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Life cycle assessment of biomethane from offshore‐cultivated seaweed
Author(s) -
Langlois Juliette,
Sassi JeanFrançois,
Jard Gwenaelle,
Steyer JeanPhilippe,
Delgenes JeanPhilippe,
Hélias Arnaud
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
biofuels, bioproducts and biorefining
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.931
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1932-1031
pISSN - 1932-104X
DOI - 10.1002/bbb.1330
Subject(s) - biogas , life cycle assessment , biomass (ecology) , environmental science , anaerobic digestion , biofuel , bioenergy , greenhouse gas , fossil fuel , algae fuel , raw material , natural gas , waste management , eutrophication , renewable energy , environmentally friendly , algae , pulp and paper industry , methane , biodiesel , ecology , engineering , production (economics) , biology , nutrient , biochemistry , economics , catalysis , macroeconomics
Algae are a promising source of industrial biomass for the future. In order to assess if aquacultured seaweed (macroalgae) could be considered an environmentally friendly source of biomass for bioenergy, life cycle assessments were performed for European countries, comparing methane as a biofuel from the anaerobic digestion (A) of whole seaweeds, (B) of alginate extraction residues, and (C) natural gas as a fossil fuel reference. These results clarify that the sources of electricity and energy used to heat the anaerobic digesters have an important impact. Recycling of materials and use of greenhouses at the nursery stage also allow environmental improvements for system (A). Ecodesign can make algal biomethane competitive in several categories compared to natural gas: a decrease of 21.9% and 54.2% in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and 58.6% and 68.7% in fossil depletion for systems (A) and (B), respectively, decrease in ozone depletion, and last but not least, improvement in the marine eutrophication index for system (A). For system (B), benefits are more arguable and dependent on the allocation. To conclude, seaweed could become competitive with terrestrial feedstock for biofuel production in the near future. © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd