December 2013/January 2014 - PAWPRINT PUBLISHING

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
carbon dioxide emissions?
filtration of the emissions from the
Nottingham Boots plant were required.
The microalgae used at
Nottingham Boots are strains of
cyanobacteria which enjoy hot
conditions, surviving at up to
60° C, and the maximum temperature
that the plant has reached is
58° C. Furthermore, the cultures of
these strains can be maintained
for more than 18 months from a
single inoculum.
At present this technology is in
the testing phase but, in the fullness
of time, could it be applied to
wood waste, allowing joinery
workshops to enhance their green
credentials while, at the same
time, providing a possible revenue
stream? One factor would be the
emissions from such boilers.
PW&SS contacted leading
British manufacturer of wood
waste burning systems, RanHeat
Engineering Ltd, who in turn consulted
their stack analyst, Tim
Growcott of Halcyon Environmental.
He writes: “In respect of emission
profiles it is well established
that wood burners typically emit
20-250 mg/m 3 total particulate
matter … the main component is
usually CO 2, typically being 4-6%.
“As a ‘secondary’ abatement option,
algae suspensions could provide
a viable option if the air
stream temperature, sourced from
the wood burner/boiler unit,
could be reduced from typically
100-250° C. Algae could certainly
‘biophotocontact’ the available
CO2 and CO [carbon monoxide]
and might have capability with regard
to the complex blends of organics
(VOCs) produced during
the wood burning process.
“The issue for me is how the
algae suspension would be ‘tailored’
to deal with the air temperature
and mass flow rates typically
associated with wood burner
units. … The algae suspension
would also have to be ‘flexible’ to
enable typical 5 days per week
and eight hours per day production
activities and seasonal variations,
and also accommodate
shut-downs and holiday periods.
“The algae suspension plant
would need to cope with typical
discharge rates for pollutants and
be capable of dealing with the extensive
variety of wood sources
likely to be encountered; as we
have discovered wood sources
can vary significantly in water content,
oil components, particle size
distributions and friability.
“This is not to say that algae suspension
is not an option.”
Another EU-funded project,
BioAlgaeSorb, has been investigating
the possible use of wood
burner flue gas (among others) as
a source of nutrients for microalgae,
and has such a system integrated
into a microalgae reactor
system at Swansea University. More
on this will follow in a future issue.
Algae have great potential: they
can be a source of valuable products
such as biofuels, fertilisers,
cosmetics and pharmaceuticals.
Conference delegates received
pens made out of algae, with a
more organic texture than pens
made out of plastic, and very
pleasant to hold. The UK is a world
leader in the biological sciences.
The Cambridge pilot facility
(illustrated) has grown out of a
long-standing collaboration between
InCrops at the University of
East Anglia and the University of
Cambridge. InCrops can offer up
to 12 hours free consultancy and
support to companies in the East
The photobiocontactor attracted considerable attention at the Cambridge Algae Symposium 2013.
The control system for the test faciility at the University of Cambridge.
of England interested in biorenewable
and low carbon technologies.
This support includes
technical consultancy, accessing
funding, market assessment and
business development, and is
funded by the European Regional
Development Fund.
At present this technology is still
in the testing phase: capital expenditure
is high, there is no
turnkey solution yet available and
the break-even point may be hard
to reach. But in the fullness of time,
could it make a real difference?
Steve Skill says: “The future of
this type of technology lies in its integration
with complementary industrial
processes such as power
generation and wastewater treatment,
where synergistic links can
be made using the inputs and/or
outputs of each respective process.
For example, it may be possible to
utilise the oxygen produced by microalgae
to enhance the efficiency
of combustion processes such as
wood chip burners.”
EnAlgae
Email info@enalgae.eu
www.enalgae.eu
RanHeat Engineering Ltd
Tel 01604 750005
Email sales@ranheat.com
www.ranheat.com
InCrops
Tel 01603 593140
Email info@incropsproject.co.uk
www.incropsproject.co.uk
Panel, Wood & Solid Surface December 2013/January 2014 Page 25