Why clean the PBR every few months if the algae is still healthy? – Q&A with an expert

Algae cultures in photobioreactors often develop a natural biofilm on the tank’s surface, which reduces light penetration. Over time, the algae may still be healthy, but the density that we can maintain in the bioreactor is reduced because of the light’s attenuation. To optimize algae production, consider cleaning your PBR every 2-4 months and resetting it once production drops below the level you would like. This process involves:

• Remove the biofilm with our automated clean-in-place (CIP) system.
• Sterilize the filters
• Restart with a new inoculum

Usually, that lasts about 2 to 4 months on average before people restart their cultures; however, we have had customers run their cultures of Pavlova and Haematococcus for up to 11.5 months. Overall, it is a personal decision whether or not it is worth your time to take down the culture or whether or not it is still producing enough as it is with some biofilm. But don’t worry, PBR cleaning can be a breeze with our CIP system.