Is Algae a Biofuel of the Future?
By Wendy Heller, November 13, 2008 @ 02:00 AM (EST)
Source: Physorg.com
The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded $900,000 to Montana and Utah State Univiersities to fund research regarding algae's potential to become a renewable source of biofuel.
"It's been known for 20 years that algae could produce lipids, but it really took the most recent spike in fuel prices to make getting fuel from algae an option," Peyton said.
Almost all algae contain some oil, but the algae that Peyton and his fellow researchers are interested in are 30 to 50 percent oil by weight. This oil can be harvested and converted into biofuels in much the same way oil is harvested from crops like camelina and canola...
Almost all algae contain some oil, but the algae that Peyton and his fellow researchers are interested in are 30 to 50 percent oil by weight. This oil can be harvested and converted into biofuels in much the same way oil is harvested from crops like camelina and canola...
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