Modeling Algal Growth and CO2 Capture in High Alkalinity Environments

The development of a renewable biofuel has the capability to significantly reduce growing carbon emissions. Algae grown in locations with low quality water seem to be a particularly promising candidate for the source of such biofuels, however, they have yet to see widespread use or production due to the difficulty and cost of biomass cultivation. CO2 availability is a key factor in algal growth and contributes greatly to the overall cost of production. We will discuss a developing model that describes CO2 mass transfer and algal growth in high alkalinity environments that expands upon a previous model which considered the dissolution of carbon in water and tracked the change in pH. Our model can qualitatively/quantitatively predict the pH and biomass growth. This will provide chemical and biological engineers with a new tool to understand environmental impacts and better optimize the design of the algal growth methods.