- Image via Wikipedia
Greener Dawn Research believes that the planet is at the verge of moving toward a more energy-efficient global economy with much lower levels of polluting emissions. The group recently released their report on algae-based biofuels.
The research looks at the opportunities and challenges that this emerging industry faces. It tackled whether or not algae-based biofuels could compete as substitutes for conventional fossil fuels. It profiled eight companies: Aurora, Algenol, Livefuels, PetroAlgae, Seambiotic, Sapphire, Solazyme and Solix.
The problem with crop-based biofuels is that a large area is required to grow the crops. This can use valuable farmland which could be utilized for food production. Algae are aquatic organisms that grow faster than most plants. And, best of all, they grow on unfertile land, thus potentially solving the food-versus-fuel debate.
Algaculture, or the farming of algae, would not affect the fresh water resources of a given locale. It can be produced by using wastewater, or sea water.
Algae could become a very valuable item in the future. At present, it costs more than most crops, yet it generates more energy per acre than other biofuel crops.
According to the research, algae biofuel would require a land area equal to the size of Wisconsin, in order to fully substitute petroleum. Compare this to the amount of land which would be needed to grow enough corn to supply ethanol-based fuels to replace petroleum. Based on the same research, this requires an entire third of the United States! And soy would require much bigger land area.
Another thing that makes algae the likely fuel substitute is that it consumes 2.2 times its weight in carbon dioxide. That makes it a feasible agent for reducing the quantity of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
Algae can generate 15 to 300 times more oil per acre than the average crop, such as soybeans, rapeseed, jatropha, and palms. Algae also has a harvesting cycle of one to ten days. That means more harvests, in a very short time span.
The current administration has expressed that it is open to methods which can help solve the global climate change crisis, such as cap-and-trade, and carbon taxes. In December of 2009, a World Climate Summit will take place in Copenhagen. Various green industries are adamant that they are the best solution for the problem at hand. Algae-based biofuels might be a newcomer in the field, but it looks like they might prove to be one of the viable solutions.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=eb3ab836-120f-4425-ab99-831674ffd4cf)
Wonderful Grace, thank you
I didn’t know that much about Algae, I think it’s really really important to take such a measure and lets hope the environmentalists in this summit make a better decision and a decision which sticks and gets implemented quickly. Biofuels are not an answer because the world population is growing and there are food shortages so rather than fewer rich economies relying on Bio-Fuel, it’s important to grow food and find out for other ways. See this is one more way which sounds damn better than biofuels. I can only imagine how beautiful our world will be in future if we implement greener tactics.
This is a great post.. Very informative… I can see that you put a lot of hard work on your every post that’s why I think I’d come here more often. Keep it up! By the way, you can also drop by my blogs. They’re about Vegetable Gardening and Composting. I’m sure you’d find my blogs helpful too.
Personally, I hate algaes because of its greenish look and slippery feature. I never thought that it would be useful to us to save our environment. Hopefully, the government will support the – Algae as a good source of biofuel campaign.
.-= Francois Talens´s last blog ..Causes of Arthritis and Risk Factors =-.
Interesting post, and one wonders the true scaleability of this, as you have said, the problem with crlop based fuel is the land mass required, although many people agree that the future energy demand will be met by a culmination of many different sustainable approaches, rather than one singular rebnewabel energy source.
Snapa