Oilgae Blog - The Latest from the World of Algae Fuels
Extraction of Biocrude from Algae - A Top Story
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Climate change mitigation-related stories were among the top ten most read science stories from the Los Alamos National Laboratory in 2009.
Los Alamos National Laboratory team-up with Solix Biofuels Inc. to use the laboratory’s sound wave technology in optimizing production of algae-based fuel ranked as the seventh leading story for 2009.
Acoustic focusing – the use of sound waves by the Los Alamos Acoustic Flow Cytometer – is being commercialized to harvest biocrude, also known as green gold. The substance is an alternative to crude oil and can be refined into biodiesel, gasoline or even jet fuel.
More about Los Alamos National Laboratory
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Fuel-Research
LSU AgCenter Explores Algae for Biofuel
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The AgCenter announced in mid-December that it had received "conditional approval" from the state Board of Regents to establish the LSU AgCenter Biofuels Research Center, and it now has "one year to get the institute up and running," said John Russin, associate vice chancellor of the LSU AgCenter.
Timber processing leaves behind tons of branches, bark and debris -- biomass -- that can be converted to biofuel. Algae aquaculture also could generate significant biomass for fuel, and has been a subject of intense research nationally and at the AgCenter, Russin said.
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Fuel-Research
Turning Green Algae into Piles of Green Money
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Meghan Starbuck, an assistant professor of economics at New Mexico State University, is working on a way to turn microalgae, and millions of their tiny, slimy friends, into a successful fuel industry for the state.
"Algal biofuel can be refined into a variety of fuels, including gasoline. I would run my car on algal-based gasoline, if I could get my hands on a couple of gallons," Starbuck said. Her car, a 315-horsepower 2010 Mustang GT, comes in handy when making the 143-mile trip between Las Cruces and the NMSU Agricultural Science Center at Artesia.
The Artesia Science Center is home to a project with the Center for Excellence in Hazardous Materials Management, a nonprofit group in Carlsbad leading an effort in southeastern New Mexico to produce biofuels from algae. According to Starbuck, CEHMM is a leader when it comes to scaling-up algae production, an important step in making the biofuel industry economically successful in New Mexico.
Labels: Algae-Energy-Products, Algae-Fuel-Research
Workshop on Advanced Research Techniques
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The National Facility for Marine Cyanobacteria (NFMC) (Sponsored by DBT, Govt. of India) , Department of Marine Biotechnology, School of Marine Sciences, Bharathidasan University,
Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu is organizing workshop entitled SHORT-TERM TRAINING ON ADVANCED RESEARCH TECHNIQUES (START) from 8th to 19th February 2010.
Download Brochure Here
Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
WSU Gets Algae Research Funds
You are at: Oilgae Blog.A researcher at Washington State University recently received a $2 million federal appropriation to improve the process of turning algae into energy. The money came through the 2010 Senate Energy and Water Development bill and will go to the Washington State Algae Alliance.
Shulin Chen is a professor of biological systems engineering. He has patents pending on several algae culture, harvesting and nutrient-recycling systems. The money will be used to improve ways to process and produce algae.
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Washington State Algae Alliance
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The Washington State Algae Alliance, comprised of bioscience firm Targeted Growth, Inc. (TGI), Inventure Chemical (Inventure) and Washington State University (WSU), will benefit from $2 million in funding through WSU as part of the 2010 Senate Energy and Water Development appropriations bill. U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) was instrumental in securing funding for the Alliance, which will jointly develop a new system for the production of sustainable and renewable fuels, chemicals, and chemical intermediates, creating jobs and furthering the state’s growing clean technology base.
The Alliance has three objectives: First, to develop an efficient and integrated algae cultivation system for the production of fuel and other products; second, to build first class capabilities; and third, to advance related science and technologies. These objectives align with initiatives identified in the National Algae Fuel Roadmap developed by the US Department of Energy.
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Labels: Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Energy-Investments, Algae-Fuel-Research
NASA Launches with Algae Systems on Eve Of COP 15: Carbon-negative Fuel from Sewage and CO2
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Press release
As several industrialized nations rush to dampen the expectations of Copenhagen, NASA has launched a new mission. The payload: Algae Systems – a new company started by NASA engineers and seasoned biofuel industry veterans to launch a profitable global solution for reducing greenhouse gases.
Algae Systems: Producing Carbon-Negative Diesel and Jet Fuel from Sewage and CO2 The founders of Algae Systems accepted NASA’s challenge to prove, commercialize and bring to market a unique and revolutionary technology – a byproduct of space missions – that produces a renewable carbon-negative fuel from algae that feeds on sunlight, sewage and CO2.
The NASA-developed technology, called OMEGA (Offshore Membrane Enclosures for Growing Algae) is a low-cost and low-tech method for growing algae. Unlike other approaches to growing algae, which require construction of massive energy-intensive facilities, OMEGAs are relatively inexpensive. OMEGAs are inflatable plastic membranes filled with processed wastewater, CO2 gas, and freshwater algae. OMEGAs float in water, and can be anchored off the coast of any ocean or salt lake. As the algae grow, using the energy of the sun, they convert wastewater and CO2 into biomass, and oxygen. OMEGA’s uniquely utilize forward-osmosis membranes to permeate purified water out of the OMEGA and into the surrounding water.
When coupled with Algae Systems’ solutions for the production of liquid transportation fuels, the combined “integrated biorefineries” can make high-value fuels while treating wastewater and drawing down CO2. “The OMEGA technology has the power to transform. In conjunction with our fuel conversion technologies, we can transform sewage and carbon dioxide into abundant and inexpensive fuels,” said Matthew Atwood, the President of Algae Systems. “Together the
technologies create an integrated biorefinery that is simple and scalable, generating sustainable-energy supplies and local reen-collar jobs.” Designing Fuels that Draw Down CO2 Algae Systems’ Dr. Zoa Hough-Maguire, a COP 15 delegate representing the State of Florida and her company’s planned commercial project in that state, characterizes the revolutionary benefits of the OMEGA technology, “Algae Systems’ fuels are radically different. They actually draw down carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.” The company has utilized the U.S. Department of Energy GREET model for carbon lifecycle to validate the fuels will be carbon-negative. With this new technology in hand, Algae Systems specifically addresses the most critical issues on the agenda of the Copenhagen climate conference: the reduction of CO2 and other GHG emissions, sustainable-energy production, waste disposal, and protecting fragile marine ecosystems and water resources.
Readying for Commercial Launch
In making the announcement, NASA’s, Lisa Lockyer, Deputy Director of New Ventures and Communications for the Ames Research Center, has echoed Algae Systems’ determination and confidence by announcing the center’s support for the commercialization of the technology.
Accepting the challenge and signaling his company’s capacity to meet it, Atwood said, “Rapid deployment is anticipated. We are building a U.S.-based commercial pilot to prove the scalability of the technology up to 100 million gallons of wastewater throughput per
year. Once successful, we will begin offering the technology to industrial and municipal clients."
Technology That Gives Back
"The concept is simple," says John Perry Barlow, a Managing Partner of Algae Systems, "If you can take problems that the world has in abundance, like sewage and CO2, and transform them into resources, like diesel fuel that works in existing machinery, you can create economic fountains within local markets that become a positive incentive to draw down significant quantities of greenhouse gases." As a co-founder of the Electronic Frontier Foundation and an early architect of the Open Internet model that has been fundamental to its success, Barlow spent years traveling around Africa and other developing countries connecting them to the Internet. "For any set of technologies to be widely-enough deployed in time to mitigate climate change, they have to spread themselves, like the Internet," Barlow says, "they have to be simple and cheap, they have to address needs the developing world has now, and they have to be deployed by the very people who live there."
Mission Critical: On the Front Lines of Global Warming With a technology so readily adaptable to the immediate needs of the developing world, Algae Systems has become a rallying point for those who are most at risk from sea-level rise due to increasing CO2 emissions: AOSIS, the 42 member Alliance of Small Island States. In the words of U.N. Ambassador Demissa Williams of Grenada, leading member of AOSIS, “We have to worry today, not tomorrow.” With help of NASA and forward-thinking partners around the world, Algae Systems has moved past worry and is taking action.
Algae Systems, LLC (Algae Systems) is an American, full-service carbon-negative energy production, engineering, and technology company, soon offering turn-key solutions for C02 and sewage conversion to diesel-manufacturing plants worldwide for commercial and municipal clients. Algae Systems is a signatory with the UN Global Impact and its official and approved “Caring for Climate” list of international businesses committed to the development of environmentally-friendly technologies.
Additional information about Algae Systems and its technology can be found at www.algaesystems.com and http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/news/releases/2009/09-
147AR.html
The term "Carbon-Negative" describes a process for removing carbon dioxide (CO2) from the earth's atmosphere. COP 15, the United Nations Climate Change Conference, will take place in Copenhagen, Denmark, between December 7 and December 18, 2009.
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Labels: Algae-Carbon-Capture, Algae-Energy-Investments, Algae-Fuel-Research
ASU Scientists Receive Innovator of the Year award
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Press release:
Two Arizona State University scientists who started their work with algae more than 25 years ago were recognized with the Innovator of the Year-Academia award at the 2009 Governor’s Celebration of Innovation event held Nov. 19 at the Orpheum Theater in Phoenix.
Professors Qiang Hu and Milton Sommerfeld in the College of Technology and Innovation at ASU’s Polytechnic campus received Arizona’s highest honor for technology innovation for their work with the process of converting algae into fuel.
Last year, Time magazine named the process one of the top innovations in 2008.
In response to winning the award, Sommerfeld said “We are very honored to receive the Innovator of the Year award for our lab’s work on developing a renewable and sustainable fuel source from algae and are very proud of our team of students, research associates and staff who are committed to developing solutions to our nation’s energy problems.”
Sommerfeld and Hu have been working on algae as a source of renewable fuel for more than 25 years. The technology they developed uses sunlight, waste materials like carbon dioxide in flue gas, and nitrates and phosphates in waste waters as nutrients for growing a renewable algae feedstock that yields oil. The algae biomass residuals yield carbohydrates for ethanol production and proteins for animal feed or organic fertilizer.
The researchers recently received significant funding for their algae projects and already two spin-off companies have been created from technologies developed in their laboratory.
“Milt and Qiang are two faculty members who exemplify the spirit of technology innovation that is the core mission of our college,” said Keith Hjelmstad, university vice president and dean of the College of Technology and Innovation. “This award is a fantastic spotlight to shine on their achievement. I am proud of them and even more pleased by what it means to others who will now be inspired to innovate.”
The Governor’s Celebration of Innovation has become a premier community gathering in Arizona. Three teams, two of which were from ASU, competed for the coveted award in the Academia category.
The award – given to a department or office within an accredited higher education institution that has achieved success through innovation in the past calendar year – is presented by the Arizona Technology Council and the Arizona Department of Commerce.
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An Algae Farmer from Prince George County
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In Prince George County, in a town called Spring Grove, Jes Sprouse is one of those looking to build an algae business.
Sprouse has developed a patent-pending process to convert algae into fuel. He is just one player in a nationwide race to create a viable biofuel from algae.
But while most other efforts are focused on processing algae to be used as an alternative to diesel or gasoline, Sprouse’s start-up Algal Farms Inc. is focused on creating algae pellets, which are burned like coal to generate electricity or are used as a substitute for wood pellets for heating.
Sprouse also said he is working on another project in Chesterfield County to convert an old wastewater treatment facility in a shuttered tobacco processing facility into an algae farm.
But Sprouse’s big dream is to build two large-scale algae farms, one 2,000-acre farm at a site in Prince George and a 20,000-acre at another in Prince George County – combined, the two farms would employ 860 people. He said that each acre of surface water would be capable of producing 500 pounds of biomass a day.
Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Growing Algae in Acre-sized Platforms in Ocean
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Kansas State University engineer Wenquiao Yuan and his colleague think that growing algae on floating, acre-sized platforms in the ocean could dramatically reduce expenses associated with algae oil production by providing free sources of sunlight, nutrients, controlled temperature and water.
Unless the platform can grow algae several millimeters thick, it would be too difficult to scrape off the biomass for processing into oil.
The algae have responded well to dimpled stainless-steel. But the engineers are not sure why algae grow differently, depending on the type of material and surface texture.
Understanding those "mechanisms of attachment" is the goal of the first portion of the research, which is funded by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). From there, the engineers will likely test their platform system in a smaller pond environment and then take it offshore.
