KR20160099803A - Circulation-type high-density culturing apparatus of microalgae using air - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a circulation-type microalgae high density culturing device using air. More specifically, carbon dioxide lacking in a culturing liquid of a first header pipe is supplied through a carbon dioxide feeding pipe, and air generated when microalgae grow is actively discharged through a discharging pipe of a second header pipe, so a growth rate of microalgae is increased and a culturing function is improved. Accordingly, high density microalgae can be harvested. Also, the circulation-type microalgae high density culturing device is operated through a control unit according to the natural environment, and high density microalgae can be harvested without using a separate component such as a lighting tool, so the circulation-type microalgae high density culturing device can be conveniently installed and energy consumption can be maximally saved. The circulation-type microalgae high density culturing device is formed to be compact, so a large quantity of microalgae are harvested compared to a space in which a conventional culturing device is installed. Also, a space can be ensured without a huge limitation, so applicability and installation ranges of the circulation-type microalgae high density culturing device can be widely ensured and the circulation-type microalgae high density culturing device can have ensured economical feasibility and efficiency.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a circulation type microalgae culture apparatus using air,

The present invention relates to a circulating microalgae high density culture apparatus using air, and more particularly, to a system and a method for supplying a microarctic culture with air by supplying carbon dioxide insufficiently to a culture medium of a first header tube through a carbon dioxide injection tube, The present invention relates to a circulating microalgae dense culture apparatus using air that can produce high density microalgae by increasing the growth rate and culture performance of microalgae by smoothly discharging the microalgae through a discharge pipe of a pipe.

In general, microalgae such as chlorella, Io-crys- tis, and chitoseros are not only used as food organisms in the production of artificial seeds of marine organisms such as shellfish, but also because of various useful factors contained in microalgae, Sewage treatment, CO2 removal, and biofuels. Microalgae are being cultivated in large quantities around the world in order to utilize and study these microalgae.

At present, the microalgae cultivated as feedstuffs necessary for the production of aquatic organisms in Korea is estimated to be about 200,000 tons per year. However, considering the various applications of microalgae and various research trends, the cultivation scale will increase continuously Most of the microalgae used as feedstuffs for marine seedlings have been cultivated in concrete tanks installed in indoor cultivation fields or in transparent or semi-transparent water tanks using natural light, fluorescent lamps or metal highlights illumination.

However, the conventional culture method as described above requires a great deal of cost and labor for cleaning and maintenance of the culture tank and the culture tank, and also consumes a large amount of energy for maintaining the proper water temperature due to the seasonal change. However, since the cultured seawater is easily exposed to factors such as pollution, microscopic algae are frequently killed at the time of cultivation, which makes it difficult to cultivate them stably. Since the cultivation density of microalgae is also very low, There is a problem that the economical efficiency and the efficiency are greatly deteriorated.

In addition, in order to cultivate microalgae in large quantities by conventional culture method, it is necessary to secure space according to the culture facility. In this process, huge facility cost and site acquisition cost are incurred. Therefore, Not only is it a factor for raising the unit price but also a lot of difficulties in securing a space according to a culture facility in development of health food, sewage treatment, CO2 removal, bio-fuel utilization and research.

In order to solve the above problems, various microalgae culture apparatuses have recently been developed. However, the microalgae culture apparatuses still can not be largely removed from the existing culture system. Therefore, The microbial culture efficiency of the microalgae is relatively lowered despite the expense of cost and expense for the use and maintenance of the culture device.

Korean Patent Registration No. 10-1270648 Korean Patent Registration No. 10-0609736 Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2012-0095826

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems,

It is possible to supply carbon dioxide insufficiently to the culture medium of the first header tube through the carbon dioxide injection tube and smoothly discharge the air generated from the micro-algae growth through the discharge tube of the second header tube, thereby improving the growth rate and culture performance of the micro- It is an object of the present invention to provide a circulating microalgae high density culture apparatus using air capable of harvesting microalgae.

In addition, since the culture apparatus is operated through the control unit in accordance with the natural environment and high-density microalgae can be harvested even without the necessity of an accessory such as a separate lighting device, the installation is simple and the air that can save the energy required is saved And to provide a circulating microalgae dense culture apparatus using the same.

