Today, we began the construction of the photobioreactor on our steel platform in the Oxford Tract. Most of our team members showed up to drill holes in the platform in order to fix the polycarbonate tubing onto it. For now, we just have two tubes installed on the incline. The tubes have our rubber stoppers in them to hold the water/algae mix inside. Additionally, we have thin rubber tubing with check valves to feed air/carbon dioxide into the tubes. Over spring break, we aim to continue to build the reactor and set up a fully functioning prototype to circulate and grow the algae.
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Last week, my dad and I moved the steel platform into the Oxford Tract near the northwest end of the UC Berkeley campus. It's currently being stored in the greenhouse there, which provides access our initial energy demands. There are also grow lights in the greenhouse (pictured) that will help our photobioreactor function. Later this week we will be constructing and installing the reactor set up.
A special thanks to Berlin Food Equipment in South San Francisco for constructing the reactor and providing transport for it to get here to Berkeley. The steel platform that will be brought within the next week to the Oxford Tract into a greenhouse area. The reactor will then be set up and start growing microalgae.
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SUSTAINABLE ALGAE PHOTOBIOREACTORThe Sustainable Algae Photobioreactor Project is one of the various projects developed through the UC Berkeley division of Engineers for a Sustainable World (ESW). A special thanks to The Green Initiative Fund (TGIF) here at UC Berkeley for providing the grant to make this project possible.
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