U.S. patent application number 13/921037 was filed with the patent office on 2013-10-24 for method for the effective delivery of photonic energy to cultures in a fluid medium.
The applicant listed for this patent is Staterra LLC. Invention is credited to Eric R. Brooks, Jared P. Green.
Application Number | 20130280799 13/921037 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 42668673 |
Filed Date | 2013-10-24 |
United States Patent
Application |
20130280799 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Green; Jared P. ; et
al. |
October 24, 2013 |
METHOD FOR THE EFFECTIVE DELIVERY OF PHOTONIC ENERGY TO CULTURES IN
A FLUID MEDIUM
Abstract
A method of preventing bio-filming during the delivery of
photonic energy to a culture or set of organisms in a fluid culture
medium, the method including introducing a fluid energy-transfer
medium into the fluid culture medium through an interface; and
distributing light into the fluid energy-transfer medium as it is
introduced into the fluid culture medium.
Inventors: |
Green; Jared P.; (Woolwine,
VA) ; Brooks; Eric R.; (Woodinville, WA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Staterra LLC |
Woodinville |
WA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
42668673 |
Appl. No.: |
13/921037 |
Filed: |
June 18, 2013 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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12425716 |
Apr 17, 2009 |
8470540 |
|
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13921037 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
435/288.7 |
Current CPC
Class: |
C12M 21/02 20130101;
C12M 31/06 20130101; C12M 31/08 20130101; C12M 41/06 20130101; C12M
39/00 20130101; C12M 31/10 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
435/288.7 |
International
Class: |
C12M 1/00 20060101
C12M001/00 |
Claims
1. A apparatus, comprising: a transfer device configured to
introduce an energy transfer medium into a fluid culture medium;
and a photometric device including a photoreceptor and a
photoemitter, the photoreceptor positioned adjacent to the first
opening and the photoemitter positioned adjacent to the second
opening, the energy transfer medium configured to separate the
photometric device from the fluid culture medium.
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] 1. Technical Field
[0002] The present disclosure relates to a method for the uniform
distribution of photonic energy to a culture in a fluid medium that
overcomes the problems of the turbidity of a dense culture and of
bio-filming.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] The rapid and high density growth of photosynthetic
microorganisms is critical in many industrial applications. These
industrial applications include, without limitation, providing
biomass used to extract biofuel, providing biomass used to produce
methane by anaerobically digesting the biomass, producing food or
specialized nutriceuticals, such as EPA and DHA for animals and
humans, producing food and a growth environment for aquaculture,
and consuming and sequestering industrial waste products such as
CO.sub.2. Providing faster growth and producing high density
cultures is critical to achieving the operational scale necessary
for current environmental and industrial needs. Ideally, improving
the speed of growth and increasing the density of a culture will
require less production space and consequently will lower the cost
of associated facilities.
[0005] Effective control of light. To maximize the growth of
photosynthetic organisms, light must be available at the right
intensity, the right frequency, and without excessive heat.
Excessive light intensity can limit growth by inducing
photo-respiration or bleaching the pigments needed for efficient
cell growth. In addition, light intensity or light frequency in
excess of the culture requirements may result in heat build-up that
can limit culture growth. These problems are readily apparent in
production systems that rely solely on direct solar light as a
driver of photosynthesis, such as in ponds and raceways. Solar
light is subject to extreme diurnal and seasonal variability. In
addition, cultures relying on direct solar light are subject to
periodic heating from light intensities and spectra not immediately
useable by the culture.
[0006] The ability to effectively control light for 24 hours per
day encourages faster growth of biomass and secondary metabolites
as well as continuous consumption of CO.sub.2. This results in a
more efficient use of facilities, enabling a smaller footprint for
a given level of production. However, the use of artificial light
has a cost that must be minimized for successful industrial
application.
[0007] Obstacles to light delivery. The two major obstacles that
reduce the uniform delivery of light to a culture are turbidity and
biofilming. Turbidity occurs as a culture approaches a density
where some of the organisms shade others from the light. Ensuring
delivery of the appropriate amount of light to each organism
becomes increasingly difficult as the density of the organisms in a
culture increases. Turbidity within a culture results in some
organisms receiving less light than they can use and non-productive
absorption of light by other organisms. The absorption of excess
light wastes energy and contributes to heat build-up.
[0008] Biofilming is an extremely widespread problem that occurs
when a microorganism adheres to a surface. Most microorganisms,
including species in all three domains, i.e., bacteria, eukaryotes,
and archaea, perform processes that result in adhesion to surfaces
and to other microorganisms. In industrial applications, biofilms
often clog or corrode pipes and surfaces. In photo-bioreactors a
biofilm can form over a light-delivery surface, thereby reducing
the intensity and changing the spectra of the light
transmitted.
[0009] Current techniques that address turbidity utilize tubular
bioreactors that illuminate the culture as it flows through pipes
of sufficiently narrow diameter. However, as the diameter of the
pipes decrease, the friction and head pressure increase, requiring
more powerful pumps to move the culture through the pipes. In
addition, the large surface area of the pipe relative to the amount
of culture exposed to the light increases the occurrence of
biofilming. Some existing tubular systems periodically interrupt
production and send pigs through the pipes to remove the biofilm
from the interior surface of the pipe. Other systems include
increasing the speed of flow and incorporating beads in the flow to
increase turbulence and thus reduce biofilming. Increasing the
speed of circulation requires longer pipes to insure that the
culture is given sufficient light. All of these solutions increase
the power required to maintain flow and thereby inflate the cost of
production.
[0010] Another technique used to address turbidity in cultures
includes exposing the culture to the light source as a shallow and
wide flow. Generally in such systems biofilming is not a problem
because no surface exists between the culture and the light source.
However, the broadcasting of light over such a wide target prevents
fine control of the intensity delivered and requires significant
amounts of power to produce the required amount of light. The power
cost is not a factor when direct solar radiation is used, but the
process is subject to the variability entailed by solar radiation.
When artificial light is used, the excess energy expenditure for
the wide broadcast of light greatly increases the cost of
production.
[0011] A third technique is described in Eckelberry et al., U.S.
Patent Application No. 2009/0029445. The technique is to use a
closed bioreactor, relying on an efficient source of artificial
light, such as LEDs. The effects of turbidity are reduced by
providing paddles that produce circulation. However, such a system
is still subject to biofilming of the light sources.
[0012] The present disclosure addresses the costs added from use of
artificial light by reducing the amount of light needed to maximize
growth and preventing the obstruction of light sources by
biofilming. Uniform and efficient distribution of light in the
culture and the optimization of the spectra and intensity of light
based on the particular organism being grown, the purpose of
growing them, and their stage of growth helps to maximize growth of
photosynthetic organisms.
BRIEF SUMMARY
[0013] The present disclosure is directed to delivering light to a
culture by means of a flowing energy-transfer medium that prevents
direct contact between a culture medium and a light delivery
surface of a photonic energy source. The energy-transfer medium is
illuminated by the source of photonic energy as it flows into the
culture medium. As the energy-transfer medium flows into the
culture medium, it breaks into many bubbles or drops and in the
process provides surfaces that scatter light widely into the
culture. This multiplicity of light paths and proximity of
organisms to proximal light sources also decreases vulnerability to
self-shading in a very dense culture. Bio-filming is prevented
because the light delivery surface of the photonic energy source is
isolated from direct contact with the culture. The energy-transfer
medium flowing into the culture medium acts as a series of lenses
that continually replenish themselves as a consequence of the flow
and therefore are not subject to bio-filming.
[0014] In one embodiment, the method includes preventing
bio-filming and overcoming turbidity during the delivery of
photonic energy to a culture or set of organisms in a fluid culture
medium. The method includes distributing photonic energy into the
fluid culture medium via a fluid energy-transfer medium. The fluid
energy-transfer medium may be at least one of a gas and a liquid.
The distributing of the photonic energy includes introducing the
photonic energy from a first location to the fluid culture medium
and introducing the energy-transfer medium from at least one second
location spaced away from the first location to the fluid culture
medium. The photonic energy is distributed into the culture medium
via the energy-transfer medium that is introduced from any location
by at least one from among transmission, reflection, refraction,
and diffraction. Ideally, the photonic energy is produced using a
source of photonic energy that is separated from the culture medium
by the energy-transfer medium.
[0015] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a method of
preventing bio-filming during the delivery of light to a culture or
set of organisms in a fluid culture medium is provided. The method
includes introducing a fluid energy-transfer medium into the
culture medium through an interface and distributing light into the
fluid energy-transfer medium as it is introduced into the culture
medium. The method further includes producing the light using a
source of light that is separated from the culture medium by at
least one from among the interface, the energy-transfer medium, and
a combination of the interface and the energy-transfer medium. The
light source includes at least one from among artificial light,
solar light, and a combination of artificial light and solar light.
In addition, producing the light locally at the interface may be
accomplished by a controllable artificial light source that
includes at least one from among a solid-state source, a
gas-discharge source, and an incandescent source. The method also
includes delivering locally produced or remotely captured light to
the interface by at least one from among a fiber optic medium, a
light pipe, and a waveguide.
[0016] The method further includes adjusting a spectral content of
the light source, the adjusting determined by at least one from
among, phototrophic needs of the culture, wasted energy of
producing particular light frequencies, and impact of specific
light frequencies on an environment adapted to growing phototrophic
organisms. The adjusting of the spectral content of the light
source may include at least one from among, selecting the light
source for the spectral content, combining a plurality of selected
light sources to produce a target spectral content, filtering the
light source, shifting wavelengths of the light source, and
electronic control of the light source.
[0017] In addition, the adjusting the spectral content of the light
source may include isolating specific light frequencies to a first
set of frequencies, with at least one second set containing a
portion of remaining light frequencies and delivering the first set
of frequencies to the culture medium, and at least one second set
of frequencies to at least one other process. In another
embodiment, the method includes providing an array of light sources
having a plurality of light sources configured to provide specific
light frequencies and adjusting the spectral content of the light
sources by selectively controlling the light sources in the array
of light sources.
[0018] In yet another embodiment of the present disclosure, the
method includes introducing a gaseous or liquid nutrient into the
fluid energy-transfer medium. The rate of introduction of the fluid
energy-transfer medium is adjustable to optimize the delivery of
photonic energy to the culture medium, and the adjusting is
determined by phototrophic needs of the culture.
