Welcome to Biorefining and Remediation Laboratory at Dalhousie

The goal of this research is to develop sustainable processes by employing the concept of integrated biorefinery and circular economy. Our current work is focused on an integratd system for anaerobic digestion of thin stillage produced in corn-bioethanol plant and microalgae cultivation for nutrient recycling and bioenergy production. In this work, we particularly target the water-energy nexus area as the center of implementing innovation. Our recent initiative is focused on processing lignocellulosic biomass for the production of value-added chemicals within the concept of biorefinery.

Sayedin, F., Kermanshahi pour, A., He, S., 2019, Evaluating the potential of a novel anaerobic baffled reactor for anaerobic digestion of thin stillage: Effect of organic loading rate, hydraulic retention time and recycle ratio. Renewable Energy: An International Journal,135, 975–983.

Sayedin, F., Kermanshahi pour, A., He, S., Tibbetts, S., Lalonde, C.G.E., Brar, S.K. 2020, Microalgae cultivation in thin stillage anaerobic digestate for nutrient recovery and bioproduct production. Algal Research, 47, 101867.

Sustainable Natural Product Recovery and Pharmaceutical Processing

The aim of this research is to develop novel and benign processes with reduced environmental impacts for the recovery and purification of bioactive molecules from various sources such as microalgae, berry, sea cucumber and fish oil. The use of supercritical fluids for extraction and pharmaceutical processing is our main focus area in this research.

MacEachern, L., Kermanshahi pour, A., Mirmehrabi, M. 2020, Supercritical carbon dioxide for pharmaceutical co-crystal production. Crystal Growth and Design, 20, 9, 6226–6244.

Kermanshahi pour,A., Mirmehrabi, M., Brar, S.K., 2020, A novel process for isolation and purification of polyunsaturated fatty acids from a thraustochytrid. Algal Research, 46, 101806

Jiao, G. and Kermanshahi pour A., 2018, Extraction of anthocyanins from haskap berry pulp using supercritical carbon dioxide: Influence of co-solvent composition and pretreatment. LWT Food Science and Technology, 98, 237-244.

Kermanshahi pour A., MacEachern LM, Mirmehrabi M, 2017, A novel process for preparation of fatty acid oil mixture in solid form. Food Chemistry, 229, 50-56.