See more: msnbc
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U.S. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus promises a greener fleet using 50 percent less fossil fuel by 2020.
In a speech Wednesday to the San Diego Military Advisory Council, Mabus said even Navy planes may soon run on fuel produced from biological sources, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
The Navy is turning to the ocean for biofuel, with a plan to convert marine algae. The F/A-18 Hornet, which runs on biofuel, is scheduled to be part of a carrier wing within three years and to become a standard fighter by 2016.
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Fuel-Research
W2 Plans to Sequester The Carbon Using Algae
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W2 Energy is forming a joint venture with Canadian battery recycler Toxco to generate electricity from battery waste. W2 will annually process 600 tons of plastics and carbon from recycled batteries and convert it into electricity and liquid fuel using gasification technology. This will be done in a mass-to-energy unit fitted into a truck trailer. The fuel and electricity generated will be supplied back to Toxco.
W2 plans to sequester the carbon and nitrogen oxides produced from the waste combustion and use it to grow algae in a reactor. In February, the firm paid USD375,000 to acquire plasma gasification technology from Kinectrics.
Source: StrategyEye
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Labels: Algae-CO2-Capture, Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Fuel-Research
Old Dominion University (ODU) Studying to Convert Algae to Biofuel
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Several partners are proposing to develop a $50 million algae farm on city-owned land where the slimy, aquatic growth would be converted into biodiesel fuel and other forms of alternative energy.
Much of the proposal, however, hinges on federal stimulus money from the U.S. Department of Energy. ODU and its partners are asking for $46 million from a $100 million pool set aside by the Obama administration for advancing algae-to-biodiesel technology.
A decision about the funding is expected as soon as next month, and by the end of the year at the latest, project sponsors said.The Virginia Beach proposal includes three private companies that are committing money and support for the bigger farm, and involves researchers from ODU, George Washington University, Jacksonville State University, the University of Michigan and South Dakota State University, according to a prospectus.
Pat Hatcher, a professor leading the initiative said “There’s a lot of interest in this technology, and we have lots of avenues open to us.”
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Energy-Investments, Algae-Fuel-Research
Algae Link to Australia's Clean Coal Technology
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The former Queensland premier Peter Beattie said on Friday that algae could prove to be the solution to Queensland's clean coal dilemma and put Australia on course for a new future of alternative energy.
At a University of Queensland bioscience seminar, Beattie said Australia would fall behind the rest of the world if the nation did not quickly diversify its energy offerings. He said attitudes were changing quickly in the U.S. regarding energy usage as President Barack Obama poured money into green research projects.
He also suggested that Queensland scientists should collaborate with American institutes to be part of advances in solar, wind, wave, geothermal and algae-generated energy, saying the latter could provide a lifeline for Queensland's coal stocks.
Research into clean coal so far has focused on trapping carbon in the earth but concerns have been raised that it could leak out. However, technology could allow carbon created from burning coal to be captured and used to feed algae, getting rid of the storage problem, Beattie said.
Chemical compounds from the algae, which thrives on carbon dioxide, could then be extracted to make diesel or aviation fuel.
"We have to clean up coal because in 20 years, at the very latest, the energy mix is going to be different," he told reporters after his speech.
Source: Xinhuanet.com
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Labels: Algae-CO2-Capture, Algae-Fuel-Research
Danielle Ford of Emerging Green Companies Tours the 2009 Algal Biomass Summit
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EmergingGreenCompanies.com today announced its airing of its correspondent Danielle Ford touring the Algal Biomass Summit in San Diego, California and asking questions.
During this tour you can see interviews with companies such as Airbus, Renewed World Energies, and Biocentric Energy Holdings Inc.
Several key topics were discussed by Danielle including the uses of Algae for skin care. Dennis Fisher of Biocentric Energy indicated his intent to become involved with strains of algae used for skin care.
Other topics included Renewed World Energies expressing an interest to work with the group at Biocentric Energy.
The Summit itself is a three-day event exploring the development of algae-based solutions to global energy, environmental, and economic issues. We hope that some of the large companies attending such as Boeing, Exxon, and Raytheon pay attention to companies such as Biocentric Energy. Seeing how according to Biocentric Energy, they posses technology and strains of algae that are far ahead of their competition.
Danielle Fords tour can be seen on the Emerging Green Companies Media page.
http://emerginggreencompanies.com/home/?page_id=124
See the video of this release: http://www.vodnewswire.com/vodnewswire/news/emerging-green-20091012B/
Source: Marketwire
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OriginOil Finishes First Phase of Algae Commercialization Model
You are at: Oilgae Blog.OriginOil, Inc. the developer of a breakthrough technology to transform algae, the most promising source of renewable oil, into a true competitor to petroleum, today announced the completion of Phase 1 of a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory (INL).
OriginOil has been working with INL to develop a process model for the commercial production of algae for biofuels and other value-added products. Phase 1 of the CRADA focused on developing a comprehensive mass-energy balance of OriginOil’s proprietary process. This helped the company develop its comprehensive productivity model recently presented to the National Algae Association’s Quarterly Forum in Houston, Texas. INL researchers provided core data on the projected efficiency and recovery values for the various steps involved in the algae-growing process, including lipid and biomass production from algae.
“Algae represent a potential key biomass resource for a sustainable bioenergy industry,” said Tom Ulrich, INL Senior Advisory Scientist. “Collaboration with OriginOil has been encouraging, especially the modeling of their algae growth and production process. Phase 2 of the CRADA will focus on further process validation, economic modeling and improved biomass logistics for the scale up of algae biomass production.”
CEO Eckelberry added: “We look forward to continuing our relationship with INL and incorporating their research into our technology development and performance modeling. Through this collaboration we will facilitate the growth of the entire algae sector, and create a domestic renewable fuel industry that will benefit both the environment and the economy.”
INL and OriginOil are currently negotiating the scope and terms of Phase 2 and 3 of the CRADA. The deliverables for additional phases will include biological and chemical feedstock evaluation needed for systems integration design and scale-up demonstration. This work will identify and incorporate minor feeds (such as trace nutrients for algae), recycle streams, intermediate storage, utilities needed, and waste streams. Equipment sizes and the appropriate number of parallel units will also be determined, resulting in a more robust economic analysis of industrial scale systems.
The company reported the results of Phase 1 as part of the first-ever productivity model for algae production. The model was well received by industry leaders because of its comprehensive data set, transparent assumptions, and clarity on the commercialization challenge. OriginOil plans to publish specialized calculators on the company’s website, and will make the detailed model available to researchers.
“The new algae industry needed a comprehensive economic model to ramp up quickly,” said OriginOil CEO Riggs Eckelberry. “INL has played an integral part in our efforts to quantify the performance of key steps within the OriginOil algae production system.”
See more: OriginOil
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Center for Renewable and Alternative Fuel Technologies (CRAFT) at EKU Boosts Biofuel Production
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Armed with a recently announced $3.6 million federal contract with the Defense Logistics Agency, the Center for Renewable and Alternative Fuel Technologies (CRAFT) at EKU is ramping up its efforts to boost biofuels production in central Kentucky.
Sixth District Congressman Ben Chandler, who was instrumental in securing the contract, was on the Richmond campus on Monday, Sept. 28, joining University officials and state leaders in providing an update on the initiative, which has already garnered considerable international attention for EKU.
Working with corporate partner General Atomics, Clark County and Winchester governments, Green Earth BioFuel in Estill County and Lextran, CRAFT will use algae techniques to process cellulosic materials that are readily available in the Commonwealth, offering a framework for sustainable fuel production and a boost for Kentucky agriculture.
“This is going to help our farmers, and it is going to produce jobs in this region,” Chandler said. “We can do it in such a way that we can employ people in good-paying jobs that can’t be exported.
“I’m tremendously proud to be associated with this fine university and these fine people. This university is well on its way to great things.”
The Defense Logistics Agency contract calls for specific areas of research that will ultimately lead to a demonstration pilot plant in Clark County to produce the biofuels. The EKU concept is unique in that the research will target locally grown biomass products to derive simple sugars that will be fed to algae to produce an oil that can be refined into fuels and other co-products such as plastics and pharmaceuticals.
Source: EKupdate
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Algae Initiative Aims to Produce Fuel While Helping the Environment
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Press Release:
The
The enterprise, called ChAPthe Chesapeake Algae Projectis an integrated research approach to algae-based energy production and environmental remediation. It includes a number of corporate partners, notably StatoilHydro, a Norwegian energy company. StatoilHydro has seeded the enterprise with an initial $3 million investment. Other key partners are the
“This is the kind of collaboration at which William & Mary excels,” William & Mary President Taylor Reveley said. “It is a powerful extension of our own drive toward a more sustainable campus community.”
StatoilHydro representatives met with William & Mary officials and other partners in
“By taking the first step in close cooperation with some of the most skilled researchers the U.S. has to offer in this field, we feel confident that we have the best starting point possible for reaching a successful result and a good basis for attracting new private and public partners in the future,” says Lars Nordli, head of StatoilHydro’s biofuel division.
The William & Mary/VIMS group is investigating a process that not only is environmentally sustainable, but if used on a large scale, can help to reverse a number of environmental problems such as excess nutrient enrichment that produces “dead zones” in the
However, Dennis Manos, William & Mary’s vice provost for research and graduate and professional studies, said the main environmental benefits of ChAP will derive from the central goal of the project: to find a way to produce algal biofuel on an industrial scale.
“We would like to help companies put a significant dent in the world’s thousand-barrel-per-second appetite for oil,” Manos said.
Lead researchers at VIMS involved in ChAP include J. Emmett Duffy, the Loretta and Lewis Glucksman Professor of Marine Science, and Professor of Marine Science Elizabeth Canuel. At the
Manos explained that the project involves the entire process of producing biofuels, from algal growth to harvesting, extracting the oil and other projects from the algae, processing the oil and producing the final biofuel product.
The project was initiated by exploring, among others, technology originally developed by Walter Adey of the Smithsonian Institution as an efficient, large-scale aquarium filter. Adey has been meeting with a group of researchers at William & Mary and VIMS for the past year, working out details of how to adapt the concept to industrial-scale algae cultivation. A test site has been operating at VIMS, using brackish York River water, and a second test station is planned for
Algae are good candidates for use as biofuel because of their rapid growth rates, ability to take-up nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus, and some of these aquatic plants have as much as 50 percent oil content, depending on environmental factors. ChAP differs from other algal biofuel initiatives in two ways.
“In the first place, we’re going to work with many species of algae, as opposed to concentrating on farming a monoculture, or attempting to contain genetically modified algae in open-water environments,” Manos said. Most current algae studies focus on one high-yield species or strain of algae, but Manos explained that using a polyculture approach makes the algae less susceptible to disease and generally more robust. One of the goals of ChAP will be to develop processes to maximize the effective energy yield from a harvest that varies in oil content.
The other difference is that the process is designed to work without competing with either fresh-water supplies or agricultural resources. “The process will work in brackish water, salt water, even waste water,” Manos said. “That’s one of the best parts of the whole idea, and ultimately, while producing affordable transportation fuel, using wild algae can even help to remediate conditions that otherwise would lead to harmful algal blooms.”
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Virginia Institute of Marine Science Receives $3 Million to Turn Algae into Biodiesel
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Virginia Institute of Marine Science is the recipient of $3 million — seed money from StatoilHydro, a Norwegian energy company — to convert algae from the York River into biodiesel fuel. The plan is to cut the amount of harmful nutrients, such as phosphorus and nitrogen, entering the Chesapeake Bay and create an alternative source of energy.
"What we really want to do is turn pollution into fuel," said J. Emmett Duffy, a VIMS professor leading the program.
VIMS will pump water from the river near its Gloucester Point campus onto a large conveyor belt. A plastic screen on the belt will trap the nutrients while the water is recycled back into the river.
The nutrients, which sit on the belt for at least a week, turn into algae before researchers harvest and store it. From there, researchers take the algae into a lab where oils are extracted and converted into biodiesel.
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Energy-Investments, Algae-Fuel-Research
Virginia Commonwealth University Studies Algae
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VCU's department of biology began a study using algae as biofuel this summer. The project received $40,000 in funding from the Virginia Coastal Energy Research Consortium, as well as $20,000 from VCU. VCU's study began this summer and is expected to be completed by June 2010.
Professor Paul Bukaveckas, who specializes in algae and holds a doctorate in ecology and evolutionary biology, is the primary investigator of the VCU study. Bukaveckas explained why algae biofuel is preferred over ethanol.
