Inputs-CO2 + Water + Nutrients + Algae Strain + Sunlight

In order to cultivate algae certain ingredients are required. These items include carbon dioxide (CO2),

Water and other trace minerals such as calcium and iron.  However, the most essential ingredient required is sunlight, which provides the algae with the energy necessary to grow and reproduce.

The Photo-Bioreactor

A Photo-BioReactor (PBR) is a system that uses light to support a biologic active environment.  The PBRs are developed for the cultivation of algae.  PBR systems can be operated in either batch or continuous mode. For large scale automated operations a continuous system is the preferred method. In a continuous system, as the algae grows, excess culture excess culture is drawn away from the system and harvested. 

In the PBR the environment is strictly controlled using sensors to monitor variables such as pH, temperature, salinity, optical density, etc. This optimizes algae growth for maximum output.  The choices for the actual photobioreactor include

We currently offer the following systems:

1. A closed system, polycarbonate tubing photobioreactor. This system is a hardwearing polycarbonate tubing using full flood technology.
2. A continuous harvesting system for commercial algae farming applications. This closed PBR system is a minimum 1 acre plant, full computer controlled with a 1-year warranty
3. A waste water treatment unit that uses algae to create a net zero operation. Eliminate sludge transportaion cost and electricity bills.

Harvesting

Algae rich water is continuously harvested from the Photo-Bioreactor at a diluted ration.  The Harvest phase is designed to remove the bulk of excess water that the algae is located in. This allows the algae to be processed in a more economical way. On leaving the PBR the flow rate is 600 tons per day.  Once harvesting has taken place you are left with 120 tons.

Algae can be harvested using microscreens, by centrifugation, or by flocculation. Froth flotation is another method to harvest algae whereby the water and algae are aerated into a froth, with the algae then removed from the water. Alum and ferric chloride are chemical flocculants used to harvest algae.  A commercial product called "Chitosin", commonly used for water purification, can also be used as a flocculant. The shells of crustaceans are ground into a powder and processed to acquire chitin, a polysaccharide found in the shells, from which chitosin is derived. Water that is more brackish, or saline requires additional chemical flocculant to induce flocculation. Harvesting by chemical flocculation is a method that is often too expensive for large operations. Interrupting the carbon dioxide supply to an algal system can cause algae to flocculate on its own, which is called "autoflocculation".  A flocculant is introduced causing the algae to settle at the bottom of the tank.  This is a convenient and cost effective method for removing roughly 80% of the water from the harvest, leaving behind concentrated algae mass.

Centrifuge

2.1 Flocculant Tank/Centrifuge Combination

Flocculants vary in price and quality around the world. In Holland it is possible to acquire a suitable

flocculant for roughly 100 g.

Flocculants, or flocculating agents are chemicals that promote flocculation by causing colloids and other suspended particles in liquids to aggregate, forming a floc. Flocculants are used in water

treatment processes to improve the sedimentation or filterability of small particles. For example, a

flocculant may be used in swimming pool or drinking water filtration to aid removal of microscopic particles which would otherwise cause the water to be cloudy and which would be difficult or impossible to remove by filtration alone.

Many flocculants are multivalent cations such as aluminum, iron, calcium or magnesium.  These positively charged molecules interact with negatively charged particles and molecules to reduce the barriers to aggregation. In addition, many of these chemicals, under appropriate pH and other conditions such as temperature and salinity, react with water to form insoluble hydroxides which, upon precipitating, link together to form long chains or meshes, physically trapping small particles into the larger floc.

Note:In order to ensure further reduction in water content, a centrifuge can be added at this stage

Oil extraction:

Drying + Pressing

The Algae at this time has excess water and it has to be removed for traditional oil extraction methods.

Drum dryer:   

One of the most basic forms of the drum dryer, where a film of the product to be dried up on the durface of the dryer drum as it rotates through a feed tray mounted below.  The feed tray may be cooled or fitted with a recirculation system to prevent overheating or settling out of product from suspension.

Sun drying (FREE)

Oil extraction

Algae oils have a variety of commercial and industrial uses, and are extracted through a wide variety of methods. The simplest method is mechanical crushing. Since different strains of algae vary widely in their physical attributes, various press configurations (screw, expeller, piston, etc) work better for specific algae types. Often, mechanical crushing is used in conjunction with chemicals.

Expression/Expeller press:

When algae is dried it retains its oil content, which then can be "pressed" out with an oil press. Many commercial manufacturers of vegetable oil use a combination of mechanical pressing and chemical solvents in extracting oil.

