Comparative analysis of top-lit bubble column and gas-lift bioreactors for microalgae-sourced biodiesel production

Abstract The development of top-lit one-meter deep bioreactors operated as either a gas-lift or bubble column system using air and carbon dioxide enriched air was studied. The goal was high productivity cultivation of algae with elevated lipid levels suitable for conversion into biodiesel. A theoretical energy requirement analysis and a hydrodynamic model were developed to predict liquid circulation velocities in the gas-lift bioreactor, which agreed well with experimental measurements. The influence of operational parameters such as design of bioreactor, gas flow rates and carbon dioxide concentration on the growth and lipid volumetric production of Scenedesmus dimorphus was evaluated using factorial design. While biomass productivity was 12% higher in the bubble column bioreactor (68.2 g dw  m −2  day −1 ), maximum lipid volumetric production (0.19 g Lipid  L −1 ) was found in a gas-lift bioreactor sparged with 6% carbon dioxide due to hydrodynamic and light stresses.

[1]  A. Rengel,et al.  Hydrodynamic study of an internal airlift reactor for microalgae culture , 2011, Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology.

[2]  S. Oncel,et al.  Comparison of two different pneumatically mixed column photobioreactors for the cultivation of Artrospira platensis (Spirulina platensis). , 2008, Bioresource technology.

[3]  T. Morinaga,et al.  Effect of high frequency of intermittent light on the growth and fatty acid profile of Isochrysis galbana , 2012 .

[4]  Alper D Ozkan,et al.  Differential effects of nitrogen and sulfur deprivation on growth and biodiesel feedstock production of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii , 2012, Biotechnology and bioengineering.

[5]  Guixia Ma,et al.  Optimization and lipid production enhancement of microalgae culture by efficiently changing the conditions along with the growth-state , 2015 .

[6]  M. Tadé,et al.  CO2 Biomitigation and Biofuel Production Using Microalgae: Photobioreactors Developments and Future Directions , 2012 .

[7]  G. Napolitano.  THE RELATIONSHIP OF LIPIDS WITH LIGHT AND CHLOROPHYLL MEASUREMENTS IN FRESHWATER ALGAE AND PERIPHYTON 1 , 1994 .

[8]  Sang Hyun Lee,et al.  LED light stress induced biomass and fatty acid production in microalgal biosystem, Acutodesmus obliquus. , 2015, Spectrochimica acta. Part A, Molecular and biomolecular spectroscopy.

[9]  Energy-efficient cultivation of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii for lipid accumulation under flashing illumination conditions , 2014, Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering.

[10]  Higher efficiency of CO2 injection into seawater by a venturi than a conventional diffuser system. , 2012, Bioresource technology.

[11]  R. Andersen,et al.  Algal culturing techniques , 2005 .

[12]  Ayhan Demirbas,et al.  Use of algae as biofuel sources. , 2010 .

[13]  Maria J Barbosa,et al.  Hydrodynamic stress and lethal events in sparged microalgae cultures. , 2003, Biotechnology and bioengineering.

[14]  C. Ugwu,et al.  Photobioreactors for mass cultivation of algae. , 2008, Bioresource technology.

[15]  L. Rodolfi,et al.  Microalgae for oil: Strain selection, induction of lipid synthesis and outdoor mass cultivation in a low‐cost photobioreactor , 2009, Biotechnology and bioengineering.

[16]  Jean-Michel Robert,et al.  Diatom cultivation and biotechnologically relevant products. Part I: Cultivation at various scales , 2003, Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology.

[17]  Helen Shang,et al.  Microalgae cultivation in a novel top-lit gas-lift open bioreactor. , 2015, Bioresource technology.

[18]  Man Kee Lam,et al.  Pilot-scale semi-continuous cultivation of microalgae Chlorella vulgaris in bubble column photobioreactor (BC-PBR): Hydrodynamics and gas–liquid mass transfer study , 2016 .

[19]  J. Xia,et al.  Effects of simulated flue gases on growth and lipid production of Chlorella sorokiniana CS-01 , 2013 .

[20]  Nekoo Seyed Hosseini,et al.  Bioprospecting for acidophilic lipid-rich green microalgae isolated from abandoned mine site water bodies , 2014, AMB Express.

