SOURCE OF RENEWABLE ENERGY: AQUATIC PHOTOAUTOTROPHS

Abstract

The present chapter is focusing on the topic of energy crisis of world because of decreasing the storage fossils fuel and mounting of worldwide climate change. The photoautotrophs are the good substitute of this problem. To make the environment pollution free and production of renewable energy source microalgae are emerging as good sources of biofuels. Microalgae are unicellular or multicellular filamentous, microscopic photoautotrophic organisms. The various macro algae are also a good source of raw biomass material for biofuels production. Algae harvest the solar energy with the help of light harvesting molecules and convert this energy in the form of chemical energy by oxidizing the water molecules and reducing the atmospheric CO₂ in the form of organic molecules. The biomass obtained from microalgae is utilized as the source of raw material for generation of various types of biofuels. The various strains of algae have good growth rate and high contents of biomolecules such as lipids, carbohydrates and other many more value-added foodstuffs. The biodiesel, bio-methane, bioethanol and biohydrogen are the bio-fuels that may be obtained beyond the years.  Aquatic plants have been considered as a good renewable energy source. Production of bio-fuel from aquatic flora and fauna is budding energy source now a day. In spite of this, renewable energy sources biofuels to be very gainful and environmentally eco-friendly. It derived from biomass of organisms (either plant or animals). Today bio-fuel is measured to be a good source of renewable energy contrast fuel obtained from fossil for example petroleum, natural gas and coal. So here, this present chapter disclosing some major floating aquatic flora that plays a significant role in the biofuel generation and also in brief describing the harvesting, industrial processing to extract biofuel of many categories. The utilization of microalgae in the production of biofuel is the major topic of this chapter.