Operation of a Porous Membrane Photobioreactor

Author(s):  
Gary A. Anderson ◽  
Sarmila Katuwal ◽  
Anil Kommareddy ◽  
Stephen Gent

A unique photobioreactor (PBR) constructed with acrylic sheet was used to grow S. Leopoliensis in 3.36 litters of Scully’s growth media. The PBR width was 51mm with a 273mm length and a growth media depth of 271mm. One of the PBR unique features was that it used a plenum and a porous membrane to inject air enriched with carbon dioxide into the growth medium. The HDPE (high-density polyethylene sintered beads) porous membrane served as the barrier between the reactor volume and the mixing plenum of the PBR. The air bubbled up through the porous membrane into the reactor volume with the growth medium mixing the contents of the reactor volume and transfer oxygen and carbon dioxide between the growth media and the bubbles. The second unique feature of the PBR is that it incorporated light guides in the design. The light guides were acrylic rods 9.5mm in diameter and a length projecting into the reactor volume of 38.1mm. The guides did not touch the opposite PBR wall. The light guides were abraded with sand paper on the outer to enhance light transfer from the guide to the growth medium. There were eight rows of light guides on each of the two PBR walls that were 273mm in length. Each row consisted of eight light guides space 34.1mm apart and 17.1mm from the side (short) walls of the PBR. Light was provided by two LED panels with 384 LED lights on each panel. The light from the panels had a wavelength of 650nm. The Light guides protruded through the PBR wall and light from the LED panels entered the light guide ends or transferred through the wall directly into the PBR reactor volume. The light guide ends occupied approximately 16% of the PBR wall area lit by the LED panels. The PBR produced 7.1g per litter of algal biomass in a 14 day growth cycle which encompassed a 3 day lag phase. The light guides disrupted the bubble flow pattern not allowing an obvious riser and/or downcomer to develop in the reactor volume. The disrupted flow pattern enhanced mixing and gas transfer. The enhanced mixing rotated the algal cells from more to less areas of the reactor volume more often aiding photosynthesis in a manner similar to flashing lights.

Author(s):  
Caitlin Gerdes ◽  
Taylor N. Suess ◽  
Gary A. Anderson ◽  
Stephen P. Gent

Proper light penetration is an essential design consideration for effective algae growth in column photobioreactors. This research focuses on the placement of light guides within a photobioreactor (PBR), and the effect they have on heat transfer, mass transfer, bubble and fluid flow patterns, and mixing. Studies have been done on a rectangular column photobioreactor (34.29 cm long × 15.25 cm wide × 34.29 cm tall) with two light panels along the front and back of the PBR. A bubble sparger is placed along the center of the bottom length of the PBR with both height and width of 1.27 cm and a length of 33.02 cm. Different configurations and numbers of light guides (1.27 cm diameter) running horizontally from the front to the back of the PBR are modeled using the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) software Star-CCM+. It is hypothesized that the addition of light guides will change the flow pattern but not adversely affect the heat or mass transfer of the carbon dioxide bubbles within the PBR. Potential concerns of light guide placement include inhibiting the flow of the carbon dioxide bubbles or creating regions of high temperature, which could potentially kill the algae. Benefits of light guides include increased light penetration and photosynthesis within the PBR. Five different light guide setups are tested with the carbon dioxide bubbles and water modeled as a turbulent multiphase gas-liquid mixture. The near wall standard k-epsilon two layer turbulence model was used, as it takes into account the viscosity influences between the liquid and gaseous phases. Eight different bubble volumetric flow rates are simulated. The bubble flow patterns, temperature distribution, Nusselt number, Reynolds number, and velocity are all analyzed. The results indicate square arrays of light guides give the most desirable velocity distribution, with less area of zero velocity compared to the staggered light guide setup. Temperature distribution is generally even for all configurations of light guides.


