How Algaculture Works

Algae, shown here floating on the top of a pond, may look humble, but have the potential to help change the energy industry -- if only we find efficient ways to cultivate them.
Hemera/Thinkstock

When is a weed not a weed? The simple answer is: when it's seaweed. Today, algae -- which can take the form of a water-borne weed or ordinary pond scum -- holds immense promise for supplying us with everything from animal feed to jet fuel.

Algaculture is the commercial cultivation of algae. Algae (the singular is "alga," Latin for "seaweed," but you'll rarely find just one) are simple green plants that grow in water. Their green color means they produce their own food using photosynthesis, just like grass, trees and corn. Algae come in two main forms. Macroalgae are seaweeds. Kelp grows to more than 180 feet (55 meters) long in the ocean [source: Edwards]. Nori is the variety you'll find wrapped around your sushi. Microalgae are tiny, single-celled plants that float in the water, each one visible only through a microscope.

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Algaculture is nothing new. Seaweed was first cultivated in Japan at least 1,500 years ago and algae production is still a big business there [source: Guiry]. Dulse has long been eaten in the British Isles and the microalgae spirulina were harvested by the Aztecs of 16th-century Mexico. In addition to providing human food, seaweeds have been used for fertilizers. They provide the food thickener carrageen and other gelling agents and stabilizers that show up in everything from soup to toothpaste. Worldwide, algae production is a $6 billion business [source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations].

Today, algae are attracting new interest and resarch investment because of their potential to provide energy and combat environmental threats. Part of the organic mass of algae takes the form of oil, which can be squeezed out and converted to biodiesel fuel. Algae beat land plants hands down in the efficiency with which they produce oil. Some varieties of algae yield an oil that can be refined into gasoline and even jet fuel. The carbohydrate portion of the plants can be fermented for ethanol production.

Algae can convert waste carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that pours from smokestacks, to usable products. They can help clean dirty water, converting pollutants to biomass. They have additional uses in pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.

With all this potential, this "weed" certainly seems to deserve a closer look.

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The Promise of Algae

Why have algae generated excitement and attracted research investment in recent years? Like all green plants, algae contain chloroplasts in their cells. These tiny structures are charged with chlorophyll, a molecule that uses light energy to combine carbon and water into a simple sugar. The cells further transform some of these sugars into proteins and lipids or oil.

But if algae are doing the same thing as corn, wheat and apple trees, why bother raising them? After all, corn on the cob, sweet rolls and apple pie taste better than seaweed to most of us. Here are some of the things algae have going for them:

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  • Productivity: Algae are super fast-growing. Land plants take months or years to reach maturity. Algae can complete their entire life cycle in a single day. Some algae can double their biomass in just an hour [source: Jha].
  • Efficiency: When it comes to converting solar energy to biomass, algae are all business. Because they're supported by and take their nutrients directly from water, they need no roots, stems or flowers. Land plants use as much as 95 percent of their energy building the structures they need for support, feeding and breeding [source: Edwards].
  • Concentration: Because of their efficiency, algae can be grown in a very concentrated space. They produce up to 100 times more oil per acre than land plants [source: Edwards].
  • Versatility: It's estimated that there are more than 70,000 species of algae, many of them not yet classified [source: Guiry]. Growers can pick ones suited to conditions and goals, selecting varieties for a specific temperature range or water salinity, for example.
  • Non-competition: Algae don't compete with current crops for land or fresh water. They can be grown in ponds in locations, like deserts, that don't sustain land plants. Some varieties prefer saline or polluted water.

Attracted by all these advantages, algae cultivators have been working diligently to come up with efficient and economical ways to grow and harvest the plants. The cost factor is currently the great challenge that must be overcome to make algae commercially viable.

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Commercial Cultivation of Algae

All algaculture requires three basics: water, light and nutrients.

Water's the easiest. It doesn't need to be potable; different types of algae grow nicely in fresh water, salt water and dirty water. Sunlight, because it's free, is the preferred light. But sunlight reaches only 3 or 4 inches (7 to 10 centimeters) into a mass of algae, so growers must agitate the algae to expose all of it to the light [source: Chemeurope.com]. The main nutrient is carbon dioxide, which can come from the air or other source. Agitation or bubbling dissolves it into the water. The grower must supply other nutrients, like nitrogen and trace elements, if they aren't already in the water.

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There are three basic systems for cultivating algae, each with its advantages and disadvantages:

  1. Open pond: The simplest and cheapest way to grow algae is in large, shallow ponds. The water is often divided into concentric lanes or raceways, with paddlewheels to move the algae mixture in a circle. This helps bring algae to the surface, where they're exposed to light, and mixes nutrients and carbon dioxide into the liquid. The open-pond method produces less algae biomass than other methods. It loses water to evaporation, so more must be added. And it allows for contamination by predators or undesirable algae.
  2. Closed pond: This method is similar to an open pond, but the water is covered by a Plexiglas greenhouse. This raises the cost, but allows greater control of the process. It reduces evaporation and contamination and extends the growing season. Growers can raise algae year-round if the space is heated.
  3. Biophotoreactor: A completely closed system, the biophotoreactor consists of glass or acrylic tubes where the algae are exposed to light. Pumps move the water, nutrients and algae through the tubes and storage tanks. Some reactors automatically harvest the algae when they're ready. This approach gives growers the most control over the process and the most efficient way to produce algae biomass. But it's also the most costly to set up and operate.

All of these systems are designed for growing microalgae, the one-celled varieties that float in water. Growers usually cultivate macroalgae in the open sea. The water already contains the nutrients the algae need and provides good growing conditions. The traditional method was simply to harvest wild seaweed, and this is still done in coastal areas around the world.

