On May 27th Bäckhammars Algbruk was inaugurated by Kenneth Johansson, Governor of Värmland County. It is a unique facility where microalgae are grown at a pulp and paper mill.
- It´s a unique project that can give us some insights of how a future biobased society can look like, say Magnus Persson Innovation Advisor at The Paper Province.
Green microalgae are grown with sunlight as energy source. The algae fix carbon dioxide from the flue gas of the mill. Excess heat from the water treatment plant is used to keep the cultivation at a suitable temperature.Algae also need water and nutrients. The bio sludge from the mill and other nutrient sources are tested for this purpose. The project goal is to produce algae biomass in a sustainable way with the help of resources from the pulp and paper mill at Nordic Paper Bäckhammar and to extract bio oil for analysis of usability. The bio oil can later be refined into biodiesel, plasticizers, bioplastics and lubricants.
Theoretically 8 kg of algae per m2 and year can be produced in Sweden. The resources at Nordic Paper Bäckhammar are enough for 500 tons of algae or 150 tons of oil yearly, based on phosphorus as the limiting nutrient. That requires 10 ha of cultivation area. Algae produce much more oil per hectar than other crops.
The project is part of a 3-year research project led by SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden with the help of The Paper Province, Nordic Paper Bäckhammar and 11 other partners from industry, academy and society. The project is financed by Vinnova, Å-Forsk and Region Värmland.