[21]  Y. Chisti,et al.  Gas Holdup, Liquid Circulation and Mixing Behaviour of Viscous Newtonian Media in a Split-Cylinder Airlift Bioreactor , 1999 .

[22]  Zhijian Pei,et al.  Microalgae Mass Production Methods , 2009 .

[23]  Johannes Tramper,et al.  Microalgae cultivation in air-lift reactors: modeling biomass yield and growth rate as a function of mixing frequency. , 2003, Biotechnology and bioengineering.

[24]  Ming Liu,et al.  In situ carbon supplementation in large-scale cultivations of Spirulina platensis in open raceway pond , 2012, Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering.

[25]  P. Wangersky,et al.  Particulate lipid class composition of three marine phytoplankters Chaetoceros gracilis, Isochrysis galbana (Tahiti) and Dunaliella tertiolecta grown in batch culture , 1995, Hydrobiologia.

[26]  Hu Hong-Ying,et al.  Growth and lipid accumulation properties of a freshwater microalga Scenedesmus sp. under different cultivation temperature. , 2011 .

[27]  Debabrata Das,et al.  Growth characteristics of Chlorella sorokiniana in airlift and bubble column photobioreactors. , 2012, Bioresource technology.

[28]  Helen Shang,et al.  A model for utilizing industrial off-gas to support microalgae cultivation for biodiesel in cold climates , 2014 .

[29]  J. Folch,et al.  A simple method for the isolation and purification of total lipides from animal tissues. , 1957, The Journal of biological chemistry.

[30]  V. S. Chauhan,et al.  Selection and evaluation of CO2 tolerant indigenous microalga Scenedesmus dimorphus for unsaturated fatty acid rich lipid production under different culture conditions. , 2013, Bioresource technology.

[31]  W.T. Wu,,et al.  Bubble characteristics and mass transfer in an airlift reactor with multiple net draft tubes , 1998 .

[32]  René H. Wijffels,et al.  Scale-up aspects of photobioreactors: effects of mixing-induced light/dark cycles , 2000, Journal of Applied Phycology.

[33]  Yusuf Chisti,et al.  Shear stress tolerance and biochemical characterization of Phaeodactylum tricornutum in quasi steady-state continuous culture in outdoor photobioreactors. , 2003 .

[34]  M. Demirbas,et al.  IMPORTANCE OF ALGAE OIL AS A SOURCE OF BIODIESEL , 2011 .

[35]  M. Premalatha,et al.  Parameters influencing the design of photobioreactor for the growth of microalgae , 2012 .

[36]  Milton Sommerfeld,et al.  Inhibition of starch synthesis results in overproduction of lipids in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii , 2010, Biotechnology and bioengineering.

[37]  Guixia Ma,et al.  Growth and lipid accumulation properties of microalgal Phaeodactylum tricornutum under different gas liquid ratios. , 2014, Bioresource technology.

[38]  Nagamany Nirmalakhandan,et al.  Feasibility of microalgal cultivation in a pilot-scale airlift-driven raceway reactor. , 2012, Bioresource technology.

[39]  Z. Su,et al.  An economical device for carbon supplement in large-scale micro-algae production , 2008, Bioprocess and biosystems engineering.

[40]  M. Talaia.  Terminal Velocity of a Bubble Rise in a Liquid , 2007 .

[41]  Manjinder Singh,et al.  An efficient system for carbonation of high-rate algae pond water to enhance CO2 mass transfer. , 2011, Bioresource technology.

[42]  Dragoljub Bilanovic,et al.  Microalgal CO2 sequestering - Modeling microalgae production costs , 2012 .

[43]  A. J. Cruz,et al.  Prediction of mean bubble size in pneumatic reactors , 2010 .

[44]  Y. Chisti,et al.  A reassesment of relationship between riser and downcomer gas holdups in airlift reactors , 1998 .

[45]  Nagamany Nirmalakhandan,et al.  Development of a new airlift-driven raceway reactor for algal cultivation , 2011 .

[46]  R. Lovitt,et al.  Placing microalgae on the biofuels priority list: a review of the technological challenges , 2010, Journal of The Royal Society Interface.

[47]  Yusuf Chisti,et al.  Bubble‐column and airlift photobioreactors for algal culture , 2000 .