How small can photobioreacters/separators get?

[oreolvrs]

Just wondering how small can they be alongside the equipment necessary for the separation of the oil and biomass for oil and flour production so as for a compact bioreactor and separator to be made for the kitchen.Im doing research for a group Ive joined that deals with sustainable food production/self sufficiency and was wondering could the technology to produce algea and separate them into the two separate componants for use in personal use in the kitchen or in the house ie a room separate from the kitchen ie conservatory that would be used to produce it and turn it into its various food condiments ie plant based milk,flour and is it difficult or easy to produce these condiments

[DR Johansen]

I am not sure "kitchen" size is realistic. Your typical household kitchen deals in tsp and 1/2 cups (ok, dl and grams) while biofuel is in 10s of gallons (Hl?). These are different scles. Home scale they already make, home KITCHEN scale, I doubt would be very useful. I could be mistaken.

[oreolvrs]

I was wondering with regards to future advancements would it be possible to make them kitchen size .So yes alge vegetable oil and flour/milk could be done at home in a separate room next to the kitchen?As a i said i was doing the research for how to make people more self succient and was wondering how efficient algae prodiction could be in both space and energy

[DR Johansen]

I guess I did not express myself well. I suspect they COULD be made "kitchen" size, but to what purpose? Most folks would want not deciliters per day but decaliters. So it is not the PHYSICAL feasibility I question, but the business feasibility.

But then again, some folks might want something like that to assuage guilt, which might be a big market after all!