Botryococcus braunii 배양에서 탄화수소의 two-stage 동시추출공정

The carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and phosphate removals from wastewater using microalgae have extensively been studied. Especially, the green colonial algae Botryococcus braunii is characterized by unusual high hydrocarbon contents, ranging from 15 to 75% of dry weight, as long-chain unsaturated hydrocarbons. These hydrocarbons suggest that the possibility of renewable biofuels to be converted into useful fuels such as gasoline by simple catalytic cracking. The poor recovery (18 - 32%) of hydrocarbon from B. braunii culture in two-phase bubble column seems to be caused by insufficient mixing between two phases, which was operated using only aeration on the narrow interface between hydrophobic solvent and cell suspension. In addition, hydrocarbon was entrapped tightly in cell-matrix (formed by exopolysaccharide) of algal colony, which make difficult to extract using two-phase system. In order to overcome low recovery efficiency, two-stage extraction culture system including culture vessel and two-phase separator is now under development, resulted improving contact between solvent phase and cell suspension. Hydrocarbon recovery using this process was more than two times as that using two-phase extraction culture.

본 연구에서는 균주의 배양과 동시에 생산물을 회수할 수 있는 동시추출공정을 건조질량의 $15{\sim}75%$의 탄화수소를 생산한다고 알려진 B. braunii 배양에 적용하고자 한다. 일반적인 two-phase 동시추출공정의 적용시 B. braunii의 경우 생산된 탄화수소가 균주 외벽의 matrix에 강하게 부착되어 있기 때문에, two phase 추출공정 적용시 bubble column내에서 단지 폭기에 의한 교반만으로는 충분한 탄화수소의 회수율을 얻을 수가 없었다. 본 연구에서는 배양액과 유기용매층의 접촉기회를 증대시킨 two-stage 동시추출 공정을 개발하여 기존의 two-phase 동시추출 공정보다 2배 이상 높은 56.2%의 탄화수소 회수율을 얻을 수가 있었다.