Grant: Strategic Projects - Group

The continuously increasing demand for energy has been translated into increased cost of crude oils, and intensified emission of green house gases. As a result, air quality will continue to deteriorate severely and global warming will increase beyond repairable extent. Renewable energy such as biodiesel and bioethanol have a much smaller net emission of green house gases. The use of biodiesel can reduce emissions (about 50-60%) of carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide and harmful air pollutants, in particular asthma-causing soots. However, the present economics of biodiesel process is highly vulnerable and depend mainly on governmental subsidies because the secondary product (glycerol) has lost its high commercial value due to present glycerol glut. On the other hand, diversion of high value oil crops such as canola and soybeans for biofuels production has raised some serious questions on sustainability of food supply in future. These factors have necessitated the need for the development of an integrated biorefinery approach for production of biodiesel and valuable compounds from waste based biomass rich in oil such as animal fat and fish oils. The long-term objective of this project is to develop an economically viable and environmentally sustainable innovative biorefinery process consisting of biological transesterification of animal and fish processing wastes into biodiesel and multitude of valuable products such as nutraceuticals (omega-3 fatty acids), enzyme inhibitors (alpha-2 macroglobulin, alpha-1 antiproteinase), enzymes (proteases, lipases), collagen, high value proteins and meal; and bioconversion of glycerol into propanediol, ethanol and lactic acid. The work consist of: compiling and analyzing information on sources and amounts of waste materials in the Atlantic Region, characterization of waste streams, investigating handling and pretreatments techniques, and developing feasible extraction/separation and fermentation techniques. The project will contribute to the socio-economic development of Atlantic Canada, enhance the economics of the biodiesel industry and accelerate carbon sequestration. Highly qualified personnel will be trained in the fields of bioenergy and process engineering.