IHI to Test Algae-Based Jet Fuel Production in Thailand

by Yukako Ono (Nikkei Asian Review) IHI will conduct large-scale verification experiments in Thailand on a process for producing jet fuel from the oil extracted from cultured microalgae.

The goal is to have a practical technology ready by 2020 so the biojet fuel can be used for test flights during the Tokyo Olympics. Commercialization of the fuel is not expected until around 2030, however.

For these tests, the Japanese industrial machinery maker is teaming up with the Siam Cement Group, a major manufacturer of cement and building materials in Thailand. The project will be set up on land owned by SCG in Saraburi Province in central Thailand.

Microalgae will be cultured and harvested to study the overall process, establish methods of mass production, and work to lower the production costs. The testing is a continuation and expansion of a project backed by Japan's New Energy Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) to produce algae-based biofuel.

If the sites are located in industry-intensive parts of Thailand, the algae could use the carbon dioxide emitted from factories for their photosynthesis. READ MORE