Amber Taylor, a bioinformatics and geonomics major with a minor in environmental studies, conducted her own research and discovered various algae types secrete different materials to produce various biofuels. Understanding the operations of algae is important, Taylor said.
"It is found that certain algae, when given more carbon dioxide, yield larger amounts of oil," Taylor said.
Algal Farms, a local company, has expressed interest in collaborating with VCU in future studies. The company, founded in 2008, is exploring dried algae as a substitute for use in coal power plants, said Director of Operations Gary Ford. Because algae absorbs carbon dioxide, Ford said that it is considered carbon neutral, or carbon negative.
"Emissions (with algae) are a lot cleaner than what you'd get with other fuel sources," Ford said. According to Ford, they are also testing algae for use in pellet stoves.
See more here
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Diatoms Solar Panel - A Biofuel Producing Solar Panel
You are at: Oilgae Blog.T. V. Ramachandra, a professor of ecological sciences at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) is working on the project of creating biological solar panel with IISc researchers Durga Mahapatra and Karthick Balasubramanian, along with Richard Gordon, a radiology professor at the University of Manitoba in Winnepeg.
The researchers propose creating a biological solar panel, which will contain diatoms instead of photovoltaic cells. Diatoms would float about in a nutrient-rich water solution and produce oil when exposed to sunlight. Diatoms already secrete silica by exocytosis—a biological process by which cells direct secreted material outside the cell walls. If diatoms could be made to similarly secrete the oil they produce, then it could be easily harvested. (Because the oil is used as a reserve nutrient—like fat—diatoms have evolved no mechanism to secrete it.)
Ramachandra insists an advantage of the diatom solar panel is that it can be created and maintained with equipment and methods that are inexpensive. This is different from photovoltaic solar panels, which require sophisticated fabrication facilities. In tropical countries like India with an abundance of sunlight, biofuel-producing solar panels containing local diatoms could be placed in every village. Investigation has shown that diatom oil can be used as biofuel without further processing, says Ramachandra. A further advantage is that diatoms consume carbon dioxide, so the diatom solar panels would be very sustainable.
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Agricultural Development Board Invests $220,000 in EKU Research
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Press Release:
The Kentucky Agricultural Development Board, chaired by Gov. Steve Beshear, approved Eastern Kentucky University for $200,000 in state and $10,000 each in Clark and Madison County Agricultural Development Funds for the evaluation of biofuel feedstock forages for livestock consumption and biofuel production.
This project will look at the establishment and management of biofuel feedstocks to be used in algae-based biofuel production. The primary feedstock to be studied will be switchgrass. The switchgrass and by-products from processing for biofuel will be evaluated for their nutritional content for use in ruminant feeds and supplements.
Another component of this project will be to evaluate on-farm economics of transitioning from traditional agricultural production to biofuel feedstock production in Kentucky.
This project was one of 18 proposals approved at the Kentucky Agricultural Development Board's August business meeting.
For more information about this project, contact Dr. Don Llewellyn,EKU Department of Agriculture, at (859) 622-2235 or don.llewellyn@eku.edu.
Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
West Bengal Power Development Corporation (WBPDCL) and Sun Plant Agro Leads Algae Project
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Bengal is taking the lead in algae fuel a third-generation biofuel that has generated tremendous excitement worldwide. A city-based organization is conducting a pilot project at the Kolaghat thermal power plant and is expected to start production next year.
"Algae yields a very high amount of bio-fuel compared with jatropha or soyabean because almost the entire algal organism uses sunlight to produce lipids or oil. Studies show that algae can produce 60-80% of their biomass in the form of oil," said professor Sarajit Basu, the mentor of the project and an expert on bio-fuel.
The possibilities are immense. Fifty per cent of the CO2 emitted can be used for algal farming, 25% for farming of spirulina (an edible algae, very high in protein content), and the rest can be compressed in its uncontaminated form to produce dry ice. The oil-cakes again are an excellent fuel which can be burnt to generate power to run this entire process. So, it will be a self-sustaining technology," said S M Ghosh, the head of Bio-Fuel Mission of Sun Plant Agro, which plans to start commercial production of algae bio-fuel by 2010. "We are taking land on lease near Canning for this," said A K Singh, managing director of Sun Plant Agro.
Aquacarotene Reinvents Itself as Algae Bio-processing company
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Aquacarotene is looking to reinvent itself as a bio-processing company based on algae
and other complementary bio-processing projects that produce energy and/or nutraceuticals.
Aquacarotene has a potentially excellent site for the production of biodiesel through the growing of algae in open raceway ponds. The company claims to have
· 380 hectares of leased land
· Gravel to expand the ponds
· Abundant CO2 nearby
· Native title issues cleared
· Abundant pristine sea water within close pumping range
· Excellent practical knowledge on the growing of Algae especially Dunaliella Salina
· Land to house production facilities.
The company is actively looking for a partner for the successful production of biodiesel.
By the way, have you subscribed to the Oilgae Blog?; How about joining the Oilgae mailing list?; and our forum to discuss on with others?Kirsten Heimann at James Cook Univ to Develop Algae Technology
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Australia is preparing to introduce technology that allows algae to capture half or more of the greenhouse gases emitted by a power station. The micro-algae thrive on carbon dioxide, producing food for livestock as well as biofuels and material for plastics.
The idea is to pump emissions from power stations into photo-bioreactors, which are large tubes filled with algae. When carbon dioxide from the power stations is mixed with water, the algae soak up much of it, using it as a nutrient. Once the algae are removed from the tubes, scientists say they can be buried in the seabed, where they could store indefinitely the carbon they have ingested. The algae can also be processed and used to create biodiesel fuel and fertilizer, as well as food for farm animals.
Kirsten Heimann at Queensland's James Cook University developed the technology.
"They take up carbon dioxide from the air or if you feed them carbon dioxide they take that and with the aid of sunlight they are converting that into sugars, proteins and oils," explains Heimann.
Three of Australia's biggest coal-fired power stations are building algae farms to help them reduce pollution in a country where 80 percent of electricity is generated by burning coal. Burning fuels such as coal and oil pump vast amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
Labels: Algae-CO2-Capture, Algae-Fuel-Research
Artificial Life is Only Months Away, Says Craig Venter
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Craig Venter, who led a private project to sequence the human genome, told The Times that his team had cleared a critical hurdle to creating man-made organisms in a laboratory.
“Assuming we don’t make any errors, I think it should work and we should have the first synthetic species by the end of the year,” he said.
Dr Venter, who has been chasing his goal for a decade, is already working on projects to use synthetic biology to create bacteria that transform coal into cleaner natural gas, and algae that soak up carbon dioxide and turn it into hydrocarbon fuels. Other potential applications include new ways of manufacturing medicines and vaccines.
Dr Venter’s prediction came after scientists at his J. Craig Venter Institute, in Rockville, Maryland, announced that they had developed a new method of transplanting DNA into bacteria, promising to solve a problem that has held up the artificial life project for two years.
Source: Times Online
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Madras Institute of Magnetobiology says electromagnetic field can boost algae growth
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PMF Coil System
Various methods are being pursued to boost the growth of algae. One such specific and highly safe, natural approach uses extremely low frequency electro-magnetic fields.
This specific approach uses extremely low frequency magnetic fields on biological systems, resulting in these systems getting exposed to pulsed magnetic field (PMF). An alternating current surging forward and backward in a coil winding generates a magnetic field surging back and forth in the coil along its axis. Such a magnetic field is referred to as the PMF.
Biological systems interact with PMF, and these interactions can be largely grouped under:
• Cellular and Tissue Interactions
• Membrane properties and ELF signal transduction
• Molecular Transport
• Stress and survival
• Repair and Regeneration
The use of PMF is common in agrobiology where dry seeds of crops, silkworm eggs, , various types of tubers and horticulture plant seeds are exposed to different parametric combinations of pulsed magnetic field for various responses such as enhancing germination, morphological, biochemical and yield aspects.
It has been suggested that microalgae can also be made to interact with a PMF for positive results.
Some of the research efforts made to analyze the effect of electromagnetic field on microalgae suggest that it is possible to enhance the nutrient assimilation of microalgae, thereby increasing the growth rate when placed under electromagnetic field.
Some related references for the positive effect of pulsed magnetic field on algae are given below
1. Effects of electromagnetic field on the batch cultivation and nutritional composition of Spirulina platensis in an air-lift photobioreactor.
2. Effects of electromagnetic fields on the motion of Euglena gracilis
The use of magnetic fields to influence growth of algae is an interesting research area in its nascent stages. Those interested in knowing more about this field can contact
Dr.T.Leelapriya – Head Agrisciences Div.,
Madras Institute of Magnetobiology,
52-A, A.K.Block, 7th Main Road, Anna Nagar,
Chennai-40, India.
Ph:91-044-26213122,
E-mail: p_mim@hotmail.com
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
National Wind Solutions (NWND) Tries Algae
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US-based National Wind Solutions (NWND) has bought an undisclosed biodiesel plant in Texas for $3 million (€2.1 million) and has announced its intention to convert it to produce biodiesel from second-generation feedstock.
After successfully producing soyabean biodiesel for commercial transportation uses, the plant was mothballed by its original producers because of the high cost of soyabeans.
NWND intends to retrofit the plant with the necessary equipment to process second-generation feedstocks such as algae and jatropha into biodiesel. The company hopes that the ability to use a wide variety of feedstocks will inoculate it again price spikes in any one feedstock.
Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Fuel-Research
General Atomics Taps Algaeventure Systems for Algae Fuel Research
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Algaeventure Systems has been awarded a purchase order by General Atomics (GA) to provide its algae harvesting, dewatering, and drying technology (AVS HDD).
With breakthrough technology and funding from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), General Atomics is spearheading the efforts of a group of corporate technology developers and universities in the pursuit of evaluating the potential of algae-to-fuel projects. The goal is to develop an environmentally friendly, efficient, and cost-effective process in JP-8 jet fuel that can be derived from algae oil.
"GA welcomes the opportunity to work with and evaluate Algaeventure's dewatering technologies under our DARPA Algae Derived JP-8 program. We believe that Algaeventure's approach holds promise for significantly reducing the cost of drying biomass at large scale thus improving the likelihood of producing cost-competitive, algae-derived fuel products," said David Ordway, Project Manager at General Atomics.
Five Major Algae Announcements in this Week News
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Joanna Schroeder lists five major algae announcements happened this week.
1. W2 Energy, based in Canada, announced that it has completed its Sunfilter commercial scale algae bioreactor.
2. Algaeventure Systems said that it has begun receiving orders for its algae harvesting, dewatering, and drying technology. The company that has placed the order is General Atomics.
3. Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) at University of North Dakota was awarded a subcontract by SAIC to use its proprietary technology to produce jet fuel from algal oils.
4. Kent BioEnergy, based on California, announced that it is going to establish a division of the company in Charleston South Carolina, partnering with a Grant Know, a local entrepreneur.
5. Algenol Biofuels, a Florida based company, has threatened to leave the state and now they are working with CEO Paul Woods to entice his company to stay.
Source: Reuters.com
Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Fuel-Research
Louisiana is Conducive for Algae Fuel Growth - Feasibility Report on Louisiana
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Louisiana Economic Development in partnership with KEMA Inc. recently released a feasibility report on Louisiana's commercial prospect for algae-to-energy ventures, in response to the growing need for alternative feed stocks in the renewable fuels industry.
The report demonstrates that Louisiana offers several advantages for algae industry development, including abundance of low-cost land, high-quality sunlight, array of Co2 sources, rainfall rate that exceeds evaporation rate, experience with aquaculture, and infrastructure and research capabilities.
"The results of the report confirm that Louisiana is well positioned to serve as the ideal platform for the emerging algae industry," said Kelsey Short, director of agriculture, food and forestry. "Accordingly, LED is actively seeking business development collaborations with algae investors and companies."
Key findings of the report include:
1. Louisiana is the leading state for scaled open-pond, freshwater algae development
2. Louisiana's rivers, aquifers and wastewater from industrial sources offer more than sufficient capacity for sustainable, scaled development of algae aquaculture
3. Louisiana has a potential capacity to produce up to 24.3 million tons of algae, based on existing industrial and power plant Co2 emissions
4. Louisiana has a potential capacity of 2.520 billion gallons of oil using existing Co2 resources, based on algae strains with 40 percent oil content
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Labels: Algae-CO2-Capture, Algae-Cultivation-Open-Pond, Algae-Cultivation-Sewage, Algae-Fuel-Research
Pakistans has Potential to Produce Oil from Algae - Dr Ehsan Ali
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Dr Ehsan Ali, a researcher at the Mie University of Japan, said that Pakistan had about 27 million acre of saline lands without any remarkable output that could prove a cheaper medium to produce biofuel from algae during a seminar.
