Qatar University Reveals Progress of Aviation Biofuels Project
(The Peninsula) …This was the first time the team publicly detailed the progress of the state-backed QR45.5m biofuel project – the first time in the region. The university’s project, in collaboration with Qatar Airways and Qatar Science and Technology Park (QSTP) is now into its third year. The research team which is part of QU College of Arts and Sciences has developed state-of-the-art facilities which are the best in the GCC and competitive internationally for this type of research.
The aim of the project is to find a way of producing affordable, sustainable biofuels which do not rely on the use of valuable arable land and which can be produced efficiently in the harsh climate of Qatar.
…The research team isolated multiple forms of single-celled photosynthetic organisms (cyanobacteria and microalgae) unique to the country, abundant in the waters of Qatar which grow well in the extreme heat, strong sunlight and highly saline waters of Qatar.
The research group grew these cultures, eliminating weaker variations which do not respond so well to the Qatari environment and scaled up growth from small test-tubes to water tanks to monitor their growth. Then the lipids are extracted from the cultures to make fuel, while carbohydrate is used to make bioethanol. READ MORE
