KR20130128869A

KR20130128869A - Apparatus for producing of microalgae

Info

Publication number: KR20130128869A
Application number: KR1020120052996A
Authority: KR
Inventors: 박종석; 이학로; 권일한
Original assignee: 재단법인 포항산업과학연구원
Priority date: 2012-05-18
Filing date: 2012-05-18
Publication date: 2013-11-27
Also published as: KR101886214B1

Abstract

The present invention provides an apparatus for producing microalgae. The apparatus for producing microalgae is provided with a reaction container formed of a tubular member of transparent materials and having space for culturing microalgae therein, and multiple light-emitting units emitting light for cultivating the microalgae inside the reaction container and comprising an organic light-emitting diode, wherein the light-emitting units are movable such that either sunlight or artificial light can be emitted to the inside of the reaction container.

Description

Microalgae Production Equipment {APPARATUS FOR PRODUCING OF MICROALGAE}

The present invention relates to a microalgae production apparatus, and more particularly to a microalgae production apparatus for increasing the culture efficiency of microalgae.

Recently, as industrial emission CO₂ is pointed out as the main culprit of global warming, researches are actively underway to utilize microalgae to fix CO₂.

Microalgae have been used for the purpose of producing useful materials such as fuel materials, cosmetics, feeds, food coloring materials and medicinal raw materials since they can perform various functions such as treatment of wastewater and immobilization of carbon dioxide due to various abilities , And valuable high-value-added materials have been continuously discovered and are expanding their use.

There are many factors such as the composition, temperature, pH, light intensity, and light amount of the medium, which affect the biomass weight and the useful product of microalgae.

In general, a device for culturing photosynthetic microalgae for the purpose of immobilization of carbon dioxide can be roughly classified into an open system (open system) and a closed system (microbiological reactor).

However, this type of culture facility has the advantages of low initial investment and easy maintenance, but it is difficult to clean, separation and purification, low cell concentration, large substrate (especially nitrogen source), high water quality and quantity demand, irregular climate The installation is very limited due to problems such as conditions and expensive labor costs.

Therefore, due to these problems, the outdoor mass culture apparatus is difficult to be applied in a country where it is difficult to secure a site necessary for the installation of a reaction facility, such as in Korea, and thus, a small size and a small size called an indoor type capable of high concentration culture. Research and development of various microalgae light incubator.

Currently, there are various types of light incubators for producing microalgae, such as linear, tubular, flat, and complex types, and the light source used for this is a fluorescent lamp, a discharge lamp, or an LED experimentally recently.

In this type of light incubator, efficient transmission of light becomes the most important point in the design of the incubator. This is because when the concentration of microalgae cells is low, batch, gas injection, etc. are the most important factors for cell proliferation, but when the high concentration is reached, luminous intensity becomes the most important factor.

However, fluorescent lamps, which occupy most of the light sources currently used, have a problem in that utilization efficiency decreases due to scattering and reflection of light when installed to cultivate microalgae using sunlight in the daytime and artificial light at night. In addition, in the case of LED, the intensity of light depends on the current, and the current-voltage characteristic is greatly changed according to the temperature of the device. As a result, the drive circuit of the current control method should be used.

In addition, when designing an incubator using an artificial light source such as a fluorescent lamp or an LED, the microalgae on the surface of the incubator on the side where the light source is installed are sufficiently irradiated with light, but there is a limit to evenly illuminating all the microalgae inside the incubator. There is, there is a problem that does not supply enough amount of light required to grow microalgae.

The present invention has been proposed in order to solve the conventional problems as described above, the objective aspect is to increase the cultivation efficiency of microalgae, using the high light source continuously for four hours, four seasons, increase the production and control the microalgae To provide production equipment.

In another aspect, an object of the present invention is to provide a microalgae production apparatus for irradiating a light source uniformly to the microalgae inside the reaction vessel.

As a technical aspect for achieving the above object, the present invention is provided with a space for culturing microalgae therein, a reaction vessel formed of a tubular member of a transparent material; and culturing the microalgae inside the reaction vessel And a plurality of light emitting parts including an organic light emitting diode for irradiating light, wherein the light emitting parts are provided to be movable so that at least one of sunlight and artificial light is irradiated into the reaction container. Provide production equipment.

Preferably, the light emitting portion is formed in a tube shape surrounding the outer circumferential surface of the reaction vessel and formed to be movable in the longitudinal direction of the reaction vessel, disposed in the reaction vessel at regular intervals, or provided to overlap one side of the reaction vessel. Can be.

On the other hand, preferably, the light emitting portion is mounted on the outer circumferential surface, the moving member connected to the locking ring for moving the light emitting portion in the longitudinal direction of the reaction vessel; may further include a.

Also preferably, the light emitting part may be formed in a tapered tube shape in which diameter decreases toward one direction, and a plurality of light emitting parts may be easily overlapped.

