Engineering Commons^™

Photobioreactor Design For Improved Energy Efficiency Of Microalgae Production, Alexander Burns

Master's Theses

ABSTRACT

Photobioreactor Design for Improved Energy Efficiency of Microalgae Production

Alexander Burns

The objective of this research was to investigate a new photobioreactor (PBR) design for microalgae production that retains the typical advantages of existing tubular PBRs while reducing power consumption by providing simultaneous culture circulation and gas exchange with airlift alone and no centrifugal recirculating pump. Traditional tubular PBR designs feature a compressed air supply and a centrifugal pump for culture circulation and gas exchange. Circulation and gas exchange in a closed-system PBR is necessary to keep the algae suspended and to provide sufficient mass transfer (mainly for the …

Treatment Of Nitrogen Oxides By Chlorella Vulgaris Algae In Photobioreactors, Steven Shihady

Master's Theses

The effectiveness of algae to treat NO₂and NO in simulated flue gas was tested using Chlorella vulgaris in photobioreactors (PBRs) using NO_xconcentrations between 30 ppm to 780 ppm. NO_xdissolved and reacted in water to form NO₃^-and NO₂^-in the PBR growth medium, providing a nitrogen source that the algae readily assimilated for cell synthesis. Three 20-L photobioreactors were inoculated with a pure culture of C. vulgaris prepared in Bristol growth medium and algae were grown in the PBRs at 25°C and pH of 7.0 in a modified Bristol medium …

Temperature Influence And Heat Management Requirements Of Microalgae Cultivation In Photobioreactors, Thomas Hagen Mehlitz

Master's Theses

Microalgae are considered one of the most promising feedstocks for biofuel production for the future. The most efficient way to produce vast amounts of algal biomass is the use of closed tubular photobioreactors (PBR). The heat requirement for a given system is a major concern since the best algae growth rates are obtained between 25-30 °C, depending on the specific strain. A procedure to determine temperature influence on algal growth rates was developed for a lab-scale PBR system using the species Chlorella. A maximum growth rate of 1.44 doublings per day at 29 °C (optimal temperature) was determined. In addition, …