Chlorella: Industrial Production of Cell Mass and Chemicals

Chlorella is a genus of unicellular green microalgae that has attracted great scientific and commercial interest. The success of mass culture of Chlorella photoautotrophically, heterotrophically, and mixotrophically has brought about a stable Chlorella industry primarily for human nutrition and animal feed. Chlorella's ability to rapidly uptake and assimilate carbon dioxide and nutrients (e.g., nitrogen and phosphorous) from waste streams (e.g., flue gases and wastewaters) and synthesize large amounts of lipids also makes it a candidate for biofuels and bioremediation. However, the current Chlorella production systems and processes are neither cost-effective nor energy-efficient, making these potential applications unrealistic. Breakthroughs and innovations in developing next generation technologies for Chlorella production are sought. This edition first published 2013