PetroAlgae Develops Algae Oil Extraction System

PetroAlgae is a Florida company involved in the development of algae oil for use as a feedstock for biodiesel. They have been working in all phases of the process from selecting the best algae species and development of suitable growing systems. But the part of their work that caught my attention was that they had developed a system to extract the oil from the algae.

One of the problems that has faced this new industry is how to extract the oil from the algae once it is grown. You can image that trying to squeeze oil from a slimy wet substance would pose problems. But they say that they have developed a system that works.

Once the algae is harvested, technicians run it through a series of machines, including a high-powered centrifuge, to break down the cells and separate the oil from the water, alcohol and solids.

The only byproduct, they say, is a high protein meal like substance that can used as livestock feed.

Source : WKYC.com