2007 ◽  
Vol 73 (7) ◽  
pp. 2118-2127 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin D. Webb ◽  
Carmen Pin ◽  
Michael W. Peck ◽  
Sandra C. Stringer

ABSTRACT In this study we determined the effect of NaCl concentration during sporulation (0 or 3.0% [wt/vol] added NaCl) and subsequent growth (0 or 2.0% [wt/vol] added NaCl) on the distributions of times associated with various stages of the lag phase of individual spores of nonproteolytic Clostridium botulinum strain Eklund 17B. The effects of NaCl on the probability of germination and the probability of subsequent growth were also determined. Spore populations exhibited considerable heterogeneity at all stages of lag phase for each condition tested. Germination time did not correlate strongly with the times for later stages in the lag phase, such as outgrowth and doubling time. Addition of NaCl to either the sporulation or growth media increased the mean times for, and variability of, all the measured stages of the lag phase (germination, emergence, time to one mature cell, and time to first doubling). There was a synergistic interaction between the inhibitory effects of NaCl in the sporulation medium and the inhibitory effects of NaCl in the subsequent growth medium on the total lag time and each of its stages. Addition of NaCl to either the sporulation medium or the growth medium reduced both the probability of germination and the probability of a germinated spore developing into a mature cell, but the interaction was not synergistic. Spores formed in medium with added NaCl were not better adapted to subsequent growth in suboptimal osmotic conditions than spores formed in medium with no added NaCl were. Knowledge of the distribution of lag times for individual spores and quantification of the biovariability within lag time distributions may provide insight into the underlying mechanisms and can be used to improve predictions of growth in food and to refine risk assessments.


Author(s):  
Gary A. Anderson ◽  
Anil Kommareddy ◽  
Zhengrong Gu ◽  
Joanne Puetz Anderson ◽  
Stephen P. Gent

Air with carbon dioxide is bubbled through Photobioreactors (PBRs) to add carbon dioxide to the reactor medium, remove oxygen, and mix the medium. Most PBR systems use various types of spargers/diffusers that consist of straight or curved tubes with perforation in them to inject air into the PBR reactor volume. A possible novel approach to introducing air into the PBR reactor volume is to use a plenum under the PBR reactor volume in conjunction with a porous membrane that separates the air in the plenum from the liquid medium in the reactor volume. The resistance offered by the porous membrane and the liquid in the reactor volume to air flow needs to be established so that power requirements to provide the desired air flow through the PBR can be determined. Four types of porous membranes were tested: 1)Sintered High Density Polyethylene HDPE 1.59 mm thick with 15–45 μm pore size, 2) Sintered HDPE 0.79 mm thick with 20μm pore size, 3) Genpore black plastic sheet with 45 μm pore size, and 4) Porex 7896 HDPE with pore size of 35 μm). Specimens were tested in a 76.2 mm inside diameter reactor with a depth of 304.8mm and a 76.2 mm plenum depth. Water was used as the reactor medium and the depth was varied between 0 and 228.6 mm. Results showed that the Porex 7896 membrane had little resistance to air flow when the water depth was 0.0mm (1–22 Pa), 1–200 Pa for the Genpore plastic sheet, 1200–1400Pa for the Porex with 20μm pores, and 1100–2500 Pa for the Porex with the 15–45 μm pore sizes for superficial air velocities between 0.00345 m/s to 0.0242 m/s. Water depth was then increased to 228.6 mm in 25.4 mm increments and tested with the same air flow rates. The addition of water significantly increased the resistance to air flow for all membranes (highest being 4200 Pa). Least square correlations for the membranes using water depth and superficial air velocity indicate that resistance to air flow of the membranes was linear with superficial velocity but parabolic with water depth.


