ALGAE BASED BIOFUELS – BEST ALTERNATIVE TO FOSSIL FUEL.

Ivana O’DellIssues in Science and Technology

March, 2009

MY STANCE

• Biofuel made out of algae - best alternative to fossil fuel.

• No issues with deforestation, food shortages, and pollution.

BIOFUELS

• WORLD IS DESPERATE FOR A NEW SOURCE OF FUEL.

• FOSSIL FUEL – DEPLETED.• CURRENT BIOFUELS MADE

FROM CORN OR SOY- NOT THE BEST ALTERNATIVE.

• Not close to meeting the growing demand of petroleum.

• Dedicating all current U.S. corn and soybean production to biofuels would meet only 12 percent of gasoline demand and 6 percent of diesel demand.

• Global population growth and advancement in societies (China) will increase demand for corn and soybeans for food.

• Crops grown for biofuel contribute to deforestation and pollution from fertilizers.

CURRENT BIOFUEL - NOT SO GOOD

•4000 BC – Wheel, Mezopotamia.

Invention of the wheel – One of the most important inventions.

HOW IT ALL STARTED

• 3000 BC - Chariot and cart, Sumeria.

1500 AD – Four wheel coach, Hungary.

1885 – Karl Benz, First gas powered vehicle, Mannheim, Germany.

1908 – Henry Ford, Ethanol.

•1973 – Arab oil embargo.

•1978 - 1996 U.S. DOE Office of Fuels Development funded a program to develop renewable transportation fuels from algae. •Main focus - production of biodiesel from high lipid-content algae grown in ponds by utilizing waste CO2 from coal fired power plants. •Advances in science of manipulating metabolism of algae and engineering of microalgae algae production systems.

US DOE AQUATIC SPECIES PROGRAM

Pilot demonstrations

• In Raceway Ponds (built in HI, CA, NM)

• Target production - 50 g / m2 / day (same as 10 to 20 thousand gallons per acre per year.

• Actual productivity ≈ 10 g per m2 per day.

RESEARCH SUSPENDED (1996)

• Difficulty controlling the environment- invasive species

- temperature - cost

• Estimated cost of fuel from algae - $1.40 to $4.40 per gallon.

•High yields of algae due to fast growth.

•Can help decrease carbon pollution. (Carbon dioxide is primary input required by algae to grow.)

•Water efficient production (Algae – 16 trillion gallons of water; Corn – 4,000 trillion gallons of water).

•Can grow in brackish, saline, wastewater, and range of temperatures. •No one country has a monopoly on algae. •Not in competition with food crops .

•Valuable byproducts - high-protein animal feeds, agricultural fertilizers, glycerin, and jet fuel.

PROS

CONS

•Environment difficult to control.

•Cost of production high.

•Technology yet not available.

ALGAE TECHNOLOGY PROCESS

•Increases oil rates even further. •Grows algae under ideal conditions.•High output of algae – more oil for biodiesel. •Closed bioreactor plants can be strategically placed near energy plants to capture excess carbon dioxide that would otherwise pollute the air.

Vertical growth/closed loop production

– better than pond

THE FUTURE – CLOSE TO HOME

•PetroAlgae - continuing the work of DOE and Arizona State University. •PetroAlgae - developing a commercialized system of technologies to grow and harvest oil from algae. •PetroAlgae’s technology can yield up to 14,000 gallons of oil per year from just one acre of algae.•Expected to show their finished product in 2009.

Melbourne, FL

Next Big Bio-Fuel - ALGAE

• Algae biofuel – best alternative to fossil fuel.

• Other alternatives are not efficient, cause deforestation, pollution, and shortage of food.

• Although technology is not yet available, there is hope with companies such as PetroAlgae.

CONCLUSION