[0019] Alternatively, the method adjusts a size or shape, or both
the size and shape, of an aperture of the interface to optimize the
delivery of photonic energy to the culture medium, the adjusting
determined by at least one from among viscosity, turbidity, shape,
and size of an environment and phototrophic needs of target species
in the culture medium. The environment may be adapted to grow
phototrophic organisms. In addition, properties of the
energy-transfer medium include at least one from among a refractive
index, a specific gravity, a surface tension, a viscosity, a
transmitivity, a reflection loss, and an absorption coefficient to
enhance coupling of photonic energy from the light source to the
culture. The energy-transfer medium may be continually introduced
to allow measurement of parameters of the culture.
[0020] The method also includes controlling a rate of introduction
of the energy-transfer medium into the culture. The rate of
introduction of the energy-transfer medium can be static for a
selected or predetermined period of time.
[0021] In another embodiment of the present disclosure, a process
for providing photonic energy to a culture medium includes
injecting a fluid energy-transfer medium into the culture medium
from a fluid delivery unit and transmitting photonic energy to the
culture medium from a photonic energy delivery device through the
fluid energy-transfer medium. Preferably, the culture medium is
separated from a photonic energy source in the photonic energy
delivery device by means of the fluid energy-transfer medium.
[0022] In accordance with yet another embodiment of the present
disclosure, a method is provided that includes forcing a nutrient
enriched energy-transfer fluid into a culture medium; providing
light from a light source through the nutrient enriched
energy-transfer fluid into the culture medium; and using the
nutrient enriched energy-transfer fluid to separate the light
source from the culture medium. Ideally, providing light from the
light source includes using a photonic energy source that provides
light chosen from the group consisting of artificial light, solar
light, and a combination of artificial light and solar light.
[0023] In yet another embodiment, a method of preventing
bio-filming during a transfer of photonic energy between a photonic
device and a fluid culture medium is provided. The method includes
introducing a fluid energy-transfer medium into the fluid culture
medium through an interface and transmitting photonic energy
through the fluid energy-transfer medium as the fluid
energy-transfer medium is introduced into the fluid culture medium.
In addition, the method may include receiving photonic energy at
the photonic device from the culture medium through the
energy-transfer medium. The method may also include receiving
photonic energy in the culture medium from the photonic device.
[0024] The method also includes receiving photonic energy at the
photonic device from the culture medium through the energy-transfer
medium and receiving photonic energy in the culture medium from the
photonic device. Ideally, the photonic device is separated from the
culture medium by at least one from among the interface, the
energy-transfer medium, and a combination of the interface and the
energy-transfer medium. Additionally, a culture or a set of
organisms in the culture medium transmit photonic energy through
the energy-transfer medium by at least one from among transmission,
reflection, refraction, diffraction, and luminescence.
[0025] The photonic device may be at least one from among a
photoreceptor, a photoemitter, a combination of the photoreceptor
and the photoemitter, a lens, and a waveguide. Additionally, the
photonic device may be a photometric instrument to measure at least
one from among a spectrum, an intensity, a reflection, a
refraction, a diffraction, an absorption coefficient, a
transmission coefficient, a wavelength shift, a time duration, an
amount of radiant energy, and a luminescence.
[0026] The method may include altering properties of the
energy-transfer medium to include at least one from among a
refractive index, a specific gravity, a surface tension, a
viscosity, a transmitivity, a reflection loss, and an absorption
coefficient to enhance coupling of photonic energy between the
photonic device and the culture medium. In addition, the
energy-transfer medium may be continually introduced to allow the
photonic device to measure without biofilming at least one from
among a culture parameter, a culture medium parameter, a culture
growth environment parameter, and a process control parameter. The
photonic device may also provide photonic energy for the
phototrophic needs of a set of organisms or a culture in the
culture medium.
[0027] In yet another embodiment, spectral control of the light
source may be achieved by filtering or isolating selected
frequencies of solar light so that it may contain only the
wavelengths that can be absorbed by the target organisms. The
frequencies of light that are not useful to the target organisms
may be directed to other processes such as conversion to electrical
energy by photovoltaic cells or production of mechanical energy
from a heat engine.
[0028] The filtered or isolated solar energy may be combined with
an artificial light source to provide a 24-hour light source. The
filtered solar light may be captured remotely and delivered to the
growth environment through a wave guide while sunlight is
available. To improve efficiency, the artificial light source may
have a spectral content control and may be produced locally to the
growth environment.
[0029] As will be appreciated from the foregoing summary, the
disclosed embodiments provide a method for the efficient delivery
of light to a highly turbid dense culture in a fluid medium that
overcomes the problems of bio-filming of the light source and
uneven distribution of light to cultures in the culture medium.
Light is less likely to be reflected back at the source or
converted into waste heat when evenly distributed by the mechanisms
of transmission, reflection, refraction, and diffraction available
from a distribution array created by a flowing energy-transfer
medium. Shielding the original light source with a fluid
energy-transfer medium prevents the light source from coming in
contact with the culture, and is thus not subject to bio-filming.
Additionally, light delivered by this method allows fine control of
spectra and intensity, reducing energy cost by only producing and
delivering photonic energy productive to growth of the target
organism.
[0030] The novel system for light delivery described herein
provides very close control of the light delivered. The system
reduces the cost of artificial light and allows the optimization of
the spectral content of the light for organism growth.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS
[0031] The foregoing and other features and advantages of the
present disclosure will be more readily appreciated as the same
become better understood from the following detailed description
when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings,
wherein:
[0032] FIG. 1 is a flowchart of the process of delivering photonic
energy to a culture without bio-filming of the light source;
[0033] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side view of a system for
delivery and distribution of light to a culture, according to one
embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0034] FIG. 3 is a top view of a plurality of fluid-light units,
according to another embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0035] FIG. 4 is an enlarged isometric view of a fluid-light unit
from FIG. 3;
[0036] FIG. 5 is an enlarged isometric view of another embodiment
showing a localized light source in the fluid-light unit of FIG.
4;
[0037] FIG. 6 is an enlarged isometric view of yet another
embodiment showing a localized light source with controlled
spectrum in the fluid-light unit of FIG. 4;
[0038] FIGS. 7 and 7A are enlarged cross-sectional views of
apertures through an interface plate, according to one embodiment
of the present disclosure;
[0039] FIG. 8 is a flowchart of an alternate process of delivering
photonic energy to a culture;
[0040] FIG. 9 is an enlarged isometric view of another embodiment
showing a localized light source and energy-transfer medium flow
control in the fluid-light unit of FIG. 4;
[0041] FIG. 10 is a diagram of a controlled aperture according to
another embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0042] FIG. 11 is an enlarged isometric view of another embodiment
of the fluid-light unit of FIG. 4 having measurement
instrumentation attached;
[0043] FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional top view of the measurement
instrumentation of FIG. 11;
[0044] FIG. 13 is an enlarged isometric view of another embodiment
showing a remote distribution array generator on the fluid-light
unit of FIG. 4;
[0045] FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of a system for providing
light to a culture a shallow growth environment, according to
another embodiment of the present disclosure;
[0046] FIG. 15 is a production facility for providing light to a
culture in accordance with an alternative embodiment of the present
disclosure; and
[0047] FIG. 16 is an isometric view of a plurality of fluid-light
units for providing light to a plurality of cultures in accordance
with yet another embodiment of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0048] In the following description, certain specific details are
set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of various
embodiments of the disclosure. However, one skilled in the art will
understand that the disclosure may be practiced without these
specific details. In other instances, well-known structures
associated with the containing, conveying, storing, and
transporting of cultures as well as generating and conveying light
energy have not been described in detail to avoid unnecessarily
obscuring the descriptions of the embodiments of the present
disclosure.
[0049] Unless the context requires otherwise, throughout the
specification and claims that follow, the word "comprise" and
variations thereof, such as "comprises" and "comprising," are to be
construed in an open, inclusive sense, that is, as "including, but
not limited to." Unless the context requires otherwise, throughout
this specification and the claims that follow, the words "light"
and "photonic energy" and variations thereof, are to be construed
as interchangeable.
[0050] Reference throughout this specification to "one embodiment"
or "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure or
characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is
included in at least one embodiment. Thus, the appearances of the
phrases "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment" in various places
throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to
the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features,
structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable
manner in one or more embodiments.
[0051] In the drawings, identical reference numbers identify
similar features or elements. The size and relative positions of
features in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale. For
example, the shapes of various features are not drawn to scale, and
some of these features are arbitrarily enlarged and positioned to
improve drawing legibility.
[0052] One general embodiment of the present disclosure is an
energy-transfer medium that consists of a gas, ideally a mixture of
CO2, which acts as a nutrient for photosynthetic cultures, and
filtered air. Photonic energy is provided by a selected array of
LEDs. The environment into which this gas mixture flows is a
bioreactor that uses a fluid culture medium, an independent means
of circulation, and that is adapted to growing photosynthetic
organisms. However, it is to be understood that the energy-transfer
medium could consist of a liquid. In addition, nutrients in the
energy-transfer medium could either be omitted or delivered as a
liquid fertilizer. The environment into which the energy-transfer
medium flows could be a pond or a raceway that is adapted to
growing photosynthetic organisms. In addition, a method of light
delivery is provided. It is expected to operate in the environment
that provides the other essentials for culture growth.
[0053] Further, the method of delivering photonic energy into the
culture by means of a flowing energy-transfer medium is independent
of the source of photonic energy. This energy could be provided by
artificial light generated locally, i.e., near the point of entry
through an interface into the culture medium, or by a remotely
located light source and transmitted to the interface by one or
more of a fiber optic medium, a light pipe, or a waveguide.
"Artificial light" is here defined as photonic energy that is
generated by a controllable light source that includes at least one
from among solid state lighting (including LED and
electroluminescent technology), gas discharge lamps (including
metal halide and florescent), and incandescent light. Light
generated remotely may include solar radiation, artificial light,
or a combination of solar radiation and artificial light.
[0054] Regardless of the source of photonic energy, the method
disclosed herein delivers the photonic energy into the culture
medium using the flowing energy-transfer medium, thereby avoiding
the problems of biofilming and of self shading from the high
turbidity provided by other organisms.
[0055] While LED's are a preferred source of artificial light, it
is to be understood that the method of the present disclosure can
be implemented with all forms of light. Turning first to FIG. 1,
shown therein is a sequence of operations in accordance with one
method of the present disclosure. Various implementations of the
energy-delivery method and apparatus are next described, which are
selected as non-exclusive examples of the variety of forms of this
method of light delivery.
