Varicon Aqua has built a strong relationship with the Blue Lagoon (Iceland) for over a decade. The team at Blue Lagoon has utilised a number of different Varicon Aqua systems for producing their unique microalgal strains. Extracts from these microalgae are included as active ingredients in their carefully formulated and patented cosmetic products that also include minerals and silica derived from deep Icelandic volcanic aquifers.

To meet the increasing demand for their products, Blue Lagoon upgraded from a BioFence™ to a Phyco-Flow™ system in December 2017. This system is complete with integrated cleaning systems, LED lighting and updated process control, all aimed at boosting biomass production. The Phyco-Flow™ includes advanced DURAN^® borosilicate glass tubing from Schott AG. We even filmed the installation in time-lapse, take a look!

Advanced DURAN^® borosilicate tubing from Schott AG has several properties that make them superior compared to polymer based alternatives and even other glass-based solutions, including:

• High UV and chemical stability (including seawater)
• Thinner walls for higher light absorption
• Longer tubes to decrease fitting requirements
• High manufacturing tolerances during production

This helps prevent bio-fouling associated with surface degradation of plastic tubes. SCHOTT AG are able to supply an optimal solution using DURAN^®, which when married with the Varicon Aqua Phyco-Flow, will enable high biomass productivities to be obtained with less down time. Greater cost efficiencies can be attained using high end glass tubes due to its greater lifespan and lower maintenance requirements, lasting for decades rather than years!

It is hoped this new state-of-the-art installation will help Blue Lagoon realise even greater yields and efficiency of production, allowing them to continue to develop their unique product lines. We believe Blue Lagoon is one of the great success stories in the algal industry and we look forward to helping them on their future projects!

For more information, please contact variconaqua@variconaqua.com.