IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jeners/v14y2021i7p1817-d523569.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

An Easily Accessible Microfluidic Chip for High-Throughput Microalgae Screening for Biofuel Production

Author

Listed:
  • Shubhanvit Mishra

    (Institute of Nano Engineering and MicroSystems, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan)

  • Yi-Ju Liu

    (Food Industry Research and Development Institute, Hsinchu 300193, Taiwan)

  • Chi-Shuo Chen

    (Department of Biomedical Engineering and Environmental Sciences, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan)

  • Da-Jeng Yao

    (Institute of Nano Engineering and MicroSystems, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan
    Department of Power Mechanical Engineering, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan
    Department of Engineering and System Science, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan)

Abstract

Microalgae are important green energy resources. With high efficiency in fixing carbon dioxide, microalgae are broadly applied for biofuel production. Integrating various cultivation parameters, we applied ultraviolet (UV) mutagenesis, one of the most common approaches, to induce genomic mutation in microalgae and thus enhance the production of lipid content, but the screening process is convoluted and labor-intensive. In this study, we aimed to develop an accessible microfluidic platform to optimize the biofuel production of microalgae. Instead of traditional lithography, we designed hanging-drop microfluidic chips that were fabricated using a cheap computer numerical control (CNC) micro-milling technique. On each chip, we cultured in parallel Botryococcus braunii , one of the most common freshwater microalgae for biofuel production, in sets of ten separated hanging drops (~30 µL each); we monitored their growth in each individual drop for more than 14 days. To optimize the culturing conditions, using drops of varied diameter, we first identified the influence of cell density on algae growth and lipid production. After introducing UV-induced random mutations, we quantified the lipid content of the microalgae in situ ; the optimized UV-C dosage was determined accordingly. In comparison with wild-type B. braunii , the results showed increased biomass growth (137%) and lipid content (149%) of the microalgae mutated with the desired UV process. Moreover, we showed a capacity to modulate the illumination on an addressed chip area. In summary, without using an external pump system, we developed a hanging-drop microfluidic system for long-term microalgae culturing, which can be easily operated using laboratory pipettes. This microfluidic system is expected to facilitate microalgae mutation breeding, and to be applied for algae cultivation optimization.

