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A hollow fiber membrane photo‐bioreactor for CO 2 sequestration from combustion gas coupled with wastewater treatment: a process engineering approach
Author(s) -
Kumar Amit,
Yuan Xin,
Sahu Ashish K,
Dewulf Jo,
Ergas Sarina J,
Van Langenhove Herman
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal of chemical technology and biotechnology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.64
H-Index - 117
eISSN - 1097-4660
pISSN - 0268-2575
DOI - 10.1002/jctb.2332
Subject(s) - bioreactor , biomass (ecology) , biofuel , mass transfer , pulp and paper industry , wastewater , membrane bioreactor , chemistry , environmental science , environmental engineering , chemical engineering , materials science , waste management , chromatography , agronomy , organic chemistry , biology , engineering
BACKGROUND: In the presence of light, micro‐algae convert CO 2 and nutrients to biomass that can be used as a biofuel. In closed photo‐bioreactors, however, light and CO 2 availability often limit algae production and can be difficult to control using traditional diffuser systems. In this research, a hollow fiber membrane photo‐bioreactor (HFMPB) was investigated to: (1) increase the interfacial contact area available for gas transfer, (2) treat high nutrient strength (412 mg NO 3 − ‐N L −1 ) wastewater, and (3) produce algal biomass that can be used as a biofuel. RESULTS: A bench scale HFMPB was inoculated with Spirulina platensis and operated with a 2‐15% CO 2 supply. A mass transfer model was developed and found to be a good tool to estimate CO 2 mass transfer coefficients at varying liquid velocities. Overall mass transfer coefficients were 1.8 × 10 −6 , 2.8 × 10 −6 , 5.6 × 10 −6 m s −1 at Reynolds numbers of 38, 63, and 138, respectively. A maximum CO 2 removal efficiency of 85% was observed at an inlet CO 2 concentration of 2% and a gas residence time (membrane‐lumen) of 8.6 s. The corresponding algal biomass concentrations and NO 3 removal efficiencies were 2131 mg L −1 and 68%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The results show that the combination of CO 2 sequestration, wastewater treatment and biofuel production in an HFMPB is a promising alternative for greenhouse gas mitigation. Copyright © 2010 Society of Chemical Industry