Algae Biofuel - A Promising Biofuel For The Future

Algae biofuel is currently emerging as one of the potentially promising biofuels in recent stages of development.

Petroleum is believed to have developed from kerogen, which is simply converted to an oily substance under the influences of temperature and pressure. Kerogen is formed from biodegradable compounds, bacteria, plankton, and plant material through chemical and biochemical reactions: algae. Because of this, it is widely believed that algae can be converted to a petroleum-like substance. This would be a developed algae biofuel.

The advantages of an algae biofuel should be evident to almost everyone. Biofuels that can replace fossil fuels could end our dependency on the depletion of our planet's natural resources and significantly reduce our carbon footprint on the planet. With the development of alternatives like algae biofuel, air pollution resultant from burning fossil fuels and energy crises resultant from the exhaustion of natural resources would no longer present such an imminent theat to our people and the world we live in.

Harvesting algae to manufacture algae biofuel can be fairly intricate. Gathering algae involves the process of separating it from its growing medium. The algae must then be dried and processed into the desired product. Since there are different kinds of algae, strains particular to developing algae biofuel must be designated and developed for harvesting. The drying of algae is centrally important to the harvesting process, as it retains high water content. Some processes currently under use for harvesting algae are centrifugation, flocculation, froth floatation, and micro screening.

Oil extraction from algae is a debated concept because it is currently quite costly. While in theory it is all quite simple - harvest the algae and remove the oil from it - the reality is that the processes are expensive. The two basic methods of extracting oil for algae biofuel are the mechanical method and the chemical method.

The environmental effects of extracting oil from algae are, themselves, a topic of hot debate since many see them as not being eco-friendly. The concerns with mechanical extraction are that the drying process is extremely energy intensive and supercritical extraction depends on high-pressure mechanics that are also energy intensive. The chemical process involves solvents that present health and environmental risk factors. Other methods are being developed to reduce the environmental concerns, but so far they are so costly as to make mass production almost impractical.

So, while algae biofuel is one of the most potentially promising of the biofuel alternatives currently being researched, it is far from reaching a stage where its process and progress is anywhere near on the horizon. At this point in time there are many issues to be straightened out, from environmental effects to cost challenges.

However, far from leaving us disappointed, this situation only underscores the vital need to devote our resources and expertise to the challenges of developing biofuels and other alternatives to our current fossil fuel dependency. While the advance in creating biofuels may now be riddled with challenge, we must turn our attention and resources to overcoming these challenges and creating biofuel alternatives for future generations. Setbacks only mean that we must work that much harder in order to make green energy sources like algae biofuel a reality in our lifetime.

Martin Aranovitch is an online publisher with a strong interest in green living. To learn more about ways to go green, save money and help the planet, go here: Green Living Tips.

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Harnessing the Power of the Ocean With Atlantic Energy Research

Atlantic Energy Research says the ocean waves that are the inspiration for surfers and a wide variety of water sports can also be used to generate electricity. There are a number of plants currently in operation, but how exactly is electricity generated from the tidal forces of the oceans?

One method is to capture the tides of the ocean and utilize them to produce mechanical motion; another is to capture the forces of the high or low tides.

Energy produced using waves: The kinetic energy produced using waves is tapped by putting in place suitable apparatus so as to harness that energy. A mechanism filled with air allows the high rising tidal wave in, which in turn pushes the air outside. The rushing outflow of air sets a turbine into rotary motion which can be used to generate electricity.

Tidal energy: Tides rising about on the surface of the oceans, which are caused by the gravitational forces of the sun and the moon, can also be tapped just as the way they are in a hydro electric plant. The rising tide is captured behind a dam like structure and is let out when there is a low tide, similar in operation to a hydroelectric plant.

Although extracting energy from the oceans is a relatively simple process, the practicality is limited to, obviously, where the oceans are located and concerns have been raised by environmental groups about the effect on the habitats of various marine and plant life. Atlantic Energy Research says, also the cost of constructing and putting into operation such plants can be high.

