In spite of various potential bene
fi
ts of microalgae for biodiesel pro-
duction, the commercialization of microalgae biodiesel is still suffering
from high production costs. Algal biomass harvesting and intracellular
lipid extraction are energy-intensive and primary cost contributing
steps which have signi
fi
cant impact on the economic feasibility of
microalgae biodiesel. In particular, lipid extraction can account for up
to 50% of the total energy consumption
[3]
because current extraction