Further, since the micro-algae are compactly formed, a large amount of microalgae can be harvested even in comparison with the space in which the conventional culture apparatus is installed, and the applicability and the installation range of the culture apparatus can be widely secured, The present invention provides a circulating microalgae high density culture apparatus using air for providing an efficient and efficient culture apparatus.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a microalgae culture apparatus in which fine algae are circulated by air pressure,

A first header tube in which a plurality of microorganisms are arranged in parallel and a microcurrent is contained therein;

The first header tube is vertically formed at one end of the first header tube and communicates with the first header tube. A plurality of the first header tubes are spaced apart from each other in the longitudinal direction of the first header tube. A vertical tube which flows in a vertical direction while being filled up to the upper side;

The first header tube and the second header tube are connected to each other. The first header tube and the second header tube are connected to each other. To circulate the refrigerant;

A plurality of microfluidic channels are formed to communicate with the upper portions of the plurality of vertical tubes, and the air discharged from the culture fluid circulating in the vertical tubes is filled and discharged to the outside. In order to harvest the microalgae cultured at high density in the culture medium using high- A second header tube for discharging the second header tube;

And a control unit for controlling the microalgae culture apparatus according to a predetermined condition. [0002] The present invention relates to a circulation type microalgae high density culture apparatus using air.

As described above, the circulating micro-algae high density culture apparatus using air according to the present invention supplies the insufficient carbon dioxide to the culture medium of the first header tube through the carbon dioxide injection tube, It is possible to harvest high-density microalgae by increasing the rate of growth and culturing performance of microalgae.

In addition, since the culture apparatus is operated through the control unit in accordance with the natural environment and high-density microalgae can be harvested even without the need for accessories such as a separate lighting apparatus, the installation is simple and the energy consumption can be saved as much as possible have.

Further, since the micro-algae are compactly formed, a large amount of microalgae can be harvested even in comparison with the space in which the conventional culture apparatus is installed, and the applicability and the installation range of the culture apparatus can be widely secured, There is an effect of providing an efficient and efficient culture device.

FIG. 1 is a view showing a circulating microalgae high density culture apparatus using air according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
2 is a front view showing an air exchange type culture apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention,
FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view showing part A of FIG. 2,
4 is an enlarged sectional view showing a portion B in Fig.

The present invention having such characteristics can be more clearly described by the preferred embodiments thereof.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Before describing in detail several embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the details of construction and the arrangement of components shown in the following detailed description or illustrated in the drawings will be. The invention may be embodied and carried out in other embodiments and carried out in various ways. It should also be noted that the device or element orientation (e.g., "front," "back," "up," "down," "top," "bottom, Expressions and predicates used herein for terms such as "left," " right, "" lateral," and the like are used merely to simplify the description of the present invention, Or that the element has to have a particular orientation. Also, terms such as " first "and" second "are used herein for the purpose of the description and the appended claims, and are not intended to indicate or imply their relative importance or purpose.

Therefore, the embodiments described in this specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are merely the most preferred embodiments of the present invention and do not represent all the technical ideas of the present invention. Therefore, It is to be understood that equivalents and modifications are possible.

2 is a front view showing an air exchange type culture apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a front view showing the air exchange type culture apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is an enlarged sectional view showing part A of Fig. 2, and Fig. 4 is an enlarged sectional view showing part B of Fig.

1 to 4, the circulating microalgae high density culture apparatus 10 using air according to the present invention is a microalga culture apparatus in which fine algae are circulated by the pressure of air and cultured by sunlight And includes a first header pipe 30, a vertical pipe 40, a circulation pipe 20, a second header pipe 50, and a control unit 60.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the first header pipe 30 is a tube in which a plurality of microfluidic channels are arranged in parallel and a microfluid is contained therein. The first header pipe 30 is cylindrical A plurality of connection ports 31 are formed on the upper side of the rotary pipe 20 so as to connect the vertical pipe 40 and the circulation pipe 20 to each other and the vertical pipe 40 and the circulation pipe 20 are connected to the connection pipe 31 In the connected state, the mutual gap is sealed with silicon or the like. That is, the first header pipe 30 and the vertical pipe 40 or the circulation pipe 20 are formed in the shape of a straight line on the front face, and the vertical pipe 40 and the circulation pipe 20) are connected.

A plurality of first header tubes 30 are arranged in parallel. In the present invention, two first header tubes 30 are provided in parallel. On one side of each first header tube 30, A carbon dioxide injection tube 33 for injecting carbon dioxide into the culture liquid is formed and an air injection tube 34 for injecting air into the culture liquid is formed. At this time, the carbon dioxide injection pipe 33 and the air injection pipe 34 are connected to the first header pipe 30 in a state where they are connected together.