In light of the fact that oceans cover almost 70 % of the earth's surface, they could be thought of as a planetary solar cell. With energy-generating potential of that magnitude, it is only a matter of finding the right way to harness and deliver this energy for our everyday residential or commercial use.

While it is uncertain if it could be used for mainstream industrial purposes, Atlantic Energy Research believes there is little doubt that energy generated in this manner can and, one day, will prove to be a useful supplement to the more established and traditional methods of generating reliable and useful power to our homes and businesses.

For information on this topic and more visit http://www.atlanticenergyresearch.com.

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A New Alternative to Ethanol

Although ethanol is part of the drive to reduce dependence upon fossil fuels, the fact is that its production has been blamed for the rising price of corn, sugar and other foodstuffs.

Atlantic Energy Research has been at the forefront of the search for alternatives to corn and sugar-based ethanol as investors continue to seek opportunities in biofuels. The firm has been encouraged by the potential of a fuel developed from a source called Jatropha curcas.

Jatropha curcas is a poisonous plant that grows in abundance in Africa, Central and South America, Asia, and the Caribbean. The plant can co-exist alongside other crops including coffee, sugar, fruit and vegetables. Farmers already use the plant to defend their pre-existing crops from animals and insects. Jatropha plant seeds can be pulped to produce oil that can be burned in an unmodified diesel car engine while the remaining residue's uses include fuel for electricity plants and fertilizer.

Jatropha is able grow in areas where the environment is dry and inhospitable or where the soil has experienced erosion.

Since 2007, Jatropha has been considered to be a viable source of biofuel by a number of organizations but only recently have projects aimed at jatropha production been implemented to demonstrate the impact they can have on rural communities. Mali, a poor African nation, has abundant renewable energy resources that can be utilized to make a pertinent and tangible difference to rural Malians needing access to affordable electricity.

Atlantic Energy Research has identified a number of innovative companies that have set up sustainable biodiesel processors in parts of West Africa. Several of these firms have eschewed the traditional and somewhat callous practice of simply buying land cheaply from locals who do not appreciate the value of the resources under their very feet and, instead, have sought to offer the farmers a share in the profits which should benefit the entire community.

In contrast to other sources of biofuel, Jatropha production represents no threat to local food production and offers the most sensible advantages for the local farmer and the environment since it enables farmers to produce food whilst simultaneously reducing soil erosion, increasing soil fertility and boosting food crop yield.

The jatropha-derived biofuel is sold at a keen price, which is roughly 10 percent cheaper than the pump price of ordinary fuel.

Clearly, the jatropha plant has a number of advantages when one considers both the economic benefits for the local Malian communities and the exciting prospects for another sustainable energy alternative for the rest of the world. Atlantic Energy Research believes that communities cultivating jatropha seed in Mali are a good example of how forward-thinking and innovative companies are harnessing technology to tackle carbon emissions issues while, at the same time, making a real difference to poorer communities and, of course, generating healthy profits for shareholders.

For information on this topic and more visit http://www.atlanticenergyresearch.com

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Jatropha - A New Miracle Plant?

Jatropha is a group of plants belonging to the wood spurges. The name, derived from the Greek words for doctor (iatros) and nutrition (trophe) already hints at those plants' many uses. Native to Central America, it has been used for medicines.

Plants of the Jatropha family are evergreen or deciduous and have thick roots. Twigs and leaves are usually pubescent, but the hairs don't burn. The fruits are capsules with three chambers. Almost all of the Jatropha plants are toxic, some of them highly so: The seeds can be fatal to humans, although when roasted, they loose some of their toxins.

So what is special about the Jatropha plants, so special that it is called the Miracle Plant by some?

This refers to the seeds of the "Jatropha curcas" plant, also called physic nut or purging nut. The plant is modest in its requirements and can survive even in barren savannahs. There is over 30% of oil in the seeds, which is extremely high for such an undemanding plant. The cetane number of the oil is 60, and here is the key: Canola, the world's currently most used source of biodiesel fuels, has only a cetane number of 54, Jatropha seeds promise to be even more promising for technical uses.