He also said that Pakistan is depending on fossil fuel and needs to establish a ‘Biofuel Research Center’ where we can focus to develop biofuel industry in the country using advanced technologies. He said Pakistan Technology Board, an organisation of Ministry of Science and Technology responsible to identify and promote key technologies in Pakistan, has already taken some initiative to promote innovative research approaches towards biofuel production.
The Defence Research Laboratory, India Identifies Oil Producing Algae
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Minister of Defence Minister Shri AK Antony says The Defence Research Laboratory, (DRL), Tezpur is engaged in R&D work related to Bio-diesel from algae. They seem to have identify four strains which has maximum lipid content upto 40 %, for extraction of Bio-diesel. in a written reply to Shri Pradeep Majhi and Shri Kishnbhai V Patel in Lok Sabha. He also said that the algal samples have been collected from the following places in Assam :-
Nagon, Sonitpur, Mangaldai, Karbi Anglog, Golaghat, Jorhat, Nalbari, Kamrup, Dhubri, Bongaigaon, Barpeta, Dhemaji and Goalpara.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research, Algae-Strains
The Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) Awarded Subcontract to Produce Algae Jet Fuel
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The Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC) at the University of North Dakota has been awarded a subcontract by Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) to help produce jet fuel from algae. The effort is being funded by the U.S. Department of Defense's (DoD) Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and is a continuation of the first successful production of 100% renewable fuel for the U.S. military by the EERC.
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Labels: Algae-Aviation-Fuel, Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Fuel-Research
Indian and Canadian scientists are Manupulating Algae Geneticallyfor Oil
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Indian and Canadian scientists are jointly researching means to use algae to generate oil and cut down greenhouse gases.The project involves researchers from the Centre for Ecological Sciences (CES), Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and those from Canada-based Manitoba University.
But the first step, which CES researchers are involved in, is to identify which algae secrete more oil and to develop a method to genetically manipulate the identified algae to ensure they secrete more oil, according to TV Ramachandra, senior CES faculty member who is heading the IISc team in this venture.
The genetic manipulation would be done by the Manitoba University team. At the IISc lab, researchers are culturing algae to identify those yielding maximum oil.
Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Fuel-Research, Algae-Strains
The Pentagon Tries Algae Fuel For Military Vehicles
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The Pentagon is reportedly funding research that could result in some of its vehicles being powered by algae-based biofuel.
A Press report notes that the University of Utah has received government funds to develop a biofuel that would cost under $3 per gallon while providing up to 50 million gallons per year to help power military vehicles.The two companies in the San Diego area have also received contracts to develop a biofuel that is compatible with current military vehicles.
The algae is said to be a desirable biofuel component because it grows quickly and produces a substantial amount of fatty oils while also offering the potential to defray the military's annual $12 billion fuel bill.
See More in Washington Energy
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Labels: Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Energy-Investments, Algae-Fuel-Research
Ag-Oil uses Continuous Flow Technology Developed by UEE to Produce Biodiesel
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Ag-Oil will develop a state-of-the-art biofuel refinery and a commercial scale oilseed processing facility on their existing Jatropha plantation. This project has the potential to yield an annual capacity of 15 million gallons of bio-diesel while utilizing production equipment which easily processes multiple feedstocks. “The continuous flow technology - A solid catalyst that can drive the chemical reactions) developed by UEE to produce algae biodiesel and other non-food oilseed based biodiesel will allow for faster and cheaper production of bio-diesel,” said Ben Wen, Vice President of UEE. “We will also be implementing ANL’s glycerin desalinization process which will ensure successful long-term recycling of the water and increase overall fuel production by about 10%. We have partnered with some of the best minds in this field.
Ag-Oil anticipates utilizing a patented technology that will allow augmentation of biofuel output by as much as 60% using the same oilseed feedstock input by recycling biomass that is ordinarily considered waste material. “Using algae for this purpose potentially holds several distinct advantages, Liang said. First, algae can provide at least 30 times as much lipids per acre as corn, meaning less space can be devoted to this purpose. Also, using algae would reduce the competition for other oil seeds -- such as corn and soybeans.”
Algae Fuel Research by Donald Danforth Plant Science Center & The Washington University
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Researchers at two centers in St. Louis are gearing up to launch five-year research programs on algae, backed by U.S. DOE grants. The Donald Danforth Plant Science Center received $15 million and Washington University $20 million from the DOE’s fund for Energy Frontier Research Centers. A total of 46 centers were funded from a pool of some 260 applications.
Danforth’s Center for Advanced Biofuels Systems will be led by Richard Sayre. Sayre said the new team of researchers will be studying the conversion of energy captured from photosynthesis in the single cell algae and how it is channeled into oil.
The Washington University project will focus on the biophysics of light while the Danforth Center project focuses on biochemical conversion of that light into oil. Both programs are hiring personnel and organizing to officially launch the programs in August.
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Milking Diatoms for Sustainable Energy
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Along with colleagues from the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, Dr. Richard Gordon argues in a new paper, titled "Milking Diatoms for Sustainable Energy," that diatoms – a type of algae found in oceans and lakes – could even be engineered to secrete gasoline directly.
Gordon and his scientist colleagues have a problem with the current algae-to-fuel approach, in that it relies on the harvesting of algae as they rapidly reproduce. The harvested algae are then dried – that is, killed – and put through a series of production processes.
They go on to propose a way to alter the cells of diatoms, through genetic manipulation, to "actively secrete their own oil droplets." These engineered diatoms could then be bred in a type of solar panel designed to optimize conditions for photosynthesis and oil production.
As the diatoms gain mass by converting solar energy into oil, they will reach a stage where they automatically secrete oil droplets. Those droplets would then rise to the top, making the oil fairly simple to collect. It would be "very similar to the cream that rises to the top of mammalian milk that has not been homogenized," according to the study, published this month in the journal Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research.
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Fuel-Research, Algae-Oil-Extraction
Seaweed Could Provide the Sustainable ’Green’ Fuel of the Future
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The tripartite BioMara bio-marine energy research project will be spearheaded by marine scientists based in Ireland, the North and Scotland.They will investigate on converting seaweed and other plant algae into fuel as an alternative to the use of food crops to produce bio-fuels. Addressing stakeholders at the Northern Ireland Science Park Mrs Foster said the BioMara project was at the cutting edge of renewable fuel technology.
Dr Michele Stanley from the Scottish Association for Marine Sciences in Oban who is leading development work on the project said: “With global fossil fuel supplies dwindling and atmospheric carbon dioxide levels affecting climate change, there is an urgent need for new, renewable fuel sources with low net carbon emissions.
“Marine algae could be part of the solution. Seaweeds grow rapidly, harness carbon dioxide and have simple structures which make them easily converted to fuel.”
Philippines’ Quest for Biodiesel from Microalgae Starts at UPLB
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Professor Emeritus Milagros R. Martinez-Goss of the University of the Philippines Los Baños has got the approval of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) – Philippine Council for Aquatic and Marine Resources Research and Development (PCAMRD) for funding her proposal to mass cultivate freshwater microalgae for biodiesel feedstock.
With an initial funding of P 4.5M from the DOST-PCAMRD, Dr. Goss will be mass cultivating promising species of freshwater microalgae such as Chlorella vulgaris, Scendesmus obliques and Nitzschia palae. She states that the three species have the potential as biodiesel feedstock because of their growth rate, lipid content and lipid profile.
Dr. Goss’ project is part of a larger research program, aimed to characterize, optimize and genetically and physiologically modify microalgae for mass cultivation to be used for biodiesel production. The program will be facilitated by UPLB in cooperation with the Ateneo de Manila University and the University of Santo Tomas
Source: innovations report
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Japan and India to Launch Space Algae Research
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The Japanese and Indian space agencies have announced that they are to collaborate on a new project to research photosynthesis in space.
Noriaki Ishioka, a professor from the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), told AFP that JAXA and the Indian Space Research Organisation will be sending an unmanned satellite into space in October.
The objective of the mission will be to try and grow the algae spirulina aboard the satellite to study how the conditions affect growth, with the ultimate intention of using the data to inform future "space farming" projects.
Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Virgin Galactic is Constructing Spaceships running on Algae Fuels
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Virgin Galactic, a subsidiary of the Virgin Group, is constructing space ships that are designed to run in part on alternative fuels.
Over the past few months, pilots have conducted several test flights of the space-launch vehicle Eve. Eve's jet engines will run on kerosene initially but are also capable of running on butanol, a biofuel that can be made from algae.
‘The [carbon] cost of us putting someone into space will be less than flying to London and back on a commercial plane,’ Richard Branson, owner of Virgin Group, says.
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Fuel-Research
Odessa Public Development Authority to Build Algae Pond for Biodiesel
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Odessa Public development authority will build an infrastucture to serve an industrial park dedicated to innovative green business. The anchor tenant N.W Industrial service that lease the facility from OPDA for a green waste composting facility, a food waste anaerobic digester and lgae ponds. the composting facility will produce high grade compost, the anaerobic digester will produce 3MW of renewable energy and algae ponds will provide oil feedstock for the odessa biodiesel facility.
This project is known to create 40 direct green collar job.
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Fuel-Research
Qatar Science & Technology Park Examines Algae Fuel
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Qatar Science & Technology Park (QSTP) has launched a small project to examine the feasibility of producing aviation fuel from algae.
Executive chairman Dr Tidu Maini said- "We are blessed in Qatar with seawater, carbon dioxide and heat – which algae need to grow."
Source
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Labels: Algae-Aviation-Fuel, Algae-Fuel-Research
Austin Peay State University students presented Algae Fuel Project in National Sustainable Design Expo
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Austin Peay State University students presented a research project at the National Sustainable Design Expo held in April in Washington, D.C.
For their project, the students, from the departments of biology and engineering technology, explained how they converted solar energy and waste CO2 (for example, carbon dioxide that is released in power plants by burning fossil fuels) into an array of biofuels through the sequential use of microorganisms in bioreactors.
The team used microalgae in a photobioreactor to produce oil using CO2, water and light as an energy source. Produced oil was converted into biodiesel. Next, glycerol, a byproduct of biodiesel production, was used as a substrate for making H2 and ethanol by immobilized bacteria in a bioreactor. Finally, students tested one of the produced biofuels, hydrogen, in a fuel cell to run a small motor.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
New Generation Biofuels to Investigate Algae as Biodiesel Source
You are at: Oilgae Blog.New Generation, with headquarters near Orlando, has deals to supply its fuel to Maryland businesses, including a contract announced a few days ago to sell up to 1 million gallons in the next year to a gas and oil marketing company on the Eastern Shore.Currently this company is producing fuel from vegetable and soybean oil at a small production plant this year in southern Baltimore. This company is also investigating other feedstocks, including used cooking oil, animal fats and even oils produced from algae.
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Melissa Chopcian's Project on Algae won in Lambton County Science Fair
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The 12-year-old Hanna Memorial student Melissa Chopcian won best project in the junior category and gold in engineering, bringing home a $2,000 scholarship to the University of Western Ontario and $7,500 in cash in Lambton County Science Fair.
Gufran Siddiqui received an honourable mention and a $1,000 environmental award for his project on creating a clean hydrogen fuel using algae.
Arkruti Patel also received an honourable mention for her project, which involved determining the optimal carbon dioxide level needed for algae growth, with applications for the development of biodiesel fuels.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Algae Based Wastewater Treatment is an Innowavite Way to Treat Waste
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Here is yet another research effort to derive energy from waste. Josh Harkinson lists six innovative ideas to convert waste into electricity. It includes Poop-Eating Bacteria, Turd Cell Smashers, Geological Toilets, Feces Ponds, Gassifiers and Poop Pyrotechnics.
He has also mentioned "feces pond" as cheaper green option. He also mentioned that 20 countries have installed versions of UC Berkeley professor William J. Oswald's Advanced Integrated Wastewater Pond Systems Technology which use both algae and bacteria to treat the waste. I think this will be a fantastic idea of treating the waste water as well as producing energy.
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Barstow Community College Develops Proposal To Create Algae Farm
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Barstow Community College is pursuing funding to set up a pilot project in conjunction with San Bernardino County in which members would grow and harvest algae to clean up contaminated water and create biofuel in the process.