1976 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-132
Author(s):  
D J Platt

A survey of 120 isolations of Neisseria gonorrhoeae from male patients showed that 47 (39%) isolates were unable to produce visible colonies without a supply of exogenous carbon dioxide. Of 63 strains, 25 strains required CO2 for isolation but none exhibited a CO2 requirement beyond subculture 4. CO2-requiring strains deprived of CO2 appeared to lose their colony-forming ability exponentially in an environment otherwise conductive to growth. The CO2 requirement was found to be linked to the initiation of growth. An agar-to-agar replica-plating device was used to study the early stages of colonial growth. The CO2 requirement was also found to correlate with the various phases of the colony growth cycle, such that it was required during lag phase, not required during the phase of rapid growth, and returned as colonies aged. These results are discussed.


2004 ◽  
Vol 70 (5) ◽  
pp. 2928-2934 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Lövenklev ◽  
Ingrid Artin ◽  
Oskar Hagberg ◽  
Elisabeth Borch ◽  
Elisabet Holst ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The effects of carbon dioxide, sodium chloride, and sodium nitrite on type B botulinum neurotoxin (BoNT/B) gene (cntB) expression in nonproteolytic Clostridium botulinum were investigated in a tryptone-peptone-yeast extract (TPY) medium. Various concentrations of these selected food preservatives were studied by using a complete factorial design in order to quantitatively study interaction effects, as well as main effects, on the following responses: lag phase duration (LPD), growth rate, relative cntB expression, and extracellular BoNT/B production. Multiple linear regression was used to set up six statistical models to quantify and predict these responses. All combinations of NaCl and NaNO2 in the growth medium resulted in a prolonged lag phase duration and in a reduction in the specific growth rate. In contrast, the relative BoNT/B gene expression was unchanged, as determined by the cntB-specific quantitative reverse transcription-PCR method. This was confirmed when we measured the extracellular BoNT/B concentration by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. CO2 was found to have a major effect on gene expression when the cntB mRNA levels were monitored in the mid-exponential, late exponential, and late stationary growth phases. The expression of cntB relative to the expression of the 16S rRNA gene was stimulated by an elevated CO2 concentration; the cntB mRNA level was fivefold greater in a 70% CO2 atmosphere than in a 10% CO2 atmosphere. These findings were also confirmed when we analyzed the extracellular BoNT/B concentration; we found that the concentrations were 27 ng · ml−1 · unit of optical density−1 in the 10% CO2 atmosphere and 126 ng · ml−1 · unit of optical density−1 in the 70% CO2 atmosphere.


Author(s):  
Elif Güney ◽  
Mürsel Alper ◽  
Mürşide Hacıismailoğlu

This study presents the optical design of light guide prisms for automotive tail light applications to obtain the optimum luminous intensity and the illuminance uniformity. The design was achieved using optical design software, SPEOS. By considering the axial luminous intensity and legal requirements, the optimum prism angles of light guides were determined by simulations. After determining the prism angles, the effect of different surface roughness on the luminous intensity and the illuminance uniformity was investigated. The light guides designed by considering data from the simulation were manufactured as prototypes and their photometrical measurements were made. These measurements were compared to the simulation results. It was observed that simulation and prototype results are well in agreement with each other. Furthermore, it was found that as the surface roughness increases both the luminous intensity decreases and the illumination becomes more uniform.


1997 ◽  
Vol 60 (9) ◽  
pp. 1075-1080 ◽  
Author(s):  
SHERYL M. AVERY ◽  
SAVA BUNCIC