Ultrasonic-assisted extraction:

Ultrasonic extraction, a branch of sonochemistry, can greatly accelerate extraction processes. Using an ultrasonic reactor, ultrasonic waves are used to create cavitation bubbles in a solvent material, when these bubbles collapse near the cell walls, it creates shock waves and liquid jets that causes those cells walls to break and release their contents into the solvent.

Cavitation Process

After leaving the flocculant tank the Concentrated Algea Paste (CAP) enters the High Frequency Pulse Resonator(HFPR), which ruptures the walls of the algae cells. This process releases the contents of the cell, a portion of which is oil. In a solution of 10,000kg you typically have 9,000kg water, 500kg of oil and 500kg of algae residue.

The flowrate starts at 10 ton for 1 ton algae system

Outputs:

Oil, Water, Algae Residue

The oil content will vary depending on the algae strain.

output will be 5% oil, 5% algae residue, and 90% water.

Our team of scientist and consultants are experts in algae production and algae processing for both, industrial and agricultural applications. We also are manufacturers of photobioreactors from 1 ton up to 250 ton dry algae a day.

70CentsaGallon.com is committed to further research into Algae cultivation, algae biofuels and other renewable energy technologies. If there is anything you want us to add to our sales line or something specific that you want us to carry, please let us know. We are here to give you optimum service.

70CentsaGallon.com exclusively pursues projects with strong "triple bottom lines"; that is, projects with economic, social, and environmental benefits. In economic terms, projects must be profitable in order to become self-sustaining and be able to pay for the resources they consume.

CO2 Sequestration Solutions

70CentsaGallon.com uses Algae Farming as an energy conversion system that allows the sustainable mass production of the first existing bio-petroleum in the world. This system does not increase CO2 emissions (carbon dioxide), but it reduces them and it does not carry SO2 (sulfur dioxide), as well as the practical absence of poisonous secondary products (mixture of fossilization) that are found in fossil oil.

This Algae biofuel substitutes 100% traditional fuel, without needing to be mixed and can be used in various biofuel applications.

It is a question of an inexhaustible and non-contaminating source of energy production, since it does add to CO2 emissions but it reduces them.

Algea Oil Farming for Biodiesel Algae Biofuel uses the excesses of carbon dioxide produced by industrial activities, in a way that does not contaminate, but contributes to cleaning the atmosphere.

Algae Farms remove massive amounts of CO2 (Carbon dioxide) from the air. Algae farms are glutton eaters of CO2 gas providing a means for recycling waste carbon dioxide from fossil fuel combustion. It is possible to sequester as much as one billion tons of CO2 per year from algae farms. Some single U.S. Coal fire energy plants produce as much as 25.3 millions tons of CO2. This new technology has attractedcompanies that need inexpensive CO2 sequestration solutions. Algae was responsible for creating the Earth's oxygen atmosphere three billion years ago and it took around two billion years to form the modern atmosphere with 20 percent oxygen.

With Algae Farming the emission of carbon dioxide is reduced significantly and it does not produce sulfurous emissions, which is decisive in avoiding acid rain as well as contributing to limiting the greenhouse effect and achieving the objectives established by the Kyoto protocol. Algae Farming for CO2 Capture is rapidly developing into a bio-secure, scalable, climate adaptive, and highly cost effective technology for producing valuable fuel and food from CO2 using algal photosynthesis and bio-harvesting. The core of this technology is embodied in the published US patent application 20070048848: Method, apparatus and system for biodiesel production from algae as well as a separate mechanical and PCT patent applications.

The 70CentsaGallon.com Carbon Capture solution is unique, it addresses carbon capture and carbon recycling as well as the production of biofuels, animal feed protein, and fertilizer in a single integrated plant.  Our closed culture and harvesting system greatly reduces problems from contaminating algae, algae consuming microorganisms and/or other extraneous species.

Algae Biofuel will play a very important part in meeting the worlds growing energy need, Algae has a place in not only our past, but in our future as well.

 Contact us for site visit appointment information HERE.

Algae Farming System

System capacity:

Production and harvesting quantities of micro-algae depends on the selected algae strain, quality of water, quality of nutrients and the geographical location. It is very difficult and almost impossible to guarantee buyers of algae cultivation systems the exact output of the system. There are algae strains that multiply 1 x per 24 hours, and there are algae strains that multiply 3 to 5 x per 24 hours.