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Get Beyond the Hype in Algae Biofuel
Emerging Tech INSIGHTS, Inc, Oct 2011, Pages: 76
Renewable energy seems ever more advantageous as gasoline and oil prices sky rocket and remain barely predictable from week to week. Algae are among several other crops that can provide oils for production of biofuel and biodiesel. But, what to choose and why?
The National Algal Biofuels Technology Roadmap released in December 2008 listed several advantages of algae for the production of algae biofuel.
- Algae offers high biomass yields per acre of cultivation. In fact, some estimates suggest that algae can produce nearly 10 times the amount of oil per acre compared to the next contender, palm oil.
- Algae cultivation does not need to compete with arable land and nutrients used for conventional agriculture.
- Algae can grow on waste water, produced water, and brackish or saline water, reducing the impact on freshwater supplies. Indeed one economic analysis suggests that waste water credits would positively impact profitability, an argument for starting sooner rather than later.
- Algae can recycle carbon from CO2-rich flue emissions from stationary sources, including power plants and other industrial emitters.
- Algae biomass is compatible with the production of a variety of useful products including algae biofuel or algae biodiesel AND other valuable co-products in food, medicine and other areas.
Many studies seem to suggest that algae biofuel or algae biodiesel is years – maybe decades – away from practical reality despite decades of study by DOE and others.
BUT...what would happen IF we DECIDED that algae biofuel or algae biodiesel were NEEDED NOW to reduce the economic impact of foreign oil.
COULD IT BE DONE QUICKLY?
To answer the questions, Emerging Tech Insights (ETI) has constructed Get Beyond the Hype in Algae Biofuel with Technology Mapping in order to answer several key questions. ETI's strategic technology assessment report on algae biofuels has the answers to the following key questions:
- What is happening in algae biodiesel or algae biofuel technology development?
- What new players have entered in the last 12 month? What are they doing?
- What are the technological barriers? What solutions can we see now?
- What companies or organizations or universities could be combined to accelerate the algae biofuel or algae biodiesel area?
The answers are ready. Some answers are surprises. If you are an investor, manager or product developer, buy the report today for a uniquely clear perspective on algae biofuel or algae biodiesel.
What did ETI find? Based on its analysis, algae biofuel or biodiesel does appear to be poised to disrupt the liquid fuel business. Commercial sales are quietly beginning in 'specialty' markets. ETI's analysis of the technology landscape shows that there are few technological barriers. For most process steps, well characterized methods can be drawn from a parallel industry. Only large-scale culture systems need further “standardization” to enable a large-scale algae biofuel industry to break out, and even here a limited number of well defined options exist.
ETI's analysis clearly shows the adjacent markets that can serve (and are already serving) as outlets for algae biofuel 'waste' products, reducing scrap costs. Adjacent markets can also serve to finance biofuel market development.
When (if) an algae biofuel industry breaks out, Emerging Tech INSIGHTS believes that existing smaller players will begin to consolidate and our cutting-edge models suggest combinations of companies where intellectual property enhancements might exist.
When (if) a large scale algae biofuel industry does break out, Emerging Tech INSIGHTS believes that winners will include the equipment and chemical suppliers for 'standardized' ponds and bioreactors, new aqua culture farmers, suppliers of extraction equipment and chemicals, certain real estate holders and the investors who made it all happen.
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