[0056] In a first embodiment a "passive aperture" system is
operated in a very simple bioreactor, while in a second embodiment
an "optimized energy-transfer medium" optimizes the coupling
properties of the energy-transfer medium to provide efficient light
delivery. A third "flow control" embodiment uses flow regulators to
optimize the delivery of the energy-transfer medium into the fluid
culture. The fourth "spectral control" embodiment controls the
photonic spectra of the light in order to conserve energy costs and
to adapt the system to the needs of different microorganisms, and
in a fifth "instrumentation aperture" embodiment the flowing
energy-transfer medium is used to protect operative parts of an
optical measurement instrumentation, which monitors and controls
the delivery of light. A sixth "distribution array" embodiment
optimizes one energy-transfer medium as a transmission conduit for
coupling light into the culture medium and a different
energy-transfer medium as a distribution array for light that has
already entered the culture medium. In each of these embodiments,
the flowing energy-transfer medium is used to more effectively
deliver photonic energy to cultures in the culture medium.
[0057] Referring initially to FIG. 1, a general overview of one
process in accordance with the present disclosure is illustrated.
In block 10, the process includes introducing an energy-transfer
medium into a culture medium through an interface. The
energy-transfer medium may be fluid and is continually introduced
into the culture medium. Nutrients, in liquid or gaseous form, can
be provided to the culture medium by way of the energy-transfer
medium. The culture medium is in this embodiment a growth
environment for photosynthetic organisms that include algae and
cyanobacteria.
[0058] In block 12, the process includes providing light from a
light source, which is separated from the culture medium by the
energy-transfer medium to prevent bio-filming of the light source.
The culture medium can be separated from the photonic energy source
by the interface, the energy-transfer medium, or a combination of
both the interface and the energy-transfer medium.
[0059] Ideally, the photonic energy source provides light from a
local artificial light source such as an LED, another solid-state
source, a gas-discharge source, or an incandescent source or any
combination of the foregoing. Preferably, the light source is
controllable. However, the photonic energy source is also adapted
to emit remotely captured photonic energy such as solar light or a
combination of artificial and solar light. Remotely captured
photonic energy is transported by a fiber optic medium, a light
pipe, or a waveguide.
[0060] In block 14, the light is distributed into the
energy-transfer medium simultaneous with introducing the
energy-transfer medium into the culture medium. The properties of
the energy-transfer medium are selected from at least one from
among a refractive index, a specific gravity, a surface tension, a
viscosity, a transmitivity, a reflection loss, and an absorption
coefficient to enhance delivery of photonic energy from the light
source to the culture medium.
[0061] In one embodiment, the energy-transfer medium is introduced
into the culture medium without having been previously illuminated.
The bubbles thus formed then can scatter light introduced through a
different aperture that is protected by flowing energy-transfer
medium or introduced from some other source. In block 16, a rate of
introduction of the energy-transfer medium is adjusted to optimize
the delivery of photonic energy to the culture medium. The rate of
adjustment depends on the phototrophic needs of the culture and on
the relative percentages of nutrients in the energy-transfer
medium. The energy-transfer medium is introduced continually to
allow for measurements of certain parameters of the culture. In one
embodiment, the energy-transfer medium is static for a
predetermined or selective period of time to optically detect
characteristics of the culture. Minimizing the period of time the
energy-transfer medium is not flowing prevents bio-filming of the
photonic energy source.
[0062] In the next step illustrated in block 18, the process
optionally provides for adjusting a size or shape or both size and
shape of the aperture of the interface to optimize delivery of
photonic energy to the culture medium. Factors evaluated in
determining the amount of adjustment include viscosity, turbidity,
rate of movement of the culture medium, shape and size of the
environment, and phototrophic needs of target species in the
culture medium. The process illustrated in FIG. 1 is executed in an
environment that is otherwise adapted to growing phototrophic
organisms.
[0063] In the next step illustrated in block 20, the process
optionally provides for adjusting a spectral content of the light
source. The adjustments may include selecting the light source for
a particular spectral content, combining a plurality of selected
light sources to produce a target spectral content, filtering the
light source, and electronic control of the light source. In
addition, the adjustments may be made to optimize the spectral
content directed to phototrophic needs of the culture, separate
utilization of the wasted energy of producing particular light
frequencies, and impact of specific light frequencies on an
environment adapted to growing phototrophic organisms.
[0064] In the "passive aperture" embodiment of a light delivery
system 200, the following general description and more specific
description that follow are presented in conjunction with FIGS.
2-7A. FIG. 2 illustrates the representative light delivery system
200 that carries out the general method described above. A
bioreactor 202 provides a production space 203 adapted to contain
the culture medium and to efficiently distribute photonic energy
through the culture medium in the production space 203. Enclosed in
or attached to the bioreactor 202 are at least one fluid-light unit
206 and an air-lift unit 204. The interface plate 208 is sized and
shaped to attach to the fluid-light unit 206 and to separate the
contents of the fluid-light unit 206 from the culture medium. An
air-tight seal between the interface plate 208 and the fluid-light
unit 206 avoids releasing the energy-transfer medium and photonic
energy from places other than the holes 222 in the interface plate
208.
[0065] The interface plate 208 attaches to the fluid-light unit
206. In one embodiment, the interface plate 208 is a 3/16 inch
thick Plexiglas plate into which 108 evenly spaced holes 222 of
1/16 inch diameter are drilled. Other materials, such as metal and
other plastics, can be used for the interface plate 208. These
holes allow the energy-transfer medium, in this case the
air/CO.sub.2 mixture, to flow, under the 7 psi pressure, into the
culture medium. This injection of the energy-transfer medium
prevents the culture from coming into contact with the photonic
energy source 205 in the fluid-light unit 206, thus preventing
biofilming of the photonic energy source 205. In one embodiment,
the interface plate 208 may be formed as an integral component of
the fluid-light unit 206 or as a separate component. Alternatively
or additionally, the fluid-light units 206 may be manufactured as
fixed components of the bioreactor 202.
[0066] FIG. 3 illustrates a top view of three fluid-light units 206
spaced around the air-lift unit 204, which may be placed or
securely attached to a bottom of the bioreactor 202. The number and
arrangement of fluid-light units 206 may be varied to meet the
needs of the culture medium and the size of the bioreactor 202. In
some embodiments, the air-lift unit 204 may be omitted.
[0067] FIG. 4 illustrates one embodiment of the fluid-light unit
206. Preferably, each fluid-light unit 206 is a weighted, 5 inch
diameter pot into which a mixture of the nutrient gas and filtered
ambient air, i.e., the energy-transfer medium is pumped through
flexible piping 214. Pump 216 propels the mixture into the
fluid-light unit 206 through flexible piping 214 (see FIG. 2). A
flexible conduit 215 may pass through the flexible piping 214 to
couple electrical components incorporated in the fluid-light unit
206 with controllers or power sources external to the production
space 203, such as a process controller 230 in FIG. 6. The flexible
conduit 215 may isolate conductive connectors from the energy
transfer medium. In another embodiment, the flexible conduit 215
may be a light pipe that provides the photonic energy to the
fluid-light unit 206.
[0068] In the cultivation of some microorganisms, the
energy-transfer medium may include CO.sub.2, N.sub.2 or, NH.sub.3.
In one embodiment, the pressure of this gas mixture is maintained
at 7 psi with a concentration of CO.sub.2 at or below 5%. This
concentration maintains a pH level between 8 and 9, which is
acceptable to most commercially grown green and golden algae. A
higher level of CO.sub.2 (pH 10) would be acceptable for
cyanobacteria, such as spirulina platensis. The air may be filtered
before introduction into the fluid-light unit 206 by a 5 .mu.m
resin cartridge filter or a spun or pleated filter
[0069] FIG. 5 shows an array of LED lamps 207 that may be used as
the photonic energy source 205 to produce a total of 10 watts of
energy within the fluid-light unit 206. The photonic energy source
205 is incorporated with the fluid-light unit 206 and the interface
plate 208 and may be securely attached to a base 209 of the
fluid-light unit 206 to prevent movement. The conduit 215 may
couple the LEDs 207 to a power supply or control circuitry (not
shown). These LED lamps 207 are selected to produce light in the
regions of the spectrum critical for growth of the target
culture.
[0070] As illustrated in FIG. 6, the photonic energy source 205 may
include more than one type of array of LEDs 207 to optimize the
spectrum of light for the particular culture. For example, the
photonic energy source 205 may have a red light source 226 and a
blue light source 228. The flexible conduit 215 couples the process
controller 230 to the blue light source 228. A second flexible
conduit 232 couples the process controller 230 to the red light
source 226.
[0071] For many commercially produced organisms the critical
spectrums include red, centered on 680 nm, and blue, centered on
465 nm. For maximizing biomass growth, a 2:1 ratio of blue to red
light is acceptable. If the production objective were to increase
lipid content, then a higher proportion of red light could be used.
The selective spectrum saves energy cost and prevents
non-productive spectra from causing potentially harmful heating of
the culture. Other colors and spectra of light may be generated by
the light sources 226, 228 depending on the needs of the culture
medium.
[0072] FIG. 7 shows how bubbles 212 form in the individual aperture
or hole 222 formed in the interface plate 208 and transmit,
reflect, refract, diffract, and otherwise scatter light from the
photonic energy source 205 into the culture medium. The fluid-light
unit 206 and the photonic energy source 205 deliver light to the
culture medium. As the energy-transfer medium enters the fluid
culture medium it creates a rising column of bubbles 212 (see FIG.
2). The bubbles 212a, when they are still in the aperture or hole
222, act as lenses that are frequently replenished and reflect and
refract light as shown by a plurality of light rays 256. The light
rays 256 originate at the photonic energy source 205 and travel
through the energy-transfer medium as the energy-transfer medium
forms an individual bubble 212a. The bubble 212a acts as a boundary
between the photonic energy source 205 and the culture medium. The
continuous formation of the bubbles 212a prevents biofilming of the
photonic energy source 205. The boundary that the bubble 212a
creates assists in distributing the light rays 256 because of the
different refractive indices of the energy-transfer medium and the
culture.
[0073] The bubbles 212 are advantageous because they scatter light
into the culture from many directions by transmission, reflection,
refraction, and diffraction and release photonic energy in close
proximity to a large number of the organisms in the culture.
Together with circulation 210 provided in the culture environment,
this greatly increases the proportion of cells that are exposed to
photonic energy and therefore decreases the effect of turbidity
without requiring the energy-inefficient circulation impediment
that is inherent to a tubular bioreactor.