It can be intercropped with other commercial crops (such as coffee or sugar), and thus promises to be an interesting source of income for some of the poorer countries. Already plantations and biodiesel plants are located in India, Indonesia, China and Brazil; several African countries are getting started. Test flights have been a success. In 2009, the Time Magazine called it The Next Biofuel, estimating a potential for 1,600 gallons of diesel fuel per acre per year. This is like a wake up call for a world desperately looking for renewable resources.

Klaus-Martin Meyer is the founder of the leading German speaking website about renewable resources and owner of http://www.jatropha.com

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Biofuels - Good Renewable Source of Energy

For the last few decades, researchers have been doing their lot of experiments and researches in finding the convenient ways to get the alternative sources of energy to compensate the shortage of the fossil fuel. Perhaps biofuels will be the major source of the energy and power to energize the commercial sectors and revitalize the society as well. To be frank, the area of biofuels has extended up to organic components which include sugar cane, vegetable and corn based oil and ethanol.

Biofuels will provide the adequate energy for doing the daily works and other activities. The government has taken the strong measures for setting up the factories and power stations to enhance the speedy production of the biofuel based energy and power. However, so far as the biolfuels are concerned, ethanol is very important source of biofuel energy but all the ethanol related products are not conducive to the production of the renewable power and electricity.

Therefore, you must be selective in terms of the choice of the specific range of the biofuel energy. You will be glad to hear that by 2025, ethanol will generate at least 10% of the total user friendly gasoline products all over the world and 30 percent more by the end of 2050. However, if you see the index, you will see that only 2% of the ethanol based fuel is now produced in the world.

However, the researchers at the Oregon State University have claimed that they will have to upgrade this biofuel based power with the latest technology so that people can be benefited by getting the gasoline products at cheaper rates. They will have to do vast research for making this biofuel more energy efficient. If you have studied more, you will find that ethanol deriving from corn field is around 20% energy efficient with 75% energy efficiency of the gasoline coming from petroleum products.

The study has further confirmed that biodiesel fuels were measured to be 69 percent energy efficient. However, cellulose based ethanol will over-excel other biofuels with the 85 percent energy efficiency capacity. Truly speaking, the recent attrition level of the availability of oil and petroleum resources will force people to opt for the biofuel. The price hike is also a prominent reason for the modern trends towards the biofuels. Therefore, the future of this alternative source of energy market is very bright.

By 2030, car, vehicles and other means of transportation will be run by biofuels. You must admit that it will boom in near future. Experts have expressed their opinions by emphatically claiming that if the government decides to invest much on biofuel industry, the demand for the other sources of energy like gasoline and lubricant petroleum products will face the steady decline. Brazil is the country which feels proud of producing the largest volume of sugarcane based ethanol products in the international market.

Rudy's passion is to write on variety of subjects. Please visit her latest website at Bunn coffee filters which contains the reviews and deals on Bunn coffee pot and other information about coffee filters and coffee pots.

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What is Cellulosic Biofuel?

Lately researchers are looking for every possible alternative energy source, this due largely to the world's energy crisis and the condition of the environment. The top of the list is replacing traditional fossil fuels with alternative and renewable energy.

The main contenders for fuel substitutes are biomass fuels. Biomass fuels are derived from organic plant matter. Ethanol-based bio fuels are extracted from corn. Biodiesel is made up primarily of used vegetable oil and grease. Jatropha oil, which comes from seeds from the Jatropha plant, is also being used to make biofuels. Now added to the list is cellulosic biofuel.

Cellulosic biofuel is very revolutionary in biofuels; this is because it is not plant specific as with Jatropha and and can be generated from both living and dead organic plant matter rather than requiring crops to be grown specifically for the purpose of cellulosic biofuel production, such as ethanol needs corn.

