US funds a $2.5M project to transform pollution into fish feed

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has funded a $2.5 million (~$3.2 million with cost share) project that aims to convert flue gas from pulp and paper mills and aquaculture wastewater into algae-based proteins to produce fish feed pellets.

The project is titled 'Intensified and Energy-Efficient Cultivation, Processing, and Conversion of Flue Gas-Derived Algal Biomass into Aquaculture Feed'. It is led by the Uthlaut Endowed Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Auburn University.

The team includes co-investigators from Auburn, Jin Wang, Woltosz Professor of Chemical Engineering, Zhihua Jiang, Associate Professor of the Auburn Pulp and Paper Foundation in Chemical Engineering, and Allen Davis, Professor at the Auburn University School of Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Aquatic Sciences.

Other co-investigators include Shamin Begum, Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering at Tuskegee University, Ling Tao from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Ray Shirley from the Packaging Corporation of America, and Stephen Dvorak from DVO Inc.

Betting on dry biofilm

According to He, one of the key innovations in their study is the production of dry biofilm, which better transports carbon dioxide to the biocatalyst, helping with CO2 capture and biomass productivity.

This will improve current algae cultivation technologies by increasing productivity by 200%, boosting biomass concentration by 300%, and reducing production costs by 50%.

Additionally, using algae as aquaculture feed further helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The pilot project is expected to last two years

First, the biogas producer and waste management company DVO Inc. will develop a 1,000-liter greenhouse-style prototype for researchers to conduct pilot testing at the Auburn University Fisheries facilities.

Meanwhile, Zhihua Jiang, Professor of Chemical Engineering, will test different microalgae dehydration techniques to significantly improve algae harvesting.

Finally, Davis' lab will oversee the evaluation of the nutritional profile of the aquafeed ingredients, their safety, and efficacy for potential commercial aquaculture feed applications.