Dear Colleagues,

A tremendous amount of research specifically on microalgae has claimed that these tiny organisms have great potential for creating clean energy known as biofuels and high-valuable bioproducts (e.g., biofertilizers, bioplastics, supplements and aquafeed), and for mitigating environmental-related issues (e.g., as a bioadsorbent, biochar, and soil-mediated agent). Although microalgae show great potential as a renewable source, how far are we from making the commercial use of microalgae a reality?

When considering these benefits, we must also address the hurdles that remain. the cost to sustain the biorefinery process from upstream to downstream processing is unrealistic. Meanwhile, the inappropriate disposal of microalgae after their utilization could lead to lethal algal bloom that will directly impact the ecosystem and cause unnecessary harm to aquatic microorganisms. In addition, these blooms consist of blue-green algae (i.e., cyanobacteria), which may pose toxic effects toward marine life and can even cause harm when consumed by humans. Therefore, it is essential to address these shortcomings to mitigate the complications concerning these factors in future algae research. By creating low-cost bioprocesses and sustainable solutions to reduce the environmental burden from issues such as algal bloom and harmful algae associated with microalgae biomass disposal, microalgae biomass will become a part of the circular bioeconomy.

Within this context, this Special Issue is devoted to exploiting microalgae biomass as a useful resource through sustainable initiatives to mitigate the arising environmental and other ecological problems. This thematic Special Issue highlights the recent advancements in microalgae biomass and value-added bioproduct production, with a special focus on the challenges and future outlooks of sustainable ecological initiatives meant to protect the environment.

Dr. Kuan Shiong Khoo
Dr. Muthusamy Govarthanan
Guest Editors

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• microalgae technology
• upstream cultivation
• downstream bioprocessing
• advanced conversion technologies
• biorefineries
• circular bioeconomy and waste valorisation
• bioremediation
• environmental management
• technoeconomic feasibility
• ecological initiatives
• artificial intelligence in algae processing