As Green As It Gets: Algae Biofuels

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In September 2008, Algenol signed an $850 million deal with Mexico-based BioFields to grow algae in the Sonoran Desert.

It's hard to think of a humbler organism than algae, or a less-likely prospect to become savior of our energy future. "Algae fuel" does not conjure up images of power, big business or high-tech gadgetry; it suggests a modest picture of a murky pond covered by a greasy, greenish film. But unassuming algae, some researchers think, have the potential to become the ultimate in "green" fuel, powering everything from cars to jets — and perhaps putting an end to one of the more bitter battles in the biofuels industry: the "food versus fuel" debate over how best to use arable lands.

Proponents of algae fuel technology say the commercial prospects of the field are much more ambitious and technologically complex than letting pond scum grow wild in the backyard. That misconception encapsulates one of the issues facing the field, says Stephen Mayfield, a cell biologist at the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, Calif.: Algae farming may capture the imagination of small-scale, environmentally minded entrepreneurs, but if it is going to be a viable substitute for oil and gas, it cannot remain in the backyard. Commercialization will require significant investment in molecular genetics research, algal physiology and engineering. And that takes money.

Algae already have a lot going for them: They can double in mass several times a day, produce more oil per hectare than other alternatives (such as Jatropha, rapeseed or palm), and unlike most other biofuels crops, algae can grow on coastal lands with salty or brackish groundwater. But the industry also faces significant technical challenges: growing the algae in a controlled way, harvesting it efficiently and integrating the fuel into existing petroleum infrastructure. And tumbling oil prices might make algae fuel considerably less appealing to investors. Nonetheless, entrepreneurs are still enthusiastic about algae: In 2008, about 50 companies entered the algae fuel business — up from about four in 2006.

"There are a lot of problems to be solved, but the really good news is that there are a lot of people interested in that and working on it," says Billy Glover, managing director for environmental strategy at Boeing and co-chair of the Algal Biomass Organization, a one-year-old consortium formed by Boeing, DOE's National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, A2BE Carbon Capture Corporation, Benemann Associates, Montana State University and other institutions. "We have a great opportunity now," Glover says, "as the world is turning its attention to clean energy."

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http://www.earthmagazine.org/earth/article/1d6-7d9-2-d

[JODO 2]

I hope it is as promising as it sounds.

[mkg265 2]

Does this mean I can run my computer off my pool when I forget to put chlorine in it?