Algae as Biofuel? | Hamakua Springs

Whatever happened to algae as a biofuel?

It turns out that there are many more practical problems than one would assume. For example, algae gets energy from the sun in order to grow. At more than six inches deep, algae cannot get enough light to grow. So in order to maximize space, some people run algae water through clear pipes, which maximizes sunlight exposure.

The problem is that the pipes are petroleum-based. So the higher oil prices go, the higher the cost of construction becomes, and one can never catch up. It is not rocket science.

Why will biofuels from palm oil, kukui nuts and jatropha not succeed? Farmers look at the equation in a very straightforward way. How much could a farmer expect to make when oil is $200/barrel? Oil weighs approximately 6.8 lbs. per gallon, and there are 42 gallons in a barrel, so each pound of oil is worth approximately 70 cents.

How many pounds of nuts will it take to squeeze out one pound of oil? One could guesstimate that it would take at least four pounds of nuts to squeeze out one pound of oil. That means a farmer could expect to get no more than 18 cents for each pound of raw product.

No farmer would farm palm oil, kukui nuts or jatropha for 18 cents. Not rocket science.

Check out this article about algae and biodiesel.

…Getting the whole thing to run smoothly, though, was tougher than expected. GreenFuel could grow algae. The problem was controlling it. In 2007, a project to grow algae in an Arizona greenhouse went awry when the algae grew faster than they could be harvested and died off. The company also found its system would cost more than twice its target.

It is that latter part of the paragraph that is the more telling. When folk first consider using algae as a future fuel source, it is often because, when tabulated, algae can produce more fuel per acre per year, than any other crop.

However, getting what has been achieved in the short term into a production mode that sustains the same yield for year after year is not that easy….

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