In this case, preferably, the hooks of the plurality of light emitting parts are formed to have different heights, and the movable member is formed to be movable up and down to sequentially move the plurality of light emitting parts.

On the other hand, preferably, the nutrient solution supply unit for supplying a culture solution to the reaction vessel; and the micro-bubble generating means for generating and supplying carbon dioxide as a micro bubble to the nutrient solution supply unit in conjunction with the nutrient solution supply unit; may further include a.

When the microalgae production apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention is used, light is applied to the microalgae using an organic light emitting diode (OLED) having high light source irradiation efficiency under conditions other than at night and using sunlight during the day. By irradiating, it is possible to increase the cultivation efficiency of the microalgae and to increase and regulate the yield, since the high light source is used continuously for 24 hours and four seasons.

In addition, according to an embodiment of the present invention, by producing a reaction vessel in which the microalgae are cultured in a tubular shape and installed to surround the reaction vessel with an organic light emitting diode as a light source, uniformly irradiating the light source to the microalgae inside the reaction vessel Can provide an effect.

In addition, according to an embodiment of the present invention, by movably providing a light emitting unit composed of an organic light emitting diode (OLED), when irradiating sunlight, the light emitting unit does not interfere with the irradiation of the sunlight to the reaction vessel. The light irradiation efficiency can be improved.

1 is a schematic diagram showing a microalgae production apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a view showing the movement of the light emitting unit in the microalgae production apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 3 is an enlarged front view of the light emitting portion of the microalgae production apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 (a) to 4 (c) is an enlarged top view showing the movement of the light emitting unit of the microalgae production apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

First, the embodiments described below are embodiments suitable for understanding the technical features of the present invention microalgae production apparatus. However, the technical features of the present invention are not limited by the embodiments to which the present invention is applied or explained in the following embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the technical scope of the present invention.

Microalgae production apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in the embodiment shown in Figures 1 to 4, comprises a reaction vessel 110, and a light emitting unit 130.

The reaction vessel 110 is provided with a space for culturing microalgae therein, it may be formed of a tubular member of a transparent material.

That is, as shown in the embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2, the reaction vessel 110 may be formed in a tubular shape with a hollow inside, the inlet and outlet of the culture and carbon dioxide on one side and the other side may be formed.

In addition, as shown in the illustrated embodiment, the plurality of tubular reaction vessels 110 are vertically arranged and connected so that the carbon dioxide and the culture solution flow slowly from the top to the bottom to be supplied to the microalgae inside the reaction vessel 110. can do. At this time, the reaction vessel 110 is preferably installed to be inclined so that the flow of the culture solution and carbon dioxide smoothly.

In addition, the reaction vessel 110 may be made of a transparent material having excellent light transmittance. That is, in order to receive sunlight or to receive artificial light from the light emitting unit 130 surrounding the outer circumferential surface of the reaction vessel 110 as described below, the reaction vessel 110 is transparent and light in order to breed the microalgae therein. This is because it must be permeable well. For example, the reaction vessel 110 may be made of a transparent material of tempered glass, polycarbonate, or acrylic series, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the reaction vessel 110 may be manufactured using other materials as long as light transmittance is good. have.

In addition, the arrangement and inclination of the reaction vessel 110 are not limited to the illustrated embodiment, for example, the reaction vessel of the upper layer only by the pressure of the culture solution and carbon dioxide supplied by not tilting the reaction vessel 110 ( It can flow from the 110 to the lower reaction vessel (110). In addition, the reaction vessel 110 may be arranged in multiple layers vertically or horizontally.

On the other hand, the light emitting unit 130 irradiates light for culturing the microalgae in the reaction vessel 110, may include an organic light emitting diode (Organic Electro Luminescence, OLED), it may be composed of a plurality. have.

The organic light emitting diode (OLED) included in the light emitting unit 130 according to the embodiment of the present invention is also called an active light emitting diode or an organic EL, and emits light by using an electroluminescent phenomenon that emits light when a current flows through a fluorescent organic compound. I mean self-luminous organic substance. The organic light emitting diode is formed on both sides of the plastic film thinner than the thickness of the normal paper, and when the low voltage of the battery is applied, the organic light emitting diode can be irradiated with the amount of light comparable to the fluorescent lamp.

The organic light emitting diode (OLED) has a very thin light source structure and can be irradiated in a desired shape by bending or bending the light source as paper. Therefore, the light emitting unit 130 made of the organic light emitting diode can be deformed according to the shape of the reaction container 110 even when the shape of the reaction container 110 is not a rectangular parallelepiped, but is variously applied. There is an advantage that this is possible.

Therefore, as in the embodiment of the present invention, even when the reaction vessel 110 is formed in a tubular shape can be installed so as to surround the entire outer circumferential surface of the reaction vessel 110, microalgae cultured in the reaction vessel 110 There is an advantage that the entire uniform irradiated light source.

