thus provides a reasonable estimate of the current cost (Chisti 2013). In this way,
the capital cost estimated for 2017 is of US$ 149,598 per ha. This estimate includes
the earthworks, the plastic lining, the carbon dioxide supply tubing, inlets and
outlets, the baffles, the paddle wheel, and motor.
To produce dry microalgae biomass in outdoor commercial raceway ponds,
Nosker et al. (2011) and Chisti (2007) estimated a cost of € 4.95 and US$ 3.80 per
kg of dry weight, respectively. According to Nosker et al. (2011), the factors which
influence production costs are irradiation conditions, mixing, photosynthetic efficiency of systems, culture media, and carbon dioxide costs. Thus, by optimizing
these factors, the production cost can reduce up to € 0.68 per kg.
2.1.4 Scaling-up in Raceway Ponds
The microalgae cultivation in open ponds is already a consolidated and widely
practiced method for large-scale cultivation, since that are easily scaled up. There
have been records of large-scale cultivation in raceways since 1987, where two
1000 m
2 raceway ponds were used as a test facility between 1987 and 1990 in New
Mexico. These tests were conducted to verify the potential of microalgal biomass
production for low-cost biodiesel production and were considered technically feasible (Rawat et al. 2013).
Although already a widely used technology, cultivations in raceway ponds still
pose many challenges in terms of economic viability for large-scale biofuel production. This is mainly due to the low biomass productivity presented in these
systems the need for extensive areas of land and substantial costs for harvesting
(Scott et al. 2010).
Table 1 Biomass productivities of different open raceway ponds located in different countries
Microalgae
Location
Total
volume (L)
Culture
depth (cm)
Productivity
(g/L/d)
References
Nannochloropsis
salina
Arizona,
USA
780
25.4
0.013
Crowe et al.
(2012)
Spirulina
(Arthrospira)
La
Mancha,
MX
2360–603
15–20
0.144–0.151 Olguín et al.
(2003)
Scenedesmus
rubescens
Florida,
USA
900
20
0.020
Lin and Lin
(2011)
Scenedesmus
acutus
Arizona,
USA
2300
7.5
0.066
Eustance et al.
(2015)
Spirulina
platensis
Málaga,
ES
135,000
30
0.027
Jiménez et al.
(2003)
Scenedesmus sp. Almería,
ES
20,000
20
0.170
de Godos et al.
(2014)
10
M. M. Maroneze and M. I. Queiroz
the capital cost estimated for 2017 is of US$ 149,598 per ha. This estimate includes
the earthworks, the plastic lining, the carbon dioxide supply tubing, inlets and
outlets, the baffles, the paddle wheel, and motor.
To produce dry microalgae biomass in outdoor commercial raceway ponds,
Nosker et al. (2011) and Chisti (2007) estimated a cost of € 4.95 and US$ 3.80 per
kg of dry weight, respectively. According to Nosker et al. (2011), the factors which
influence production costs are irradiation conditions, mixing, photosynthetic efficiency of systems, culture media, and carbon dioxide costs. Thus, by optimizing
these factors, the production cost can reduce up to € 0.68 per kg.
2.1.4 Scaling-up in Raceway Ponds
The microalgae cultivation in open ponds is already a consolidated and widely
practiced method for large-scale cultivation, since that are easily scaled up. There
have been records of large-scale cultivation in raceways since 1987, where two
1000 m
2 raceway ponds were used as a test facility between 1987 and 1990 in New
Mexico. These tests were conducted to verify the potential of microalgal biomass
production for low-cost biodiesel production and were considered technically feasible (Rawat et al. 2013).
Although already a widely used technology, cultivations in raceway ponds still
pose many challenges in terms of economic viability for large-scale biofuel production. This is mainly due to the low biomass productivity presented in these
systems the need for extensive areas of land and substantial costs for harvesting
(Scott et al. 2010).
Table 1 Biomass productivities of different open raceway ponds located in different countries
Microalgae
Location
Total
volume (L)
Culture
depth (cm)
Productivity
(g/L/d)
References
Nannochloropsis
salina
Arizona,
USA
780
25.4
0.013
Crowe et al.
(2012)
Spirulina
(Arthrospira)
La
Mancha,
MX
2360–603
15–20
0.144–0.151 Olguín et al.
(2003)
Scenedesmus
rubescens
Florida,
USA
900
20
0.020
Lin and Lin
(2011)
Scenedesmus
acutus
Arizona,
USA
2300
7.5
0.066
Eustance et al.
(2015)
Spirulina
platensis
Málaga,
ES
135,000
30
0.027
Jiménez et al.
(2003)
Scenedesmus sp. Almería,
ES
20,000
20
0.170
de Godos et al.
(2014)
10
M. M. Maroneze and M. I. Queiroz