A solenoid valve 90, which is opened and closed under the control of the control unit 60, is installed in each of the culture medium injection pipe 32, the carbon dioxide injection pipe 33 and the air injection pipe 34, And a check valve 35 for preventing the inflowing fluid from being conveyed in the reverse direction is also provided.

The culture medium injecting tube 32 is used to initially fill the culture medium in the first header tube 30 and the vertical tube 40. In the latter half of the middle stage, Is harvested, and at this time, it replenishes the culture liquid as much as the culture liquid discharged to the outside.

The carbon dioxide injection pipe 33 is connected to the carbon dioxide storage unit 80 so that carbon dioxide is supplied to the carbon dioxide injection pipe 33. The carbon dioxide injection pipe 33 is connected to the control unit 60 and is controlled by opening and closing control of the control unit 60. That is, the carbon dioxide injection pipe 33 is connected to the carbon dioxide storage unit 80. When the carbon dioxide injection pipe 33 is connected to the carbon dioxide storage unit 80, the carbon dioxide injection pipe 33 is connected to the control unit 60, 60 can control the transfer of carbon dioxide. At this time, the carbon dioxide storage unit 80 is a container or a sealed tank in which carbon dioxide is stored, and carbon dioxide is transferred by the internal pressure.

The air injection pipe 34 is directly connected to the blower 70 so that external air is supplied to the culture liquid by the blower 70 and the blower 70 is controlled by the control unit 60.

The inlet pipe 36 is connected to the first header pipe 30 and the second inlet pipe 36 is connected to the second inlet pipe 34. The inlet pipe 36 connects the carbon dioxide injection pipe 33 and the air injection pipe 34, The surface of the first header pipe 30 through which the charging pipe 36 penetrates is sealed with silicone or the like.

The discharge hole 38 is formed in the inlet pipe 36 provided in the first header pipe 30 so as to discharge the air and the carbon dioxide. The gas mixture of air and carbon dioxide formed below the inlet pipe 36 on the bottom surface side of the first header pipe 30 is sprayed in a downward direction to hit the bottom surface of the first header pipe 30, Lt; / RTI >

A plurality of discharge holes 38 are formed in correspondence with positions of the vertical tube 40 and the circular tube 20 and are formed on the lower side of the vertical tube 40 and the circulation tube 20, The air and carbon dioxide transferred to the upper side of the tube 30 are fed to the culture medium in the vertical tube 40 and the circulation tube 20 while the carbon dioxide is transferred into the vertical tube 40 and the circulation tube 20. At this time, the air serves to transfer or circulate the culture liquid.

The discharge hole 38 is formed only in a portion of the circulation pipe 20 of the circulation pipe 20 and the discharge hole 38 is not formed in the remaining circulation pipe 20 so that air and carbon dioxide The culture liquid is transferred to the circulation pipe 20 side where the discharge holes 38 are not formed, and the culture liquid is circulated.

1 and 2, the vertical tube 40 is connected to the connecting hole 31 of the first header tube 30 and the connecting tube 51 of the second header tube 50, and is formed in a cylindrical tube shape , And a transparent tube projected from the inside, and sunlight is reflected on the microalgae of the culture liquid circulating inside, thereby performing a photosynthesis action.

Here, the culture liquid is filled up to the predetermined height in the vertical tube 40, but the second header tube 50 provided at the upper side is not filled with the internal pressure. Therefore, air and carbon dioxide are supplied to the culture liquid circulated in the vertical tube 40, and some air is discharged from the culture liquid and transferred to the upper portion of the vertical tube 40.

A plurality of the straight tubes 40 are formed in the longitudinal direction of the first header tube 30 and the second header tube 50, and are vertically spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance.

A plurality of vertical tubes 40 are vertically formed between the first header tube 30 and the second header tube 50. As shown in FIG. 1, the first header tube 30 and the second header tube 50, (40) formed between the plurality of vertical tubes (40) so that the amount of sunshine is transmitted to the entire plurality of vertical tubes (40). That is, the structure is such that the side vertical tubes 40 disposed in parallel between the vertical tube 40 and the vertical tube 40 are positioned.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the circulation pipe 20 includes a first header pipe 30 and a second header pipe 30. The circulation pipe 20 is formed perpendicularly to both ends of the first header pipe 30, The culture medium conveyed from the first header pipe 30 is connected to the first header pipe 30 by the pressure of the air discharged from the discharge hole 38 of the inlet pipe 36, And circulated.

