2010 R&D 100 Winner
Algae-based fuels hold the promise of a renewable biofuel that is eco-friendly, cost-effective, and scalable. The Ultrasonic Algal Biofuel Harvester from Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, N.M., uses ultrasonic fields to harvest and extract from algae its lipids and proteins, and recover the water.
The unit is a 4 by 4 by 3 in, three-chamber aluminum and plastic “box” with ultrasonic transducers attached. The low-power harvester has a 600 ml total capacity and uses about 100 mW of power with the transducer operating at a frequency of 1.5 MHz. Three ultrasonic operating regimes—linear high frequency, nonlinear low frequency, and nonlinear high frequency—focus and concentrate fluid-borne cells. Particles that are suspended in the unit’s fluid-filled cavity and exposed to an acoustic standing wave field experience a drift force that varies with frequency, amplitude, and density. By changing the geometry of the ultrasonic wave, particles can be spatially separated. Repeating the process on lysed algae results in three output streams—lipids, proteins, and water.
The lipids can then be refined into biofuel, the proteins added to animal feedstock, and the water recycled for immediate use to grow more algae. While current methods exist that address each process separately, no other single method extracts all three algae components in one integrated system.
Technology
Biofuel extractor
Developers
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Development Team
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| (l-r): Gregory R. Goddard, David L. Hill |
The Ultrasonic Algal Biofuel Harvester Development Team from Los Alamos National Laboratory
Gregory R. Goddard
David L. Hill
