Wageningen UR (University & Research centre) is to start construction work on the AlgaePARC (Algae Production And Research Centre) at the Wageningen Campus. AlgaePARC will be a facility for research into sustainable and economically viable micro-algae cultivation systems. The pilot-scale research centre will bridge the gap between the fundamental research on a laboratory scale and the industrial production of algae. The biomass from algae cultivation forms the basis for biofuels and is a source of proteins for food and chemicals.
AlgaePARC facility
AlgaePARC will start with four different systems measuring 25 m2: an open pond, two types of tubular reactors and plastic film bioreactors, and a number of smaller systems for the testing of new technologies. AlgaePARC will be put into operation at the end of 2010. In the words of Maria Barbosa, AlgaePARC project leader from Food & Biobased Research, “the unique thing about this facility is the fact that it is the first of its kind in the world. We can accurately compare the productivity of the different systems during the year under identical conditions. At the same time, we are gaining knowledge for the development of new photobioreactors and the design of systems on a production scale”.
The sum of 2.25 million euros has been made available by the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (1.5 million) and the Provincial Government of Gelderland (0.75 million) for the construction of AlgaePARC.
Micro-algae
Micro-algae are currently seen as a promising source of biodiesel and chemical building blocks, which can be used in paint and plastics. Biomass from algae offers a sustainable alternative to products and fuels from the petrochemical industry. This contributes to a biobased economy as algae help to reduce the emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) and make the economy less dependent on fossil fuels. According to René Wijffels, Professor of Bioprocess Technology at Wageningen University, “the productivity of algae is much higher than that of agricultural crops and algae can also grow in seawater. We do research into the production of algae. AlgaePARC allows us to make the jump from laboratory-based research to practical application. We want to demonstrate that we can fulfil those promises.”
AlgaePARC research
The costs of biomass produced from algae for biofuels are still ten times too high to be able to compete with today’s other fuels. Within the business community, the question being asked is how it could be produced more cheaply, making it economically viable. Companies within the energy, food, oil and chemical sectors, the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature & Food Quality, the Provincial Government of Gelderland, Oost NV and Wageningen UR are all working together in or contributing to the unique algae research centre AlgaePARC in order to answer that question.