At this time, since the electrode is formed on the organic light emitting diode (OLED) to irradiate light by voltage, the microalgae production apparatus is preferably installed in a greenhouse. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and when the microalgae production apparatus is subjected to waterproofing or the like, it may be installed outdoors.

On the other hand, the light emitting unit 130 may be provided to be movable so that at least one of sunlight and artificial light is irradiated into the reaction vessel (110).

Specifically, the light emitting unit 130 is formed in a tube shape surrounding the outer circumferential surface of the reaction vessel 110 and is formed to be movable in the longitudinal direction of the reaction vessel 110, constant in the reaction vessel 110 It may be arranged at intervals, or may be provided to overlap one side of the reaction vessel (110).

That is, the light emitting unit 130 may be arranged in a plurality at regular intervals on the outer circumferential surface of the tubular reaction vessel 110 under conditions in which it is difficult to adequately irradiate sunlight, such as cloudy weather or rainy season or night without light. However, during the day, the light emitter 130 may move to overlap one side in order to sufficiently irradiate sunlight into the reaction vessel 110 and prevent light scattering.

However, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the light emitting unit 130 is shown to be spaced apart by a predetermined distance along the longitudinal direction of the reaction vessel 110, but is not limited thereto. The light emitting unit 130 is not limited thereto. ) May be arranged to expand to surround the entire reaction vessel (110).

Accordingly, the microalgae production apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention emits sufficient sunlight into the reaction vessel 110 during the day, and under other conditions, light emission made of an organic light emitting diode having high light irradiation efficiency. Since the light source 130 can be irradiated by the unit 130, it is possible to provide an effect capable of culturing microalgae continuously for 24 hours and four seasons.

On the other hand, microalgae production apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention, the nutrient solution supply unit 170 for supplying a culture solution to the reaction vessel 110, as shown in Figure 1 and 2, The nutrient solution supply unit 170 may further include a microbubble generating means 180 for generating and supplying carbon dioxide as microbubbles.

The nutrient solution supply unit 170 may be made of a culture tank containing sea water, fresh water, horticulture cultivation solution, etc., connected to the reaction vessel 110 and the nutrient solution supply pipe 171 to the microalgae in the reaction vessel 110 The necessary culture can be supplied. At this time, the nutrient solution supply pipe 171 is provided with a supply pump 173 may supply the culture medium contained in the nutrient solution supply unit 170 to the reaction vessel 110 at a proper flow rate. The supply pump 173 preferably supplies an appropriate flow rate so as to minimize the flow rate of the culture solution introduced into the reaction vessel 110. In addition, the microalgae produced by culturing in the reaction vessel may be stored in the microalgae storage tank 120 connected to the reaction vessel.

On the other hand, the microbubble generating means 180 may be connected to the nutrient solution supply unit 170 to generate and supply carbon dioxide to the nutrient solution supply unit 170 as microbubbles.

That is, the micro-bubble generating means 180 is installed adjacent to the culture tank of the nutrient solution supply unit 170 to generate carbon dioxide as a micro bubble to supply the culture tank. The carbon dioxide micro bubble supplied to the culture tank is supplied to the reaction vessel 110 together with the culture solution.

Accordingly, since carbon dioxide necessary for photosynthesis of the microalgae is supplied in a micro bubble form, carbon dioxide is well dissolved in the culture solution, thereby preventing carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere. Therefore, by increasing the solubility of carbon dioxide in the culture solution it can be obtained the effect of supplying a sufficient amount of carbon dioxide to the microalgae of the reaction vessel (110).

At this time, the micro bubble generating method of the micro-bubble generating means 180 is not limited, and if the carbon dioxide can be supplied in the form of micro-bubbles, a device for generating a conventional micro-bubble may be variously applied.

Meanwhile, referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, the movement operation of the light emitting unit 130 will be described in detail.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the light emitting unit 130 may have a catch ring 131 mounted on an outer circumferential surface thereof, and may be connected to the catch ring 131 so that the light emitter 130 is connected to the light emitter 130. It may further include a moving member 150 for moving in the longitudinal direction of the reaction vessel (110).

The hook 131 may be mounted on a part of an outer circumferential surface of the light emitting unit 130 manufactured in a tubular shape, and the shape of the ring may be formed in various shapes if the moving member 150 to be described later can be caught. .

In addition, the movable member 150 is manufactured in the form of a bar to be caught by the catching ring 131 and caught by the catching ring 131 to move, so that the light emitting unit 130 has the length of the reaction container 110. It can be moved to an appropriate position along the direction.