The antilisterial effects of a sorbate-nisin combination were assessed in vitro and on beef at refrigeration temperature. Three hemolytic pathogenic strains of Listeria monocytogenes, reference strain NCTC 7973, food strain L70, and clinical strain L94, were stored at 4°C in phosphate-buffered saline, pH 5.5, containing a combination of sorbate (0.2% wt/vol) and nisin (40 IU/ml). After 4 weeks, hemolysin production by the strains had ceased, their subsequent lag phases at 37°C were extended from an initial 1.23 to 1.32 h to a final 7.13 to 8.06 h and their pathogenicity for chick embryos had decreased from an initial 93.3 to 95.5% to a final 43.3 to 60.0%. Sterile beef steaks of normal pH (5.4 to 5.5) were inoculated with a cocktail of the three strains at approximately 5 log CFU/cm2 and the surface of half the steaks was treated with the antimicrobial solution 1.0% sorbate plus 1,000 IU of nisin per ml. The meat was packaged under vacuum or 100% carbon dioxide and stored at 4°C for 4 weeks. On untreated meat, L. monocytogenes grew by 1.79 log cycles in vacuum packages, but in CO2 packages the initial population decreased by 0.54 log cycle. On treated vacuum-packaged meat, L. monocytogenes decreased during storage to the extent that 96.5% of the initial pathogen load was eliminated, but the lag phase of the remaining cells at 37°C was unaffected. On treated CO2-packaged meat L. monocytogenes decreased during storage to the extent that 89.3% of the initial pathogen load was eliminated, and for surviving cells the lag phase at 37°C was extended. Treatment with the sorbate-nisin combination did not significantly affect pathogenicity of the L. monocytogenes cocktail recovered from vacuum- or carbon dioxide-packages after storage, in contrast to the in vitro study, where pathogenicity was clearly attenuated. The reason for this difference is unknown.


REAKTOR ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wijanarka Wijanarka ◽  
Endang Sutariningsih Soetarto ◽  
Kumala Dewi ◽  
Ari Indrianto

ACTIVITY OF INULINASE OF Pichia Manshuria AND FUSAN F4 ON BATCH FERMENTATION UDING DAHLIA TUBER (Dahlia sp) AS A SUBSTRATE. A dahlia tuber is one of the common inulin rich crops. Inulin is formed by units of fructans, which are polymers of D-fructose. Inulinases (EC 3.2.1.7) catalyze the hydrolysis of inulin, producing fructooligosaccharides (FOS), inulooligosaccharides (IOS), pulullan, acetone, butanol and sorbitol, therefore dahlia tubers are used as growth media. The inulin hydrolyzing activity has been reported from various microbial strains Pichia manshurica and Fusan F4 which is the result of fusion protoplast. The objective of this study was to determine the activity of inulinase Pichia manshurica and Fusan F4 on the substrate dahlia tubers. Fusan F4 to increase inulinase activity compared with Pichia manshurica and to investigate the kinetics of specific growth rate (μ) and time double (g) from of Pichia manshurica and Fusan F4. The results showed that the exponential phase occurs at 0-12 hour without a lag phase. P. manshurica has a specific growth rate (μ) of 0.18/hour with time double (g) 3.90 hours and the inulinase enzyme activity of 0.56 IU, while for Fusan F4 consecutive has a value μ of 0.20/hour, g of 3.49 hours and the activity of 0.69 IU. The conclusion of this research is to improve Fusan F4 inulinase activity and the ability has to be better than the Pichia manshurica.Umbi dahlia merupakan salah satu umbi yang mengandung inulin. Inulin merupakan polimer fruktan yang dapat dipecah oleh enzim inulinase (E.C. 3.2.1.7) menjadi fruktosa. Fruktosa merupakan bahan baku dasar untuk pembuatan FOS, IOS, pulullan, aseton dan sorbitol, oleh karena itu umbi dahlia digunakan sebagai media pertumbuhan. Enzim inulinase ini secara indigenous dimiliki oleh Pichia manshurica dan Fusan F4 yang merupakan hasil fusi protoplas.Tujuan  penelitian ini adalah  untuk mengetahui aktivitas inulinase Pichia manshurica dan Fusan F4 pada substrat umbi dahlia, Fusan F4 mampu meningkatkan aktivitas inulinase dibandingkan dengan Pichia manshurica serta untuk mengetahui kinetika kecepatan pertumbuhan specifik (µ) dan waktu generasi (g) Pichia manshurica dan Fusan F4. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa fase  eksponensial terjadi pada jam ke-0 sampai jam ke-12 tanpa diikuti fase lag, Pichia manshurica mempunyai kecepatan pertumbuhan specific (µ)  sebesar 0,18/jam dengan waktu generasi (g) 3,90 jam dan aktivitas enzim inulinase yang dihasilkan sebesar 0,56 IU, sedangkan untuk fusan F4 secara berturut-turut mempunyai nilai µ sebesar 0,20/jam, g sebesar 3,49 jam dan aktivitas sebesar 0,69 IU. Kesimpulan dari penelitian ini adalah Fusan F4 mampu meningkatkan aktivitas inulinase dan mempunyai kemampuan lebih baik dibanding dengan Pichia manshurica.


