Black solider fly (BSF)

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 Black soldier fly larvae (BSFL) are used to compost waste or convert  the waste into animal feed. 

 he wastes include fresh manure and food wastes of both animal and vegetable origin. Fly larvae are  among the most efficient animals at converting biomass into feed 

• BSF is Not a producer of Protein - It is a convertor of waste into Protein which can be used for feeding animals . 
•  Although the black soldier fly larvae are tough growers,  there are two main factors that could cause large damage  to the population :  he first one is the high temperature, and the second one is poor substrate ventilation. When actively consuming food, the black soldier fly can generate a good amount of heat .
• Use a Good Model for Heat removal  once you design a medium to larger size of BSF farming Plant.

Here you can find a final report of a Pilot plant to produce 3-4 tons /day of BSF Larvae 

  End 2020, installation of the Celitron plant was performed. Using the Celitron plant, MagMeal as well as MagOil can be produced out of our black soldier fly larvae. The new plant consists of an Integrated sterilizer & shredder (ISS), two balance tanks, a decanter, paddle dryer, separator, heat exchanger, scrubber and steam generator. Whole larvae as well as larvae juice can be processed. Using whole larvae, we obtain a chitin-rich MagMeal. The Sepamatic is used to separate skins from larvae juice. 

First step during larvae separation is to clean the larvae. This step is very important since using dirty larvae results in coloration as well as worse quality of the larvae meal and oil. Three pallet boxes are filled with warm water (40°C). Larvae go consecutively into each pallet box. Using a sieving deck, larvae are separated from the water. This method was chosen for these small quantities of larvae and yields clean larvae ready to use. 

Larvae production was complicated by HVAC malfunctions during these trials making the cleaning even more important. However, two batches of approx.. 500 kg of fresh larvae have been used to testrun the equipment. The setup in Turnhout is depicted in figure 3. 

The clean larvae are loaded into the ISS. At this moment this is done manually but a pump will be installed soon. This makes working safer and it also mirrors the working principle of the ISS in the Gseries. After closing the ISS larvae/larvae juice is shredded for a pre-set time. While shredding, the product is heated using steam injection for pasteurization. The effect of the temperature and the retention time on the quality of the down stream separation will be evaluated in further trials. 

The CIP (cleaning in place)-tank is used to make cleaning mixtures for the whole system. Pre-set chemical mixtures are prepared in the tank (P3-Oxonia, MPC 50 and water). After cleaning, the chemical mixture is collected back in the tank. Depending on how often the Celitron plant is used, the tank must be emptied and a new chemical batch is prepared. 

After shredding and pasteurization in the ISS, the juice is pumped in the first balance tank. To retain homogeneity, a stirrer as well as a circulation pump has been installed. During this recirculation the juice is passes a shredder that further reduces the particle seize, which can be adapted. 

When the balance tank is filled, the juice is pumped into the decanter. The decanter will separate solids from liquid. The solids will be dried in the paddle dryer while the liquid, containing the oil, will be processed in the separator. 

The “larvae cake”, coming out of the decanter, goes directly in the paddle dryer. Hot air will dry the product without overheating it or clump formation. At the end of the paddle dryer, our product (larvae meal) is collected. 

The liquid fraction coming out of the decanter is collected in the second balance tank. Multiple batches of larvae/larvae juice must be processed to fill the balance tank. When the thank is full, the liquid is pumped into the separator. 

In the separator, centrifugal forces will separate remaining solids, water and oil. The water flows directly to the drain while the larvae oil product is collected. 

To prevent smelly air, the air coming out of the paddle dryer goes via a heat exchanger to the scrubber. In the scrubber, the air is purified using water or a caustic solution. The output is chilled and odorless air. 

Hot steam is used for multiple purposes. 

• Steam injection in ISS for pasteurization 

• Hot air in the paddle dryer 

• Hot steam is used to heat up the oil, which heat up the paddle dryer mantle 

Three samples of MagMeal have been analyzed. Samples are taken on different times, and they indicate that we have currently a crude protein content of approx.. 60% on Dry Matter. Further refining to boost this content and to reach the desired moisture content of 8% will be done in 2021 (table 2, figure 5)