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43 Comments
- Mortikhi, on 10/10/2007, -1/+10This makes 10,000 times more sense than using FOOD for FUEL. (stupid ethanol pushing bastards)
- inghamb87, on 10/10/2007, -0/+5Didn't some guys from wales invent a box that you could put on your car exhaust, which used algae to absorb CO2? And you can eat it in chinese restaurants!
- xxenclavexx, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3Leave it to shorty9 to underestimate vast number of species of algae and how fast they reproduce.
- OrangeCrush, on 10/10/2007, -1/+4Great idea. How do I fill my tank with these solar cells you speak of?
- Terr01, on 10/10/2007, -0/+3They're not stupid, they've just got a profit motive.
- Terr01, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/4794920.stm
- PDXpete, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Right... It probably has nothing to do with the fact that our cars are designed to run on liquid fuel.
- Terr01, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2You're missing several factors.
Firstly, photosynthesis from algae or baceria is to a significant extent SELF-ASSEMBLING and SELF-REPAIRING. Solar cells, while pretty good, are still reliant on a few nasty industrial steps during their manufacture, at least until we design better ones.
Secondly, ENERGY TRANSPORTATION. That cost of photosynthesis is also that the energy is conveniently packaged for transportation. If there's one technology that we have that is slow-improving, it's *portable rechargable batteries*. - inactive, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2I've seen these farms... they are on land, in tanks, they don't harvest algae from the ocean for biofuel. At least not in the pacific NW.
- inactive, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2Incorrect, Boeing has developed solar cells that are over 40% efficient. http://www.physorg.com/news99904887.html
Commercially available solar cells ARE 26% efficient. Meaning that in direct sunlight at the equator current mass marketed solar cells will produce about 260 Watts per square meter of installment. These same cells can have up to 35year maintenance free lifespans with minimal degradation in power output. Shop around. - stklaw, on 10/10/2007, -0/+2They will need to ban all water from humans then.
They grow everywhere.
EVERYWHERE!! - jotate, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Didn't I read about how a large bit of the CO2 released into the atmosphere is taken care of by algae? Just saying, it's fine if we grow this stuff, just as long as we don't go the way of oil and start pillaging algae-rich areas of the ocean, thus compounding our CO2 issue.
- Idowhatiwant, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2I study algae for a living, dear God I hope this can only be true. I see a future in BIG ALGAE
- SilverBlade2k, on 10/10/2007, -2/+3The only future I see for this is in the OPEC archives of technologies they purchased just to bury..
- parasitewasp, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1It doesn't work that way.
- stklaw, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1"The best thing about me is that there are many mes"
- Samer, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Certain algae will give off hydrogen when deprived of sulfur, as a normal biological process. Chlamydomonas reinhardtii is one, and I'm sure there are others.
http://www.patentstorm.us/patents/7176005-descript ... - roseap, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Yeah, but we're way off from solar cells drawing enough power to get a car rolling, let alone going at a reasonable speed. Let alone that they'd only work during the day. Liquid fuel can be easily transported and used any time.
I'd also like to know where you got your numbers for photosynthesis. - roseap, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1we've got a nasty lake here in Portland Oregon that's totally full of algae... can they use that?
- Jason4000, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1No matter how much we like fossil fuels we are running out. If we don't diversify our approaches and prepare for the day that our governments are fighting for those last few wells to pump dry. We will all of a sudden find that there is no food(or high prices) at the grocery stores cause the trucks ran out of fuel. Sure ethanol is bad for the reason that it doesn't use the whole plant for fuel and it competes with food, but we need to put the research into it anyways so other types of plant matter can be used efficiently. Algae is easy to grow, doesn't compete with food stocks and if it can take a chunk out of the fuel dependence then it should be good. I just feel that we need to look at all energy options because whenever something happens to an oil refinery or anything for that matter the prices go up. It's too volatile to rely on one thing right now.
- RichStradler, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Category chemistry for 1000 Bob! ...The answer is "atomized commercial herbicides".