[0074] FIG. 7A further illustrates the formation of bubbles 212a
through the interface plate 208. The bubbles 212a are shaped by the
interface plate 208 that has the plurality of evenly spaced
apertures or holes 222 sized to ensure that bubbles 212 emerging
into the culture medium are not so small as to cause cell
destruction from cavitation. As the energy-transfer medium is
injected from the fluid-light unit 206 into the culture medium the
bubbles 212 are in gaseous or droplet form. Each bubble 212a acts
as a replenishing lens for providing photonic energy to the culture
medium. As each bubble 212a forms a new replenishing lens forms so
that the culture is continuously provided with energy from the
photonic energy source 205.
[0075] The sizes of the holes 222 in the interface plate 208 are
essential to the formation of bubbles 212 with an optimal shape.
Bubbles 212 formed from an under-sized aperture can produce
turbulence (mainly inertial cavitation) that can destroy up to 20%
of the organisms in the culture. Inertial cavitation is the process
where a void or a bubble in a fluid medium rapidly collapses due to
a lower vapor pressure and then rapidly re-expands. The collapse of
the bubbles and subsequent explosion produces a local shock wave
that can tear cell walls.
[0076] The destructive effect of cavitation suggests that roughness
or sharp edges along aperture walls are to be avoided. In one
embodiment, 1/16 inch holes 222 produce bubbles 212 up to one inch
in diameter and avoid cell destruction by cavitation. Larger
bubbles 212 can be used, but are empirically less efficient at
evenly distributing light. Because of the barrier provided by the
energy-transfer medium, no part of the culture medium is in contact
with or exposed to the source of photonic energy 205. The size and
rate of emission of the bubbles 212 and 212a are adjustable
according to the optimal photonic energy delivery, the viscosity,
the turbidity, and the characteristics of the organism grown in the
culture medium.
[0077] Ideally, light will be generated locally by LEDs 207. LED
technology currently offers some of the highest electric to
photonic energy conversion efficiency available, with an added
advantage of concentrating photonic energy production in a narrow
spectral bandwidth with the dominant wavelength varying with the
particular chemicals used in their construction. A combination of
LED chemistries, each producing photonic energy in a different
concentrated spectral band, can be used to tailor production of
photonic energy such that a majority of the spectra produced are
useful to the target culture and production objectives, rather than
wasting energy on non-utilized frequencies.
[0078] In addition to their photonic conversion efficiency and
spectral specificity, LEDs 207 are physically small, offer flexible
mounting configurations, durable long-life cycles, and precise
electronic control of intensity and modulation. Conversion
efficiency and small physical size allow local light generation,
which is less feasible with bulkier, high temperature, wide
spectrum alternatives, such as metal halide lamps. Local light
generation avoids energy loss incurred while coupling and
transmitting remotely generated light to the interface 208. LEDs
207 also have very rapid on/off times and intensity control, which
enable very tight restriction of energy use to times in which the
photonic energy will be the most useful. This enables close
tailoring of light production to the particular stage of growth or
production objectives.
[0079] This simple photonic energy delivery system is economical to
produce and is useful in a wide range of existing applications,
such as ponds and raceways for the efficient supply of supplemental
light and in bioreactors for which it is the primary source of
light.
[0080] In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 2-7A, the fluid-light
unit 206 of this light delivery system 200 is implemented in a
photobioreactor, which may be the bioreactor 202. However, the
light delivery system 200 can be implemented in any environment
adapted to growing target phototrophic organisms. Target organisms
include several species of algae and cyanobacteria produced for
aquaculture and human and animal food supplements. These species
include, but are not limited to dunaliella, chlorella,
nannochloropsis, and spirulina platensis.
[0081] The techniques for supplying the non-photonic conditions
necessary for growth of these species are known in the art and
include: maintaining oxygen at low levels as required by the
particular species, maintaining an even temperature to avoid
photorespiration, avoiding zenic species, maintaining adequate
circulation to ensure even exposure of all organisms in the
culture, avoiding heavy metals that can readily be assimilated by
some organisms, providing CO.sub.2, or sodium bicarbonate at levels
sufficient to supplement any gained from the atmosphere, and
maintaining pH appropriate for the species. Full descriptions are
available in such publications as Barbosa, M. J. G. V., "Microalgal
Photobioreactors: Scale-up and Optimization", Doctoral Thesis,
Wageningen University, The Netherlands, 2003, p. 161; Richmond,
Amos, Handbook of Microalgeal Culture: Biotechnology and Applied
Phycology, Blackwell Science, Ltd., London, 2004; and Vonshak,
Avigad, Spirulina Platensis (Arthrospira): Physiology,
Cell-Biology, and Biotechnology, CRC Press, 1997.
[0082] As shown in the embodiment of FIG. 2, the bioreactor 202
consists of an 18 inch diameter, five foot tall cylinder. In the
middle of the bioreactor 202, the air-lift unit 204 and a central
column for providing nutrients to the fluid-light units 206 is
illustrated. This air-lift unit 204 allows consistent flow without
isolated non-circulating zones and is selected to minimize the
power necessary to produce an adequate rate of circulation. A pair
of synchronized peristaltic pumps, in this case a harvest pump 219
and a nutrient pump 220, introduce a stream of nutrients and ensure
harvests of equal volumes of culture. Preferably, the stream of
bubbles 212 and the air-lift unit 204 produce a vertical toroidal
circulation pattern that draws the culture past the interface
plates 208 at the bottom of the bioreactor 202, up the center, and
down the sides of the bioreactor 202, i.e., throughout the
production space 203. Preferably, the rate of circulation is at
least one foot per second to avoid precipitation and should be slow
enough to prevent cell damage and avoid wasting power. In one
embodiment, the air-lift unit 204 is supplemental to the
circulation provided by the rising column of bubbles 212, thus
allowing independent control of the nutrient/light feed and the
overall rate of circulation.
[0083] The fluid-light unit 206, the photonic energy source 205,
and the air-lift unit 204 may be manufactured as integral
components of the bioreactor 202 or they may be manufactured and
installed separately. Preferably, the bioreactor 202 is
manufactured with a lid (not shown) to seal the bioreactor during
culture production. The lid may be manufactured with or without
insulation. When the lid is sealed, light delivery system 200
operates without dependence on the diurnal, seasonal, and
geographic limitations of sunlight. Therefore, the light delivery
system 200 produces a higher output rate due to 24-hour production
by a fixed amount of equipment. Advantageously, algae continuously
consume CO.sub.2 waste in a 24-hour production facility.
[0084] In one embodiment, the air-lift unit 204 is used for
circulation of the culture and is fixed to the bottom middle of the
bioreactor 202. The air-lift unit 204, using filtered air, is
adjustable to achieve the minimum culture medium flow rate
necessary to prevent sedimentation of the target organisms or
detritus from the organisms. This rate varies with the species and
the stage of growth.
[0085] The synchronized peristaltic pumps 219, 220 maintain a
constant volume of mixed liquid in the bioreactor 202 and are under
the control of sensors for bio-mass density and pH. This
arrangement operates a continuous operation cycle, but it could
easily be operated as a batch or semi-batch system without altering
the essential nature of the energy-delivery system described here.
The peristaltic pumps 219, 220 are used in order to minimize damage
to organisms in the culture.
[0086] In one embodiment, the peristaltic pump 220 continuously
releases liquid nutrients from a plurality of tubes 224 that open
through a manifold just above each interface plate 208. This
arrangement is intended to ensure that the nutrients are fully and
rapidly mixed into the culture medium. These nutrients can be a
high-grade fertilizer, such as F2 or a liquid that is output from
intermediate stages of an anaerobic digester. The provision and
composition of liquid nutrients is known in the art and any
suitable composition may be utilized.
[0087] In another embodiment, temperature control is achieved by
controlling the temperature of the environment surrounding the
bioreactor 202. This is an economical solution when many such
bioreactors 202 are enclosed in a single building. Growth up to 8
doublings a day, in certain species of microorganisms, has been
demonstrated by the continuous running of the above-described
embodiment. Although it is not necessary to provide discrete light
and dark periods to produce high growth rates, the present
disclosure may be operated to mimic a diurnal cycle. In this
implementation, energy costs are reduced by utilizing photonic
energy of selected frequencies, by generating the photonic energy
locally, and by using LEDs.
[0088] In some embodiments, cooling the bioreactor 202 to keep it
in the optimal range for culture growth is generally unnecessary.
The need is minimized by reducing heating from the absorption of
excess spectra and intensities of light, such as commonly occurs
with the use of unfiltered solar radiation. Further, the amount of
artificial light that is necessary is reduced because the light is
uniformly distributed among the culture organisms. Because the
culture flows through a chamber of the bioreactor 202, less power
is used for producing circulation than in systems that use high
flow rates or constricted pipes to combat biofilming or
self-shading of a dense culture. Further, a portion of the impetus
for circulation is provided by the buoyancy of the bubble stream
from the air-lift unit 204 and the fluid-light units 206 that
provide the inorganic gas nutrients and the light.
[0089] With power costs reduced, the advantages of 24 hour
production become economically feasible. These advantages include
independence from the diurnal, seasonal, and geographic limitations
of sunlight, the higher production rate from a fixed amount of
equipment, and a smaller footprint. In addition, the CO.sub.2 waste
consumption ability of the algae or other autotrophic organisms can
stay continuously on line, and, because of the small footprint of
the bioreactors relative to ponds, stay local to its source.
[0090] The particular form of the bioreactor 202 and the components
are adjustable and can be modularized to accomplish efficient
manufacture and maintenance. In addition, many bioreactors 202 can
be run in parallel to meet industrial and environmental needs
[0091] Moreover the mass of bubbles 212 resulting from the gas
energy-transfer medium provide a distributive surface that is
advantageous in dispersing light in low culture densities of early
stages of growth. Air is used as the primary component of the
energy-transfer medium in the "passive aperture" embodiment because
it is simple, economical to produce, and useful in a wide range of
existing applications.
[0092] Referring to FIG. 8, a general overview of an alternative
process in accordance with the present disclosure is illustrated.
In block 100, the process provides a bioreactor adapted to contain
a fluid culture medium. Preferably, the bioreactor is a bioreactor
with a diameter of eighteen inches and a height of five feet.
However, bioreactors of various sizes and materials may be adapted
to adequately house and cultivate the culture medium.
