Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2025

DOI

10.20944/preprints202503.0666.v1

Publication Title

Preprints

Pages

18 pp.

Abstract

This study investigated a green chelation strategy for deashing algal biomass using nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) and deionized water (DI) to enhance its suitability for biofuel and bioproduct applications. Solid-state algal turf scrubber (SS ATS), green algal turf scrubber (ATS), and Scenedesmus were analyzed, with Scenedesmus selected for detailed evaluation due to its high ash removal efficiency. The objective was to optimize a purification process that minimizes ash and heavy metal content while preserving biochemical integrity. Algal biomass underwent sequential washing with DI, NTA, and NTA+DI under varying temperatures (90-130 °C). Analytical techniques including Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES), and CHN (carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen) elemental analysis were employed to assess changes in ash content, metal ion concentration, elemental composition, and biochemical properties. The NTA+DI treatment was the most effective, lowering the ash content in Scenedesmus from 15.2% to 3.8% and decreasing lead (Pb) and copper (Cu) levels below detectable limits. Ash removal was greatly aided by temperature reaching a high efficiency of 83.07% at 130 °C owing to enhanced calcium, magnesium, and potassium solubilization and chelation. Successive NTA recycling led to a decline in efficiency by the third cycle, indicating chelating agent saturation. Despite ash reduction, the ultimate analysis showed minimal changes in CHN composition (C: 45.2%, H: 6.0%, and N: 7.1%), ensuring the retention of organic matter. These findings established NTA+DI treatment as an effective and sustainable method for deashing algal biomass while maintaining its biochemical integrity. This optimized process enhances the feasibility of Scenedesmus-derived biofuels improving combustion efficiency and reducing inorganic fouling in biorefineries and thermochemical conversion systems.

Rights

© 2025 by the authors.

Distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) License.

Data Availability

Article states: "The data presented in this study are available on request from the corresponding author."

Comments

This version is not peer reviewed.

ORCID

0000-0002-4802-3717 (Asante), 0000-0001-9986-9117 (Daramola), 0000-0003-3173-6101 (Kumar)

Original Publication Citation

Asante, A., Daramola, G., Davis, R. W., & Kumar, S. (2025). Green chelation strategy for deashing of algal biomass. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202503.0666.v1

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