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Bio World Congress 2013

Algae biomass production in co-location with

the aluminium industry to reduce its fossil

consumption

Simon Barnabé & collaborators

Industrial research chair on environment and biotechnology (CRIEB)

University of Quebec at Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Canada

June 18, Montreal

Algae production projects in Canada

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Now leading the Algal Carbon Conversion Flagship

Many institutions working on algae, but very few businesses

National Research Council of Canada NRC-Halifax Working on algae production for the last 40 years

NRC-Halifax + Canadian Natura + Ponds Biofuels Alberta new co-located project with oil sands industry

Algae group lead by D, Levin

Technological choices and challenges in algae biomass production

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Key factors in algae biomass production

• Adequate technological choices – Products & coproducts ?

• Marketable or usable on place or locally ?

– Strain

• Native, pure or consortium ?

– Type of production

• Heterotrophic (organic C sources), photoautotrophic (CO2+light), mixotrophic?

• Overcoming challenges or major issues such as : – Productivity and stability of production

– Contamination

– Climate conditions VS algae growth and use of waste energy

– Variability of composition in nutrient waste

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Key factors in algae biomass production

• Overcoming challenges or major issues such as : – Secure C, N and P sources

– Surface area required

– Work volume / depth of ponds / light management

– Reactor design VS complexity of scale-up

– CO2 capture

– Cost of harvesting and conditioning steps, specially for low value products such as biofuels

• …Case by case scenarios

• …Co-locating with an operational industrial plant or factory

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Advantages of co-location for algae biomass production

• Access to waste energy, waste nutrients and CO2

– Reduction of algae production cost

– Phycoremediation of wastewaters

– Possibility to use local waste nutrients and then contributing to the host community

• Possibility to use equipments/technologies available on site for the production, harvesting and conditioning of algae biomasse – Capital costs reduction

– Revitalizing local infractructures or local expertises : contributing more to the host community

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Co-locating with an aluminium factory

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Integrating algae derived fuels production in the aluminium industry at Quebec province of Canada

Rio Tinto Alcan INTL (RTA), UQTR, Alga-Labs, Innofibre & CNETE

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Context

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• Why RTA consider biomass as a source of renewable energy and fuel ?

! Difficulty to secure the supply of forest biomass and residues

despite its abundance in the area • Why not producing its own biomass by producing algae using

its wastewaters ?

It is a way to secure the biomass Partnership with a algae producer is needed Local synergy with C sources suppliers = impact on the

host community

A co-locate and multi-sectorial approach

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Pyrolysis with industrial residues

or wet extraction Upgraded Bio-oil

Smelter Burning

High rich lipid algae biomass

Harvesting and dewatering using

pulp & paper technologies

Local C, N, P sources

Waste C, nutrients & energy

Cell disruption and oil extraction using

pulp & paper techniques Biodiesel Glycerol

Heterotrophic algae production

(AlgafuelTM)

Biogas Digestion

Native strain well adapted to industrial wastewaters AlgafuelTM – patent tank configuration

Mixotrophy is explored, but focus on heterotrophy

Research program (1,2 M CAN$, 2011-2014)

Strain & culture (Objective 1)

Burning, biofuels, biogas (objective 4)

Alga-Fuel TM

10m3 tank

Pulp & paper technologies (objective 3)

Algae biomass

Oil, residues

AlgaFuelTM 10m3 (objective 2)

Results

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• Adapted and robust algae strains • A receipt using smelter wastewater

and in situ and local C sources

• …Our algae culture will need a lot

of C, N, P at higher scale Looking for local and cheap sources

of N and P BioFuelNet project on using

cellulosic hydrolysates as C sources

Productivity

Biomass 0,97 g∙L-1∙j-1

Neutral lipids 0,03 g∙L-1∙j-1

Neutral lipids (%) 13% 400L tank

Work under progress

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• Harvesting, dewatering and cell rupture of algae biomass using pulp and paper equipment at laboratory and pilot scale

• Oil extraction using switchable

solvents • Production in 10m3 Alga-FuelTM

tank

• Modifying culture conditions to increase cells and lipids productivity

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Main teams and partners

A university-college-industry synergy

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Funding agencies

Coming soon : Co-location with a pulp & paper mill

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Thanks for your attention ! UQTR Algae biologist and engineer team

Simon Barnabé, Ph.D. Kokou Adjallé, Ph.D.

Industrial Research Chair on Environment & Biotechnology University of Quebec at Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, QC, Canada

Tél.: 1-819-376-5011, poste 4531

Courriel : simon.barnabe@uqtr.ca

Site web: www.uqtr.ca/crieb

Dedicated to the relauch of local communities

and to the revitilization of local infrastructures and expertises

With a multisectorial, inter-community & socio-economic sustainbility approach

Using industrial microbiology and fermentation processes as a sustainable tools

Combing university and college forces to accelerate innovation and train the best technicians, professionals and scientists for emerging sectors

CRIEB