Pulsed Electric Field (PEF) technology is a low-cost, low-energy process that applies high voltage electric pulses to liquids and pumpable slurries. These pulses rupture cell walls through a process called electroporation, increasing the availability of intracellular materials for downstream separation and extraction and killing harmful microorganisms.
Diversified Technologies has developed a laboratory-sized unit for running low-flow samples and batch tests. This lab unit allows determination of optimal PEF processing protocols and integration with downstream processes in a cost-effective manner. No chemical or radiation treatment is involved in the PEF process.
Applications include algal oil extraction, dehydration, non-thermal pasteurization of liquids and semi-solid foods, sugar/juice extraction, and wastewater treatment. The PEF system can be used to kill pathogens or to open cells for enhanced digestion, reducing the volume of solids requiring disposal and increasing the amount of material available for conversion to energy through cogeneration.
A PEF Laboratory System was recently installed at the Arizona Center for Algae Technology and Innovation (AzCATI) on Arizona State University’s Polytechnic campus. According to Thomas A. Dempster, PhD, AzCATI lab manager, “the PEF System will facilitate process development and trials for companies and institutions involved with the growing algal biofuel industry.”
AzCATI serves as a test bed for research, testing, and the commercialization of algae-based products such as biofuels, pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, and other algae biomass co-products.
The PEF Laboratory System streamlines the extraction of oils from algal cells early in the bio-refining process and allows for production scalability. According to Michael Kempkes, VP of marketing, “the low energy PEF process of lysing algae cells would account for $0.03/l the price of algae-derived biofuel compared to $0.45/l for conventional drying before solvent extraction.”
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