1, the circulation tube 20 is formed in the form of a "front" shape so that the culture medium of the first header tube 30 on one side is transferred to the first header tube 30 on the other side. At this time, the corners are curved so that the culture liquid can be easily transferred.

In addition, the circulation pipe 20 is formed in a cylindrical tube shape, and is formed of a transparent tube to which the inside is projected, and sunlight is reflected on the microalgae of the culture liquid circulating inside, thereby to perform a photosynthesis action.

The circulation pipe 20 is formed on both sides of the first header pipe 30 so that the culture liquid is transferred to the other first header pipe 30 through one circulation pipe 20, The culture liquid is circulated in such a manner that the culture liquid is transferred to the original first header pipe 30 through the first header pipe 20.

1 and 2, the second header pipe 50 is formed in the same shape as the first header pipe 30 so that a connection hole 51 connected to the vertical pipe 40 is formed on the lower side, The vertical tube (40) is connected through the connector (51), and the space between them is sealed with silicone or the like. At this time, the second header pipe 50 and the vertical pipe 40 are formed in the form of a "front" shape.

The second header pipe 50 is formed on the uppermost portion of the vertical pipe 40 and connects the plurality of the vertical pipes 40 together to transfer the air conveyed from the vertical pipe 40 to one side .

The discharge pipe 52 is connected to the second header pipe 50 so as to discharge the air or the culture liquid to the outside and a solenoid valve 90 controlled by the control unit .

The discharge tube 52 is formed in the second header tube 50 and is provided in the downward direction to discharge air or the culture liquid by the pressure in the second header tube 50.

A pH sensor 53 for measuring the concentration (pH) of the culture liquid filled in the vertical tube 40 and delivering the measured value to the controller 60 is installed at one end of the second header tube 50 .

That is, the pH sensor 53 is formed so as to extend downward from the upper portion of the second header tube 50, and the lower portion thereof is formed to be submerged in the vertical tube 40, So that the pH in the culture solution is measured.

The pH sensor 53 measures the concentration of alkaline, neutral, and acid in the culture liquid and transmits the measured concentration to the control unit 60. The control unit 60 controls the supply of the carbon dioxide to the control unit 60 according to the measured value.

1, the controller 60 controls the culturing apparatus 10 according to the set conditions. The controller 60 controls the blower 70 according to the pH of the culture liquid measured by the pH sensor 53, And the carbon dioxide storage unit 80 are operated. Then, the respective solenoid valves 90 are also controlled accordingly.

Here, the controller 60 controls the blower 70 and the carbon dioxide storage unit 80 (air conditioner) in accordance with the time, the day, the night, and the weather ). That is, if the timer is set, the fan 70 and the carbon dioxide storage unit 80 can be operated and stopped automatically according to the time.

Hereinafter, an operation method of the circulating micro-algae dense culture apparatus 10 using the air described above will be briefly described.

First, the culture medium containing microalgae is filled in the first header tube 30, the straight tube 40 and the circulation tube 20 through the culture medium injection tube 32.

The air introduced by the blower 70 is then transferred through the air inlet tube 34 and the inlet tube 36 and the air is discharged through the discharge hole 38 of the inlet tube 36, Lt; / RTI > At this time, the culture medium is slowly circulated at an early stage, microalgae are cultured using photosynthesis of sunlight and carbon dioxide contained in the culture medium, and air generated as microalgae are cultured in the latter half of the culture medium is generated in the culture medium.

Therefore, the data measured by the pH sensor 53 is transmitted to the controller 60. The controller 60 compares the set conditions and the pH concentration in the culture medium to supply the carbon dioxide into the culture medium through the carbon dioxide injection tube 33 .

A method for feeding the culture medium to the first header pipe 30 at the other side from the first header pipe 30 at one side is to circulate the culture medium while supplying the insufficient carbon dioxide, The discharge hole 38 is formed in any one of the discharge tubes 36 and the discharge hole 38 is not formed in the other discharge tubes 36. That is, A discharge hole 38 is formed in one of the circulation pipes 20 and no discharge hole 38 is formed elsewhere so that when the air is discharged from the discharge hole 38 formed on the lower side of the circulation pipe 20, The culture solution is transferred to the other first header pipe 30 beyond the circulation pipe 20.