Under the proposal, members from groups like the Urban Youth Conservation Corps would get 345 hours of training and would then operate the algae farm, collect and analyze the data, BCC spokeswoman Maureen Stokes said.
The project would monitor the success of the algae in eating contamination from nitrate-laden groundwater from the Soapmine Road area in Barstow and from chromium 6-polluted groundwater in Hinkley, she said.
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Labels: Algae-Cultivation, Algae-Fuel-Research
NASA's Algae Project is Ready For Pilot Stage
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Google provided grants for clean energy form waste projects at NASA Ames, and a scientist named Jonathan Trent is using a part of the grant for under-the-radar algae project. According to Cleantech Group, Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin have invested $250,000 in Trent’s research to develop an algae-based fuel using sewage and waste-water. This is indeed an fantastic idea to derive energy from waste .
This project, called “Sustainable Energy for Spaceship Earth,” is ready for pilot-scale demonstrations, if the team can pull in some more cash.
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University of Coimbra Researchers Identify Six Oil-producing Algae
You are at: Oilgae Blog.A team of researchers from the faculty of science and technology of the University of Coimbra is attempting to produce biodiesel on a commercial scale from microscopic algae. They have identified six micro-algae which have massive potential for biodiesel production. One strain is already being tested in a high-capacity bioreactor which handles large quantities of oil for conversion to biodiesel. In the next few months, the researchers will test five other strains with high oil content. At the same time, they will optimise the large-scale production process, in order to bring this new technology to market. The minimum objective of the project is to produce an average of 90,000 litres per hectare per year.
Source: Environmental expert.com
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Fuel-Research, Algae-Strains
Algae for Wastewater Treatment Plant in St.Paul, Minnesota
You are at: Oilgae Blog.A team of researchers from the University of Minnesota partnered with the Metropolitan Council for the project, using concentrated liquid waste, separated from the solids to grow several species of algae that can thrive in wastewater. The project started in 2006 on a much smaller scale, using wastewater in labs, and recently moved to Met Council’s treatment plant.
A pilot project for growing algae in a wastewater treatment plant in St. Paul, Minn., will serve the following functions:
1. Removing nitrogen and phosphorus from the water before it’s flushed into the Mississippi River
2. Producing algal biomass for future use in the manufacturing of biofuels and
3. The extracted nitrogen and phosphorus will be used to produce fertilizers.
Using a wastewater plant to grow the algae saves a significant amount in capital and energy, said Rod Larkins, associate director of IREE. “You have to fertilize algae, but in our case, the fertilizer is already there,” he said.The project will eventually save Met Council the cost of removing phosphorus to meet Minnesota Pollution Control Agency mandates, which is usually done by adding salts to the water.
The team hopes to use gaseous waste (Uncontained airborne emissions and effluents that may consist of particulate matter, dust, fumes, gas, mist, smoke, or vapor, or any combinations thereof) from the Met Council’s fluidized bed gasifier in the future, but currently gets its carbon dioxide supply from a pure tank. The team is also in early discussions with Xcel Energy to obtain waste carbon dioxide and maybe nitrogen oxide, according to Ruan.
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NASA Grows Algae for Wastewater Treatment in Ocean
You are at: Oilgae Blog.They grow algae in plastic bags filled with sewage floating in the ocean.
Jonathan Trent, the lead researcher on the project at NASA's Ames Research Center in California, said the effort has three goals: Produce biofuels with few resources in a confined area, help cleanse municipal wastewater, and sequester emissions of the GHG (greenhouse gas) CO2 that are produced along the way.
It starts with algae being placed in sewage-filled plastic bags called OMEGA bags. The OMEGA bags are semipermeable membranes let freshwater exit but prevent saltwater from moving in. Then the algae in the bag feast on nutrients in the sewage. The plants clean up the water and produce lipids that will be used later as fuel.
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Algenol Seeks help from Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Algenol Biofuels aims to make ethanol with blue-green algae, by feeding it a steady diet of carbon dioxide and farm animal waste. Algenol has its research facility in Baltimore and about 15 scientists and technicians are working towards an alternative energy breakthrough.
The firm believes it can produce enough fuel to run fleets of vehicles by growing its special blue-green algae in sprawling grids of "bioreactors" filled with sea water.
Algenol is getting help from experts at the Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute. Frank Robb, a professor at UMBI's Center for Marine Biotechnology, has been contracted by the company to help with its research.
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Related blogs about Algenol:
Algenol Works With Mexican Government for Algae Ethanol Commercialization
Algenol and Sapphire Energy Pursue Algae as Fuel
Algenol's modest Algae testing facility
Algenol Biofuels Announces Opening of U.S. Headquarters
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San diego research Institutes, Biotechs to collaborate on Algae Biofuel
leaders of the region's scientific, academic, biotechnology and political communities announced that they were forming the San Diego Center for Algae Biotechnology, or SD-CAB, to capitalize on this expertise.
Ponds circulated water filled with growing algae at a research facility in the Imperial Valley. (Jim Demattia)
Working together, the groups hope to attract much-needed money from federal and state governments to foster commercialization of algal fuel and other products.
“We already have a collaborative community of scientists and entrepreneurs that gave rise to a thriving biotechnology cluster in San Diego,” said Marye Anne Fox, chancellor of the University of California San Diego. “Now we want to focus on building a segment of that community to create biofuel and other products out of algae.”
The center, which will be virtual and not require a building, should help attract grants and other resources to the region, Fox said.
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Fuel-Research
Carmela Cuomo examines Algae From Long Island
You are at: Oilgae Blog.There are advantages to using algae over more common fuel. It's local, cheap to collect, renewable and burns slightly cleaner than petroleum.
Cuomo's research is funded by a $135,276 grant from the Connecticut Center for Advanced Technology administered by the state Department of Economic and Community Development.
Cuomo and her team of graduate students combed the Sound Thursday for algae species
with 2 1/2-foot plankton nets attached to small glass beakers, designed to catch the larger specimens.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Algae Fuel Research by Appalachian State University students
A team of seven Appalachian State University students received honorable mention this past weekend during the People, Prosperity and the Planet (P3) Competition for their research with algae as a source of alternative energy. The event was sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
A team of Appalachian students use algae to produce oil that can be used to make biofuel. Photo by Holt Menzies
The contest, held April 18-20 on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., highlighted some of the brightest minds and ideas concerning sustainability. The competition was also part of the National Sustainable Design Expo.
A team of Appalachian students use algae to produce oil that can be used to make biofuel. Photo by Holt Menzies
For the team, headed by industrial technology graduate student Erika R. Porras, the competition was the fruition of nearly two years of effort.
“The idea came to out of a class I took in August 2007,” Porras said. “I applied and sent the proposal in around December 2007, received notification of the award in April or May 2008 and then actually received the grant in September 2008.”
Porras’ team received a $10,000 grant for phase one of the competition, which allowed the team to design and build an alga-cultural facility in Vilas, where they cultivated chlorella. Chlorella is a heartier type of algae that is easy to grow and is able to withstand a broad range of temperature, senior biology major Zachery Spivey said.
One of the major benefits of the program is the use of bio waste, or simple landfill waste, to produce biodiesel, Porras said.
“The major goal of the project was to research and demonstrate how the use of food waste could be beneficial for alternative energy,” Porras said. “We used a fast-growing organism to produce an oil that can be used for biodiesel.”
To do this, the team constructed an algae photo-bioreactor. They grew the chlorella in a solar greenhouse with carbon dioxide diverted from bio waste methane emissions to the algae. This exhibited how problem waste can be converted into an alternative source of energy, the team said.
The team first grew the algae in a complicated gyrating system of tubes, vents and lights, before it was transferred to a smaller pond within the greenhouse where it could be harvested for the purpose of extracting oil for biodiesel.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research, Algae-Photobioreactor, Algae-Strains
Nanotechnology to Aid Commercial Production of Algae Biofuel
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The first was the grant from the California Energy Commission to use the nano-metals as catalysts for generating bio-fuel from algae. The company called QuantumSphere will be developing a nanocatalyst-based bio-gasification process for taking wet algae from Salton Sea in California.
The second project leverages the nano-particles as harvesters for collecting oil from algae – without harming the algae crop. Thus, it reduces both the production cost as well as the generation cycle.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research, Algae-Harvesting
Algae-to-Fuel Research Enjoys Resurgence at NREL
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Today, NREL has resumed that work, while putting a greater emphasis on understanding their basic biology. When these microalgae are starved of the nutrients they need, their lipid content can increase as much as 60%.
NREL and Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) are working under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) in which NREL is boosting microalgae's productivity. Chevron anticipates using the resulting oil as a feedstock for renewable transportation fuels.
But not every strain contains all the qualities required to produce algae fuel--growing fast, growing fat and tolerating a wide variety of conditions.
And, different strains have evolved under different conditions in different locales. It's unlikely, Darzins says, that one strain would be used nationwide because of regional differences in climate and water.
"We've only begun to scratch the surface," Darzins said. "We need to understand the lipid pathways and what regulates their lipid production and growth."
Currently NREL's algae experiments are limited to 1-liter flasks under fluorescent light. When renovations to the greenhouse at the Field Test Laboratory Building are completed, algae strains can be tested in 75 gallon batches under natural light conditions, which can be 10 times more intensive than artificial lighting.
"Some strains that look good now may not maximize photosynthesis when we scale up or expose them to natural light," Darzins said.
Within a few years, Darzins hopes to complete construction of new outdoor ponds behind the FTLB that will test algae strains, production systems and harvesting methods at scales up to 100 acres.
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Fuel-Research
Midwest Research Institute Advances Algal Biofuels Research Utilizing Open and Closed Bioreactors
Just five months after announcing the creation of a state-of-the-art Center for Integrated Algal Research, Midwest Research Institute (MRI) has installed and activated two technically distinct bioreactor technologies to accelerate the Institute's pursuits in algae research. MRI recently activated an open pond "raceway" cultivation system at its laboratory in Palm Bay, Fla., and a continuous flow, closed loop photobioreactor at its field station near Kansas City, Mo.
MRI's open bioreactor system in Palm Bay includes two open pond raceway channels, each 40 feet long and 4 feet wide. The two raceways combined have a capacity of 8,000 gallons of water and are currently producing approximately 330 pounds of dry algal biomass per month with projections to increase biomass output with new
R&D improvements. The pilot raceway cultivation system provides a platform ideally suited for the investigation of technologies related to scale-up of algae production in open systems.MRI's closed loop photobioreactor in Kansas City provides a pilot scale algae production facility enclosed in a greenhouse to allow for year-round testing. This closed system has a capacity of approximately 1,000 gallons of algae dense medium and is capable of harvesting approximately 90 pounds of dry mass per month. Artificial lighting is available and allows for exploring effects from using a variety of real world and simulated environments. "This robust system provides a unique test bed for rigorous characterization of diverse algae strains and stringent monitoring of their associated growth conditions, said Roger Harris, Ph.D., MRI Associate Vice President and Director of the Energy and Life Sciences Division. "It also provides integration of harvesting and other processing equipment for end-to-end product operations."
By employing both systems, MRI will be better equipped to assist government and industry in maximizing the potential of algae for solving energy and environmental challenges. The Center's comprehensive focus includes characterization of preferred algal strains, growth optimization, contamination mitigation, harvesting methods, oil extraction, and carbon capture.
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Labels: Algae-CO2-Capture, Algae-Cultivation, Algae-Cultivation-Open-Pond, Algae-Fuel-Research, Algae-Photobioreactor
Algae - boon to farmers and a solution to global warming
You are at: Oilgae Blog.CSIRO scientists are putting the humble algae to work as a source of biodiesel and the signs are very promising. With algae made up of a third oil, a third carbohydrate and a third protein, it was an ideal raw material for producing biodiesel and ethanol.
Dr Beer said theoretically all of Australia's diesel supplies could be produced from ponds covering just 10,000 hectares. The study found the establishment of a 500-hectare algal biodiesel plant in a rural area might create up to 45 jobs and provide opportunities to diversify in the agricultural sector.
While the technology was relatively simple, more research was needed, Dr Beer said.The next step was to build a pilot plant to see if the concept was commercial and viable and at what prices.
Like any crop, more work was also needed to identify the best species of algae to use and the conditions required for maximum yield. One challenge was to work out how to prevent other less productive algae taking over a pond, Dr Beer said.
