Effect of Physical, Chemical and Biological Mechanisms on the Solid-Liquid Separation of Microalgae

Sustainable energy production is one of the most important resources for humanity. Sunlight is a vital energy source for the Earth and photosynthesis is the main biological process that channels solar energy into the biosphere [1]. Microalgae are a very heterogeneous group of organisms that performs high photosynthetic efficiency and CO2 absorption, contributing to the reduction of greenhouse gases. In recent years, the major focus of applied phycological research have attracted a great deal of interest as potential tools for producing different compounds, such as high-value chemicals, pharmaceuticals, food supplements and biofuels [2,3]. Thus, different strains of microalgae are used in different purposes, in order to generate high biomass and bioproducts productivity with low harvest cost [4,5].