"Um... What can wipe out your entires countries energy reserves with a crop-duster before you can stop me?" THAT'S RIGHT! - Terr01, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Nah, AFAIK it was a hoax or at the very least severely distorted. No details given.
- Bricks, on 10/10/2007, -1/+2"The smart man can pick up a grain of sand and envision a whole universe, but the stupid man will find some seaweed and roll around untill he's all covered in it and go, 'Hey! I'm vine man!' "
- hmmdar, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1From my understandings it would be manufactured in industrial plants in mass quantity. that way you wouldn't need to harvest any from the earth.
- parasitewasp, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Very old news, maybe at least 4 to 5 years.
- pabloD, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2Now we just need to harvest all the algae from the planet before the Eye of Jupiter goes supernova....
um, sorry, knee-jerk BSG reference. - in2deep, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1Now this is interesting!
- MattB123, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2It's a great idea. I wonder how long until big oil notices and tries to kill it?
Soon algae will become a Schedule 1 banned substance. - wrockwood, on 10/10/2007, -1/+1I read about this in Popular Science several months ago. Pretty cool if it pans out. I've known a few biochemists over the years who thought algae was hot stuff. I guess now I believe them ;)
- inactive, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2How do you put Biofuel in your laptop?
- privatepyle219, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0http://digg.com/environment/Brilliant_Idea_The_Greenbox_Captures_Car_Exhaust_Gasses
- inactive, on 10/10/2007, -2/+2***** biofuel in every form. The only reason it exists is because there is a huge infrastructure in place designed to distribute liquid fuel. Biofuels are not efficient, sustainable, or environmentally friendly; but they are the least detrimental to the oil industry.
Photosynthesis is like 5-6% efficient at best, once you consider the energy used in raising the crops and refining the algae into a biofuel... it's totally pointless.
Commercially available solar cells are 26% efficient. They do create toxins within their production, but their sustainability kicks any biofuel's ass. - JonnyLatte, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermal_depolymerization
- radartheunder8d, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0Every time a company claimed it had a profitable bio-diesel from algae solution, it was only on paper and used as a lure for investors. The ratio of energy production vs. area needed to grow the algae are way off, favoring real estate over total energy yield. With real estate costs, seeding, cultivation time, would make it expensive to refine, and will probably require some new engineering. Though it would be a nice if the algae can be broken down and used as bio-gas to power gas turbines, supply would be limited after the first harvest. If only your septic tank could be converted into a bio-gas refinery for heating and fuel for cars. Yeah, right.
- maz2331, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0Nah. Big Oil doesn't care what the gas is made from, especially if the feedstock's cheaper and they can still sell the gasoline for $3.25 a gallon.
- maz2331, on 10/10/2007, -0/+0Okay... in that case... EVIL ethanol pushing bastards
- cygnus2112, on 10/10/2007, -2/+1Well, there goes all swamp wildlife and ecology.
- n3demonic, on 10/10/2007, -1/+0I'll believe it when I see it.
- royshechter, on 10/10/2007, -2/+0now I can see that you are UK-dave! great one! Good Luck
- diggerdiggs, on 10/10/2007, -2/+0i hope we can use human ***** too for producing bio fuel. obviously it contains somekind of oil, olive, peanut, sunflower, corn, cannola etc. no need of having a big setup also. we already are ***** producing machines. :)
- djofe, on 10/10/2007, -2/+0Considering the amount of algae that has been growing uncontrollably in our oceans, I'd say go for it, because these red tides on the east coast is really incredibly horrible enough to cause respiratory problems.
- dbil2000, on 10/10/2007, -2/+0Actually this is not a new idea, it has been around for several years.
this would probably be the most environmental way to make bio diesel. You could use waste water for the growing medium and you don't use food crops.
FYI the most efficient solar cells are 22% efficient not 26% (sunpower). solar is good but electric vehicles are not there yet and we already got a huge infrastructure build on liquid fuels for transportation. - shorty9, on 10/10/2007, -5/+1Leave it to the human species to somehow manage to get algae extinct, as well.
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