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Labels: Algae-Cultivation, Algae-Energy-Products, Algae-Fuel-Research
Powerful Ideas: Wringing Oil from Algae
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Currently, there are two main strategies for growing algae: open ponds or closed bioreactors. Ponds are cheaper, but there's a danger of unwanted species blowing in.
In either case, one of the difficult steps is separating the tiny organisms from the water. Ohio-based AlgaeVenture Systems announced a new way to "dewater" algae using capillary action rather than centrifuges.
"We have demonstrated a truly disruptive technology that reduces [the dewatering] cost by more than 99 percent - from $875 per ton to $1.92 per ton," said Ross Youngs, CEO of Univenture, parent corporation of AlgaeVenture Systems, in a press release.
Once the algae is dry, the oil can be extracted using mechanical or chemical crushing, Byrne explained. It could then be burned as is, but some chemical processing is usually done to make it into biodiesel or jet fuel.
For this last step, United Environment and Energy (UEE) in Horseheads, N.Y., has developed a solid catalyst that can drive the chemical reactions without generating as much waste as do current methods that rely on liquid catalysts.
"No water is used in our process so that no waste water is produced," said Ben Wen of UEE, who presented the new method at last week's American Chemical Society meeting.
And because the solid catalyst can be used over and over, the production of biodiesel can be more continuous.
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Cultivation, Algae-Fuel-Research
Oxygen Producing Algae Bioreactor & Thermal Electricity Generator Win The Pete Conrad Sprit of Innovation Awards
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The Conrad Foundation, in partnership with NASA Ames Research Center, today announced the winners of The Pete Conrad Spirit of Innovation Awards, a competition for high school students to contribute to America’s goal of improving science education by building a grassroots community of socially engaged scientists. The winners and their projects in each category were:
Personal Spaceflight:
1st Place: Final Frontier Apparel – The X-Suit, a state-of-the art mechanical counter pressure space suit filled with electro-muscle stimulation to keep the astronaut’s muscles, bones, blood vessels, and nerve cells in top condition.
2nd Place: Gadget – An aeroponic plant growing system that can be used for agricultural ventures into many types of locations including space station environments, the moon and on Earth.
Lunar Exploration:
1st Place: ALGAE – a bioreactor that will bring oxygen producing algae to the surface of the moon.
2nd Place: We Miss Pluto – a Helium-3 Excavator (HEX) and lunar rover designed to extract helium-3from the lunar regolith, store it, and ready it for transportation back
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Ghufran Siddiqui's Algae project- won at Lambton Science Fair
You are at: Oilgae Blog.“Most people don’t want algae but it can be useful,” said Ghufran Siddiqui, a Grade 11 student at Northern Collegiate.
His project exploring ways to create a clean hydrogen fuel using algae earned him the top prize in the senior division and admission to the Canadian science fair.He showed removing sulphur from the environment where algae created hydrogen was efficient and environmentally clean.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
BioMara Research Project on Algae Biofuel
You are at: Oilgae Blog.BioMara has received €4,874,414 from the European Union’s INTERREG IVA Programme, with additional funding from Highlands and Islands Enterprise, the Crown Estate, Northern Ireland Executive and the Irish Government.
The project’s lead scientist, Dr Michele Stanley, explains: “With global fossil fuel supplies dwindling and atmospheric carbon dioxide levels affecting climate change, there is an urgent need for new, renewable fuel sources with low net carbon emissions.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Algae Biofuel in 2009 Science Fair Project
You are at: Oilgae Blog."It could have helped the environment if it proved right," the 15-year-old said.
Becky tied for first in the high school microbiology division of the 2009 VISD Science and Engineering Fair. Judging for the fair was from noon to 5 p.m. Wednesday. About 50 judges rated the projects.
The idea for the project came last summer, Becky said. Rising gas prices caused her to wonder what it would be like if an alternative fuel made from plants could replace some of the dependence on petroleum-based fuels.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Indonesia could be the Middle East for Microalgae Biofuel
You are at: Oilgae Blog.“Previously we only studied six different kinds of microalgae, but now we have 13 types in three different colors — brown, red and green,” Mujizat said. “We can cultivate microalgae in ponds or even in industrial waste, which would help reduce expenditure for waste processing.”
Microalgae’s fatty acids and carbohydrates can be processed into biodiesel and bioethanol, respectively.Protein can also be used as animal feed, Mujizat said, adding that her team has already tested microalgae’s survivability in industrial waste in Batam, Riau Islands Province.
However, the technology to cultivate microalgae is still in its early stages and very costly, prompting investors to back off, Mujizat said.
With no projects across the globe ready for commercialization, “even the IPB doesn’t support us financially, because there haven’t been significant results yet,” Mujizat said.“But Indonesia could be the Middle East for microalgae-based biofuel. We have faith that microalgae will be successful in reducing fossil fuel imports. There are around 2 million hectares of coastline that could be used for cultivating algae.”
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Algae Research Projects at Virginia
You are at: Oilgae Blog.College of William & Mary — William & Mary and Virginia Institute of Marine Science researchers are leading a collaboration to develop transportation fuels from algae, with an emphasis on production of automotive and aviation fuels. Also, Applied Science Department researchers have developed materials and methods for production of solid-oxide fuel cells and supercapacitors that could be used in electric vehicles.
Old Dominion University — In conjunction with the Virginia Coastal Energy Research Consortium, ODU researchers have developed an algae-growing farm and biodiesel production facility. They are trying to determine the most effective means to grow and harvest algae and the most efficient way to convert it to biodiesel.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Green Jobs in the Algal Biofuel Field
You are at: Oilgae Blog.In Blacksburg, JAS Energy is planning to build an algae conversion plant that will be fully automatic, but that doesn’t mean it won’t create jobs, says company President John Verbeck. In one of the more inspired pairings of Virginia’s alternative energy movement, JAS is partnering with ATK (Alliant Techsystems), a defense contractor that operates a TNT manufacturing facility in the New River Valley.
“Our plant will be treating discharged water which is high in nitrates. That’s pretty much the cause of algae blooms that are a problem in the New River Valley, the Chesapeake Bay and the James River.” The JAS plant will use that erstwhile-pollutant to grow algae to convert to fuel, the first step in its vision of a Virginia where every major source of nitrates filters its waste water through an algae “farm.”
This pilot project breaks ground in the New River Valley this fall with hopes of a December startup date. It will take engineers and construction crews to get the plant online. Once running, says Verbeck, “The main jobs that will come from this are plant operators and managers.” Plus hundreds of what he calls “domino jobs”: everything from truckers to cleaning crews.
If the wheels were set in motion today, says Hatcher, 1,000 Virginians could be working in the algal biofuel field in as little as five years. That timetable would require major investors. “Look what happened with ethanol,” says Hatcher. “That developed at blinding speed.
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Solid Catalyst to Convert Algae into Biodiesel
You are at: Oilgae Blog.United Environment & Energy, an engineering company in Horseheads, N.Y., uses a "mixed metal oxide" catalyst (a form of certain metals resistant to corrosion but reactive). chemical engineer Ben Wen and his colleagues at United have come up with a conversion process that is 40 percent cheaper than an industrial scale version of the traditional methanol and lye process . That process must also be finished by purifying the biodiesel with water to wash out left over chemicals that then linger in the water.
This new process would make biodiesel that also doesn't require the purification step, because there is no liquid catalyst mixed into the resulting fuel, Wen says. He notes that his company has made around 10 gallons of algae biodiesel this way to date, though its main interest is not in manufacturing the fuel but in selling the technology to make it to other companies. He says there are already some takers—including one that has made at least 100 gallons of the fuel and certified it to ASTM standards, a legal requirement to be sold in the U.S.—but he declined to identify any of them.
Other refining or fuel companies, such as Illinois-headquartered UOP and San Diego-based Sapphire Energy, are also aiming at producing oil and fuel alternatives from algae but have struggled to get adequate supplies of it. Wen says his company has a "stable supplier" of algae oil that he also refused to identify for competitive reasons. He adds that said supplier was not U.S.-based as environmental regulations in this country hamper use of the toxic solvents necessary to extract oil from the algae. "Algae growth is not a big problem, people know how to grow it," he says. "The big barrier is extraction."
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Fuel-Research
Team Algal Scientific Wins Inaugural Clean Energy Prize
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The competition was established by DTE Energy and the University of Michigan along with sponsors, Masco Corporation Foundation and The Kresge Foundation, to encourage entrepreneurship in Michigan and the development of clean energy technology.
Team Algal Scientific Corp., comprised of business and engineering students from the University of Michigan and Michigan State University, earned the top prize of $65,000.
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Labels: Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Energy-Investments, Algae-Fuel-Research
Venice's Seaport Plans For a Power Plant Fueled By Algae
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Venice's seaport plans to become self-sufficient in its energy needs by building a power plant fueled by algae, in what would be the first facility of its kind in Italy, the port authority said.
The plant will be operative in two years and produce 40 megawatts of electricity, Venice's port authority said, adding that an emissions-free energy source would help preserve the historic lagoon city's delicate ecological balance.
In Venice, the algae will be cultivated in laboratories and put in plastic cylinders where water, carbon dioxide, and sunshine trigger photosynthesis. The resulting biomass will be treated further to produce a fuel to turn turbines.The carbon dioxide produced in the process is to be fed back to the algae, resulting in zero emissions from the plant.
The port needs about 7 megawatts to satisfy its energy needs, so the excess energy could be supplied to ships docked at the harbor, it said.
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Energy-Investments, Algae-Fuel-Research
World Congress To Explore Timeline For Bringing Advanced Biofuels To Market
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Advanced biofuels companies will report on progress toward bringing cellulosic and other next-generations biofuels – such as algae, biobutanol, and biohydogen – to the marketplace at the 2009 World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology and Bioprocessing, to be held July 19-22, 2009 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) recently released the full schedule of breakout sessions and speakers.
The full list of sessions and speakers can be found on the World Congress web site at http://www.bio.org/worldcongress/applications/breakout/. Sessions and speakers reviewing progress in commercializing advanced biofuels include:
Synthetic Biology for Next Generation Biofuels
* Jim Barber, Barber Advisors LLC
* Bill Haywood, LS9, Inc
* Jonathan Wolfson, Solazyme
* Patrick Gruber, Gevo
Progress Toward Commercialization of Lignocellulosic Ethanol Processes
* Kevin Gray, Verenium Corporation
* James Flatt, Mascoma Corporation
* Andre Koltermann, Süd-Chemie AG
* Georg Anderl, Dupont/Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol LLC
Algae for Fuels and Chemicals
* Steve Gluck, The Dow Chemical Company
* Atul Saxena, Growdiesel Consortium
* Ben Cloud, XL Renewables, Inc
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Algal Fuel Headed For The Racetrack
You are at: Oilgae Blog.
Founder Don Panoz said the company is "investigating concepts" that could it return to the premier LMP1 prototype category Panoz didn't offer many details when he made the announcement at a press conference before Saturday's 12 Hours of Sebring race, but Autoweek says "it is understood" that the car would use a Chevrolet engine and may burn butanol produced from algae.
"We are looking at something that has never been done before, something that would be good for sports car racing, good for Le Mans and good for us," Panoz said.
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Labels: Algae-Energy-Products, Algae-Fuel-Research
UCLA Find Algae To Be The Fuel Of The Future
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San Antonio goes green by growing Algae
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Rather than punching holes into the ground to find petroleum, Murray envisions a shift to commercial production of native algae species and processing that harvest into biodiesel, which then would power the massive trucks that roar through San Antonio along the NAFTA corridor from Mexico.
Murray and his students are in the early stages of their project, which is beginning by collecting water samples and identifying the algal species that thrive in this area. There are at least 20,000 known species of algae in the world, he said.
"First we have to characterize the algae and pick the most robust strains for oil," he said "The next step is to put them into production and harvest them as a crop."
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Dennis Bushnell, Chief Scientist- NASA Quote Algae
You are at: Oilgae Blog.
A chief NASA scientist argues that the future is green ... and salty.
He says "Algae and bacteria are the two most important biofuel technologies of the twenty-first century. As a replacement for oil, algae is extremely practical, utilizes mostly cheap and abundant resources like saltwater and wasteland, and has the potential to reduce global carbon-dioxide output tremendously. Unlike corn or even sugar ethanol, halophyte algae (algae that grow in saltwater) do not compete with food stocks for freshwater. Agriculturalists are told to think of salt as bad, but people living on the shores of India have had a saline-based agricultural system for hundreds of years. For halophyte algae, salt is good"
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Algal Biofuel Research Program by CSIRO Energy Transformed Flagship
You are at: Oilgae Blog.“The Flagship’s research has made significant progress in a short time and our extensive biofuels program will continue to develop solutions that result in a secure fuel future for Australia,” Dr Beer said.
