VENTURE: Algal Biodiesel Project

Posted on 13. Apr, 2009 by Charles Tsai in E-Ventures, Environment

Brian Finn, 17, USA - Imagine that pond scum could replace the most widely-used power source on earth. In the Algal Biodiesel Project (ABP) at the Greater Hartford Academy of Mathematics and Science High School, we aim to do just that.

brian150 The ABP is a student-run project doing independent research into creating biodiesel fuel from algae. We are a team of about thirty high-school students from twenty-three school districts across Connecticut spending time outside of school and on weekends doing original research and experimentation.

With the world’s supply of fossil fuels dwindling and global warming hovering over us, a practical solution is required today. We believe that algal biodiesel is the solution. Algae is a domestic, non-food crop with a much higher oil yield than other alternative fuel feedstock, and is easily cultivated on fallow land. Biodiesel is a renewable fuel that emits far less pollution than petrochemicals and can be used with existing infrastruct ure.

We have seen the effect of a failing oil supply on the world economy; biodiesel can replace reliance on oil and replace fossil fuels with clean, renewable energy. Biodiesel is a practical alternative energy that can fundamentally alter the energy industry and its impact on the environment of tomorrow.

Goals:

Create a process that will capture at least 50% of the oil from algal biomass with energy cost not exceeding amount of energy extracted
Enact complete process for cultivating algae, harvesting it, extracting oil, and turning oil into biodiesel
Make our product usable in a diesel motor and compliant with ASTM standards for biodiesel
Refine and optimize product until it is equal to or more eco-friendly than other sources of biodiesel

Algae Tanks

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Tags: algae, biodiesel, Environment09, USA

11 Responses to “VENTURE: Algal Biodiesel Project”

energiepass

17. Jan, 2009

i can´t believe, that this will work in a economical way. We have seen a lot of projects in the past wanting to use algae for biodiesel or biogas production…but nothing did work

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- jc
  
  19. Jan, 2009
  
  Just because the technology is not available right now doesn’t mean it can’t work. That is what research is for.
  
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Phillip Ruffy

18. Jan, 2009

On the contrary, Algae has a yield of over 4000 gallons per acre, compare that to its closet competitor, rapeseed, with a yield of 1200 gallons per acre. Algae can grow in a variety of environmental conditions and climates that normal feedstocks will not grow in. Algae is the future of biodeisel.

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GreenGenie

18. Jan, 2009

I disagree, energie. I looked into it, and algea has a TON of oil in it, that I’m guessing could be made into diesel some how. And what else are we going to do with it? These guys might be onto something. Keep up the good work!!

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GlenStef

04. Feb, 2009

Hi there,
Thank you! I would now go on this blog every day!

Have a nice day
GlenStef

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ankit

12. Apr, 2009

hey fantastic work can you tell how did you isolate oil from algae. I mean the steps required to isolate oil from it.

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vinod

27. Apr, 2009

can u grow algae with see water?

what tyep of climatic condition required for algee plantation

please reply me on my g-mail adress

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OT

20. Jun, 2009

Have you checked out the videos on Vertigro’s work in El Paso, Texas? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tsq-uQSN-SE&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.valcent.net%2Fi%2Fmedia%2FHighDensityVerticalBioreactor.html&feature=player_embedded Maybe you can even partner with them.

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Jayson Anders

02. Feb, 2010

There are many people developing open source algae reactors and processing info on the web. Check out algaegeek.com as a great example. http://algaegeek.com

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Avaneesh.T

13. May, 2010

Hey, me and a couple of my class mates did a similar project, with an aim towards exploring the use of semi-treated sewage as a medium of growth, the website “http://www.oilgae.com/” was a very useful sources of information. We too had to overcome the issue of separation of the algae and extraction of oil, however the lack of positive results discouraged the team to do further work.
I’m not really sure how feasible it would be but extraction of oil from fishes and other higher organisms will be drastically cheaper, though the biomass and hence oil per square meter extractable will be up to 20 times lower. since the area is not exactly an constraint, this could be a plausible route to explore.
Hakuna matata!!
Avaneesh

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DANTESWARI CHOWDARY.CHALASANI

02. Jan, 2011

i want to do this project in my college.i need some help

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