AlgaePARC
Encyclopedia
Wageningen UR is constructing AlgaePARC (Algae Production And Research Centre) at the Wageningen Campus. The goal of AlgaePARC is to fill the gap between fundamental research on algae
and full-scale algae production facilities. This will be done by setting up flexible pilot scale facilities to perform applied research and obtain direct practical experience. It is a joined initiative of BioProcess Engineering and Food & Biobased Research of the Wageningen University.
AlgaePARC facility
AlgaePARC will start with four different photobioreactors comprising 24 m2 ground surface: an open pond, two types of tubular reactors and a plastic film bioreactor, and a number of smaller systems for the testing of new technologies. This facility is unique, because it is the first facility in which the productivity of four different production systems can be compared during the year under identical conditions. At the same time, knowledge is gained for the development of new photobioreactors and the design of systems on a production scale.
For the construction of the facility 2.25 M€ has been made available by the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (1.5 M€) and the Provincie Gelderland (0.75 M€).
Microalgae
Microalgae are currently seen as a promising source of biodiesel
and chemical building blocks, which can be used in paint and plastics. Biomass
from algae offers a sustainable alternative to products and fuels from the petrochemical industry. This contributes to a biobased economy as algae help to reduce the emissions of carbon dioxide
(CO2) and make the economy less dependent on fossil fuels.
AlgaePARC research
The costs of biomass produced from algae for biofuels are still ten times too high to be able to compete with today’s other fuels. Within the business community, the question being asked is how it could be produced more cheaply, making it economically viable. Companies within the energy, food, oil and chemical sectors, the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature & Food Quality, the Provincial Government of Gelderland, Oost NV and Wageningen UR are all working together in or contributing to the unique algae research centre AlgaePARC in order to answer that question.
Algae
Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms, such as the giant kelps that grow to 65 meters in length. They are photosynthetic like plants, and "simple" because their tissues are not organized into the many...
and full-scale algae production facilities. This will be done by setting up flexible pilot scale facilities to perform applied research and obtain direct practical experience. It is a joined initiative of BioProcess Engineering and Food & Biobased Research of the Wageningen University.
AlgaePARC facility
AlgaePARC will start with four different photobioreactors comprising 24 m2 ground surface: an open pond, two types of tubular reactors and a plastic film bioreactor, and a number of smaller systems for the testing of new technologies. This facility is unique, because it is the first facility in which the productivity of four different production systems can be compared during the year under identical conditions. At the same time, knowledge is gained for the development of new photobioreactors and the design of systems on a production scale.
For the construction of the facility 2.25 M€ has been made available by the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (1.5 M€) and the Provincie Gelderland (0.75 M€).
Microalgae
Microalgae are currently seen as a promising source of biodiesel
Biodiesel
Biodiesel refers to a vegetable oil- or animal fat-based diesel fuel consisting of long-chain alkyl esters. Biodiesel is typically made by chemically reacting lipids with an alcohol....
and chemical building blocks, which can be used in paint and plastics. Biomass
Biomass
Biomass, as a renewable energy source, is biological material from living, or recently living organisms. As an energy source, biomass can either be used directly, or converted into other energy products such as biofuel....
from algae offers a sustainable alternative to products and fuels from the petrochemical industry. This contributes to a biobased economy as algae help to reduce the emissions of carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
(CO2) and make the economy less dependent on fossil fuels.
AlgaePARC research
The costs of biomass produced from algae for biofuels are still ten times too high to be able to compete with today’s other fuels. Within the business community, the question being asked is how it could be produced more cheaply, making it economically viable. Companies within the energy, food, oil and chemical sectors, the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature & Food Quality, the Provincial Government of Gelderland, Oost NV and Wageningen UR are all working together in or contributing to the unique algae research centre AlgaePARC in order to answer that question.
See also
- AlgaeAlgaeAlgae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms, such as the giant kelps that grow to 65 meters in length. They are photosynthetic like plants, and "simple" because their tissues are not organized into the many...
- Microalgae
- MicrobiofuelsMicrobiofuelsMicrobiofuels are next generation biofuels produced by microorganisms like bacteria, cyanobacteria, microalgae, fungi, etc. The term was first defined by Asen Nenov at TEDxBG event on 9 January, 2010....
- Photobioreactors
- PhytoplanktonPhytoplanktonPhytoplankton are the autotrophic component of the plankton community. The name comes from the Greek words φυτόν , meaning "plant", and πλαγκτός , meaning "wanderer" or "drifter". Most phytoplankton are too small to be individually seen with the unaided eye...
- Planktonic algae
- BiofuelBiofuelBiofuel is a type of fuel whose energy is derived from biological carbon fixation. Biofuels include fuels derived from biomass conversion, as well as solid biomass, liquid fuels and various biogases...
External links
- AlgaePARC http://www.algaeparc.com
- Algae at the WUR http://www.algae.wur.nl