“Although the findings of our study are very promising, challenges still exist in relation to cost, infrastructure needs and the scale of production required to make algal plants feasible,” Dr Beer said.“We see biodiesel from algae as one potential option for sustainable fuel production amongst a range of other technologies.”
The paper, Greenhouse gas sequestration by algae – energy and greenhouse gas life cycle studies, is authored by CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric researchers Peter K. Campbell, Tom Beer and David Batten.
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Labels: Algae-CO2-Capture, Algae-Fuel-Research
BioCentric Energy Algae to Unveil Provisional Patent Pending "Algae Pro Closed Loop Photobioreactor Solution"
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Press release
BEHL -- BioCentric Energy Holdings, Inc. -- BioCentric Energy Algae to Unveil the Provisional Patent Pending "Algae Pro Closed Loop Photobioreactor Solution" at Algae World 2009 -- Rotterdam in April
HUNTINGTON BEACH, CA - BioCentric Energy Algae agreed to speak at the ALGAE WORLD 2009 in Rotterdam this April. It is at this forum that BioCentric Energy Algae will release to the world their Provisional Patent Pending Invention of their Low Cost Closed Loop "Algae Pro Photobioreactor Solution."
Dennis Fisher, Board Member and President for BioCentric Energy, Inc. (PINKSHEETS: BEHL), stated today, "This introduction of our solution at the Algae World 2009 of our inexpensive Closed Loop 'Algae Pro Photobioreactor' will validate the claims that I made speaking to the National Algae Forum in Houston last January. Quality targeted algae, grown inexpensively and exclusively in our patent pending closed loop 'Algae Pro Photobioreactor Solution,' is one fifth of the cost of our nearest competitor at $20 per square meter versus the minimum of $100 per square meter and up. This cap X elucidation makes profitable algae growth available today. We can also grow specific strains, determined to be rich in protein, carbohydrates, fats, and fiber, in any combination thereof, to feed humans soon." Mr. Fisher went on to say, "Recently, we sent Spirulina, with an average 50+% proteins for a large public US poultry company to analyze for high end feedstock for their premium products... In the future, after all quality assurances have been met, we plan to deliver our own label of high end supplements for human consumption."
This conference is dedicated towards providing objective insights on the commercialization of Algae, as well as the latest advances and constraints in Algae cultivation, harvesting & processing.
The program is confirmed on 27-28 Apr in Rotterdam. The confirmed speakers are: BioCentric Energy Algae, NoriTech Seaweed Biotechnologies Ltd., Centre d'Etude et de Valorisation des Algues (CEVA), OriginOil, Blue Marble Energy, Centre for Sustainable Engineering, Earthrise Nutritionals LLC, Skyline Capital LLP, New Horizon Capital, and Ingrepro.
The Team of BioCentric Energy Algae delivers cost effective photobioreactor systems that take the emissions from smoke stacks, and in a closed loop environment, grow algae for production and harvest profitably.
BioCentric Energy, Inc. is dedicated to the development of new technologies as well as acquiring and fostering companies with innovative technologies designed to provide unique and effective green energy solutions for the 21st century. Along with the cultivation of important relationships and partnerships with synergistic entities, BioCentric Energy has devoted substantial time and effort in research and development in order to bring a range of innovative green alternatives to the marketplace.
Safe Harbor Statement:
Except for historical information contained herein, the matters set forth above may be forward-looking statements that involve certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those in the forward-looking statements. Words such as "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "expect," "intend" and similar expressions, as they relate to the Company or its management, identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on the current beliefs of management, as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to management. Actual results could differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors such as the level of business and consumer spending, the amount of sales of the Company's products, the competitive environment within the industry, the ability of the Company to continue to expand its operations, the level of costs incurred in connection with the Company's expansion efforts, economic conditions in the industry and the financial strength of the Company's customers and suppliers. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update such forward-looking statements. Investors are also directed to consider all other risks and uncertainties.
For more information, please contact:
Company Contact:
Mr. Dennis Fisher
CEO and President
BioCentric Energy (BEHL)
Email: Email Contacthttp://www.BioCentricEnergyAlgae.com
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Labels: Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Fuel-Research, Algae-Photobioreactor
Shell awards prize to Scottish Bioenergy for Algae-to-biodiesel Process
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Scottish Bioenergy Cooperative Ventures has been awarded the £40,000 ($57,000) Climate Change Innovation Prize from Royal Dutch Shell PLC’s Shell Springboard program. Based in St. Cyrus, Scotland, the company builds, sells and operates photobioreactors for capturing carbon dioxide emissions to grow algae feedstock for biodiesel production.
Scottish Bioenergy recently completed successfully testing a small-scale version of its photobioreactor at the Glenturret Distillery in Crieff, Scotland; the distillery was built in 1775 and the oldest working distillery in Scotland. Carbon dioxide from the distillery’s boiler exhaust was captured and percolated through the photobioreactor. The system also eliminated chemicals and copper from the waste exhaust.
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Labels: Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Energy-Investments, Algae-Fuel-Research, Algae-Photobioreactor
QuantumSphere Awarded Grant for Algae Biofuels Nanocatalysts by California Energy Commission
You are at: Oilgae Blog.California Energy Commission Awards Grant for Proposal That Would Turn Biomass Blooms in the Salton Sea Into Methane, Hydrogen, and Synthetic Gasses
QuantumSphere, Inc., a leading developer of advanced catalyst materials, high-performance electrode systems, and related process chemistries for portable power and clean-tech applications, today announced that it was awarded a research grant from the California Energy Commission to develop a process using nanocatalysts to convert biomass into biofuels.
The grant was awarded under the commission's Energy Innovations Small Grant program (EISG) and will fund the one-year development of an algae biogasification process that utilizes nanometals as catalysts for the purposes of turning vegetation and similar biomass materials into methane, hydrogen, or other synthetic gases that can be used for transportation and other energy needs. QuantumSphere will build a small-scale platform over the next 12 months to demonstrate the effectiveness of the process.
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Labels: Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Energy-Investments, Algae-Fuel-Research
Light Immersion Technology from Bionavitas to Increase Algae Yields
You are at: Oilgae Blog.A technology developed to increase commercially viable and scaleable algae yields was lauched recently by Bionavitas, Inc. The process, Light Immersion Technology™, involves immersing the light source, natural or artifical, in the algae culture which, says the company, produces an order of magnitude more algae biomass than existing growth methods.
Nearly every large scale approach to algae growth has been challenged by a simple fact of nature: as algae grow, they become so dense they block the light needed for continued growth. This "self-shading" phenomenon results in a layer that limits the amount of algae per acre that can be grown and harvested. The Light Immersion Technology enables algae growth layer in open ponds to be up to a meter deep. The company says this represents a 10 to 12 fold increase in yield over previous methods that produced only 3-5 centimeters of growth.
10-12 times increase. Now, that's really massive. Let's hope this is not just PR or a freak idea but is something that actually can be sustained in an energy effective way.
Essentially what they are doing is using "a system of light rods which extend deep into the algae culture." It will be interesting to know what materials these rods comprise of and more inputs on the same. Is this light distribution entirely passive, or is energy required for light distribution for layers underneath?
I tried their web site, but could not find more inputs...will keep an eye open for more developments on this...
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Labels: Algae-Cultivation, Algae-Cultivation-Open-Pond, Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Fuel-Research
Hemmers Thinks Algae as most Promising Source
You are at: Oilgae Blog.And while Hemmers thinks many technologies will play a role in the United States’ energy future — solar, wind, geothermal, nuclear — the most promising one in the short term is algae. By which he means algae as a source of biodiesel fuel. They would replace crude oil in the chemical industry, fit into our current energy infrastructure with the least disruption and slow greenhouse gas emissions as even cleaner sources of energy are developed.
By comparison, algae are highly efficient, grow quickly and can, best of all, be grown in vats. Hemmers says vats are important because in a vat, with the appropriate tubes and lights, you can transform algae agriculture into an industrial process for producing a highly predictable strain of algae. Maybe even more important, you can provide the perfect mix of light, nutrients and carbon dioxide to double the mass of the algae not every couple of months but every couple of hours.
There are two added bonuses to vats, Hemmers says. You can put them almost anywhere (Nevada would be good, lots of light and a decent temperature) and you can use them to capture the carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel power plants (Germany is already doing this with coal plants).
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Fuel-Research
The Omnibus Appropriations Bill for 2009
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The omnibus appropriations bill for fiscal year 2009 currently has $28 million for energy and water projects in New Mexico, according to a press release from U.S. Sen. Tom Udall.
“This appropriations bill contains vital funding for the people of New Mexico, from helping us fully expand our capacity for renewable energy development and production to protecting the waterways and acequias throughout the state,” said Udall.
The projects and money requested by the freshman Democratic senator is included below.
Department of Energy (DOE) Projects
Matter-Radiation Interactions in Extremes (MaRIE) — $7,520,500
Funding for Los Alamos National Laboratory to plan and design a signature science research complex to test all types of materials under a variety of extreme conditions, including the next generation of solar panels, structural materials and other developing technologies in renewable energies. Udall requested $7 million for the project from the House Energy and Water Subcommittee.
Sapphire Energy Algae to Fuel Demonstration Project — $951,000
This funding establishes a demonstration project in Portales, New Mexico, to create and grow a fuel-producing algae using technology that genetically enhances algal organisms. It is estimated that 100 local jobs will be created from this funding and could help in significantly reducing our nation’s dependence on fossil fuels.
and so on...
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
QuantumSphere Gets Research Grant for Algae Biofuel
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The grant was awarded under the commission's Energy Innovations Small Grant program (EISG) and will fund the one-year development of an algae biogasification process that utilizes nanometals as catalysts for the purposes of turning vegetation and similar biomass materials into methane, hydrogen, or other synthetic gases that can be used for transportation and other energy needs. QuantumSphere will build a small-scale platform over the next 12 months to demonstrate the effectiveness of the process.
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Breakthrough boasted by Bionavitas
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Bionavitas, a Seattle-area energy startup, just announced that it has solved a major problem in the algae-to-energy business: self-shading. The company says this has the potential to rocket ahead algae as a carbon-neutral fuel source.
The so-called "light immersion technology" is said to be cost-efficient, as well as a "passive, low-input, net energy positive system which is inexpensive to mass produce."
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Fuel film now playing in U.S. theaters
You are at: Oilgae Blog.After years in the making, Josh Tickell’s documentary “Fuel” is on the big screen in select locations in southern California and Washington state, with debuts to follow in other states.
The feature-length documentary, which had the working title “Fields of Fuel,” is now playing in Yakima, Wash.; Los Angeles; and Santa Monica, Calif.
The film, with a running time of 111 minutes, was produced over an 11-year time span. In 2008, it won the Sundance Film Festival’s Audience Award for Best Documentary, in addition to several other awards.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Algae jobs - Phycal Hires Engineers and Biologists
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Four young companies that are hiring like crazy are Contain Energy, Phycal, SolarWinds and BreakingPoint. The four private players continue to hire even as the recession digs deeper into the overall economy.
Phycal, an energy startup founded by Kevin Berner, has not slowed its fast-paced hiring in recent months.
Berner is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point who earned a Ph.D. in economics from MIT. After working at consulting firm McKinsey & Co. as a partner, running North American manufacturing practices, he founded Contain Energy. The Cleveland firm is developing carbon fuel cells.
Carbon fuel cells give off carbon dioxide. So in 2006 Berner founded Phycal, which grows algae using the carbon dioxide emitted by the carbon fuel cells. Algae uses the gas in the photosynthesis process to make sugars. Phycal will then extract it for refining into fuel for cars and trucks.
Berner expects to have a carbon fuel cell pilot plant up and running in the first quarter of 2010. He says he has raised several million dollars in venture capital and gotten a similar amount from government grants.
To entice top talent, Berner says a company must make a product that makes a difference.
"What we're trying to do is bring into the world the ability to grow oil at a cost that is competitive with petroleum. That's a big deal," he said.
