Thailand Scientists Discover New Algae Species - Can Be Used to Produce Biodiesel
Researchers at Khon Kaen University (KKU) in Thailand have discovered a new species of algae, which could be used for the commercial production of biodiesel as early as April 2009.
The species, unimaginatively labelled KKU-S2, was found on the surface of a freshwater pond at the university, and was quickly identified as a promising source of alternative fuel. Speaking about the discovery, team-leader Dr Ratanaporn Leesing said, “We can extract oil from this species. Its properties are fit for biodiesel production. Within two days, the number of this alga can double, and within a week or two we can extract oil from it”
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Dr Leesing is confident that the algae can be effectively farmed for industrial biodiesel production as early as next April. She was also keen to stress that a KKU-S2 facility would not require much space. Quoting statistics from the US, she estimated that up to 136,900 litres of oil per hectare could be produced from the small green algae, compared with only 172 litres from corn.
The discovery is likely to prove of interest to producers looking for alternatives to biodiesel produced from food-based sources such as corn or soy, which have been criticised for their contribution to global food shortages, as well their negative impact on local biodiversity.
Image Credit - superiphi via flickr.com on a Creative Commons license
I hope this can help with the Peak Oil catastrophe, but it will take many years and many trillions of dollars of investment.
According to most independent scientific studies, global oil production will now decline from 74 million barrels per day to 60 million barrels per day by 2015. During the same time demand will increase 14%.
This is equivalent to a 33% drop in 7 years. No one can reverse this trend, nor can we conserve our way out of this catastrophe. Because the demand for oil is so high, it will always exceed production levels; thus oil depletion will continue steadily until all recoverable oil is extracted.
Alternatives will not even begin to fill the gap. And most alternatives yield electric power, but we need liquid fuels for tractors/combines, 18 wheel trucks, trains, ships, and mining equipment.
We are facing the collapse of the highways that depend on diesel trucks for maintenance of bridges, cleaning culverts to avoid road washouts, snow plowing, roadbed and surface repair. When the highways fail, so will the power grid, as highways carry the parts, transformers, steel for pylons, and high tension cables, all from far away. With the highways out, there will be no food coming in from “outside,” and without the power grid virtually nothing works, including home heating, pumping of gasoline and diesel, airports, communications, and automated systems.
This is documented in a free 48 page report that can be downloaded, website posted, distributed, and emailed: http://www.peakoilassociates.com/POAnalysis.html
I used to live in NH-USA, but moved to a sustainable place. Anyone interested in relocating to a nice, pretty, sustainable area with a good climate and good soil? Email: clifford dot wirth at yahoo dot com or give me a phone call which operates here as my old USA-NH number 603-668-4207. http://survivingpeakoil.blogspot.com/
Dear Dr. Wirth,
Please read the report on biodiesel from algae by the University of New Hampshire. We can produce enough liquid biodiesel fuel to meet all of our liquid fuel needs and export more than we use to the rest of the world. here is the URL:
http://www.unh.edu/p2/biodiesel/article_alge.html
Please read this.
I’m sorry, but this is a very poor article. Almost any of us can walk within a mile of our house and find algae “that’s suitable for biodiesel production”. Almost all algae can be used for biofuel production. Granted some are better than others. This article gives no reason to believe this algae is any better than the hundreds of others that are described in the NREL.
This article contains little real scientific information. What little that is there is not supported. Statements like “Within two days, the number of this alga can double, and within a week or two we can extract oil from it” show no grasp of the current state of research in algal biofuels. Most decent biofuel candidates mass double in 24 hours or less and some in as little as 16 hours. It would be nice if the article stated the lipid content or almost anything that lead us to believe this Thailand “discovery” was better than Neochloris oleoabundans or Chlamidomonas reinhardi. This article has no citations and no links to research or papers.
Scarily, there’s no mention of this on the web pages for Khon Kaen University, nor a mention of research into algal fuels.
It does a disservice to us researchers in algal biofuels to post articles that have no substance. Please do not add to the noise level surrounding algal biofuels.
My wallet was stolen in Khon Kaen. Not my favorite place. If a doctor can walk out his front door and find a “new” strain of algae then I would suggest that not much research was done in the first place.
Hi Chuck L,
I have read the report that you cite. Algal biodiesel is still in R&D and pilot projects, and production depends on oil for collection, processing, and transport. Thus Peak Oil = Peak Biodiesel.
Here is comment from Bart Anderson, editor of Energybulletin.net:
“It seems that any attempts to power our large and growing energy demand from biofuels is doomed to failure, without intensive efforts at efficiency and conservation.”
@ http://www.energybulletin.net/node/47023
Alternative energy sources are imperative to the sustainability of our economies future! Please come and visit Valcent to see what we’re doing in efforts to promote algae biofuel. Come and see our commercial sized unit producing algae and turning into a valuable alternative energy source!
http://blog.valcent.net
Jessica Brock
Valcent
Our company is interested in a collaboration with scientists specializing in algea selection. Our team has started to design an innovative reactor system (closed reactor, high pressure, optical fibres, etc) where we would like to test various algae strains.
Intersted parties may contact me under ralf.lange@inventatech.com
Ralf Lange
CEO
Fission-fires, Fear these! I live a stone’s throw from Darlington Nuclear Plant in Ontario, Canada, and I am on old man, so I only need heat and light for a few more years. My children, all struggle with huge mortgages, higher transportation bills, rising professional fees, skyrocketing food costs, and ball-busting taxes. We have grown to feel secure in our energy future, close to a fission-fire as we are, and have no choice but to accept its extreme danger. I suppose, due to its enormous output, conserving power is not foremost on our minds, as it should be, and for the sake of cleaner air, we look forward to lighter faster plug-in cars. We ponder using cooling tower heat for great green-houses filled with aquaponic setups, yielding the fish and the chips from one operation, and have fooled ourselves into the notion that the waste products from our fission-fires will make even more fuel for our futures, if we only knew the technology. Algae based bio-diesel is great for some climates - not ours! we get enough frost in late fall to freeze ponds solid in even Southern Canada! I can’t help to remind you that once lighted, fission-fires cannot be extinguished by mankind, not ever! and release waste products that kill us. We are one human error away from Armageddon here, and still live like there is no tomorrow! SEE: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5384001427276447319
to confirm some of my ideas, don’t believe me!