The carbon content in cellulose is what makes it such a good candidate in the quest for biofuel. Cellulose is the most abundant carbon form present in biomass and accounts for around 50% of its weight. Cellulose can be found in most plant matter without the need for land space or water for irrigation giving cellulose biofuel its appeal.

Cellulose is a polysaccharide comprised of a six sugar carbon polymer. Because of its composition and its abundance, cellulosic biofuel is an attractive possibility for mass biofuel production.

The researchers at NASA are further exploring cellulosic biofuel as a viable fuel source. They are researching more efficient processes to convert cellulose to sugar. Once cellulose is converted to its sugar-based form it can be used for other purposes such as chemical agents, food and cellulosic biofuel.

However, the conversion to sugar is requires around 50 hours for the process to take place. You take labor costs and the energy to covert it, and you can see how costly it can become. With time also comes higher production costs. If it would be pssible to cut this process down to 5 hours it would see cellulosic biofuel become cost effective enough to be competitive in a global market.

What scientists hope to accomplish is to refine the process for easier extraction of the complex sugars from cellulose. Because the plant cell walls were designed in nature to be robust and to stand up to the elements, it makes it difficult to break down and extract. Researchers hope to make extraction easier by engineering plant cell walls.

Another hurdle in the production of cellulosic biofuel involves the improvement in enzyme efficiency. They plan to mimic enzyme behavior from animals that are the most efficient at breaking down cell walls such as herbivores like cows and sheep which they believe is the key to cost effective cellulosic biofuel production.

Some of the things we can do to help protect ourselves from increasing oil prices is to conserve what we have now, to use less, and to alter our energy consuming patterns. We need to look into alternative energy sources when they become available to us. If we do these things, cellulosic biofuel could be on the market in as little as 5 years.

Want to get more information on biofuels and renewable energies?
http://www.renewable-energyadvantages.com

Paul Hundrieser
http://www.paulhundrieser.com

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Grassoline - A New Biofuel Niche

During the warm seasons, people around the world cut the grass in their yard and rarely think anything else of it. The shards pile up in clumps around the yard or near the curb and some days the wind even blows them into the neighbor's yard. What many do not realize is that these shards of grass laying around the yard could actually be used as fuel for your car and other engine types. The actual name for this biofuel is called grassoline and it has caught the interest of environmentalists all over the world.

One benefit of grassoline would of course be that the yard would look a lot better without the grass clippings scattered all over the place. A person would not have to go through bagging them up for the local town to pick them up, or stare at them until the wind whips them away. But grassoline was not invented just for the purpose of making yards look a little nicer. The concept was created because there is already a similar vegetation out there that is currently being made into biofuel and that's ethanol from corn. Ethanol is currently being used and tested to fuel vehicles and other engines. It is environmentally safer than gasoline and diesel, which are currently being used in the U.S. to power most vehicles.

Unfortunately, a person won't be able to empty their lawnmower bag quite yet and fill up their gas tanks with the broken down grass. Using grass as a biofuel is one of several products being tested right now. Algae is another one being tested and it looks like it is going to be a long way off before the industry decides on the right biofuel and sticks with it.

Using grass, corn and other natural vegetation in order to power engines is something that is being done to lower the amount of greenhouse gases being leaked into the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases help deplete the ozone layer and contribute to global warming. With all of the concern regarding the environment and the ozone layer, biofuel is a market trend that is going to continue to be studied.

For more information on grassoline and other biofuels, see http://www.theinternettimemachine.com.

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Homemade Energy - Is Bio Fuel Bad?