[0093] In block 102, the process provides a container in the
bioreactor adapted to introduce photonic energy through an
energy-transfer medium. The container may be formed of any sturdy
and durable material that does not deteriorate in the culture
medium. In a preferred embodiment, the container is a weighted
circular pot with a diameter of five inches. However, the size and
shape of the container depends upon the size of the bioreactor
selected and specific characteristics of the energy-transfer medium
and of the culture medium.
[0094] An interface plate couples to the container in block 104 and
contains a plurality of holes through which the energy-transfer
medium and photonic energy exit the container in the form of
bubbles. The container and the interface plate may be formed with
complementary spiral threads so the interface plate securely
attaches to the container. However, other suitable methods may be
used to couple the interface plate to the container, such as
screws, clamps, glue, or the like. The container and interface
plate may be manufactured as one component or as individual
components for subsequent assembly. Preferably, an air-tight seal
forms between the interface plate and the container. The air-tight
seal prevents the release of the energy-transfer medium and
photonic energy from places other than the holes in the interface
plate.
[0095] The size and shape of the plurality of holes dictate the
size of the bubbles and therefore the amount of the energy-transfer
medium and photonic energy injected into the culture medium. The
holes may be cylindrical in shape so that the interior rim of the
cylinder is the same diameter as the exterior rim. However, the
interior and exterior rims may have different diameters in order to
more efficiently control the shape of the bubbles produced and to
avoid cavitation at a sharp edge. Other materials, such as metal
and other plastics, can be used to manufacture the interface
plate.
[0096] The word "bubble" is intended to cover the injection of
photonic energy into the culture medium through a gas or a liquid
energy-transfer medium. In the case of an injection of photonic
energy through a liquid energy-transfer medium, "bubble" may mean a
droplet or drop. Forming bubbles that are too small in the
proximity of the culture can produce destructive turbulence.
[0097] In one embodiment, the container and interface plate
combination securely rests on the bottom of the bioreactor. The
container may be weighted or secured by screws, clamps, or any
other suitable fastening device. When positioned on the bottom of
the bioreactor, the bubbles form and separate from the interface
plate traveling vertically through the culture medium. The position
of the container may be altered to change the trajectory of the
bubbles. For example, the container could be on a motorized base to
allow for selective positioning of the container and attached
interface plate. Changing the path the bubbles travel can
advantageously alter the circulation of the fluid culture medium
and thereby more evenly distribute the photonic energy.
[0098] In block 106, the process provides an air-lift unit to
circulate the fluid culture medium and the energy-transfer medium.
Preferably, the air-lift unit is three inches in diameter and
circulates the culture at a rate of at least one foot per second to
avoid precipitation. Any device that provides circulation, such as
rotating paddles or blades, propellers, and peristaltic pumps, may
be used in addition to or in place of the air-lift unit.
[0099] In one embodiment the bubbles from the air-lift unit and the
bubbles from the energy-transfer medium circulate the culture
medium. Preferably, the circulation produced is vertically
toroidal. A vertical toroidal circulation pattern draws the fluid
culture medium over the interface plate and into the rising column
of bubbles that provide the surfaces to distribute (reflect,
refract, and diffract) the photonic energy evenly among the cells.
This arrangement efficiently produces a rate of circulation
adequate to avoid precipitation and without isolated
non-circulating zones of the fluid culture medium. The rate of
circulation should be slow enough to prevent cell damage and limit
unnecessary power consumption.
[0100] Advantageously, the circulation increases the proportion of
the organisms in the culture exposed to the photonic energy. In
this circumstance, photonic energy is less likely to be reflected
from or absorbed by a limited layer of organisms exposed to the
photonic energy source. Additionally, the photonic energy is less
likely to be converted into waste heat caused by overexposure of a
limited proportion of the organisms. Also, since the origin of the
light is not in the culture, the likelihood of occlusion by
bio-filming is greatly reduced. The spectra and intensity of
photonic energy delivery can be finely controlled, thereby reducing
energy costs and avoiding the growth-limiting problems of
photo-respiration and excessive heating.
[0101] The amount of photonic energy needed to effectively grow the
culture is reduced because of the close proximity of light
distribution to the organisms. Utilizing only the required spectra
and intensity of light minimizes the heating of the culture, and
therefore, achieves the optimal temperature range for culture
growth more easily. In some circumstances the need for cooling of
the culture can be completely avoided.
[0102] Blocks 108, 110, 112, and 114 represent the part of the
process that mixes, circulates, couples, and/or distributes the
energy-transfer medium and the photonic energy to the culture. More
particularly, the photonic energy is transmitted into the fluid
culture medium through the controlled gas or liquid energy-transfer
medium as the controlled gas or liquid is releasing from the
interface plate. In block 108, the process circulates the fluid
culture medium contained in the bioreactor. The circulation may be
provided by any combination of the bubbles from the air-lift unit,
the bubbles of the energy-transfer medium, and any other suitable
circulation device.
[0103] In block 110, the process pumps nutrients into the fluid
culture medium. Pumps either internal or external to the bioreactor
provide the nutrients. In a preferred embodiment, the nutrient
pumps are peristaltic.
[0104] In block 112, the process may pump filtered air and the
energy-transfer medium into the fluid-light unit. The
energy-transfer medium may contain CO.sub.2, N.sub.2, or other
gaseous nutrients. The bioreactor may be manufactured with the
pumps as an internal component or the pumps may be an external
feature attached to the container through flexible piping.
[0105] In block 114, the process provides photonic energy to the
fluid-light unit. Photonic energy is energy in some part of the
visible spectrum (380 nm-700 nm) of light that is useful to
autotrophic organisms.
[0106] The source of the photonic energy provided to the
fluid-light unit may be entirely artificial, solar, or a
combination of both. Because the energy-transfer medium forms a
barrier, no part of the fluid culture medium is in contact with or
exposed to the source of photonic energy. An array of LED lamps 207
may be the photonic energy source that delivers light to the
fluid-light unit. Using LED lamps 207 of selected frequencies in
the critical red and blue regions of the spectrum reduce energy
costs because no energy is wasted on frequencies that are not used
by the phototrophic organisms. Artificial sources include a
solid-state source, a gas-discharge source, and an incandescent
source, or any other controllable photonic energy source. The
photonic energy may be produced or captured remotely and delivered
to the container by fiber optics, light pipes, waveguides, or other
light-transmission means.
[0107] Optionally, the energy-transfer medium is introduced into
the culture medium without having been previously illuminated. The
bubbles thus formed then can scatter light introduced through a
different aperture that is protected by flowing energy-transfer
medium or introduced from some other photonic energy source. It is
to be understood the nutrient-energy distribution process may be
operated 24 hours a day without dependence on the diurnal,
seasonal, and geographic limitations of sunlight. Advantageously,
in a 24-hour production facility, phototrophic organisms can
continuously consume CO.sub.2 waste.
[0108] Block 116 describes the process of forming bubbles in the
fluid culture medium. As the process provides the energy-transfer
medium, i.e., a nutrient-gas/filtered-air mixture, and the photonic
energy to the fluid-light unit, pressure accumulating in the
fluid-light unit causes the energy-transfer medium to pass through
the holes in the interface plate. Bubbles of the energy-transfer
medium will rise in the fluid culture medium due to the disparate
densities of the materials. Movement of the bubbles generates
movement of the fluid culture medium and enhances distribution of
the photonic energy throughout the fluid culture medium.
[0109] Block 118 describes the process of sensing a change in the
volume or pH of the fluid culture medium. Sensors may provide
feedback to the pumps and other devices in and around the
bioreactor to regulate parameters of the growth environment. Block
120 provides for a harvesting of the fluid medium when organisms in
the culture medium are in a desired state.
[0110] This method addresses the problems of turbidity by
distributing light throughout the culture as the culture is
circulating. Bio-filming is avoided by providing light to the
culture without having the photonic energy source in direct contact
with the culture. Advantageously, this method reduces power
consumption and makes 24-hour production of photosynthetic
organisms economically feasible.
[0111] Optimized Energy-Transfer Medium Embodiment
[0112] In the "optimized energy-transfer medium" embodiment, the
efficiency of light transfer is improved by controlling coupling
characteristics of the energy-transfer medium itself. A large
mismatch between the refractive indices of the photonic energy
source, the energy-transfer medium, and the culture medium results
in lossy effects, which include reflectance back at the photonic
energy source, reflectance back into the aperture, and light
scatter within the energy-transfer medium. These losses can be
reduced by selecting the energy-transfer medium to have a
refractive index closely matched to the photonic energy source and
the culture medium, or an intermediate index which smoothes the
gradient between the photonic energy source and culture medium
indices.
[0113] Alternatively, under certain circumstances, an intentional
refractive index mismatch could be employed to increase dispersion
of light as it crosses the boundary between the two media,
resulting in more organisms exposed to the projected light and thus
increased efficiency of energy use. This deliberate mismatch would
be used in a case where the culture density is low and therefore
subject to transmission of photonic energy through the culture
medium without hitting receptive organisms.
[0114] In addition to refractive index control, properties of the
inherent lens, bubble 212a, formed at the boundary of the
energy-transfer and the culture media can be modified by
controlling immiscibility between the media (see FIGS. 7 and 7A).
Immiscibility is largely dependant on differences between the
energy-transfer and the culture media in properties such as
specific gravity, viscosity, and surface tension. Some controls to
adjust immiscibility include incorporation into the energy-transfer
medium of a surfactant to change surface tension or an emulsifier
to modify viscosity.
[0115] Coupling inefficiencies can consume up to 40% of photonic
energy injected into the culture medium. For the culture media used
in most commercial applications, a reasonable approximation to
matching the refractive indices can be achieved by using filtered
water as the energy-transfer medium Therefore, use of filtered
water as the energy-transfer medium is advantageous in decreasing
the coupling inefficiencies. The rate of flow of the water into the
culture medium can vary over a wide range as long as flow is
sufficient to maintain a barrier between the culture medium and the
photonic energy source.
[0116] In one embodiment, the fixed lens of the LEDs 207 in the
photonic energy source 205 is embedded in the stream of the
filtered water before the water enters the culture medium. The
filtered water acts as a temporary replenishing lens for light
transmission. However, in many commercial applications in ponds or
raceways, the cost and limited availability of filtered water would
offset at least part of the savings from the more efficient
coupling, making a gaseous energy-transfer medium a more economical
choice.
