SUSTAINABILITY OF BEACH CAST SEAWEED BIOMASS FOR BIOREFINARY PROCESS: SAMPLING STUDIES IN THE LITTORAL OF ALAGOAS/BRAZIL

Renewable feedstocks provide changes to more sustainable systems, where natural resources are preserved with their own perennial cycles. Macroalgae as substrate it is a natural resource of inexhaustible abundance in the ocean, growing three to four times more than terrestrial plants. Some countries discard this biomass in landfills as "unserviceable" generating an environmental liability in the management of solid waste. The objective of this work was to evaluate the sustainability of beach cast seaweed biomass for industrial processes. Sampling studies research in a period of two years were carried out in seven beaches of the coast of Maceió, Alagoas - Brazil. The methodology was selecting the statistical models Levene's test, One-way ANOVA, Tukey's, Student-Newman-Keul's test and the PAST program for the sampling studies. The samples were collected according to the zigzag sampling method, covering a deposition area of 135.000 m². The results obtained an estimate daily collection of 5.03 tons/ha of dry biomass in 26 species analysed; it means 35 times superior to Brazilian sugarcane biomass. Based on the results, it is observed that beach cast seaweed biomass has possibilities to industrial biorefinery processes.