Midwest AGNet - Your Source for Everything AGSome species of algae now are being considered as a promising source of raw material for future biofuels production.

Some species of algae now are being considered as a promising source of raw material for future biofuels production.

--Compiled by
Herald-Whig Staff Writer
Deborah Gertz Husar

Columbia, MO-"Key advantages for algae include prolific growth rates and relatively high oil contents in certain species," said Lance Schideman, a professor in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at the University of Missouri.

"In addition, algae can help clean up water resources with excess nutrients and can be grown on lands that aren't useful for agricultural purposes."

Algae also can be more productive than corn or soybeans.

"Right now we get about 45-75 gallons per acre for soy biodiesel and around 300-500 gallons per acre for corn ethanol. Current research suggests that we could get anywhere from 1,000 to 10,000 gallons per acre for algae biodiesel," Schideman said.

The traditional method to produce biofuel from algae calls for extracting algae oil from the other biomass components and converting it via transesterification, Schideman said, but extraction methods are relatively expensive.

An alternative processing method is called thermo-chemical conversion, or TCC, a chemical process that transforms organic compounds in a heated and pressurized enclosure to produce a biocrude oil

"It simulates the processes that went on in the earth when our petroleum reserves were formed. You're just doing it a lot faster," Schideman said.

"It's my opinion that TCC will be a very important technology in helping biofuels from algae become a reality."