[0117] Control of energy-transfer medium properties can also be
used to enhance instrumentation measurement accuracy and
effectiveness. For example, light can be measured with a higher
signal-to-noise ratio by matching refractive indices, which will
minimize reflections generated by transmission across medium
boundaries and reduce scatter within the energy-transfer medium
itself. Also, the stability of the lens surface formed by the
boundary between the energy-transfer and the culture media can be
enhanced by controlling the immiscibility of the energy-transfer
medium relative to the culture medium. Such stability means that
the lens is less vulnerable to surface distortion created by
turbulence from the circulating culture medium. Both interventions
will reduce system noise from stray light and result in improved
accuracy and stability of measurements.
[0118] For measurement applications, the energy-transfer medium may
be composed of 1.5% xantham gum and filtered water. This
combination provides a very stable lens/window through which light
can be projected or received. In this embodiment, the dispersal of
a large amount of light into the culture is not the objective
rather; the objective is to acquire data through measurements.
Therefore, the energy-transfer medium is injected into the culture
medium at a sufficiently slow rate to just maintain a stable window
and a protective barrier between the instrumentation and the
culture medium. In one example, an aperture size necessary to
expose a standard photodiode requires an injection rate of 1 cm per
minute.
[0119] Flow Control of Energy-Transfer Medium Embodiment
[0120] In the "flow control" embodiment, adjustment for varying
conditions in the properties of the energy-transfer medium, the
culture, and the environment of the culture require maintaining a
controlled flow of energy-transfer medium. Controlling the flow of
energy-transfer medium is important for controlling photonic energy
delivery into the culture medium. As described above in the
"optimized energy-transfer medium" embodiment, optimizing different
conditions requires changing properties of the energy-transfer
medium, such as viscosity or surface tension. Adjusting the
viscosity or surface tension can vary the flow of the
energy-transfer medium into the culture medium. In addition,
variations in properties of the culture medium due to density of
cells or types of organisms can change the ease of flow of the
entering energy-transfer medium.
[0121] Environmental changes, such as ambient temperature or the
depth of the fluid-light unit's in the culture medium can affect
the flow of the energy-transfer medium. The flow for a particular
fluid-light unit can also be affected by its position in the supply
line when several units are serviced by a single supply line. In
addition, the flow of the energy-transfer medium can be
deliberately altered by the operator in response to cost of the
materials in the energy-transfer medium or the needs of the
culture. Each of these factors produces variation in the flow of
energy-transfer medium that must be controlled to maintain good
control of the delivery of photonic energy.
[0122] The flow of the energy-transfer medium may be controlled
before entry into the fluid-light unit 206, as shown in FIG. 9, or
the flow of the energy-transfer medium may be controlled at each
individual hole or aperture, as shown in FIG. 10.
[0123] FIG. 9 illustrates an embodiment of the fluid-light unit 206
where the flow of the energy-transfer medium is controlled by an
electronic flow controller 234. The electronic flow controller 234
may be attached to the piping 214 connected to the fluid-light unit
206 to control the rate of introduction of the energy-transfer
medium. The second conduit 232 may provide the electronic flow
control drive from the process controller 230 through the piping
214. Alternatively, the electronic flow controller 234 may be
attached externally to the production space 203 of the bioreactor
202.
[0124] The flow of energy transfer medium into the fluid-light unit
206 and into the culture medium may be adjusted to optimize the
coupling of photonic energy into the culture. The electronic flow
controller 234 modulates the pressure and duration of the flow of
the energy-transfer medium. Additionally, the electronic flow
controller 234 may be synchronized with other electronic flow
controllers along a supply line to optimize the delivery of the
energy-transfer medium to each bioreactor (see FIG. 16).
[0125] As illustrated in FIG. 10, one method of controlling flow
into the culture medium includes using piezo or MEMS valve
technology to make each aperture 302 in the interface active and
controllable. The fluid-light units 206 described with respect to
FIGS. 2-9 may be modified to include controllable apertures, such
as those illustrated in FIG. 10. This increases efficiency by
synchronizing light source modulation with the momentary state of
the energy-transfer medium. In addition, the controllable aperture
302 provides a means to control the pressure and duration of
energy-transfer medium flow and the spectra, intensity, and
duration of the light provided. Sensors 304 may provide feedback
indicating when a bubble forms and releases from the interface
plate 208.
[0126] The single aperture 302, which may be used in an array of
apertures of various shapes and sizes in the fluid-light unit 206,
may be separately controlled by the sensor 304 to release
energy-transfer medium to optimize coupling of the light with the
formation of the bubble. The controllable aperture 302 allows an
operator to have fine localized control down to an individual
aperture or a small group of apertures. In the case of individual
aperture control, it would be possible to carefully control the
energy-transfer flow rate from one bubble or drop per every few
seconds to many bubbles or drops per second.
[0127] The aperture 302 may be a hole formed through an interface
306, which may be similar to the interface 208 illustrated in FIGS.
4-6. The sensor 304 may be positioned on an internal surface 307 of
the aperture 302 so that the sensor 304 is not obstructed by the
interface 306. On an opposing internal surface 308 an opening 312
through interface 306 allows the energy-transfer medium to enter
the aperture 302. The energy-transfer medium may flow through a
flexible pipe 314 where the flow is controlled by a flow regulator
310, which may be a piezo or MEMs valve. LEDs 305 can be turned on
and off sufficiently rapidly to make it valuable to know the state
of bubble or drop formation so that the photonic energy source is
only activated when the bubble or drop is at a state that
effectively couples light into the culture medium. Consequently,
the amount of time that light is delivered can advantageously be
finely tuned to particular applications and stages of growth. Such
control can minimize energy wasted from reflectance, which varies
with the density of the culture, back into the photonic energy
source.
[0128] In this particular embodiment, the single, electronically
controlled, flow regulator 310 is installed in each fluid-light
unit 206 which maintains a constant flow of energy-transfer medium
through the group of apertures 302 from the fluid-light unit 206
into the culture medium. The flow regulator 310 may be a MEMS or
piezo technology to offer very rapid and precise control of the
flow.
[0129] Electronic control of the flow regulator 310 is achieved
with a typical computer, such as process controller 330, used for
simple industrial process control. The process controller 330 may
control and process information from the sensor 304, to the light
source of LEDs 305, and to the flow regulator 310. The sensor 304
may provide feedback about dynamic pressure, light reflectance
change in order to determine an optimal flow rate, and timing of
the LEDs 305 to synchronize the flow and provision of light. The
sensor 304 may assist in providing a high efficiency coupling of
the energy-transfer medium into the culture medium. In addition,
this process controller 330 allows an operator to set flow
parameters based on a desired rate of energy-transfer medium
consumption, changes in composition of the supplied energy-transfer
medium, cost or availability of the energy-transfer medium, growth
stage of the organisms being cultured, process metrics, and
production objectives.
[0130] Once programmed, the flow regulator 310 makes automatic
adjustments, which adapt to varying influences on flow rate. Such
influences include position on a multi-drop supply line, changes in
ambient temperature, depth of the fluid-light unit 206 in the
culture medium, and varying density of the culture in the culture
medium. Electronically controlled flow regulators 310 are readily
available standard pieces of industrial process control equipment
and will not be described in detail. Use of these programmable flow
regulators 310 to meter delivery of the energy-transfer medium
allows effective optimization of light delivery to cultures in the
culture medium.
[0131] Combinations of the described embodiments provide additional
benefits. For example, the controlled flow embodiment and the
optimized energy-transfer medium embodiment can be used together to
produce replenishing lens surfaces of various sizes and refresh
rates, varying decay times following release from the aperture, and
increase extension lengths into the culture medium while attached
to the aperture. Control of the inherent lens formed at the
boundary of the injected energy-transfer medium and the culture
medium provides the capability to project photonic energy with high
efficiency into the culture medium at beam angles ranging from
narrowly focused for greater reach into the culture medium, to
broadly disperse for near field illumination. Further, by careful
selection of injection parameters and energy-transfer medium
properties, this control can be achieved over a wide range of
aperture sizes, which provides flexibility in the positions of the
photonic energy sources 205 that will lead to efficient energy
coupling.
[0132] Spectral Control Embodiment
[0133] In the "spectral control" embodiment, conservation of
photonic energy, reduction of heat loading, as well as optimizing
production of biomass or various metabolites is accomplished by
close control of the spectral content of light distributed to a
culture.
[0134] Reference throughout this specification to "spectral
content" for defining frequency dependant qualities of the light
source is an inclusive term for more specific measures including
spectra, spectrum, spectral intensity, spectral density, power
spectral density, and spectral distribution. "Spectral content" may
also be used to refer to frequency dependant qualities of light in
place of some more specific terms such as "spectral distribution"
and "spectral density" to avoid confusion with the concepts of
light distribution and culture density.
[0135] A general region of photosynthetically active radiation
(PAR) is defined to be within the visible spectrum of light in the
range of 400 to 700 nm. Phototrophic organisms can only effectively
utilize a limited range of light frequencies within the PAR region.
Providing spectral content with an emphasis on blue light is
advantageous because it is the peak absorption range for the major
photo-pigments, i.e., chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, and
carotenoids. Healthy growth requires delivery of some spectral
content outside the blue region to support important carotenoids
and accessory pigments, such as chlorophylls c, d, and e, which
have slightly longer wavelength absorption peaks. Additionally, the
pigments chlorophylls a and b that have primary absorption peaks in
the blue region also have secondary absorption peaks in the red
region of the spectrum. Providing these pigments with an increased
proportion of red light can be beneficial when organisms are
developing lipids.
[0136] Tailoring spectral content is also useful when targeting a
probiotic combination of organisms such as the case of growing
cyanobacteria with algae. Cyanobacteria require some additional
spectral content in the middle of the PAR region to fulfill
photonic energy requirements of phycolibins (e.g. phycocyanin and
phycoerythrin).
[0137] Delivery of photonic energy with spectral content not
productively absorbed and utilized by the target organisms has the
deleterious effects of heat loading the growth environment and
causing target organisms to divert energy from productive growth to
protective mechanisms for shielding against potentially destructive
photonic radiation. It is therefore advantageous to only deliver
photonic energy with spectral content useful to the organisms at
their current stage of growth. It is also optimal to limit
production of photonic energy from an artificial source to only
include spectral content useful to the target organism and avoid
wasting energy to generate photonic energy with no productive
value.