Suggested Citation

  • Shubhanvit Mishra & Yi-Ju Liu & Chi-Shuo Chen & Da-Jeng Yao, 2021. "An Easily Accessible Microfluidic Chip for High-Throughput Microalgae Screening for Biofuel Production," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-10, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:14:y:2021:i:7:p:1817-:d:523569
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/7/1817/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/7/1817/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Searchinger, Timothy & Heimlich, Ralph & Houghton, R. A. & Dong, Fengxia & Elobeid, Amani & Fabiosa, Jacinto F. & Tokgoz, Simla & Hayes, Dermot J. & Yu, Hun-Hsiang, 2008. "Use of U.S. Croplands for Biofuels Increases Greenhouse Gases Through Emissions from Land-Use Change," Staff General Research Papers Archive 12881, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
    2. Neha Arora & Hong-Wei Yen & George P. Philippidis, 2020. "Harnessing the Power of Mutagenesis and Adaptive Laboratory Evolution for High Lipid Production by Oleaginous Microalgae and Yeasts," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(12), pages 1-27, June.
    3. Ankita Juneja & Ruben Michael Ceballos & Ganti S. Murthy, 2013. "Effects of Environmental Factors and Nutrient Availability on the Biochemical Composition of Algae for Biofuels Production: A Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 6(9), pages 1-32, September.
    4. Singh, S.P. & Singh, Priyanka, 2015. "Effect of temperature and light on the growth of algae species: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 431-444.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. José C. M. Pires & Ana L. Gonçalves, 2022. "Microalgae Cultures: Environmental Tool and Bioenergy," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-4, August.
    2. Kai Ling Yu & Hwai Chyuan Ong & Halimah Badioze Zaman, 2022. "Microalgae Biomass as Biofuel and the Green Applications," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-6, October.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Debnath, Chandrani & Bandyopadhyay, Tarun Kanti & Bhunia, Biswanath & Mishra, Umesh & Narayanasamy, Selvaraju & Muthuraj, Muthusivaramapandian, 2021. "Microalgae: Sustainable resource of carbohydrates in third-generation biofuel production," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    2. Canabarro, N.I. & Silva-Ortiz, P. & Nogueira, L.A.H. & Cantarella, H. & Maciel-Filho, R. & Souza, G.M., 2023. "Sustainability assessment of ethanol and biodiesel production in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Guatemala," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    3. Baka, Jennifer & Roland-Holst, David, 2009. "Food or fuel? What European farmers can contribute to Europe's transport energy requirements and the Doha Round," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(7), pages 2505-2513, July.
    4. Nguyen, Thu Lan T. & Hermansen, John E. & Mogensen, Lisbeth, 2010. "Fossil energy and GHG saving potentials of pig farming in the EU," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(5), pages 2561-2571, May.
    5. Sarah Jansen & William Foster & Gustavo Anríquez & Jorge Ortega, 2021. "Understanding Farm-Level Incentives within the Bioeconomy Framework: Prices, Product Quality, Losses, and Bio-Based Alternatives," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(2), pages 1-21, January.
    6. Argueyrolles, Robin & Delzeit, Ruth, 2022. "The interconnections between Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reforms and biofuels," Conference papers 333492, Purdue University, Center for Global Trade Analysis, Global Trade Analysis Project.
    7. Aruga, Kentaka, 2011. "非遺伝子組換え大豆とエネルギーの価格関係について [Relationships among the Non-Genetically Modified Soybean and Energy Prices]," MPRA Paper 38186, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 20 Aug 2011.
    8. Ribeiro, Lauro André & Silva, Patrícia Pereira da, 2013. "Surveying techno-economic indicators of microalgae biofuel technologies," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 25(C), pages 89-96.
    9. Gal Hochman & Chrysostomos Tabakis, 2020. "Biofuels and Their Potential in South Korea," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-17, September.
    10. Mohlin, Kristina & Camuzeaux, Jonathan R. & Muller, Adrian & Schneider, Marius & Wagner, Gernot, 2018. "Factoring in the forgotten role of renewables in CO2 emission trends using decomposition analysis," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 290-296.
    11. Khoo, Hsien H., 2015. "Review of bio-conversion pathways of lignocellulose-to-ethanol: Sustainability assessment based on land footprint projections," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 100-119.
    12. Shirizadeh, Behrang & Quirion, Philippe, 2022. "The importance of renewable gas in achieving carbon-neutrality: Insights from an energy system optimization model," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 255(C).
    13. Fung, Timothy K.F. & Choi, Doo Hun & Scheufele, Dietram A. & Shaw, Bret R., 2014. "Public opinion about biofuels: The interplay between party identification and risk/benefit perception," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 344-355.
    14. Dar, Rouf Ahmad & Tsui, To-Hung & Zhang, Le & Tong, Yen Wah & Sharon, Sigal & Shoseyov, Oded & Liu, Ronghou, 2024. "Fermentation of organic wastes through oleaginous microorganisms for lipid production - Challenges and opportunities," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 195(C).
    15. Stefan Mann, 2016. "Governing complementary responsibility goods through hybrid systems in a globalizing world," Journal of Socio-Economics in Agriculture (Until 2015: Yearbook of Socioeconomics in Agriculture), Swiss Society for Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, vol. 9(1), pages 14-21.
    16. Winden, Matthew & Cruze, Nathan & Haab, Tim & Bakshi, Bhavik, 2015. "Monetized value of the environmental, health and resource externalities of soy biodiesel," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 18-24.
    17. Stephen P. Holland & Jonathan E. Hughes & Christopher R. Knittel & Nathan C. Parker, 2013. "Unintended Consequences of Transportation Carbon Policies: Land-Use, Emissions, and Innovation," NBER Working Papers 19636, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    18. Reijnders, L., 2009. "Are forestation, bio-char and landfilled biomass adequate offsets for the climate effects of burning fossil fuels?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(8), pages 2839-2841, August.
    19. Yuqing An & Jin Yeu Tsou & Kapo Wong & Yuanzhi Zhang & Dawei Liu & Yu Li, 2018. "Detecting Land Use Changes in a Rapidly Developing City during 1990–2017 Using Satellite Imagery: A Case Study in Hangzhou Urban Area, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-14, September.
    20. Abdul-Manan, Amir F.N., 2017. "Lifecycle GHG emissions of palm biodiesel: Unintended market effects negate direct benefits of the Malaysian Economic Transformation Plan (ETP)," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 104(C), pages 56-65.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:14:y:2021:i:7:p:1817-:d:523569. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.