Algal thermoplastics, thermosets, paper, adsorbants and absorbants
View Patent ↗Provided are biomass-based materials and valuable uses of microalgal biomass including: (i) acetylation of microalgal biomass to produce a material useful in the production of thermoplastics; (ii) use of triglyceride containing microalgal biomass for production of thermoplastics; (iii) combination of microalgal biomass and at least one type of plant polymer to produce a material useful in the production of thermoplastics; (iv) anionization of microalgal biomass to form a water absorbant material; (v) cationization of microalgal biomass, and optional flocculation, to form a water absorbant material; (vi) crosslinking of anionized microalgal biomass; (vii) carbonization of microalgal biomass; and (viii) use of microalgal biomass in the making of paper.
1. A thermoplastic composition comprising a covalently modified microalgal biomass from a heterotrophically cultivated microalgae, the composition further comprising soybean hulls.
2. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein the microalgae has been lysed.
3. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein the covalently modified microalgal biomass has been covalently modified with a hydrophobic group or an anionic group.
4. The composition of claim 3 , wherein the microalgal biomass has been modified by acetylation.
5. The composition of claim 3 , wherein polysaccharide of the microalgal biomass is covalently modified.
6. The composition according to claim 3 , wherein the covalently modified algal biomass is characterized by a DS value of 1 to 3.
7. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein the microalgal biomass is unbleached.
8. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein the microalgal biomass is not colored due to the presence of chlorophyll.
9. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein the biomass is of microalgae that are heterotrophs, and optionally obligate heterotrophs.
10. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein the microalgae are of the genus Chlorella or the genus Prototheca.
11. The composition according to claim 10 , wherein the microalgae are Prototheca moriformis.
12. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein the thermoplastic composition further comprises a plasticizer.
13. The composition according to claim 12 , wherein the plasticizer is selected from a group consisting of one or more of: glycerol, sorbitol, triacetin, triethyl citrate, acetyl triethyl citrate, tributyl cirtate, acetyl tributyl citrate, trioctyl citrate, acetyl trioctyl citrate, trihexyl citrate, butyryl trihexyl citrate, trimethyl citrate, alkyl sulphonic acid phenyl ester, and 1,2-cyclohexane dicarboxylic acid diisononyl ester.
14. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein the thermoplastic composition has one or more of the following characteristics: (a) a Young's modulus of 300-3000 MPa; (b) a tensile strength of 5-70 MPa; (c) a tensile strength at maximum load of 5-50 MPa; or (d) an ultimate elongation of 1-400%.
15. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein the microalgal biomass is a fraction that is insoluble in an aqueous solvent, said insoluble fraction produced by removing components soluble in an aqueous solvent from microalgal biomass.
16. The composition according to claim 1 , wherein the composition has been formed through extruding, molding, or blowing.
17. The thermoplastic composition according to claim 1 , wherein the composition is a film.