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Algae Association to Hold Biofuels Workshop in Atlanta, Georgia Feb 27
You are at: Oilgae Blog.News Release
The National Algae Association’s Mid-South Chapter is hosting the Atlanta Algae Workshop, entitled “Algae, Our New Biofuel,” at the Hampton Inn and Suites in Downtown Atlanta, Georgia on Friday, February 27th:
The event will kick off with a presentation by Barry Cohen, Director of the National Algae Association. Will Thurmond, Chairman of R&D for the NAA and author of Algae 2020 will be speaking and acting as moderator for several round-table discussions on innovations and scientific advancements in algae research and development.
For registration and more information, click on the workshop’s Web site.
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National Algae Association (NAA) to Hold Biofuels Workshop
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The event will kick off with a presentation by Barry Cohen, Director of the National Algae Association. Will Thurmond, Chairman of R&D for the NAA and author of Algae 2020 will be speaking and acting as moderator for several round-table discussions on innovations and scientific advancements in algae research and development.
Source
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
William Durham's Research on Phytoplankton Sheet Formation
You are at: Oilgae Blog.These plant-rich regions serve as feeding hotspots for fish and other organisms – but also can harbor harmful blooms known as red tide that can wreak economic havoc on shellfish industries, including those in New England.
Now, research by MIT phD student William Durham and colleagues being published today in the journal Science is giving new insight into the mechanism of how these sheets form – and how different species of phytoplankton can get trapped, layer-cake like, in ocean currents. The findings could help researchers better understand how and where phytoplankton accumulates in the ocean and possibly address problems from fishery declines to red tide.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Algae a credible source says Professor Lance Schideman
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Schideman estimates producing biofuels from algae will be economically feasible within 10 years but predicts decades longer before it or any other biofuel could replace petroleum.
The University of Illinois is studying the harvesting of algae as a solution to the hypoxia problem created by algae growth in the Gulf of Mexico. And, it’s looking at carbon sequestration through algae biodiesel production.
Source
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Labels: Algae-Biodiesel, Algae-Fuel-Research
Grant Program Announcement for Microalgae Projects - Soley Institute
You are at: Oilgae Blog.Got this in my mail. Posting it as is
Soley Institute has launched a new grant program for microalgae projects to support UN Millennium Development Goals and benefits of (IIMSAM) Intergovernmental Institution for the use of Micro-algae Spirulina against Malnutrition.
This grant program is valid for 2 different subject groups.
Group (A) is for Spirulina projects.
Group (B) is for other microalgae projects.
Needs to be supported:
Grant Rate (%) for Univ. & Institutes:
Spirulina Culture 100%
Culture Media Component 70%
Lab. Size Photobioreactor 60%
Industrial Size Photobioreactor 70%
Microalgae Duplicator 70%
Organic Culture Media Component 60%
Pond Circulation Pump 50%
Pond Air Pump 60%
Pond heating system 60%
Phycocyanin Extraction System 40%
Automated Microalgae Filter 50%
Microalgae Drying Oven 60%
Grant Rate (%) for Companies:
Spirulina Culture 80%
Culture Media Component 40%
Lab. Size Photobioreactor 30%
Industrial Size Photobioreactor 40%
Microalgae Duplicator 40%
Organic Culture Media Component 20%
Pond Circulation Pump 20%
Pond Air Pump 20%
Pond heating system 20%
Phycocyanin Extraction System 10%
Automated Microalgae Filter 20%
Microalgae Drying Oven 30%
How to apply:
Please, send a brief project description or business plan to info@soley.cn as an email until 28.02.2009 .
Recommended Subjects:
-Bio-hydrogen production from microalgae
-Bio-methane production from microalgae
-Chlorophyll reduction resulting increasing solar radiation penetrate deeper -Creating & Extracting highly valuable materials and pharmaceuticals from microalgae -Customized microalgae modifications (genetic) -Increasing oil content of microalgae -Increasing photosynthetic efficiency of microalgae -Microalgae based (100% Organic) Chicken feed for long shelf life -Microalgae filter (Nano-Tech) system production -Microalgae industrial production technologies -Microalgae production with Geothermal waters -Oil extraction from algae and special extraction systems -Organic (100%) fertilizer production -Organic (100%) microalgae productions -Organic chemical free growth medium component production -Photosynthetic energy production from microalgae -Phycobiliprotein production from microalgae -Phycocyanin production from Spirulina -Raidoactivity treatment with Spirulina -Soil treatment with Humic Substances -Spirulina culture production (Fast Doubling Time) -Spirulina production (contains high level phycocyanin) -Spirulina production (contains high level protein) -Spirulina production with brine waters -Spirulina production with wastewaters -Wastewater treatments with various microalgae
General Purposes:
- Grants will not be as direct. We will give the rate of grants directly to the supplier of needs.
- We will provide the grants for only recommended systems and equipments by us.
- We don't provide delivery fee as a grant.
Best Regards,
Soley Institute
http://www.soley.cn/institute
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
$500 per gal Omega 3 vs $3 per gal fuel - Algae for food or fuel?
You are at: Oilgae Blog.News release
A press release couple of months old, but very interesting, so included it here
New Algae Oil Products Valuable as Nutritional Therapy for Triglyceride and Cognitive Benefits.
A recent international peer reviewed publication places a question mark on biodiesel from algae oil as a current business model for commercialization. In contrast, the report points to established leadership and commercial viability in nutritional oil markets.
Is Algae Oil Fuel or Nutrition? New Algae Oil Products Valuable as Nutritional Therapy for Triglyceride and Cognitive Benefits.
Chapel Hill, NC, December 10, 2008 -- Very high levels of polyunsaturated fatty acid triglyceride side chains may be the obscure reason why even after nearly 20 years, largely by the US government agency NREL (National renewable Energy Laboratory), that algae oil research has yet to strike oil for fuel commercialization.
The report identifies polyunsaturates as an obstacle that can accelerate oxidation, polymerization, and gum formation in combustion engines. These and other issues may ultimately be preventing certification of the final biodiesel product for commercial sale, despite the high per acre yield potential when growing algae oils. The near term value of microalgae oil may not be cheap fuel, yet the global value of algae oil has just started being realized in nutrition products.
In addition, three dollar per gallon biodiesel is nothing compared to the five hundred dollar per gallon wholesale value of nutritional omega-3 oils made by algae. Currently, C. cohnii and Schizotrichium sp. microalgae oils are sold in the open market with FDA approvals for consumers and infant formulas, each granted strong safety designations as natural food products sold worldwide as bioactive nutraceuticals.
Incredible India may be the future for algae oil research. Published in the Indian journal Everyman’s Science, VOL. XLIII NO. 3, Aug - Sept ’08, Pg 164-168, on behalf of Indian Science Congress Association, the article titled “Is Algae Oil Fuel Or Nutrition?” was written by Scott Doughman, PhD and Srirama Krupanidhi, PhD, each with The Department of Biosciences, Sri Sathya Sai University, Prasanthi Nilayam, 515134, India. While with the Department of Nutrition, School of Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, 25799, USA, Dr. Doughman established the basis for a new company called Source-Omega, LLC.
The company was formed after Dr. Doughman first published a review of algae oil clinical trials; Doughman SD, Krupanidhi S, Sanjeevi CB, Omega-3 fatty acids for nutrition and medicine: considering microalgae oil as a vegetarian source of EPA and DHA, Current Diabetes Reviews, 2007 Aug;3(3):198-203, Bantham Press. Currently, the company’s docosahexaenoic acid therapy is promoted as a clinically optimized nutritional support program claiming docosahexaenoic acid is associated with a reduced risk to onset of Alzheimer's dementia and cognitive decline and that no other long-chain fatty acid can demonstrate this benefit.
Source-Omega, LLC, Chapel Hill North Carolina, USA, is currently a start-up located near the Research Triangle Park specializing in the branding, marketing and globalization of algae oil products as a leading internet distributor of products under the brand names PURE ONE™ for triglyceride lowering benefits and OMEDHA™ for protection from cognitive decline, promoting health and wellness with clinical docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) needed for every stage of life. The company manufactures DHA supplement products as a sustainable vegetarian source of DHA omega-3. For more information on Source-Omega visit www.source-omega.com.
###
Contact Information
Source-Omega, LLC
Gene Wolf
919-360-5275
info@source-omega.com
www.source-omega.com
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Labels: Algae-Fuel, Algae-Fuel-Research
Changing Algae to Oil at the Idaho National Laboratory
You are at: Oilgae Blog.A company called Origin Oil from Los Angeles has come up with technology to speed up the process or turning algae into oil, and this endless supply of new oil can be used for many products like diesel, gasoline and jet fuel.
Vikram Pattarkine is the Chief Technology Officer with Origin Oil. He says the company had other offers to work with businesses but chose the INL. He says instead of drilling for oil, the company can now make clean, new oil anytime, delivering a revolutionary breakthrough to the world.
The goal for the lab and origin oil is to develop this technology to where it can become a commercially viable product for use in bio-fuels and put a dent in the need for petroleum.
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Utah State University Negotiated with Algae Biologist to Join USTAR Teams
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The state gave the USTAR (Utah Science, Technology and Research) program $20.2 million last year to invest in interdisciplinary research that could lead to commercial products at USU and the University of Utah. After just 30 months, USTAR is ahead of its projections for return on investment, with millions in new research grants pouring into Utah and 21 new top-notch faculty in place, officials say.
But proposed budget cuts threaten to reverse that progress by undermining the schools' ability to attract top researchers and keep recent hires, they told a legislative appropriations panel last week. One possible casualty is USU's algae specialist, who turned down the Logan school's offer after the state announced USTAR budget cuts, according to Ned Weinshenker, USU's vice president for strategic ventures and economic development. All told, USTAR could see its state appropriation slashed by 15 percent for the current fiscal year, with another 44 percent for 2010 under a worst-case scenario.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Elizabeth Aisenbrey - CTW's Lead Algae Growth Researcher
You are at: Oilgae Blog.The company is developing a system that will use algae to cleanse wastewater, said Joseph Menicucci Jr., the owner of CTW and an adjunct professor of chemical and biological engineering at MSU.
The benefit of using algae, rather than the more commonly used bacteria, to treat wastewater is that the algae can then be processed for their oil. That oil can then be used to make biodiesel.
CTW is putting a wastewater treatment-biodiesel system together specifically for the city of Deer Lodge, Menicucci said. New rules about piping wastewater into the Clark's Fork River mean that the city has to find a new way to deal with its wastewater by the end of the year if it is to comply with Montana Department of Environmental Quality regulations.
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Labels: Algae-Cultivation-Sewage, Algae-Energy-Companies, Algae-Fuel-Research
Elongation Factor Genes in Green Algae
You are at: Oilgae Blog.These results raise questions about evolutionary patterns of gain and loss of EF-1alpha and EFL. A previous study launched the hypothesis that EF-1alpha was the primitive state and that EFL was gained once in the ancestor of the green plants, followed by differential loss of EF-1alpha or EFL in the principal clades of the Viridiplantae.
In order to gain more insight in the distribution of EF-1alpha and EFL in green plants and test this hypothesis we screened the presence of the genes in a large sample of green algae and analyzed their gain-loss dynamics in a maximum likelihood framework using continuous-time Markov models.
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Labels: Algae-Fuel-Research
Stimulus could exclude algae research
You are at: Oilgae Blog.
A pilot project at the Schwarze Pumpe coal power plant in Germany can capture and store its own carbon dioxide emissions
But as Congress inches closer to final passage of the bill, a small group of startup algae companies, which had been almost entirely off the Washington grid until late last year, are making a last-minute sprint to get lawmakers to broaden the funds to an up-and-coming form of carbon capture. The technology uses algae to turn the carbon emissions into biofuels, rather than storing them in underground geologic formations.
Advocates say the algae-based technology, which could find funding under broad wording in the Senate bill, could be ready to go commercial in three to four years with proper funding and would cost significantly less than underground storage, giving the United States a near-ready option to move away from foreign fossil fuels.
According to Credit Suisse, traditional geologic carbon capture research, covered in the House bill, needs at least $15 billion worth of investment and 10 more years of research before it will be ready to go commercial.
Senate Energy Committee Chairman Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.) and Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) are also now aware of the problem, lobbyists say.
“This is truly the story of the little engine that could. These are small companies that have never dealt with Washington. They have no PACs and few connections. They’re just entrepreneurs,” Moeller said. “I don’t think it was congressional intent to leave this technology out, but this is something members will eventually become outraged about.”
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Labels: Algae-CO2-Capture, Algae-Energy-Investments, Algae-Fuel-Research
