Going Green-Using Algae to Produce Biodiesel.
Posted by Kirk M on 18 Mar 2007 | Tagged as: Environment
A new idea in cultivating to produce raw organic material for the production of biodiesel as is currently being tried using crops like soybeans and corn is now being demonstrated. The benefits of using algae are obvious as indicated by this excerpt form a news story from the Good News Network.
By cultivating algae as the choice food stock for biodiesel we would not only produce up to 60 times more oil per acre than if we used traditional agricultural crops, like soybeans, corn, or canola, we’d also help cut the level of our most problematic global warming gas, CO2, as the algae devours it while emitting clean oxygen.
Source: Good News Network - Algae-to-Biodiesel Fuel Tackles Two Problems (Video)
There’s an interesting video included in the article that explains the benefits. This sounds like a great idea since it takes up less agricultural land, takes CO2 out of the air and puts O2 back into it and at a very rapid rate. Sure…this won’t stop the global warming cycle but this new process, along with other efforts, may very well lessen it’s overall effects in the long run.
Of course that’s only if the boneheads currently residing in our federal government decide to put the welfare of the public at large ahead of the almighty dollar and lucrative business deals.
Or perhaps I’m being cynical. It does sound like a great idea though.
Technorati tags: environment, global warming, biodiesel, algae
Possibly Related Matter
3 Comments »
on 29 Apr 2007 at 6:00 am 1.
Oilgae said …
Thanks for the article…it is heartening to see algae getting a lot of publicity, something I feel they deserve.
I co-ordinate Oilgae, a site that explores use of algae as a feedstock for biodiesel, and I can say with some amount of confidence based on my researches that algae appear to be one of the most qualified candidates for biodiesel production.
While the math certainly appears to favor algae, there are a number of issues to be overcome. These have to do with (1) choosing optimal algal strains, (2) issues faced in cultivation and harvesting (believe me there are some serious bottlenecks here), and (3) cost-effective methods to extract oil and transform it into biodiesel.
So yes, there is still a long way to go before it can be proven with certainty that algal biodiesel can be cost-effective on a large scale, but it is gratifying to see brilliant minds (not to forget VC money) getting into this field. And with institutes like MIT (Boston) getting into the act, I’m optimistic most of the above-mentioned issues will be overcome.
Time will tell if algae are our future source of energy, but for now, they certainly appear to have many of the qualifications required for the same.
Narsi from Oilgae - Oil from Algae
on 29 Apr 2007 at 1:27 pm 2.
KirkM said …
Hello Narsi,
And thanks for stopping by and taking time to post one very informative comment. I’m glad my post on the subject is getting around some.
I took some time to check out Oilgea and I must say I’m impressed so far. There’s a ton of info there, more than I could read in one or two sittings so I’ll be returning I assure you. I’m also considering doing another post solely on your site and the info it provides. My statistics package has been showing me that there have been enough searches for sources of information about exactly this process that I believe it would be more than worth it to write something up here.
So the timing of your comment was excellent.
on 12 Jun 2007 at 4:03 pm 3.Excellent Info on Oil From Algae » Narsi , and, Narsi, Oilgae, While, Algae, Time, Boston, Technorati, Glad » Just Thinkin' said …
[...] stats over the past few days, I noticed several searches leading here that led folks to my original Oil from Algae post back in March. It finally got through my thick skull that I had received a comment from Narsi, [...]