Photobioreactor with mats of light-outcoupling optical fibers, and electrically conductive fibers which generate an electric traveling field

摘要

The invention relates to a photobioreactor for cultivating phototrophic organisms and in particular to a mat (5), such as those which can be used in such a photobioreactor. The mat (5) has a plurality of first fibers (9) which conduct light along the longitudinal direction of the first fibers and which are designed to laterally outcouple light conducted in the longitudinal direction at least partly transversely to the longitudinal direction. The mat (5) further has a plurality of second fibers (11) which are electrically conductive along the longitudinal direction of the second fibers. By using such a mat (5), light can be coupled into the interior of a photobioreactor. By applying a suitable reversal voltage via a voltage source (30), a traveling electric alternating field can be generated using electrically conductive second fibers (11', 11", 11''') which are grouped into multiple sub-groups. The alternating field can act on electrically charged particles such as electrically charged phototrophic organism for example and transport said particles along a travel direction (38). In this manner, mixing a nutrient solution in the photobioreactor or harvesting phototrophic organisms can be substantially simplified.