Modeling, Control and Online Optimization of Microalgae-based Biomass Production in Raceway Reactors

Microalgae production in raceway photobioreactors is a very attractive process for biomass production because of its high sustainability. This paper presents a complete methodology for optimizing production in raceway photobioreactors. A first principles model has been developed that describes the dynamics and steady state of the system and has been used as the core of a real-time optimization to maximize the economic profit of the process, which handles the references of different variables of the system. For that, a steady-state real-time optimization approach complemented with PID controllers is presented in this work. The results obtained demonstrate the potential of steady-state real-time optimization for such systems, as well as the benefits of employing optimization techniques during process operation. Copyright (C)2024 The Authors. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (htips://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)