Palm Oil Plantations

The palm oil industry has made great contributions to the regional development of some nations but has recently come under fire for its perceived contribution to carbon emissions and deforestation.  Additionally, in some countries regulations have significant lowered the concentration of nutrients in palm oil mill effluent (POME) that is allowed to be discharged into rivers.  Our technology platform provides a complementary solution to palm oil mills to effectively treat the POME waste water and conversion to valuable products.

Benefits to Customer

• POME contains the water which algae need to grow, reducing impact on water table and costs to construct piping and source water
• POME already has the essential nutrients for algae growth - nitrogen and phosphorus – which lowers the cost of sourcing for the project. As algae absorb these nutrients in our cultivation platform, their concentration is lowered to meet regulatory standards before discharge
• Our closed system operates consistently in all weather conditions, including periods of heavy precipitation.
• Carbon emissions produced from palm oil mills are absorbed by the algae to reduce the overall environmental impact.
• Algae biomass cultivated from POME can be utilized for biochemicals, health foods, supplementary animal feed or biofuels

Algae Production Companies

Culture Fuels has developed a hybrid technology FloatAlgae that takes the best of both – a closed system floating on an open pond. We are licensing our equipment to companies that produce algae to be converted into commodity products. Our equipment can work with any algae strain and can provide an alternative cultivation system for companies looking for a cost-effective solution.

Benefits to Customer

• Requires lower capital investment to construct algae facility.
• Produces higher biomass density (to lower dewatering cost).
• Improves thermal control inside platform because supporting body of water maintains its temperature.
• Increases contamination barriers so that algae do not escape and external predators do not enter.
• Minimizes impact of rainfall on culture and nutrient concentration.
• Provides system scalability because modules can be operated next to each other.

Mining And Renewable Energy Solution

A byproduct of open pit mining is the collection of water in the mining holes. The cost of disposing the water and reconstructing the original vegetation after mining operations conclude can represent a significant cost and engineering challenge. Our algae floating system can be deployed directly into the site as an alternative use of the land. 

Benefits to Customer

• Reclamation and re-vegetation of the mining holes can be very costly. Our system provides an alternative solution that is practical and environmentally sustainable.  
• Requires lower capital investment to construct algae facility