Accordingly, when the light emitting unit 130 is irradiated with artificial light to the reaction vessel 110, as shown in Figure 1, while being installed to surround the outer peripheral surface of the reaction vessel 110 to be arranged at a predetermined interval in the longitudinal direction Can be. And, when the light emitting unit 130 is irradiated with sunlight to the reaction vessel 110, as shown in Figure 2, the movable member 150 is caught by the hook 131, the light emitting unit 130 Can be moved to one side of the reaction vessel (110).

On the other hand, the light emitting unit 130 is formed in the shape of a tapered tube that is smaller in diameter in one direction may be provided so that a plurality of easily overlap.

That is, one end of the light emitting unit 130 and the other end of the diameter is formed different, so that the other end of the other light emitting unit 130b is fitted to one end of one of the light emitting unit 130a can be easily formed to overlap each other. . Accordingly, when the reaction vessel 110 is irradiated with sunlight, the plurality of light emitting units 130 may easily overlap, so that the reaction vessel 110 may be irradiated with sunlight effectively.

However, the shape of the light emitting unit 130 is not limited to the above, and the plurality of light emitting units 130 are moved to overlap each other, so as not to interfere when irradiating the reaction vessel 110 with sunlight. Various modifications are possible if not possible.

On the other hand, each of the hooks 131 provided in the plurality of light emitting unit 130 is formed in a different height, the moving member 150 is formed to be movable up and down the plurality of light emitting unit 130 Can be moved sequentially.

That is, referring to FIGS. 3 and 4, three neighboring light emitters 130a, 130b, and 130c may be equipped with hooks 131a, 131b, and 131c having different heights. In addition, the movable member 150 may be installed to have a variable height so as to be caught by the respective hooks 131.

3 and 4 (a), when the sunlight is irradiated to the reaction vessel 110, the state in which the light emitting unit 130 is superimposed on one side of the reaction vessel 110 is shown. And, the dotted line of Figure 3 shows the position of the various height of the movable member 150.

Thereafter, the movable member 150 is caught by the one hook 131a and moves in the longitudinal direction (“A” direction) of the reaction container 110 while the plurality of light emitting parts 130a, 130b, and 130c are moved. ) Move everything. Then, when the appropriate position of the one of the light emitting unit 130a, the moving member 150 moves upward while being caught by the hook 131b of the next disposed light emitting unit 130b. The light emitting parts 130b and 130c may be moved in the longitudinal direction ("A" direction). By repeating the above process, and moving to the last light emitting unit 130 is disposed, as shown in Figure 4 (b), the plurality of light emitting units 130a, 130b, 130c the reaction vessel Arrange at 110 at appropriate intervals.

Next, referring to FIG. 4C, when the reaction vessel 110 is irradiated with sunlight, the movable member 150 is positioned on the support 132c of the last hook 131c to emit the plurality of light. The parts 130a, 130b, and 130c may be moved in the opposite direction to the moving direction (“B” direction) to overlap each other.

Meanwhile, in the illustrated embodiment, three light emitting units 130 are disposed in one tubular reaction vessel 110, but the number and length of the light emitting units 130 are the reaction vessel 110 and Various modifications can be made depending on the microalgal culture environment.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to specific embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention, It will be appreciated that those skilled in the art will readily understand the present invention.

100: microalgae production apparatus 110: reaction vessel
130: light emitting unit 131: hook
150: moving member 170: nutrient solution supply unit
180: micro bubble generation means

Claims

A reaction vessel provided with a space for culturing the microalgae therein and formed of a transparent tubular member; And
Irradiating light for culturing the microalgae in the reaction vessel, and a plurality of light emitting portion comprising an organic light emitting diode;
The light emitting unit is movable so that the microalgae production apparatus is provided so that at least one of sunlight and artificial light is irradiated into the reaction vessel.

The method of claim 1, wherein the light emitting unit
A microalgae is formed in a tubular shape surrounding the outer circumferential surface of the reaction vessel and is formed to be movable in the longitudinal direction of the reaction vessel, and disposed to the reaction vessel at regular intervals or overlapping one side of the reaction vessel. Production equipment.

3. The method of claim 2,
The light emitting portion is equipped with a hook ring on the outer peripheral surface,
And a moving member connected to the catching ring to move the light emitting unit in the longitudinal direction of the reaction vessel.

3. The method of claim 2,
The light emitting unit is formed in the shape of a tapered tube that is smaller in diameter toward one direction, the microalgae production apparatus, characterized in that provided with a plurality of easily overlap.

The method of claim 3,
Each hook ring provided in the plurality of light emitting parts is formed to have a different height, and the moving member is formed to be movable up and down to move the plurality of light emitting parts in sequence.

The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
Nutrient supply unit for supplying the culture solution to the reaction vessel; And
Microbubble generating means connected to the nutrient supply part to generate and supply carbon dioxide as microbubbles to the nutrient supply part;
Microalgae production apparatus further comprising a.