Best Practices for the Pilot-Scale Cultivation of Microalgae, Public Output report of the EnAlgae project,

Abstract

This document is a compilation of Best Practice recommendations and considerations employed by the EnAlgae microalgal pilot facilities. EnAlgae was a four year Strategic Initiative of INTERREG IVB North West Europe programme. One of the outputs of the EnAlgae project was the development of an integrated network of pilot plants for growing microalgae. An important part of this activity was an exchange of information on optimal pilot operation both with respect to best practices and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs; documented elsewhere). Best Practices (including recommendations and considerations) are presented for siting a pilot plant; microalgae cultivation (including strain selection, preparation, maintenance and automation of production systems, nutrient sources and addition); harvesting microalgae biomass and biomass valorization. In addition, detailed technical descriptions of the different pilots and the hardware/software they use in operation have been provided. The document brings together Best Practices used by the microalgal partners to serve as a useful starting point for those new to pilot and commercial scale algal cultivation.