At this time, since the discharge hole 38 is not formed in the other side, the culture liquid can be easily transferred. On the lower side of the opposite side circulation pipe 20, the discharge hole 38 The culture liquid can be circulated to the first header pipe 30 on one side in the first side header pipe 30 on the other side.

10: Micro algae high density culture device 20: Circulation tube
30: first header tube 31, 51: connector
32: Culture medium injection tube 33: Carbon dioxide injection tube
34: air injection pipe 35: check valve
36: inlet pipe 38: outlet hole
40: Vertical tube
50: second header pipe 52: outlet pipe
53: pH sensor
60: control unit 70: blower
80: Carbon dioxide storage part 90: Solenoid valve

Claims (11)

1. A microalgae culture apparatus in which fine algae are cultured while being circulated by the pressure of air,
A first header tube in which a plurality of microorganisms are arranged in parallel and a microcurrent is contained therein;
The first header tube is vertically formed at one end of the first header tube and communicates with the first header tube. A plurality of the first header tubes are spaced apart from each other in the longitudinal direction of the first header tube. A vertical tube which flows in a vertical direction while being filled up to the upper side;
The first header tube and the second header tube are connected to each other. The first header tube and the second header tube are connected to each other. To circulate the refrigerant;
A plurality of microfluidic channels are formed to communicate with the upper portions of the plurality of vertical tubes, and the air discharged from the culture fluid circulating in the vertical tubes is filled and discharged to the outside. In order to harvest the microalgae cultured at high density in the culture medium using high- A second header tube for discharging the second header tube;
A control unit for controlling the microalgae culture apparatus according to set conditions;
Wherein the circulation type fine algae culturing apparatus comprises an air circulation type fine algae culture apparatus using air.
The method according to claim 1,
A culture solution injection tube for filling a culture solution is formed in one side of the first header tube, a carbon dioxide injection tube for injecting carbon dioxide is formed in the culture solution, an air injection tube for injecting air into the culture solution is formed, Wherein the carbon dioxide injection pipe and the air injection pipe are connected to each other and connected to the first header pipe.
3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein the culture medium injection tube, the carbon dioxide injection tube, and the air injection tube are formed with a solenoid valve that is opened and closed by a control unit and a check valve that prevents the culture liquid from being conveyed in a reverse direction, respectively. Microalgae high density culture device.
3. The method of claim 2,
The first header pipe is formed with an inlet pipe for connecting the carbon dioxide injection pipe and the air injection pipe through the surface of the first header pipe, and the discharge pipe is provided with a discharge hole for discharging the air and carbon dioxide, 1 header tube of the circulation type micro algae using the air.
5. The method of claim 4,
A plurality of discharge holes are formed in correspondence with the positions of the vertical tube and the circulation tube so that the discharged air and carbon dioxide are supplied to the vertical tube and the culture liquid in the circulation tube and a discharge hole is not formed in the circulation tube of a part of the circulation tube, And the culture medium is transferred to the circulation tube side where the discharge hole is not formed by the carbon dioxide.
5. The method of claim 4,
Wherein the carbon dioxide injection pipe is connected to the carbon dioxide storage unit and is supplied with carbon dioxide, and the stop unit is connected to the control unit and is controlled by opening / closing control of the control unit.
5. The method of claim 4,
Wherein the air injection pipe is connected to a blower and external air is supplied by a blower, and the blower is controlled by a control unit.
The method according to claim 1,
The plurality of vertical tubes are vertically arranged between the first header tube and the second header tube. The plurality of first header tubes and the second header tubes are mutually interdigitated to form a plurality of water tubes Wherein the micro-algae are transferred to the entire intuitive tube.
The method according to claim 1,
And a pH sensor for measuring the concentration (pH) of the culture liquid filled in the vertical tube and transmitting the measured value to the control unit is installed at one side of the second header tube.
The method according to claim 1,
A discharge tube for discharging the culture liquid to the outside is connected to the second header tube for discharging air to the outside or for harvesting the microalgae cultured at high density, and the discharge tube is provided with a solenoid valve Wherein the micro-algae culture apparatus further comprises an air-circulating micro-algae high-density culture apparatus.
11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10,
Wherein the control unit controls the circulation type micro-algae high density culture apparatus using air by using a timer, and operates the apparatus in accordance with the day, night, and weather.

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