Algae Make Clean, Renewable Diesel Fuel

[☭proletarian☭]

ExxonMobil has invested $600 million to design better strains of algae and to convert them into fuel. Meanwhile, several start-up companies—including Aurora Biofuels and Solix Biofuels —have built pilot plants that prove it is possible to brew algae-derived diesel fuel in large quantities. “At the beginning we’d tell people, ‘I know this sounds crazy,’” says Bryan Willson, a Colorado State University engineer and cofounder of Solix Biofuels. “But with the ExxonMobil investment, algae is entering the mainstream.”

#37: Algae Make Clean, Renewable Diesel Fuel | Alternative Energy | DISCOVER Magazine

 

[RetiredGySgt]

ExxonMobil has invested $600 million to design better strains of algae and to convert them into fuel. Meanwhile, several start-up companies—including Aurora Biofuels and Solix Biofuels —have built pilot plants that prove it is possible to brew algae-derived diesel fuel in large quantities. “At the beginning we’d tell people, ‘I know this sounds crazy,’” says Bryan Willson, a Colorado State University engineer and cofounder of Solix Biofuels. “But with the ExxonMobil investment, algae is entering the mainstream.”

#37: Algae Make Clean, Renewable Diesel Fuel | Alternative Energy | DISCOVER Magazine

Lets hope they stop using corn. Food prices have climbed because a quarter of the produced corn is wasted on ethanol production.

 

[Mr. H.]

Evil greedy oil companies. Ex/Mob is probably going to make a profit on it. Algae tax!

 

[uscitizen]

Food prices also climbed because of increased fuel costs and fertilizer costs because of increased energy costs. Speculators play a part in the price increase as well.

 

[RetiredGySgt]

Food prices also climbed because of increased fuel costs and fertilizer costs because of increased energy costs. Speculators play a part in the price increase as well.

Because of Corn costs last year cattle and chicken ranches were considering cutting their herds ( or flocks) because the break even point was going over their ability to feed their animals. This was discussed right here on this board in several threads. Especially since Obama is in bed with ethanol by corn plants in his home State.

 

[TheSuaveOne]

Would algea farms also work to cut down on the CO2? Just curious if it could help a couple of problems.

-TSO

 

[AllieBaba]

I said when the biofuel fad was just starting that it was one of the stupidest moves we could make.

But the algae movement makes it look like small potatoes. You start algae farms in our bodies of water and see how fast we fuck up the world.

"Blooms are also responsible for
consuming much of the oxygen
produced. Fortunately, during
daylight they usually produce
more oxygen than they use,
resulting in a surplus for fish and
other organisms. At night or in
cloudy weather, however, production
of oxygen through photosynthesis
ceases or is greatly reduced,
but the consumption rate does not
change, often resulting in a deficit
in the oxygen “budget.” Under
certain conditions, the level of
oxygen can become critically low
and fish may suffocate or at least
become stressed to the point of
being susceptible to disease."
http://www.aces.edu/dept/fisheries/aquaculture/pdf/466fs.pdf

 

[Old Rocks]

Would algea farms also work to cut down on the CO2? Just curious if it could help a couple of problems.

-TSO

Yes, such farms would do just that. The algea gets CO2 from the atmosphere, and the CO2 from the diesel is returned to the atmosphere. Cyclic, no sequestered carbon involved.

 

[Old Rocks]

Once again, Allie demonstrates ignorance and a knee jerk reaction to a reasonable advancement. Do you honestly think that anybody would try that in open waters? Like our lakes or seas? Not only would it fail in the first storm, it would be damned difficult to harvest.

Cultivation of Algae - Photobioreactor - Oilgae - Oil from Algae

Algae can also be grown in a photobioreactor (PBR). A PBR is a bioreactor which incorporates some type of light source. Virtually any translucent container could be called a PBR, however the term is more commonly used to define a closed system, as opposed to an open tank or pond.

It allows more species to be grown, it allows the species that are being grown to stay dominant, and it extends the growing season, only slightly if unheated, and if heated it can produce year round. Because PBR systems are closed, all essential nutrients must be introduced into the system to allow algae to grow and be cultivated.

A PBR can be operated in "batch mode", but it is also possible to introduce a continuous stream of sterilized water containing nutrients, air, and carbon dioxide. As the algae grows, excess culture overflows and is harvested. If sufficient care is not taken, continuous bioreactors often collapse very quickly, however once they are successfully started, they can continue operating for long periods. An advantage of this type of algae culture is that algae in the "log phase" is produced which is generally of higher nutrient content than old "senescent" algae. It can be shown that the maximum productivity for a bioreactor occurs when the "exchange rate" (time to exchange one volume of liquid) is equal to the "doubling time" (in mass or volume) of the algae.

 

[waltky]

Mebbe dey could build trees dat'll give us all the energy we need...

Artificial Leaf Turns Sunlight into Electric Power
April 01, 2011 : Nature-inspired solar cell could power homes

Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have turned to Mother Nature for inspiration, inventing a device that mimics photosynthesis, the process plants use to convert sunlight and water into usable energy. The MIT researchers announced their invention at the American Chemical Society meeting in California. MIT chemistry professor Daniel Nocera says he and his colleagues took their cues from plants, which are literally buzzing with electricity.

"What happens is that sunlight comes in and hits the leaf and then the leaf immediately takes that sunlight and makes a wireless current," says Nocera. During photosynthesis, the energy in sunlight splits water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen joins with carbon dioxide to make sugar, an essential fuel for plant growth. In Nocera’s laboratory, scientists replicated that chemical process using a silicon device about the size and shape of a playing card, only thinner. It’s coated with nickel and cobalt catalysts that when exposed to water and ultraviolet light, accelerate a chemical reaction.

The hydrogen is then recombined with the oxygen in a fuel cell to produce electricity. Nocera’s work builds on previous research. John Turner of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory pioneered the concept in 1998 using materials too expensive and unstable for commercialization. Nocera says his so-called practical artificial leaf uses less expensive materials, is more stable and more efficient than that earlier design. He says the challenge is to collect the gases coming off the silicon and store them until the energy is needed. "It has to be engineered still," he adds. "It will be something that we will start doing soon. You’ll be storing a fair amount of energy because this system is working at more or less the efficiency of the solar cell."

In laboratory experiments, Nocera’s solar cell prototype operated continuously for 45 hours without a drop in electrical output. Nocera notes that it works in any type of water. "You can use natural water sources, which for us is a big deal, because if you are in rural parts of the world, especially where they are poor, it is really costly to bring in pure water and so, the fact that you can go ‘over there’ to a puddle and pick the water up and begin using it, is something that is very powerful for us." Nocera believes the artificial leaf could be especially useful as an inexpensive source of electricity for low-income populations in developing countries. The goal, Nocera says, is to make each home its own power station. He predicts a commercial version of the artificial leaf will be on the market within three years.

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