SEP Collaborative: Alkaliphilic microalgae-based sustainable & scalable processes for renewable fuels and products

NSF可持续能源途径（SEP）项目隶属于NSF可持续发展科学、工程和教育（SEES）倡议，将支持托尔迪奥大学的Sridhar Viamajala教授及其同事、蒙大拿州立大学的Robin Gerlach教授及其同事、北卡罗来纳大学教堂山分校的Gregory Characklis教授的研究项目。该项目将重点研究高脂天然亲碱藻类，这些藻类不易受到有害污染（由于其极端的生长环境），并且能够积累大量脂质。此外，该项目将开发和测试用于电池收集以及燃料和高价值产品生成的低能耗选择。通过整合藻类培养稳定性和生产力的独特和强大的进展，以及针对藻类收获和生化转化的关键过程的研究，将开发可扩展的，环境和经济上可接受的生产可再生燃料和化学品的过程。这个项目的结果将引起工业界、当地社区、监管机构和学术界的兴趣。具体的外展工作将通过以下方式针对这些主要利益相关者：(1)在会议、贸易会议上向当地社区成员和行业利益相关者传播研究成果，并通过当地社区和立法者的参与；(2)来自蒙大拿州高中和部落学院的未被充分代表的美国原住民学生参与暑期研究活动，以及pi实验室的本科生研究人员；(3)通过培训高中教师开展K-12阶段的教育和培训；(4)开发“可持续生物燃料”的跨学科远程学习课程序列，涵盖生物燃料生产的基础生物学、化学、工程和可持续性方面的广泛主题；(5)利用生命周期分析的结果，产生有助于就成本和环境影响之间的权衡作出知情判断的信息。这种可持续的能源途径通过使用低能耗的化学和生物过程，加上养分和水的循环，最大限度地减少了能源和材料的需求。这种生物精炼厂的全球变暖潜能值（GWP）将通过使用节能的种植、收获和转化方法，以及尽量减少对养分和水的外部需求而显著降低。总的来说，这些解决方案将通过新的科学技术进步的发展，与环境、经济和社会的优点相平衡，从而改变藻类经济和可持续能源的挑战。这些藻类养殖场不会与耕地、粮食生产或使用高质量的水竞争。

The NSF Sustainable Energy pathways (SEP) Program, under the umbrella of the NSF Science, Engineering and Education for Sustainability (SEES) initiative, will support the research program of Prof. Sridhar Viamajala and co-workers at the University of Toldeo, Prof. Robin Gerlach and co-workers at Montana State University, and Prof. Gregory Characklis of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. This project will focus on high lipid-producing native alkaliphilic algae which are less susceptible to detrimental contamination (due to their extreme growth environment) and able to accumulate large amounts of lipid. In addition, the project will develop and test low-energy options for cell harvesting as well as for fuel and high value product generation. Through integration of unique and robust advances in algal culture stability and productivity as well as research targeted on the critical processes of algae harvesting and conversion of biochemicals, scalable, environmentally and economically acceptable processes to produce renewable fuels and chemicals will be developed. The results of this project will be of interest to industry, local communities, regulators, and academia. Specific outreach efforts will be directed towards each of these primary stakeholders through: (1) dissemination of research outcomes to local community members and industry stakeholders at conferences, trade meetings and by local community and legislator engagement; (2) engagement of underrepresented Native American students from Montana high schools and tribal colleges in summer research activities as well as undergraduate researchers in the PIs' laboratories; (3) education and training at the K-12 level through training of high school teachers; (4) development of an interdisciplinary distance-learning course sequence on "Sustainable Biofuels" that will cover broad topics on the fundamental biology, chemistry, engineering and sustainability aspects of biofuel production; (5) generation of information useful in making informed judgments regarding tradeoffs between cost and environmental impact using the results of the life-cycle analyses.This sustainable energy pathway minimizes energy and materials requirements through use of low-energy chemical and biological processes coupled with nutrient and water recycle. The global warming potential (GWP) of such biorefineries would be significantly lowered through the use of energy-efficient cultivation, harvesting and conversion methods as well as by minimizing external demands for nutrients and water. Overall, these solutions to the challenge of economic and sustainable energy from algae will be transformative through the development of novel scientific and technical advances, balanced with environmental, economic and societal merits. These algal farms will not compete with arable lands, food production, or use high quality water.