Gerald R. Cysewski, Ph.D.
Chief Science Officer
Cyanotech Corporation
Cyanotech
Commercial Production
of Spirulina
• Specializing in Microalgae
Technology
• Operating since 1984
• 100 Employees
• GMP Certified by NPA
• Non-GMO, environmentally
friendly products
• Public Company:
NASDAQ:CYAN Keahole Point, Hawaii
Cyanotech
Cyanotech’s Production Facility
•90 acre facility in Kona, Hawaii.
•Consistent sun and temperature yearround
•Separate production facilities for
Spirulina and Haematococcus
•Major Spirulina production capacity
•Astaxanthin production is consistent
and growing to meet market demand
Spirulina-High Nutritional Value
• 60% Protein
• Rich in carotenoids
•Beta Carotene
•Zeaxanthin
• Phycocyanin
• Liver and Kidney protection
• Immune stimulating compounds
• Antiviral compounds Cyanotech
Microalgae Production In
Kona, Hawaii
• Ideal Climate
• Warm year round
• High solar insolation
• Low rain fall
• Unique resource
• Cold deep seawater
•High Costs
• Land Clearing (hard lava)
•$85,000/Acre
•CO
2
• $440/ton
•Power
•$0.37/Kwh Cyanotech
Spirulina Production
• 40 Culture ponds
• Average size
30,000 sq. ft.
• Culture media
150,000 gal
• Total area
29 acres
Cyanotech
Cyanotech
Spirulina Culture Ponds
• Lined with Reinforced Plastic
• Paddle Wheel Agitation
• Cost per 30,000 ft
2 Pond
•Land Leveling $56,800
•Lining $22,000
•Agitation $24,900
•Piping $15,100
Total $118,800
Cyanotech
Spirulina Typical Growth Media
Item Grams/Liter .
NaHCO
3 16.0
NaNO
3 2.5
NaCl 1.0
K
2SO
4 1.0
K
2HPO
4 0.5
MgSO
4·7H
20 0.2
FeSO
4·7H
2O 0.01
Na-EDTA 2.5
Trace minerals
Cyanotech
Highly Alkaline Growth Media
• Operation Necessities
• Recycle growth media
• Each 30,000 ft
2 ponds contains $7,500
sodium bicarbonate ($330,000 on farm)
• Operation Opportunities
• Reduced or no culture contamination
• Carbon dioxide recovery
Cyanotech
Spirulina Production Flow Chart
Cyanotech
Cyanotech
CO2 / HCO3- / CO3= Equilibrium
Cyanotech
OH- + CO2 HCO3-
+
OH- CO3= + H2O
Cyanotech
CO2/Bicarb/Carbonate Equilbrium
0.00
0.20
0.40
0.60
0.80
1.00
1.20
5.0 6.0 7.0 8.0 9.0 10.0 11.0 12.0
Solution pH
M o le F ractio n o f S p ecies Bicarbonate Carbonate CO2
Highly Alkaline Growth Media
•At pH 10.5 40% of C is HCO
3
-
•At pH 10.0 68% of C is HCO
3
-
•At 16 g/l of NaHCO
3:
• A pH decrease from 10.5 to 10
absorbs sufficient CO2 (carbon)
to produce 1.3 g dry wt/l cells
(CO
2 + OH-
HCO
3- )
• All carbon can be absorbed in media
for a complete growth cycle. (at pond
injection is not required)
Cyanotech
Ocean-Chill Spray Drying
Low Oxygen with CO
2 Recovery
Cyanotech
Ocean-Chill Spray Drying
Cyanotech
• Low Oxygen environment
– protects sensitive nutrients
• Beta carotene, Zeaxanthin, Phycocyanin
• Cold Deep Seawater Cost Effective
– 4.5 ºC seawater--US$0.21 per 1000 gallons
– Electric power for identical cooling—US$ 5.60
• Carbon dioxide recovery reduces costs
Haematococcus (Astaxanthin) Production
• 28 Culture ponds
• Average size
28,000 sq ft
• Total area
18 acres
Cyanotech
Haematococcus Cells
Motile, green
Haematococcus
cells
Encysted cells produce massive
amounts of astaxanthin (400x
magnification)
Productions of Haematococcus
• Two Stage System
•Closed Culture
•Outdoor Open Culture
• All cultures scaled up from 200 ml lab shake flasks
•20 liter
•400 liter
•30,000 liter
•500,000 liter reddening ponds
• Haematococcus spores cracked and dried
• Production 10 times more difficult than
Spirulina!
Productions of Haematococcus
•Dried, cracked biomass currently sent offsite for
extraction
•Supercritical CO
2 extraction
• New Jersey
• New Zealand
•Bringing Supercritical CO
2 extraction on site
• 1,000 bar (15,000 psi) system
• Operational April 2016
• Will generate 60,000 kg/yr of extracted biomass
Productions of Haematococcus
•Extracted Haematococcus Biomass (60,000 kg/yr)
• 35 % Protein
• 52 % Carbohydrates
• 2.6 % Fat
• 7% Ash
•370 calories/100 grams
•Successfully tested in shrimp and fish feeds
• Detailed analysis available
• Samples available
• Biomass available April 2015
Extracted Haematococcus Biomass
Cyanotech
Corporation

0 Comments