[0138] There are several ways to control spectral content of light
delivered to the target organisms. One is to select an artificial
light source designed to produce the desired spectral content. A
second approach is to combine a group of individual artificial
light sources with varied spectral content to form an array that
collectively produces the desired spectral content. Further
refinement and dynamic adjustment of spectral content can be gained
through electronic control of individual light sources within the
array. Another approach is to filter a broad spectrum light source
to limit delivered spectral content to a useful set of target
frequencies. Yet another approach is to employ technologies such as
quantum dots, metal halide salts, and phosphors to convert or shift
non-productive wavelengths to spectral content productive to
organism growth.
[0139] Deployment of spectral content control technologies for
growing cultures in an efficient production environment have been
limited by constraints imposed from biofilming and turbidity of the
dense culture. Biofilming of the light source not only wastes
energy, precluding use of artificial light in cost sensitive
applications, but also changes the spectral content delivered to
cultures in the culture medium as a result of selective absorption
from adhering organisms forming the biofilm. Inefficiencies in
light delivery can easily require ten times the photonic energy to
achieve a similar organism growth rate produced in a system without
these losses. The increased demand on photonic energy delivery
limits use of most spectral content control technologies to
applications that are not particularly cost sensitive. In some
cases mitigating the effects of biofilming and turbidity has
dictated a growth environment topology that introduces a different
and often larger set of production inefficiencies. An example is a
shallow, large surface area pond or raceway. The pond or raceway
will require a large area filter to provide spectral content
control that is likely to be cost prohibitive for a majority of
applications.
[0140] The disclosed method delivers light to the set of organisms
in the culture medium through the flowing energy-transfer medium
that separates the light source from the culture medium. As the
energy-transfer medium flows into the culture medium it breaks into
many bubbles or drops to form a distribution array that scatters
delivered light widely within the culture medium. The disclosed
method of light delivery prevents biofilming of the light source
and provides even distribution of light in the turbid dense
culture. Solving these problems dramatically increases light
delivery efficiency and opens cost sensitive applications to the
use of artificial light and deployment of spectral content control
technologies.
[0141] Artificial light sources offer a wide range of spectral
content control. A group of individual artificial light sources
with varied spectral content can be combined to form the light
source array that collectively produces the desired spectral
content. Electronic control can be used to change the contribution
of individual light sources within the array and provide dynamic
adjustment of spectral content in response to changing phototrophic
needs of the target organism. Spectral content can also be adjusted
in response to energy cost at different times in the day.
Artificial production of photonic energy in the blue region is very
efficient. During the hours of peak energy cost, predominantly or
exclusively blue light can be produced and delivered to the target
culture. Less efficient red and other fill spectra can be provided
or increased during hours of lower energy cost. LED technology
provides an efficient artificial light source with limited spectral
content per given chemistry. LEDs with different chemistries can be
combined to create the array of artificial light sources with
varied spectral content.
[0142] Referring to FIG. 6, one "spectral control" embodiment shows
the array of LEDs 207 deployed as the photonic energy source 205
and filtered air is utilized as the energy-transfer medium in the
fluid-light unit 206. The LED array 207 has two independently
controlled drive channels that are separated from the
energy-transfer medium by the conduits 215 and 232. The conduit 215
attaches the blue LEDs 228 to the process controller 230 and
provides the independently controlled drive channel. Ideally, the
blue LEDs 228 have a spectral output centered at 465 nm. The second
conduit 232 attaches the red LEDs 226, ideally centered at 660 nm,
to the process controller 230 providing the other independently
controlled drive channel.
[0143] The LEDs 226, 228 are selected such that when both channels
are fully driven, there is a total radiant energy of 10 watts with
a radiant energy ratio of 2:1, blue to red. Independent control of
intensity and on/off duration for each color channel is implemented
with an industrial computer, process controller 230, typical of
simple industrial process control applications. Total radiant
energy and the ratio of blue to red are adjusted to reduce energy
usage during periods of peak energy cost. In addition, continual
process metrics are used as a basis for adjustment of the spectral
distribution to maintain healthy metabolic activity of the culture
or to target specific production objectives, such as an increase in
red light to promote lipid production.
[0144] Some artificial light sources such as metal halide gas
discharge lamps, provide very efficient sources of photonic energy
but do not have the narrow spectra of LEDs. A large portion of the
spectral content are in areas that are either not useful or are
harmful to the target organisms. Light from such a source can be
filtered by controllable dichroic filters by reflecting the
unproductive heat and spectra to another process, such as
photovoltaic cells or heat engines.
[0145] Another approach to control of spectral content of the light
source is to filter or isolate a set of frequencies from a broad
spectrum source. Filtering or isolation is used to limit the
spectral content of delivered light to only contain wavelengths
which can be absorbed and utilized by the target organisms. A
particularly useful broad spectrum photonic energy source is solar
radiation from the sun. When solar radiation is available, a
combination of dichroic mirrors or other light splitting technology
can be used to isolate a first set of frequencies to produce the
light source only containing wavelengths useful for growth of the
target organism. The light source formed by the first set can then
be coupled into a waveguide and distributed to the organisms in a
remote growth environment. The remaining frequencies isolated from
the first set, form a second set containing energy unproductive to
growth of the target organisms. Energy contained in the second set
can be directed to other processes such as conversion to electrical
energy by photovoltaic cells or production of mechanical energy
from a heat engine.
[0146] This approach to delivering filtered solar energy tailored
for the target set of organisms and utilizing the remaining solar
energy for a secondary process, optimizes culture growth from solar
energy and offsets a portion of operating costs through generation
of useful energy. A further increase in culture growth rate can be
achieved through 24-hour production. Implementation of a hybrid
photonic energy source may consist of filtered solar light and an
artificial light source that provides a 24-hour light source
optimized for efficient production of phototrophic organisms. The
filtered solar light may be captured remotely and delivered to the
growth environment through a wave guide while sunlight is
available. To improve efficiency, the artificial light source may
have a spectral content control and may be produced locally to the
growth environment.
[0147] Many of the advantages gained by spectral control of the
light delivered to a set phototrophic organisms are well known in
the industry. These include conservation of photonic energy,
reduction of heat loading in the growth environment, as well as
optimizing production of biomass or various metabolites. The
disclosed method of light delivery improves efficiency to the point
where artificial production of light and deployment of technologies
for control of spectral content becomes available to wide range
applications.
[0148] Instrumentation Aperture Embodiment
[0149] In the "instrumentation aperture" embodiment, transmission
of photonic energy through the fluid energy-transfer medium can
also be used for measuring important parameters related to culture
growth. As illustrated in FIGS. 11 and 12, light can be projected
from one aperture 244 in an instrumentation arm 248, through the
culture medium, toward a photoreceptor 246 stationed in another
aperture 242 in an adjacent instrumentation arm 250. The
instrumentation arms 248, 250 may attach to the exterior of the
fluid-light unit 206 so that as the culture medium passes by the
fluid-light unit 206 the photoreceptor 246 can measure selective
parameters of the culture medium.
[0150] The photoreceptor 246 can measure the selective absorption
of certain frequencies. For example, green frequencies are
relatively poorly utilized by microorganisms currently in
commercial production. The photoreceptor 246 can detect decreases
in the amount of green light received, which thereby provides a
measure of the increasing density of organisms in the culture.
[0151] In contrast, light in the blue region is more likely to be
absorbed by chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, or carotene pigments. The
contrast in the differential absorption of blue and green light
provides a coarse but inexpensive measure of photosynthetic
activity. More elaborate control of the frequencies projected and
careful measurement of the frequencies received can be controlled
to selectively measure the activity of a variety of photo-sensitive
pigments. The selective absorption of the frequencies or the
frequency shifts resulting from florescence are measurable
parameters. These measures of culture density and photosynthetic
activity allow more efficient allocation of spectra and intensity
of light depending on the stage of growth and organisms being
cultivated.
[0152] However, both the photonic energy source and the
photoreceptor 246 in such measurements are subject to biofilming if
they are directly exposed to the culture medium. One current
method, which can be used to avoid deleterious effects from
biofilming of measuring instrumentation, involves periodically
collecting discrete samples of the culture-containing culture
medium followed by cleaning of the instrumentation between samples.
This effectively avoids biofilming by allowing only brief exposure
of the instrumentation, but it is labor intensive and does not lend
itself well to high frequency sampling or automation.
[0153] Advantageously, the flowing energy-transfer medium
separating the culture medium from the photonic energy source at
the projection location (i.e., the interface plate 208) and from
the photoreceptor 246 at the receiving location solves the problem
of biofilming and allows continual, automated, and on-line
monitoring for responsive process control. More particularly, the
energy transfer medium may pass through the arms 248, 250 and form
replenishing lenses 241, 243 at the apertures 242, 244,
respectively. In the illustrated embodiment of FIGS. 11 and 12, the
projection aperture 244 and the reception aperture 242 may be
placed approximately 5 cm apart. This distance is a compromise that
allows enough culture to pass between the two apertures 242, 244 to
allow measurement at an early stage of growth and still allows
sufficient light to pass through a dense culture to allow
measurement in a later stage of growth. The exact distance could be
modified to adapt to different circulation conditions.
[0154] In one embodiment, a blue projection light 252 is provided
by an LED centered at 465 nm and a green projection light 254 is
provided by an LED centered at 530 nm. The photoreceptor 246 can be
a standard photodiode or any other suitable photoreceptor. The
energy-transfer medium may pass through the arms 248, 250 to exit
at both apertures 244, 242 to create an interface between the
projection lights 252, 254, the photoreceptor 246, and the culture
medium. In one embodiment, filtered water may flow through the arms
to prevent biofilming at the apertures 242, 244. The projecting and
receiving apertures 242, 244 are mounted on arms 248, 250 that may
extend from the side of the fluid-light unit 206 parallel to the
interface plate 208. This placement allows measurement without the
noise and turbulence provided by the bubbles or drops of
energy-transfer medium rising into the culture medium.
[0155] Various colors may be selected for the light sources 252,
254 to meet the needs of a particular environment. Other types of
instrumentation may replace the photoreceptor 246, such as a camera
or an infrared instrumentation device. For example, the
instrumentation may be configured to continually sample density or
look for changes in photosynthetic parameters.
[0156] In an alternative embodiment, a single arm may be provided
that incorporates instrumentation directed to collecting
measurements by reflection from the culture medium. The single arm
may have more than one aperture so that multiple components on the
single arm interact with the culture. Together, these embodiments
of the flowing energy-transfer medium provide a wide range of
control mechanisms to optimize the delivery of light. The specific
measures taken to optimize photonic energy coupling will depend on
system variables such as, specific needs of the organisms being
cultivated, properties of the culture medium, density of the
culture in the culture medium, incorporation of nutrients into the
energy-transfer medium, shape and size of the environment adapted
for growing cultures, rate and method of culture medium
circulation, and production objectives.
