Photobioreactor
Encyclopedia
Bioreactor
A bioreactor may refer to any manufactured or engineered device or system that supports a biologically active environment. In one case, a bioreactor is a vessel in which a chemical process is carried out which involves organisms or biochemically active substances derived from such organisms. This...
that incorporates some type of light source to provide photon
Photon
In physics, a photon is an elementary particle, the quantum of the electromagnetic interaction and the basic unit of light and all other forms of electromagnetic radiation. It is also the force carrier for the electromagnetic force...
ic energy input into the reactor. Also, an open pond
Pond
A pond is a body of standing water, either natural or man-made, that is usually smaller than a lake. A wide variety of man-made bodies of water are classified as ponds, including water gardens, water features and koi ponds; all designed for aesthetic ornamentation as landscape or architectural...
could be seen as photobioreactor, but mostly the term photobioreactor only refers to closed systems, systems closed to the environment having no direct exchange of gases and contaminants with the environment. Nowadays, some extremophilic organisms (organisms that can grow under extreme conditions) are grown into open ponds. However, many other microalgae are promising for the production of an enormous variety of compounds . To cultivate also these algae and their products, monocultures have to be maintained and for that, enclosed photobioreactors have to be used. . A photobioreactor can be described as an enclosed, illuminated culture vessel designed for controlled biomass production of phototroph
Phototroph
Phototrophs are the organisms that carry out photosynthesis to acquire energy. They use the energy from sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and water into organic material to be utilized in cellular functions such as biosynthesis and respiration.Most phototrophs are autotrophs, also known as...
ic liquid cell suspension cultures. Photobioreactors, despite their costs, have several major advantages over open systems. They can:
- prevent or minimize contaminationContaminationContamination is the presence of a minor and unwanted constituent in material, physical body, natural environment, at a workplace, etc.-Specifics:"Contamination" also has more specific meanings in science:...
, permitting cultivating of axenicAxenicIn biology, axenic describes a culture of an organism that is entirely free of all other "contaminating" organisms. The earliest axenic cultures were of bacteria or unicellular eukaryotes, but axenic cultures of many multicellular organisms are also possible...
algal monocultureMonocultureMonoculture is the agricultural practice of producing or growing one single crop over a wide area. It is also known as a way of farming practice of growing large stands of a single species. It is widely used in modern industrial agriculture and its implementation has allowed for large harvests from...
s (culture consisting of only one species of microalgae), - offer better control over biocultural conditions (pH, light intensity, carbon dioxide, temperature).
- prevent waterWaterWater is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
evaporation, - lower carbon dioxideCarbon dioxideCarbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
losses due to out gassing, - permit higher cell concentrations.
- permit the production of complex biopharmaceuticalBiopharmaceuticalBiopharmaceuticals are medical drugs produced using biotechnology. They include proteins , nucleic acids and living microorganisms like virus and bacteria where the virulence of viruses and bacteria is reduced by the process of attenuation, they can be used for therapeutic or in vivo diagnostic...
s, e.g. in knockout mosses, under GMPGood Manufacturing Practice"Good manufacturing practice" or "GMP" are practices and the systems required to be adapted in pharmaceutical manufacturing, quality control, quality system covering the manufacture and testing of pharmaceuticals or drugs including active pharmaceutical ingredients, diagnostics, foods,...
conditions, a biotechnologyBiotechnologyBiotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living organisms and bioprocesses in engineering, technology, medicine and other fields requiring bioproducts. Biotechnology also utilizes these products for manufacturing purpose...
known as molecular farmingMolecular farmingMolecular farming is the use of genetically engineered crops to produce compounds with therapeutic value. These crops will become biological factories used to generate drugs and other difficult or expensive products...
On the other hand, photobioreactors have several limiting factors, including: cooling, mixing, control of oxygen accumulation and biofouling. As a result, these systems more expensive to build and operate than ponds. Cheaper, next generation systems are currently under development, and engineers are working on exploiting byproducts to make production of microalgae commercially attractive. An overview of production systems can be found at the research page of Wageningen UR.
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....
- AlgaePARCAlgaePARCWageningen UR is constructing AlgaePARC 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...
- Biological pumpBiological pumpIn oceanic biogeochemistry, the biological pump is the sum of a suite of biologically-mediated processes that transport carbon from the surface euphotic zone to the ocean's interior.-Overview:...
- Iron fertilizationIron fertilizationIron fertilization is the intentional introduction of iron to the upper ocean to stimulate a phytoplankton bloom. This is intended to enhance biological productivity, which can benefit the marine food chain and remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Iron is a trace element necessary for...
- Ocean acidificationOcean acidificationOcean acidification is the name given to the ongoing decrease in the pH and increase in acidity of the Earth's oceans, caused by the uptake of anthropogenic carbon dioxide from the atmosphere....
- 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...
- 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...