Biodiesel Production from Microalgae: Ionic Liquid Process Simulation

Abstract

Biodiesel is the most used biofuel, but a large scale production requires processes which have an economic competitiveness and a low environmental impact. Microalgae easily provide oil to converted into biodiesel: they can be cultivated on non-arable land and, thus, contribute to CO2 mitigation. The major economic concern depends on the oil extraction process: oil extraction by ionic liquids is one of the most convenient and environmental-friendly processes for biodiesel production, promising to be the benchmark for upcoming biodiesel production in large scale plants. The novelty of this work lies in the process simulation of oil extraction using ionic liquids, implemented by Aspen HYSYS® V7.3, a professional tool which is commonly used for the industrial process design, simulation, setting and control. The application of such tools could foster the large scale application of innovative technologies, largely reducing the time required to transform a concept design into an industrial productive application.