was designed with a capacity of 1 metric ton day(-1) of food waste with 20 years lifetime. Two scenarios were proposed with different products: Scenario (I) plasticizer & lactic acid, Scenario (II) plasticizer & animal feed. It was found that only Scenario I was economically feasible. The annual net profits, net present value, payback period and internal rate of return were US$ 422,699, US$ 3,028,000, 7.56 years and 18.98%, respectively. Scenario II was not economic viable due to a deficit of US$ 42,632 per year. Sensitivity analysis showed that the price of lactic acid was the largest determinant of the profitability in Scenario I, while the impact of the variables was very close in Scenario II.

Recycling of food waste as nutrients in Chlorella vulgaris cultivation.

Heterotrophic cultivation of Chlorella vulgaris was investigated in food waste hydrolysate. The highest exponential growth rate in terms of biomass of 0.8day(-1) was obtained in a hydrolysate consisting of 17.9gL(-1) glucose, 0.1gL(-1) free amino nitrogen, 0.3gL(-1) phosphate and 4.8mgL(-1) nitrate, while the growth rate was reduced in higher concentrated hydrolysates. C. vulgaris utilized the nutrients recovered from food waste for the formation of biomass and 0.9g biomass was produced per gram glucose consumed. The microalgal biomass produced in nutrient sufficient batch cultures consisted of around 400mgg(-1) carbohydrates, 200mgg(-1) proteins and 200mgg(-1) lipids. The conversion of nutrients derived from food waste and the balanced biomass composition make C. vulgaris a promising strain for the recycling of food waste in food, feed and fuel productions.

Fermentative polyhydroxybutyrate production from a novel feedstock derived from bakery waste.

In this study, Halomonas boliviensis was cultivated on bakery waste hydrolysate and seawater in batch and fed-batch cultures for polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) production. Results demonstrated that bakery waste hydrolysate and seawater could be efficiently utilized by Halomonas boliviensis while PHB contents between 10 and 30% (w/w) were obtained. Furthermore, three methods for bakery waste hydrolysis were investigated for feedstock preparation. These include: (1) use of crude enzyme extracts from Aspergillus awamori, (2) Aspergillus awamori solid mashes, and (3) commercial glucoamylase. In the first method, the resultant free amino nitrogen (FAN) concentration in hydrolysates was 150 and 250 mg L(-1) after 20 hours at enzyme-to-solid ratios of 6.9 and 13.1 U g(-1), respectively. In both cases, the final glucose concentration was around 130-150 g L(-1). In the second method, the resultant FAN and glucose concentrations were 250 mg L(-1) and 150 g L(-1), respectively. In the third method, highest glucose and lowest FAN concentrations of 170-200 g L(-1) and 100 mg L(-1), respectively, were obtained in hydrolysates after only 5 hours. The present work has generated promising information contributing to the sustainable production of bioplastic using bakery waste hydrolysate.