With an Extruder on a Field

A great future is predicted for microalgae: Whether pharmaceutical, chemical, or foodstuffs industry, new application options keep on arising. Photobioreactors are used to cultivated algae on a large scale. During operation of these systems, the devil lies in the detail – as so often. The Algoliner company has developed a reactor made of acrylic glass, which solves many problems. Extrusion is done directly on a field.

The brain behind Algoliner is Hans V?th, a studied plastics engineer and business economist with thirty years of experience in the automotive industry. For him, the Fukushima disaster in 2011 was a turning point to start again with something entirely new. “I wanted to use my knowledge in plastics technology for things that will benefit humanity in the future, so that we can tackle the consequences of climate change and the problems of overpopulation.” And V?th is convinced that microalgae are the right approach for these aims. He learned everything about the possibilities for using microalgae, about the different requirements of individual algae species, and he got deeply involved in existing cultivation technologies. In short: Hans V?th changed from an automaker to an algae farmer. And very soon it was clear to him that there is still much to be done on the road to mass production of microalgae.

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From Moldmaker to Medical Professional

Jestar Mold Tech‘s company history reads like a success story. Plastics Insights sat down with owner Janson Zhao, who exclusively uses ARBURG GmbH + Co KG machines for his cleanroom production. In an exclusive interview, he discusses the challenges of plastics processing in the medical sector.

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