Algae Cultures to Biofuels

Heather Sommers
Molluscan Aquaculture
April 25th, 2007

Overview

What is Algae

Basics
Types
Importance

Making algae into a fuel source

Biodiesel

Hydrogen

History
History

Biomass

How to Culture

What is Algae?

Algae

Simple plant
Most live in water
Photosynthetic

Capture light energy

Convert inorganic to organic matter

Nonvascular
Use lipids and oils to help float in water
Range from small, single-celled species to complex
multicellular species, such as the giant kelps

Types

Red Algae

Benthic
Macro

Green Algae

Benthic
Macro
Kelp
Marine

Diatoms

Chlorophyll a and b
Plants
Freshwater

Brown Algae

Blue Green Algae

Single celled
Silica cell wall
Vertical migration
Fix N2 from air
Freshwater

Dinoflagellates

Toxic; suck out O2

Cause red tides
Organic matter

Background

Location

How many

Over 36,000 species

How does it feed?

Most habitats

Photosynthesis
All have chlorophyll

Uses

food, fertilizer, foodstock, pharmaceutical, pollution

control, water treatment, dyes, agar, Fuels

Biodiesel History

From 1978 to 1996 the U.S. Department of

Energy funded a program to develop
renewable transportation fuels from algae
The main focus of the program was known as
the Aquatic Species Program (or ASP)
Production of biodiesel from high lipid-content
algae grown in ponds
Utilized waste CO2 from coal fired power plants

(Department of Energy. 1996)

Why make it a fuel?

Algae can be used to make biodiesel

Produces large amounts oil

When compared to terrestrial crops grown for the same purpose

Algae contain anywhere between 2% and 40% of lipids/oils by
weight
Once harvested, this oil can be converted into fuels for
transportation, aviation or heating

High growth rate and easy to grow

Warm Seasons

Cold Seasons

Amphora sp.
Tetraselmis suecica
Monoraphidium minutum

Use of diatoms and green algae

Harvesting Biodiesel

Microalgae have much faster growth-rates than terrestrial crops

Algal-oil processes into biodiesel as easily as oil derived from landbased crops
Use microalgae

Less complex structure

Faster growing rate
High oil content

How to harvest

Open-pond systems

Can be difficult
Type of algae has to be hardy
Can be less hardy and grow slower

Use Bioreactor Tubes

Use existing infrastructures

Provides the raw materials for the system, such as CO2 and nutrients
Changes those wastes into resources.

(Solix BioFuels. 2006)

Factories

(Enhanced Biofuels & Technologies Ltd. 2007)

How to get oil

Expeller/Press

Hexane Solvent Method

Algae is dried
Oil content can be "pressed" out with an oil press
Extracts 70-75% of the oils out of algae
Uses chemicals (such as hexane and methanol)
Can be harmful and explosive
Cold press & hexane solvent = extract 95% of oil

Supercritical Fluid Extraction

CO2 is liquefied under pressure and heated to the point that it

has the properties of both a liquid and gas
This liquefied fluid then acts as the solvent in extracting the oil
Can Extract almost 100% of the oils
Expensive equipment

Oil Yield
Gallons of Oil per Acre per Year

Corn . . . . . . . 15

Soybeans . . . .48

Safflower. . . . . 83

Sunflower . . . 102

Rapeseed. . . 127

Oil Palm . . . . 635

Micro Algae . .1850 [based on actual biomass yields]

Micro Algae . .5000-15000 [theoretical laboratory yield]

Cultivating Algae for Liquid Fuel Production (http://oakhavenpc.org/cultivating_algae.htm); 2005

Other Uses

Hydrogen

Algae can be grown to produce hydrogen

Discovered

first in 1939 by Hans Gaffrom

Late 1990s it was found that if sulfur deprived,
algae will produce hydrogen

Biomass

Algae can be grown to produce biomass

Burned

to produce heat and electricity

Can still produce greenhouse gases

Biomass Yield
Metric Tons per Hectare per Year

Algae.....51.1 [USA average, 1978]

Sugarcane.....79.2 [Brazilian average, 2005]

Sorghum.....70 [India average, 2005]

Cassava.....65 [Nigeria average, 1985]

Oil palm.....50 [Global average, 2005]

Cultivating Algae for Liquid Fuel Production (http://oakhavenpc.org/cultivating_algae.htm); NREL, 2005

Importance
Algae is easy to grow
Can produce a high yield of oil
Oil can be processed into biodiesel
Help to solve dependence on fossil fuels
Can be better for the Earth

References

Cultivating Algae for Liquid Fuel Production (http://oakhavenpc.org/cultivating_algae.htm); NREL,

2005
Department of Energy, Office of Fuel Development. Aquatic Species Program. 1996.
Enhanced Biofuels & Technologies Ltd. 2007. Accessed: http://www.ebtplc.com/c4c.htm
Guiry, M.D. and Blunden, G. (Eds) 1991. Seaweed Resources in Europe: Uses and Potential.
John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0-471-92947-6
Mumford, T.F. and Miura, A. 1988. 4. Porphyra as food: cultivation and economics. p.87 117. In
Lembi, C.A. and Waaland, J.R. (Ed.) Algae and Human Affairs. 1988. Cambridge University
Press. ISBN 0 521 32115 8
John Sheehan, Terri Dunahay, John Benemann and Paul Roessler, "A Look Back at the U.S.
Department of Energy's Aquatic Species Program-Bio-diesel from Algae, Closeout Report", July
1998, NREL/TP-580-24 190 http://www.nrel.gov/docs/legosti/fy98/24190.pdf
Michael Briggs, Widescale Biodiesel Production from Algae, University of New Hampshire,
Physics Department, revised August 2004. http://www.unh.edu/p2/biodiesel/article_alge.html
Sheehan, J., T. Dunahay, J. Benemann, and P. Roessler. 1998. A look back at the U.S.
Department of Energys aquatic species program - Biodiesel from algae. US Dept. Energy, Office
of Fuels Development, Nat. Renewable Energy Lab., Golden, CO.
Solix BioFuels, 2006. accessed:
http://www.solixbiofuels.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12&Itemid=26
Websites:

http://www.ecology.com/dr-jacks-natural-world/most-important-organism/index.html
http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_yield.html