Algae-Lemna: Biofuel Briefs

Lemna, (top)this possibly have dynamics to be potential energy feedstock. Once cuased havoc in swamps of China specially Taihu Lake in Wuxi city of PR China due to its high photosynthetic efficiency and high adaptations. (right) The algae bioreactor, a mechanism that can go tons per day production bringing the algae biofuel world closer to reality.

While algae has reemerged from 2008 which has been year of algae, 2010 seem to capture more interesting private patented interest and results already look promising with bioreactor/photobioreactor microalgae cultivation. The multi-enduse algae can be used intensively as fuel,medicinal or food based.

Feature: Biofuels: a sea change
Energy, water and food resources are interconnected and in increasing demand worldwide. Scientists at the University of Texas note nearly 1 billion people worldwide are near starvation, nearly 1 billion do not have adequate freshwater, and more than 2 billion people do not have proper sanitation. Systems models and dynamics demonstrate key interdependencies between energy, water and food. For example, increases in wastewater and sanitation industrialisation place greater demands on energy use. Similarly, increasing food production for global population growth creates greater demands for energy and freshwater – two commodities in increasing in demand and limited supply. How can aquatic feedstock systems help to solve these interconnected energy, food, fuel challenges? One solution is emerging from salt-tolerant feedstocks such as seaweed, sea asparagus, algae, and lemna, that can grow in brackish water, saltwater and desert areas, saving freshwater and arable land for vital resources.




Producer News

In Texas, attorney Jon Jaworski, "the Grease Lawyer," was one of the subjects of a look from popular business website Minyanville.com at the phenomenon of grease theft. "I had a guy who was paid with a bottle of vodka and a couple cartons of cigarettes to steal grease," Jaworski told Minyanville.

In California, energy crop company Ceres and Novozymes, the world's largest enzyme provider, have entered a research collaboration to co-develop customized plant varieties and enzyme cocktails for the production of cellulosic biofuel. Ceres and Novozymes will initially work on switchgrass and will move to similar evaluations of sweet sorghum.

"It's the Enzymes, Dr. Watson," writes Digest columnist Dr. Rosalie Lober in a column examining the tie-up between Novozymes and Ceres, looking at the Bioenergy PROFITS Principle: "Position Only for Growth"."What are some of the ways that successful companies position for growth in all industries and particularly in the bioenergy space. Know your customer's business. Provide new and different solutions," adds Dr. Lober.
In India, Farm Minister Sharad Pawar told Business Week that the country will increase ethanol production in anticipation of a bumper sugarcane crop, as an additional market that will keep the global price of sugar from collapsing. "Instead of producing other products, the industry should make more of ethanol," Pawar told the newsweekly.

In Pakistan, Minister for Population Welfare Punjab Neelam Jabbar Ch. told Online News that Pakistan is making strides to increase production of biodiesel and ethanol, as a hedge against oil price volatility. The Minister also said that a domestic production of renewable energy would conserve the country's foreign currency reserves.

US petrol refiner Sunoco’s ethanol plant located in New York is expected to come online in the beginning of July this year.

The plant has been undergoing repairs for almost six months in order to get it to operate at its full capacity of 100 million gallons of ethanol a year.

Sunoco purchased the ethanol plant for $8.5 million (€10 million) in June last year after it was closed when previous owner Northeast Biofuels filed for bankruptcy. At the time of sale Sunoco said that it expected to spend in the region of $10 million to upgrade the plant.

Pilot plant launched in Finland
based process technologies and production solutions, has launched a pilot plant in Oulu, northern Finland.

The $24.4 million (€19.7 million) biorefinery will produce a daily supply of 68 tonnes of cellulosic ethanol from agricultural waste and waste paper.

The facility will also be used to test raw materials for the production of small amounts of bioethanol, biochemicals and papermaking fibres.

The technology the company will use to create bioethanol is called formicobio, which, Chempolis says, can be licensed based on customer demand.