Fuel made from algae still a decade away

Posted on Monday, October 12 2009 @ 0:15 CEST by Thomas De Maesschalck
Reuters brings news from the Algae Biomass Summit which took place in San Diego last week and reports it will likely still take 7 to 10 years until biofuel from algae will be commercialized.
"This is not a slam dunk. There are a lot of technologies that need to be developed," said Paul Roessler, vice president of renewable fuels and chemicals at Synthetic Genomics.

So far on the list: finding the right strain of algae among thousands of species that will produce high yields; designing systems where the desired algae can multiply and other species don't invade and disrupt the process; and extracting its oils without degrading other parts of the algae that can be made into side products and sold as well.


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Thomas De Maesschalck

Thomas has been messing with computer since early childhood and firmly believes the Internet is the best thing since sliced bread. Enjoys playing with new tech, is fascinated by science, and passionate about financial markets. When not behind a computer, he can be found with running shoes on or lifting heavy weights in the weight room.



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