With increased demand, growers began to cultivate seaweed. For some varieties, such as kelp, spores are attached to ropes that are then anchored in the ocean and the seaweed is allowed to grow. Other types grow from pieces of seaweed that are fixed to nets or deposited in pools.

Agriculture has been around for 10,000 years [source: Lienhard]. Algaculture is relatively new. Scientists and engineers are actively studying the best ways to raise algae efficiently. The harvesting of plants is another subject of intense research.

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Harvesting and Processing Algae

A worker stacks baskets of harvested algae at the waterfront.
iStockphoto/Thinkstock

Harvesting microalgae means removing the microscopic plants from the water in which they grow and concentrating them into a paste. The grower then needs to remove the moisture, leaving a dense biomass. The minute size of microalgae presents a problem when it comes to harvesting.

One method is filtration. The grower can run the water containing the algae through a cellulose membrane whose pores are smaller than the algae cells. This can be difficult because filters quickly fill up with algae and become clogged. Researchers are looking for better ways to efficiently filter algae.

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Flocculation, another method of harvest, means getting the algae to clump together. Adding chemicals or types of algae that naturally clump can cause microalgae to form clumps that become easier to gather.

Another way to harvest algae is by flotation. Here, the grower uses compressed air to create a froth of bubbles and algae that brings the tiny plants to the surface where they can be skimmed off.

A centrifuge is yet another harvest method. Spinning a container filled with water and algae causes the algae to collect in one end.

In order to harvest their crops most effectively, algaculture growers sometimes combine these methods. They might use flocculation to form algae clumps, then separate them with flotation or a centrifuge. Coming up with a truly efficient way to harvest microalgae is a key to bringing down the cost of cultivation.

Harvesting macroalgae involves different problems. Gathering wild seaweed is a labor-intensive process. Some types of seaweed grown in controlled conditions can be gathered in nets. Kelp raised on ropes can be hauled out and hung up to dry. Kelp forests in shallow seas can be mowed by machines, taking off the tops of undersea kelp beds.

Once harvested, algae must be drained of its water and dried. A centrifuge can spin water out, but is relatively expensive. Some systems combine harvest and processing, spreading the algae on belt filters that let the water drain through, then removing more water using a capillary medium that draws water out of the biomass of algae.

The next step is to break down the cell walls of the algae in order to extract the oil inside. The algae are put through a screw or piston press. Chemicals, electromagnetic pulses or ultrasound may also be used to break down the cells. When the oil has been drained off, the remaining biomass is compressed into a cake to be used as to supplement animal feed or as a fertilizer.

Algae have found a wide range of uses, the most exciting ones in the energy field.

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The Many Uses for Algae

The buzz about algae is that it's an ideal source of renewable energy and could be the ultimate green fuel. Research by the U.S. government and companies like Boeing, Chevron and Honeywell are developing ways to make algaculture an economically viable foundation for a new generation of energy [source: Chemeurope.com]. Part of the attraction is the range of fuels into which algae can be converted.

  • Biodiesel is the simplest way to tap algae's energy potential. Like any vegetable oil, oil from algae can be chemically transformed into biodiesel fuel. Compared to land plants like soybeans or corn, algae use less land and fresh water, grow faster and have higher concentrations of oil.
  • Refined transportation fuels are another area of promise for algae. Some algae produce oil that can be refined into gasoline or even jet fuel, and without the sulfur and nitrogen compounds in petroleum. Manufacturers can process it in the same refineries as petroleum-based stock. In 2011, the first commercial jet flight powered by algal oil flew from Houston to Chicago [source: Fehrenbacher].
  • Ethanol, which is commonly added to gasoline, can be produced from algae as well as land plants. Besides oil, algae are made up from carbohydrates and cellulose walls. These materials can be fermented by yeast into ethanol or grain alcohol.
  • Methane, the main ingredient in natural gas, is produced when bacteria digest algae. A clean and versatile fuel, methane can be used to produce electricity or power vehicles. It represents another biofuel option for algae.

Algae actually thrive on polluted water, which means they can be used for waste water treatment. Algae turn pollutants from municipal, industrial or agricultural waste water into usable byproducts like animal feed or biomass for conversion to energy. Algae naturally accumulate heavy metals for removal or recycling.

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Because carbon dioxide, the greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change, is algae's favorite food, the plants can be used for carbon capture. They convert the gas to organic carbon compounds at a far faster clip than land plants. One pound (453.6 grams) of algae consumes 2 pounds (907.2 grams) of carbon dioxide [source: Edwards]. Feed the waste gas of a coal-burning power plant into a mass of algae, and they literally eat it up. Waste gas can be stored for permanent elimination from the atmosphere, or converted to fuel to cut the use of fossil fuels.

Algae continue play a role as human food and supplements. People eat seaweed in salads and sushi and take supplements made from the microalgae spirulina. Algae provide complete protein, omega-3 fatty acids and vitamins. Carageen is extracted from red seaweed known as Irish moss and used as a thickener.

Algae are also being used as feed for cattle and for marine animals like shrimp and shellfish. The biomass left after algae have been processed can sometimes be applied as organic fertilizer to farm fields. Algae find minor uses in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals as well.

Research into growing, harvesting and processing algae is advancing on many fronts. Given its immense value, there's no doubt that this simple "weed" will play a growing role in the future of our society and economy.

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Author's Note

Before researching this article, I honestly didn't know that algae and seaweed were different forms of the same little green plant. I'm amazed at algae's potential in so many directions: food, energy, pollution control. Pilot projects seem to be popping up everywhere, from seaweed experiments in Long Island Sound to biodiesel efforts in West Virginia to a carbon-absorption project in Oregon. I've gotten the impression that we may very well be on the verge of an algae revolution.

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Sources

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