Can Algae-Derived Oils Support Large-Scale, Low-Cost Biofuels Production?

Algae/Other Aquatic Organisms/Seaweed, Business News/Analysis, California, Farming/Growing, Feedstock, Feedstocks, Infrastructure, R & D Focus

December 14, 2012

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(XS4Green.com) …John Benemann, Ian Woertz, and Tryg Lundquist, MicroBio Engineering, Inc. (Walnut Creek, CA) and California State Polytechnic University (San Luis Obispo, CA), present the results of an engineering and economic study of vegetable oil production from microalgae grown in open ponds. In the Review article “Life Cycle Assessment for Microalgae Oil Production” the authors also project the energy input and greenhouse gas emissions required to carry out this process at large scale.
In the Commentary entitled “An Introduction to Photosynthetic Microalgae,” Melissa Stark and Ian O’Gara, Accenture, compare algae culture to agriculture and state that for biofuel applications, algae is relatively high risk compared to other technologies and will require “long-term commitment to achieve commercial scale.” Algae had “high yield potential” and it “could add significantly to potential biofuel resources.”
“As the planet moves inexorably toward populations in excess of 10 billion people, we must find new ways of generating food and fuel,” says Editor-in-Chief Alan J. Russell, PhD, Highmark Distinguished Professor, Carnegie Mellon University. “These are national security issues for all countries, as well as moral imperatives. Benemann et al.’s paper on microalgae oil production, and the related commentary by Melissa Stark and Ian O’Gara, point to a sustainable future using this technology.” READ MORE Abstract Commentary

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