GRAVITY FLOW TUBULAR PHOTOBIOREACTOR AND PHOTOBIOREACTOR FARM

摘要

A gravity flow photobioreactor core (10) comprised of a support means (3); a tube (5) that continuously runs and curls with declination about a vertical axis to form a stack (7) of levels (9) and having an inlet sparge (11); a gas exchange tank (13) and a central feed pipe (15) with a sparge (17). A gravity flow photobioreactor farm comprised of a bottom tank (19); a pump (21); a plurality of bioreactor cores (10) connected in series at decreasing elevations and a return pipe (23).

主权项

1. A bioreactor farm comprising:
at least first and second bioreactor cores connected in series, each of the first and second bioreactor cores comprising: a support; a tube which at a minimum partially passes light there through, is mounted on the support and includes an upper opening, wherein at last a portion of the tube continuously runs and curls with declination about a vertical axis to form a stack of levels with each level encompassing about 360 degrees around the vertical axis where the radial distance between the tube and the vertical axis indexes within the stack so as to enhance the tube's exposure to light emanating from above the stack relative to the tube being vertically aligned at a constant radial distance from the axis within the stack; the tube also comprising a lower opening; wherein the first bioreactor core is supported at an elevation higher than an elevation of the second bioreactor core.