Anybody who has followed the discussions about alternative energy sources with any regularity knows about the controversy that arose over the issue regarding biofuels. Biofuels are inefficient, drive up food prices and cost more both at the pump and through increased taxation for government subsidies of rural farmers such as John Deere and Caterpillar Corporations. (Together, the amount of money they receive in government agricultural subsidies alone would make most rural farmers green with envy and red with anger)

So does that mean that biofuel is really as bad as some people are saying? Well the fact is that corn is one of the largest government subsidized crops in the nation and as such, the government has more freedom to regulate it than they do any other crop and they can then pass on the money to political action committees and other special interest groups. However, when you take the politics out of power, you come up with something resembling pond scum. (No, we are not saying that politicians resemble pond scum, the pond scum is actually useful)

A company by the name of Algenol has found a way to tap into pond scum that is used to create some amazingly effective biofuels. Unlike corn, not many people are standing in line waiting to buy some of that sweet green algae so food prices remain unaffected with this method of producing biofuels. Additionally, the algae is easily farmed and grows at a fairly rapid rate, is fully renewable and (insert audible gasp here) actually makes an efficient and viable biofuel alternative.

The Algenol has lots of different benefits. Here is some of them.

1. Doesn't need to use live feedstock.
2. Doesn't need to collect the materials.
3. Doesn't require environment damaging fertilizers.
4. Uses the water of the sea meaning that we don't need to waste our drinking water.
5. Uses only a small amount of fossil fuels for the process.
6. No need to plow the land.
7. Desertic land and Sea side land can be used for the production.
8. Algenol has energy balance over 5.5:1 making it powerful than fossil fuels.

So what does all of that mean?

That means that all of the tests to date have shown this to be a viable method for creating biofuels that are clean, efficient and have no adverse affect on people who are having a hard enough time finding decent corn on the store shelves. In other words, no matter what your personal or political stance may be, there is absolutely no reason to protest this algae based bio fuel. All of the arguments both for and against bio fuels and alternative fuels in the past have been squashed by pond scum.

While it may be true that many bio fuels are not all that they are cracked up to be, that does not mean that some of them are not very likely to at least supplement, if not to replace the more traditional fossil fuels. One thing is for certain; when people can produce energy cheaper, more efficiently and in an environmentally friendly manner as well as getting it to the end consumer at a more reasonable rate, this will start getting people's attention. As long as we can keep the people out of the pond scum, we should be okay!

David Y Gonzalez is an expert in Diy Solar Panels and has been working with Green Diy Energy for more than 2 years. He has helped lots of people to save energy with homemade energy and people have been able to save money and the environment.

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Biofuel Can Help the Planet Now and in the Future

In recent years, we have been encouraged to take on more collective responsibility when it comes to the environment. Mankind has damaged the planet in so many ways over the centuries that it's become vitally important that we look to repair the damage we've already done.

It's become common practice to recycle as much of our household and industrial waste as possible, and every month more and more people are joining this quiet, and much-needed, revolution. Renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind and wave, are serious alternatives to fossil fuels these days, too.

The rise in the use of biofuel is perhaps not as well-known, but thanks to some intensive research and development, it is set to play a major part in the fight against environmental damage. It's likely to be a significant source of energy in the coming years, and will become something we're all aware of in the very near future.

Basically, biofuels are obtained from renewable resources, which can include plant and animal by-products. They've become more popular - and necessary, for that matter - because of the rise in oil prices and the need to find an alternative to petrol and diesel. They fall into two main categories.

The first, bioethanol, is developed mainly from sugar and starch crops. It's an alcohol, and can be used to propel vehicles. However, it's currently utilised primarily as an additive to gasoline. It helps to lower dangerous emissions, and is set to become more widely used in the more developed countries.

Biodiesel is perhaps more familiar, and will be even more so in the coming years. It's manufactured from animal fats, recycled grease and vegetable oils. Although, like bioethanol, it can be used to power vehicles, at the moment it's added to diesel in order to make it kinder to the environment.

Both biofuels have been developed as a result of major investment, and will become a credible alternative to the more damaging fuel sources we currently use. They will one day play a major role in industry and in the home, as well as on the country's roads.

More and more countries are recognising the need for implementing the use of biofuels, and many have targets to aim for which, it is hoped, will lead to major reductions in the use of fossil fuels over the coming years.

