Advances in the study of fatty acids modification in Hermetia illucens (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) larvae for biodiesel production through biochemical changes in the feeding source

Abstract

Biodiesel obtained from oil of different sources of biomass is an alternative for  reducing fossil fuels used for transportation. Being the larvae of black soldier fly Hermetia illucens researched for increasing their oil content through some factors during the larval stage. This review summarizes the biochemical conditions that have been identified to modify the fatty acid content in Hermetia illucens larvae during their lab rearing for biodiesel production, as well as the different technologies used for oil extraction and transesterification. One of these modifications involves the addition of non-fibrous carbohydrate content in the feed, which also affects the intestinal microbiota, increasing the presence of bacteria such as Dysgonomonas sp., and Bacteroides sp., which participate in the degradation of the food. Furthermore, during the oil extraction the reported yield percentages were 36% using 2-methyltetrahydrofuran as a solvent, and 29.5% using petroleum ether. As for oil transesterification, a conversion of 98% was achieved using methanol as a reagent combined with commercial lipases Eversa® and SMG1 as catalysts.