1996 ◽  
Vol 59 (7) ◽  
pp. 704-710 ◽  
Author(s):  
BON KIMURA ◽  
SHUSAKU KURODA ◽  
MASATADA MURAKAMI ◽  
TATEO FUJII

The growth of Clostridium perfringens inoculated in fish fillets of jack mackerel subsequently packaged under a controlled carbon dioxide gas atmosphere (40% CO2, 60% N2) was investigated at marginal growth (15°C) and stimulative ambient (30°C) handling temperatures. The fish fillets were inoculated with C. perfringens, packaged either with air or the modified controlled carbon dioxide atmosphere and stored at 15°C and 30°C. No increase in the C. perfringens population in the fish was noted regardless of the type of packaging at 15°C in 3 days storage time, when all samples were spoiled. C. perfringens rapidly increased in the abuse temperature (30°C) after a 2- to 4-h lag phase regardless of the package type, but growth was significantly more stimulated under the controlled carbon dioxide gas atmosphere within 6 h of storage time. When fish fillets inoculated with C. perfringens were stored at 5°C for 24 h before being held at 30°C for 6 h, C. perfringens did not grow during the abuse-temperature storage. This suggests a reduction of a health hazard risk by the organism when the distribution temperature of the fish fillets is strictly controlled below 5°C. However, the combination of two temperature-abuse events during distribution and consumer handling may lead to a higher food-poisoning risk by the organism in controlled CO2 modified atmosphere-packaged fish compared to air-packaged fish. Product control of the initial contamination of organisms at low levels during raw fish processing will prevent food poisoning


Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (20) ◽  
pp. 5261
Author(s):  
Marcin Sońta ◽  
Andrzej Łozicki ◽  
Magdalena Szymańska ◽  
Tomasz Sosulski ◽  
Ewa Szara ◽  
...  

This paper presents the results of an interdisciplinary study aimed at assessing the possibility of using duckweed to purify and recover nutrients from the effluent remaining after struvite precipitation and ammonia stripping from a liquid fraction of anaerobic digestate in a biorefinery located at a Dutch dairy cattle production farm. The nutritional value of duckweed obtained in a biorefinery was assessed as well. Duckweed (Lemna minuta) was cultured on a growth medium with various concentrations of effluent from a biorefinery (EFL) and digested slurry (DS) not subjected to the nutrient recovery process. The study’s results showed that duckweed culture on the media with high contents of DS or EFL was impossible because they both inhibited its growth. After 15 days of culture, the highest duckweed yield was obtained from the ponds with DS or EFL contents in the medium reaching 0.39% (37.8 g fresh matter (FM) and 16.8 g FM per 8500 mL of the growth medium, respectively). The recovery of N by duckweed was approximately 75% and 81%, whereas that of P was approximately 45% and 55% of the growth media with EFL0.39% and DS0.39%, respectively. Duckweed obtained from the biorefinery proved to be a valuable high-protein feedstuff with high contents of α-tocopherol and carotenoids. With a protein content in duckweed approximating 35.4–36.1%, it is possible to obtain 2–4 t of protein per 1 ha from EFL0.39% and DS0.39% ponds, respectively.


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