Absorption of CO2 in algal mass culture systems: a different characterization approach

For the characterization of CO(2) absorption in aerated microalgal culture systems, a different approach based on K(L)a(O(2)) determination and transformation was studied. To confirm the validity of this method, the influence of reactions between CO(2) and compounds (OH(-), H(2)O, and NH(3)) present in the culture medium upon the absorption mechanism was evaluated under different physical and chemical culture conditions. Under these conditions, knowledge of the relative magnitudes of the diffusion and reaction kinetics permitted the evaluation of their relative importance. For the determination of the parameters required for the calculation of the CO(2) absorption constant, empirical correlations for K(L) (0) and a were used that had been previously verified with experimental data for O(2) absorption. Since, for the conditions studied, the absorption rate was shown to be independent of the chemical reactions taking place in the liquid phase, the K(L)a for CO(2) could be directly related to the K(L)a for O(2) by a simple factor that took into account the difference in aqueous diffusivity of the two gases. Thus, using methods developed for determining O(2) absorption in gas-liquid contactors, it is possible to adequately characterize CO(2) absorption for laboratory and pilot scale algal production systems.