Capture and recycle of industrial CO2 emissions using microalgae

Abstract

A novel cyclic flow photobioreactor (PBR) for the capture and recycle of CO2 using microalgae was designed and deployed at a coal-fired power plant (Duke Energy’s East Bend Station). The PBR was operated continuously during the period May–September 2015, during which algae productivity of typically 0.1–0.2 g/(L day) was obtained. Maximum CO2 capture efficiency was achieved during peak sunlight hours, the largest recorded CO2 emission reduction corresponding to a value of 81 % (using a sparge time of 5 s/min). On average, CO2 capture efficiency during daylight hours was 44 %. The PBR at East Bend Station also served as a secondary scrubber for NO x and SO x , removing on average 41.5 % of the NO x and 100 % of the SO x from the flue gas. The effect of solar availability and self-shading on a rudimentary digital model of the cyclic flow PBR was examined using Autodesk Ecotect Analysis software. Initial results suggest that this is a promising tool for the optimization of PBR layout with respect to the utilization of available solar radiation.