[0157] Distribution Array Embodiment
[0158] As described above, the energy-transfer medium serves
several functions, which include, but are not limited to: providing
a conduit for the transmission of photonic energy into the culture
medium, shielding the photonic energy source 205 from the effects
of biofilming, distributing light into the culture by acting as a
source of lenses, such as bubble 212a that replenish themselves and
therefore are not subject to biofilming, and distributing light
through the culture by breaking into many bubbles 212 or drops that
scatter incident photonic energy where "scatter" means at least one
among reflecting, refracting, and diffracting the incident light
(see FIGS. 7, 7A, and 13). This scattering decreases vulnerability
to self-shading in a very dense culture. In this function, the
energy-transfer medium provides a "distribution array" into which
the photonic energy is projected for the purpose of scattering
light.
[0159] In the "distribution array" embodiment, one energy-transfer
medium is optimized for providing a photonic energy distribution
array and a different energy-transfer medium is optimized for
providing a transmission conduit from the photonic energy source
205 into the culture medium. As described above, it is advantageous
in some circumstances, to provide the energy-transfer medium with
optimized light coupling properties. It is additionally
advantageous to provide the "distribution array" that scatters the
photonic energy once it enters the culture medium. A gaseous
energy-transfer medium injected into the culture medium, producing
rising bubbles, can function as the effective distribution array.
However, the gaseous energy-transfer medium does not necessarily
provide the most efficient light transmission conduit from the
photonic energy source into the culture medium. An additional
energy-transfer medium may be used to provide the array of bubbles
that scatter and evenly distribute the incident light within the
culture medium. These energy-transfer media jointly introduce and
distribute photonic energy into the culture, but can be separately
optimized.
[0160] FIG. 13 illustrates an embodiment of the "distribution
array." The fluid-light unit 206 as described above may provide the
energy-transfer medium that provides the array of bubbles that
scatter and distributed light in the culture medium. The
fluid-light unit 206 may have the interface plate 208 with holes
222 attached, which may shield the photonic energy source 205 from
the culture medium. As described above, piping 214 attaches to the
fluid-light unit 206 to feed the energy-transfer medium into the
fluid-light unit 206. The conduit 215 may pass through piping 214
to couple the photonic energy source 205 to the process controller
230 (see FIG. 6).
[0161] The embodiment in FIG. 13 is intended for a relatively deep
container, such as the bioreactor 202 described above. Filtered air
enters the culture through a ring-shaped pipe 236 that has a line
of closely-spaced holes 238, 1/16 inch in diameter. This
ring-shaped pipe 236 fits around the fluid-light unit 206 having
the interface through which the energy-transfer medium coupling the
photonic energy flows. The ring-shaped pipe 236 may be placed
approximately two inches below the interface plate 208 and depends
on the rate of flow of the energy-transfer medium. This allows the
array of bubbles to form and rise into the path of the
energy-transfer medium that is introducing the photonic energy and
thus optimizes the "distribution array's" ability to scatter and
distribute light through the passing culture.
[0162] A supply pipe 240 couples to the ring-shaped pipe 236 and
provides the energy-transfer medium that distributes the photonic
energy. The supply pipe 240 may provide filtered air to the
ring-shaped pipe 236 so that bubbles will form at the holes 238
spaced around the ring-shaped pipe 236. The filtered air may
include nutrients. FIG. 14 shows an alternative embodiment intended
for placement in a raceway that is relatively shallow. Filtered air
is used as the energy-transfer medium to function as a distribution
array 402 introduced into the culture medium through an aperture
pipe 404 that has a line of closely-spaced holes 422 1/16 inch in
diameter. This aperture pipe 404 is placed orthogonal to the flow
of the energy-transfer medium that is introducing the photonic
energy from a photonic energy source 405 in a light distribution
unit 406. A gas or liquid energy-transfer medium may be fed into
the light distribution unit 406 to couple the photonic energy into
the culture. The light distribution unit 406 includes an aperture
414 where the energy-transfer medium couples the photonic energy.
Utilizing liquid energy-transfer medium will cause less reflection
back to the photonic energy source 405, less internal scatter
before entering the culture medium, and the possibility of allowing
a larger aperture and acceptance angle.
[0163] The placement of the aperture pipe 404 is as close as
possible to a bottom 410 of the shallow environment without being
clogged by sediment, and approximately two inches downstream from
the photonic-energy aperture 414. The downstream distance from the
photonic-energy aperture 414 can be adjusted dependant on flow rate
of the culture medium in the raceway. This allows the array 402 of
fine bubbles 412 to form and rise into the path of the photonic
energy being introduced, thus optimizing the "distribution array's"
ability to scatter and distribute light through the passing
culture. The dynamics of bubble 412 formation change drastically
based on the rate of circulation, the species being grown, and the
changing density of the culture.
[0164] The described embodiments may be combined to meet the needs
of the specific culture or species of algae grown. The various
illustrated embodiments of the fluid-light unit 206 may be modified
to comply with different sizes and shapes of bioreactors, raceways,
ponds, or other growth environments.
[0165] FIG. 15 illustrates a production facility 500 having a
plurality of bioreactors 502a, 502b, and 502c configured to employ
an embodiment of the present disclosure. The bioreactors 502 may be
any size or shape based on the capacity of the production facility
500 and the culture being grown. Each bioreactor 502 provides a
production space 503 adapted to contain the culture medium and to
efficiently distribute photonic energy through the culture medium
in the production space 203.
[0166] Three fluid-light units 506 are located on a bottom surface
505 of each bioreactor 502 and may be include any of the features
described above with respect of the fluid-light units 206 of FIGS.
2-7A and 9-13. More particularly, each fluid-light unit 506
includes a photonic energy source (not shown) that is separated
from the culture medium in the production space 503 by an interface
508. The separation of the photonic energy source from the culture
medium prevents biofilming.
[0167] An air-lift unit 504 is centered on a central axis of each
bioreactor 502 and positioned above the fluid-light units 506. A
hollow tube 510 attaches to the air-lift unit 504 to provide
control circuitry and/or the energy transfer medium to the
fluid-light units 506 and the air-lift unit 504. A first pipe 512
may provide filtered air while a second pipe 514 may provide
nutrient gas to the air-lift unit 504 and to the fluid-light units
506. A third pipe 516 may provide a nutrient fluid to the
fluid-light units 506. Other pipes may be incorporated into the
production facility 500 to couple an external process controller
(not shown) to the fluid-light units 506 and the air-lift unit
504.
[0168] The air-lift unit 504 may have a manifold 522 extending from
a lower portion of the air-lift unit 504 and positioned overlying
each fluid-light unit 506. The manifold 522 may have a plurality of
holes drilled into a top surface that release filtered air,
nutrient gas, or other fluid provided by the pipes 512 and 514.
This arrangement is intended to ensure that the nutrients are fully
and rapidly mixed into the culture medium. As the air or nutrient
gas is released into the culture medium bubbles form and travel
away from the fluid-light units 506. The air-lift bubbles help
distribute the photonic energy coupled into the culture medium by
the fluid-light units 506.
[0169] A connector 530 extends from the air-lift unit 504 to a
device 524 that distributes the energy transfer medium to the
fluid-light units 506 and may distribute the control circuitry to
the photonic energy sources within the fluid-light units 506. The
fluid-light units 506 attach to the distribution device 524 through
another connector 526.
[0170] A pair of synchronized peristaltic pumps, in this case a
harvest pump 519 and a nutrient pump 520, introduce nutrients and
harvest the culture at equal volumes to maintain consistent volume
and bio-mass density. The pumps 519, 520 may be controlled by
sensors (not shown) to more precisely control the parameters of the
culture in the bioreactor 502. Additional pipes 532 and 534 connect
the pumps 519 and 520 with a nutrient supply or a harvest container
(not shown). The pipes 532 and 534 may connect to other bioreactors
502b and 502c in the production facility 500. Each bioreactor 502
may have an individual set of the pumps 519 and 520, the associated
pipes connecting the pumps 519 and 520 to the bioreactor 502, and
the other components discussed with respect to bioreactor 502a. The
features and size of the bioreactors 502 may be varied to meet the
production needs of various facilities. This system may be
manufactured as modular components for individualized production
facilities as well as for the ease of maintenance. In addition,
several systems may be run in parallel to meet industrial and
environmental needs.
[0171] FIG. 16 shows a group of fluid-light units 606 that are
individually connected to a supply line 614 or central
communication pipe via connection pipes 612. Each fluid-light unit
606 may be incorporated into a bioreactor or other growth
environment, which is not shown for ease of illustration. The
supply line 614 provides the energy-transfer medium to the
connection pipes 612 and each fluid-light unit 606. A flow
regulator 608 controls the flow of the energy-transfer medium into
the fluid-light unit 606 to meet the needs of the culture medium. A
sensor (not shown) may detect changes in parameters of the culture
medium and transmit control signals to the flow regulator 608 to
adjust the entry of the energy-transfer medium as needed.
[0172] Each fluid-light unit 606 has the dedicated flow regulator
608 to compensate for pressure differential along the supply line
614. Conditions of the local growth environment may influence flow
properties, such as culture density, depth of the fluid-light unit,
and temperature. Without flow regulators 608 fluid-light units 606
further away from a main source of the energy-transfer medium would
see significantly lower flows than the fluid-light units 606
located closer to the main source.
[0173] The described embodiments are advantageous because of
independence from the diurnal, seasonal, and geographic limitations
of sunlight, the higher production rate from a fixed amount of
equipment, and a smaller footprint. The embodiments experience a
higher output rate due to 24-hour production. In addition, the
CO.sub.2 waste consumption ability of the algae or other
autotrophic organisms can stay continuously on line.
[0174] Although efficient light delivery is particularly important
for autotrophic organisms, the system described herein may be used
to cultivate mixotrophic organisms. Additionally, the control and
distribution of light can be used to limit the growth of
undesirable competing organisms.
[0175] The various embodiments described above can be combined to
provide further embodiments. These and other changes can be made to
the embodiments in light of the above-detailed description. In
general, in the following claims, the terms used should not be
construed to limit the claims to the specific embodiments disclosed
in the specification and the claims, but should be construed to
include all possible embodiments along with the full scope of
equivalents to which such claims are entitled. Accordingly, the
claims are not to be limited by the disclosure.
* * * * *