GrowSpan greenhouses offer an ideal solution for algae production of any kind and on every scale. Whether facilities are focused primarily on research, algal biomass production or biological wastewater treatment, these structures ensure optimal light transmission and a tightly controlled environment, so algae can thrive and operations can enhance their production processes.
GrowSpan has been supplying the aquacultural industry with high-quality greenhouses and growing solutions for over forty years. When used for growing algae, GrowSpan greenhouses create a spacious, controlled environment that provides abundant access to natural sunlight and is able accommodate a wide variety of algae production technologies. From open pond cultivation to closed photobioreactors, attached growth systems, fermentation tanks and other hybrid setups, each structure can be designed with wide-open interiors and extra-tall sidewalls to deliver the most production area possible.
Operations can also take advantage of dependable, high R-value greenhouse designs that enable them to produce algae year-round, regardless of location. GrowSpan has completed algal production greenhouses across the country, including in regions with harsh winters and heavy snowfall, like Iowa and Wisconsin. With a well-insulated, energy-efficient structure, any algae farming or wastewater treatment facility can optimize algae growth and maximize biomass generation, while also limiting resource consumption and cutting utility costs.
The GrowSpan Algae Farming Building And Wastewater Treatment Facility Advantage Includes:
- Designs tailored to any algae production system
- Optimal light transmission to promote rapid growth and greater biomass generation
- Controlled environments for year-round algal production in any region
- Sustainable, energy-efficient designs limit resource consumption and lower utility costs
- Wide-open interiors and extra-tall sidewalls maximize production area
- In-house design, financing and installation
- Gutter-connected designs
- Greenhouse facilities of any size
ALGAL PRODUCTION AND ALGAE WASTEWATER TREATMENT
In most cases, the algae production process involves raising and harvesting autotrophic microalgae. These species grow through photosynthesis by converting sunlight, carbon dioxide and several key nutrients, including potassium, nitrogen and phosphorus, into biomass. Wastewater access ensures facilities receive a steady supply of these inorganic nutrients, which makes this resource not only a natural fit for algae farming facilities, but an invaluable commodity that provides microalgae with some of the major building blocks required for proper growth.
In fact, the United States Department of Energy considers non-potable water to be one of the key resources needed to grow algae sustainably on a large scale, along with non-arable land, carbon dioxide and sufficient sunlight. Using the symbiotic relationship between algae and wastewater, facilities are able to effectively generate their biomass coproduct, while also benefitting the surrounding environment.
There are numerous cultivation methods used throughout the industry today, but algae farming operations ultimately take advantage of the same core biological process. When wastewater is introduced into the facility, algae clean it by consuming the inorganic nutrients and other constituents within the water. From there, the clean, oxygenated water that’s produced can either be reused or discharged back into fresh water supplies, and operations are able to harvest and pelletize the nutrient-rich algae left behind.
The final biomass coproduct can be used to create a number of sustainable, earth-friendly commercial goods. The most common products range from biofuels for aviation and transportation to inks, textiles, cosmetics, fertilizers and animal feed. Microalgae can also serve as a sustainable source for alternative proteins or nutraceuticals, as they are often rich in essential amino acids and omega-3 fatty acids.
Learn more about CLEARAS Solutions and their algae-based wastewater treatment facility. View case study
SUPERIOR GREENHOUSE DESIGNS FOR SUSTAINABLE, LARGE-SCALE ALGAE FARMING
GrowSpan greenhouses create an ideal workspace for any operation looking to conduct algae production. With expansive, gutter-connect designs and the ability to provide complete climate control, facilities on even the largest scale can effectively bolster their algae production methods.
When working with GrowSpan, operations receive guidance from their own dedicated Greenhouse Specialist, as well as gain access to a number of convenient in-house services, including design, financing and installation. GrowSpan’s Greenhouse Specialists can ensure each algae farming building or wastewater treatment plant includes all the features needed to maximize production, so operations are able to get the most potential out of their cultivation systems.
In a market that is projected to swell in value over the coming years, GrowSpan has the knowledge and manufacturing capabilities to help operations establish themselves as a key industry player. To start designing your algae production and wastewater treatment facility, call or Request a Quote today.