In the European Union, for example, each member state is expecting that biofuel usage will be at least 5.75% of all traffic fuel used by the year 2010. In 2020, that figure is expected to increase to 10%.

The USA offers tax exemptions for companies that develop biofuel technology, and the country has seen a significant change in attitudes over the last decade. American ethanol fuels are obtained from corn, a major crop that has been harvested for many years.

In recent times, a significant number of governments have developed major environmental programmes, reflecting a growing awareness of the need to protect our planet. Developing usable biofuels is just one of the many initiatives that are helping to make our world a greener one.

More and more governments are making major investments in biofuel technology, which in the next few years will become an increasingly important energy source.

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Questions About Biofuels’ Environmental Costs Could Alter Europe’s Policies

BRUSSELS — A top European farm official has suggested that yet-to-be-released studies by the European Commission could be used to “kill” heavily promoted and subsidized biofuels by focusing on their total environmental impact.

The biofuel company Choren Industries, based in Freiberg, Germany, makes clean fuel for vehicles and power generation. The suggestion, written in the margins of internal correspondence seen by The International Herald Tribune, could foreshadow a further retreat from the biofuel-friendly policies that the commission once called crucial in the fight against climate change.

The industry has already been dogged by contentions that the main justification for policies supporting biofuels — that they are greener than fossil-based products — is unsound. Many environmental advocates claim that a large number of fuels grown from crops do not merit public subsidies or production incentives.

European governments agreed in December 2008 that only biofuels that reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 35 percent compared with fossil fuels should qualify for meeting the trade bloc’s current goal.

But at the time, the governments directed the commission to investigate indirect land use change and, depending on the findings, to decide whether any changes needed to be made about which biofuels counted toward the goal.

The commission’s studies are intended to determine the volume of emissions created when forest or land is cleared to replace food production lost to biofuel crops. Converting land can release large amounts of greenhouse gases when vegetation is cleared. Plowing also exposes carbon stored in the soil to the air. In the lumbering jargon of emissions experts, these effects are known as indirect land use change, or I.L.U.C.

In a memorandum, Jean-Luc Demarty, the top civil servant in the agriculture department at the European Commission, wrote to a colleague in December that “an unguided use of I.L.U.C. would kill biofuels in the E.U.”

His words suggest that most of the models in the studies used for calculating emissions would rule out fuels made from crops currently produced in the European Union. That, he added in the handwritten note, “is probably the objective” of those who oppose incentives for some forms of biofuels.

Mr. Demarty declined to comment on Thursday, but other officials did not dispute the authenticity of the note. In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency has concluded that a number of biofuels would still meet emissions limits even after land-use changes resulting from increased biofuel demand.

But in the case of corn-based ethanol, the agency said that manufacturers would need to use “advanced efficient technologies” during production to meet American limits.

In Europe, commission officials are seeking to protect influential agricultural and industrial interests while maintaining a credible climate policy.

A spokeswoman for the European Commission, Marlene Holzner, declined to comment on what she termed internal working documents.

A group of environmental activists and lawyers made the European Commission document available to The International Herald Tribune this week. They contend the studies will support the case for using fewer biofuels and want the commission to release them.

Transport and Environment, a nonprofit group based in Brussels, first requested that the studies be released nearly four months ago.

Ms. Holzner said that the request’s “wide scope” meant it was “not possible to check all the relevant material” within the normal deadline for releasing documents. Under European Union rules, the commission has an obligation to respond to information requests, but may not necessarily grant them. Ms. Holzner, however, said a “first batch” of studies should be made available next week.

European governments agreed in December 2008 that only biofuels that reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 35 percent compared with fossil fuels should qualify for meeting the trade bloc’s current target.

But at the time, the governments directed the commission to investigate indirect land use change and, depending on the findings, decide whether any changes needed to be made about which biofuels counted toward the target.

Amandine Lecourt, the spokeswoman for the European Biodiesel Board, said negative effects on emissions from indirect land use change were “still unproved.”
By JAMES KANTER

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