Algae the energy solution?
Algae – the energy solution?
Presentation by Sebastian Olényi – ESBS, may 2009

The energy challenge
gy g
 Oil production runs
out
 Climate warms due
to CO2
 We need more
energy
 Alternative sources
are needed
d d

Algae advantages
g g
 ‘Food vs. fuel’ becomes
food and fuel
 normal crops have only a
1% photosynthetic effiency,
algae at least 5%
(presumably up to 14% in
optimum conditions)
 algae have a low land
footprint, making yields of
f i ki i ld f
biomass 15times higher
than for normal crops
 can use saline water

The biofuel feedstock

Vast amount of possibilities
p

Requirements for an algae startup
q g p
• Top algae scientists
g p p
• Algae production experience
• Structured Programs
• Strain selection
• Cultivation development
• Extraction
• Scale‐up
• Scale up
• Product Development
gp
• Strong partner
• Capacity for Technology Risk
• Professional execution
• Professional culture
Professional culture

Example process
p p

The next steps
p
• Pilot facility
• CO2
CO2
• Access
• Competence to operate
• Sales contracts
• Vegetable Oil
• Protein/Carbohydrates
Protein/Carbohydrates
• produce ethanol, biodiesel, milk, animal feed and
compost fertilizer
p
• Commercial Plant design
• Commercial roll out plan

Challenges
g
 Overall challenge is to develop low‐cost high‐productivity
 production systems at scale (e.g. 1000 hectares):
d i l ( h )
 Open ponds account for > 90% current worldwide
production, but > 10 times too expensive for biofuels
d i b i i f bi f l
 Photobioreactors are excellent for high‐value products, but
>> 100 times too expensive for biofuels
i i f bi f l
 Technical challenges are mostly upstream ‐ related to algae
 biology & transition from lab to outdoors

Lessons Learned
Lessons Learned
 Many microalgae can accumulate neutral lipids
 All l
All algae produce lots of biomass
d l f bi
 GMO‐engineering of algae is difficult
 Diatoms and greens most promising
 No perfect strain for all climates, water types

Harvesting algal blooms from oceans
g g
 not energetically or cost effective
 sea water is oligotrophic have to add
nutrients like iron
 low cell densities
 Exception coastal lagoons, possible
contained environment
 E.g. Commerically Spirulina from
Lake Texcoco and cyanobacterial
blooms in Oregon ‐ again limited

Open‐pond approach
p p pp
 Biomass fast, easy and cheap
C
Contamination
i i
 Density
 Harvesting

Bioreactor‐approach
pp
 GMO‐containment
B
Better for cold regions
f ld i
 Controlled environment
 Lipid induction
 Expensive

So Are Microalgae a Realistic
So Are Microalgae a Realistic
Source of Biofuels?
Source of Biofuels?
 Yes
 B ill l ki i h b i R&D k h
But we are still lacking in the basic R&D to make them
viable
 I ill k i d
It will take time and money

Our project?
p j

Biology as long as possible: Biodiesel
 Ability to sustain production of
high‐oil‐yielding microalgae strains
high oil yielding microalgae strains
 Ability to extract the oil from the
algae
 Capability of converting of
microalgal oil into Biodiesel
 Identifying the high‐yielding
microalgal strains
i l l t i
 Identifying the most optimal
methods to cultivate them
th d t lti t th

Carbon capturing
p g
 R&D‐head Jean‐Yves Malpote is in conseil d‘administration
 Local strains are best‐fitted
 Wastewater usage?

Project suggestion
j gg
 Harvest and identify local strains from Strasbourg
G
Grow and select them for biomass‐production or lipid
d l h f bi d i li id
production
T
Try wastewater‐treatment
 Test genetical engineering for lipid‐content enrichment