RABP Set-Up and Operation
The best attaching material (in terms of biofilm growth, durability, and cost) screened
from the rocker shaking apparatus was further used when fabricating the Revolving Algal
Biofilm Photobioreactor (RABP). As shown in Figure 1, the attaching material was designed in a
triangle configuration and rotated at a certain speed. One end of the triangle was submerged into
the culture medium, while the rest of the surface was exposed to air. Algal cells attached to the
material alternatingly absorbed nutrients from the liquid medium and CO2 and sunlight from the
gas phase. The algal biomass was harvested by scrapping the biofilm from the revolving attached
surface with a harvesting squeegee. Three identical RABP systems were used. Each system had a
growth medium reservoir with a 1 L capacity and a revolving fabric with a surface length of 58
cm and a width of 15 cm for a total surface area of 870 cm2
.