ICP Parking Lot/Algae for Energy

Brief Outline of Research Results

Algae for Energy

• Companies
  • Jul 14, 2009 Exxon announced a plan to invest $600 million in the production of biofuel from algae (http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/ariel-schwartz/sustainability/surprise-longtime-biofuel-holdout-exxon-makes-600-million-algae-f)
  • Exxon is supporting Synthetic Genomics
  • Dow Chemical
    • http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/29/turning-carbon-dioxide-into-fuel/
    • building a pilot plant on the site of a Dow plant in Freeport, Tex.
  • Fast Companies List of 5 (http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/ariel-schwartz/sustainability/when-will-we-see-commercial-scale-algae-fuel)
    • Renewed World Energies
    • Solazyme (This six year old startup)
    • Sapphire Energy (Founded two years ago)
    • Synthetic Genomics
    • Algenol Biofuels
  • GreenFuel Technologies Corp., based in Cambridge, Mass
    • both biodiesel and ethanol
    • In Popular Mechanics: http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/earth/4213775.html
  • Industry Associations/Events
    • 2nd Annual Desert Biofuels Summit in Scottsdale, Arizona
  • Intellectual Property
    • Valcent uses a closed, vertical system, growing the algae in long rows of moving plastic bags. The patented system is called Vertigro, a joint venture with Canadian alternative energy company Global Green Solutions. (http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/04/01/algae.oil/index.html)
  • General BioFuel Sources
    • Grain Sources
      • Corn and Soy
        • ethanol from corn and biodiesel from soybeans
        • Generally did not succeed due to an increase in food prices and criticism that the production process was not energy efficient. (http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/francine-hardaway/world-startups-outside-silicon-valley/ten-companies-you-need-know-about)
    • NonGrain Sources
      • Waste Vegetable Oil (WVO) Companies

a. Can use local resources to benefit the local economy OR be created on a larger scale and distributed. 2. Algae and Jetropha Companies: a. Production methods i. contaminant-free salt water aquifers ii. closed loop algae system b. Efficiency i. “30 times more energy per acre than land crops such as soybeans, according to the U.S. Department of Energy” (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/03/AR2008010303907.html) ii. “algae species also can grow in saltwater and other harsh conditions” (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/03/AR2008010303907.html) c. Commercialization i. Jet Fuel 1. Boeing and Air New Zealand recently announced a joint project with a New Zealand company to develop an algae-based jet fuel, while Virgin Atlantic is looking into the technology as part of a biofuels initiative. (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/03/AR2008010303907.html) ii. Fuel Cells 1. 2000 Berkley discovery of how to use algea for hydrogen production (http://www.berkeley.edu/news/berkeleyan/2000/02/16/scum.html) 2. “microscopic green algae -- known to scientists as Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, and to regular folk as pond scum -- was discovered more than 60 years ago to split water into hydrogen and oxygen under controlled conditions.” (http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2002/08/54456)

Bibliography

• 02.16.00 - Harnessing the Horsepower of Pond Scum. Available at: http://www.berkeley.edu/news/berkeleyan/2000/02/16/scum.html [Accessed August 10, 2009].

• 10 Biofuels Companies You Need to Know About | The World of Startups Outside Silicon Valley | Fast Company. Available at: http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/francine-hardaway/world-startups-outside-silicon-valley/ten-companies-you-need-know-about [Accessed August 6, 2009].

• A Promising Oil Alternative: Algae Energy - washingtonpost.com. Available at: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/03/AR2008010303907.html [Accessed August 5, 2009].

• Algae: Power Plant of the Future? Available at: http://www.wired.com/science/discoveries/news/2002/08/54456 [Accessed August 5, 2009].

• Algae: 'The ultimate in renewable energy' - CNN.com. Available at: http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/04/01/algae.oil/index.html [Accessed August 5, 2009].

• Algenol Biofuels - Harnessing the Sun to Fuel the World. Available at: http://www.algenolbiofuels.com/ [Accessed August 6, 2009].

• Exxon, a Longtime Biofuel Holdout, Makes a $600 Million Algae Fuel Investment | Sustainability | Fast Company. Available at: http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/ariel-schwartz/sustainability/surprise-longtime-biofuel-holdout-exxon-makes-600-million-algae-f [Accessed August 6, 2009].

• Five Companies That Are Turning Algae Into Energy. Available at: http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/ariel-schwartz/sustainability/when-will-we-see-commercial-scale-algae-fuel [Accessed August 6, 2009].

• Inhabitat » 15 Year Old Invents Algae-Powered Energy System. Available at: http://www.inhabitat.com/2009/06/24/versatile-system-by-javier-fernandez-han/ [Accessed August 5, 2009].

• Pond-Powered Biofuels: Turning Algae into America's Newest Alternative Energy Source - Popular Mechanics. Available at: http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/earth/4213775.html [Accessed August 5, 2009].

• Turning Carbon Dioxide Into Fuel - Green Inc. Blog - NYTimes.com. Available at: http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/29/turning-carbon-dioxide-into-fuel/ [Accessed August 6, 2009].

• Greenwire, K.H.O., 2009. Exxon Sinks $600M Into Algae-Based Biofuels in Major Strategy Shift. The New York Times. Available at: http://www.nytimes.com/gwire/2009/07/14/14greenwire-exxon-sinks-600m-into-algae-based-biofuels-in-33562.html [Accessed August 6, 2009].(Greenwire 2009)

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