Life cycle energy and greenhouse gas profile of a process for the production of ammonium sulfate from nitrogen-fixing photosynthetic cyanobacteria
In this paper, an alternative means for nitrogen fixation that may consume less energy and release less greenhouse gases than the Haber-Bosch process is explored. A life-cycle assessment was conducted on a process to: culture the cyanobacterium, Anabaena sp. ATCC 33047, in open ponds; harvest the bi...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | text |
| Published: |
Animo Repository
2012
|
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/faculty_research/1641 https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/context/faculty_research/article/2640/type/native/viewcontent |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| Institution: | De La Salle University |
| Summary: | In this paper, an alternative means for nitrogen fixation that may consume less energy and release less greenhouse gases than the Haber-Bosch process is explored. A life-cycle assessment was conducted on a process to: culture the cyanobacterium, Anabaena sp. ATCC 33047, in open ponds; harvest the biomass and exopolysaccharides and convert these to biogas; strip and convert the ammonia from the biogas residue to ammonium sulfate; dry the ammonium sulfate solution to ammonium sulfate crystals and transport the finished product. The results suggest that substantial reductions in non-renewable energy use and greenhouse gas emissions may be realized. The study opens the possibility that Haber-Bosch ammonia may be replaced with ammonia from a biomass process which simultaneously generates renewable energy. The process is intrinsically safer than the Haber-Bosch process. However, there are trade-offs in terms of land use and possibly, water. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. |
|---|