3. Biofuels ā the green alternative
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Derived form biological materials through biomass conversion
Renewable
Production requires more effort and resources
Can significantly reduce greenhouse gas
ā¢ Release CO2 when burning
ā¢ Biofuel production consumes it back
Types:
emissions
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Ethanol
Biodiesel
Bio gasoline
Bio butanol
Methane
Jet fuel
4. Evolution of Biofuel Production
http://www.responsiblebusiness.eu/display/rebwp7/Technology
5. 1st 2ndGeneration vs. Generation
1st 2ndGeneration: Generation:
ā¢ ā¢Produced mainly from agricultural
crops traditionally grown for food
and animal purposes
Wheat, sugar cane and oily seeds
Contribute to higher food prices,
carbon stores & land use
Net energy negative
Produced from non-edible crops
grown on non-arable land
Lignocellulosic biomass or woody
crops, agricultural residues or
organic waste
Harder to extract the required fuel
Potential to be net energy positive
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7. Algal Basics
ā¢ Algae are simple plants that range from microalgae to large
seaweeds, such as giant kelp
Algae can be grown using brackish-, sea-, and wastewater
unsuitable for cultivating agricultural crops
Most microalgae grow through photosynthesis by
converting sunlight, CO2, and a few nutrients, including
nitrogen and phosphorous, into biomass
Other algae can grow in the dark using sugar or starch
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8. Why Algae Biofuel?
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Can be grown on marginal lands useless for ordinary crops
High yield per acre ā have a harvesting cycle of 1ā10 days
Can be grown with minimal impact on fresh water resources
Can be grown using flue gas from power plants as
a CO2 source
Can convert a much higher fraction of biomass to oil thanā¢
conventional crops, e.g. 60% versus 2-3% for soybean
9. Comparison of Oil Yields
ā¢ Algae yield is multiple times higher than
other biofuel crops
10. Algae Biofuel vs. Other Biofuels
ā¢ Algae biofuel production also fares better than others in
greenhouse gas emissions and resources needed for fuel
manufacturing, except energy
11. Biofuel Energy Density Comparison
ā¢ Algae oil
biofuels
energy density is comparable to currently used
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Biofuels
http://biofuel.org.uk/types-of-biofuels.html
EnergyDensity(MJ/kg)
18. Open Pond vs PBR - Cost Comparison
OP = Open pond
PBR -Photobioreactor
Source: http://www.energytrendsinsider.com/2012/05/07/current-and-projected-costs-for-biofuels-from-algae-and-pyrolysis
19. Dominant Growth Method
ā¢ Open pond is likely to become dominant:
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Lower capital investment
Easy to scale up
No cleaning required
Yield improvement because of genetic engineering and polycultures
Contamination risk can be reduced by genetic engineering and
polycultures
ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/011/ak333e/ak333e00.pdf
24. Impact of Improvements on Future
Algae Cost
Source: http://www.energytrendsinsider.com/2012/05/07/current-and-projected-costs-for-biofuels-from-algae-and-pyrolysis/
29. Summary of where Improvements Occur
ā¢ Improvement in production methods. For example:
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Using flue gas
Using waste water
Using genetically engineered algae to increase oil yield
ā¢ Improvement in harvesting methods. For example:
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Liquefaction
Hydrogenation
Pyrolysis
ā¢ Improvement in technology ļ Conversion of algae
different form of fuel. For example:
to
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Bio-ethanol; Bio-methane;
Bio-hydrogen; Bio-butanol;
Bio-Diesel; bio-gasoline;
Jet fuel
31. Biofuel
Region
Demand in Transport Sector by
ExaJoules (EJ) = 10^18 Joules
this demand is expected to be fulfilled by algae biofuel sinceMajor part of
it has high potential in terms of technology and yield.
Source: https://www.iea.org/publications/freepublications/publication/Biofuels_Roadmap_WEB.pdf
32. Global
Sector
Energy Use in the Transport
in 2050
Global energy use in the transport sector (left) and use of biofuels in
different transport modes (right) in 2050
Source: https://www.iea.org/publications/freepublications/publication/Biofuels_Roadmap_WEB.pdf
34. Inhibiting Factors
ā¢ Algaculture is performed mainly to produce high added value
compounds used in food and cosmetics
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Biggest inhibiting factors are capital, harvesting and fuel extraction costs
New methods of energy-efficient extraction of fuel is needed e.g.
hydrolysis
Source: Energy-efficient extraction of fuel and chemical feedstocks from algae, Rodrigo E. Teixeira
Algae-based Biofuels: A Review of Challenges and Opportunities for Developing Countries
Product Type Unique Product Price/Kg
Healthfood Spirulina ~S$ 12
Food for aquatic organisms Nannochloropsis ~S$ 725
Vitamin A precursor Ć-carotene ~S$ 1,450
Anti-oxidant Astaaxanthin ~S$ 15,000
Fatty acids 13C labelled fatty acids ~S$ 51 M
Algal Biofuel ~S$ 9
38. Building Powered by Algae
Building in Hamburg with a facade of bioreactors
Bioreactors contain algae which generate biomass and heat sustainably
System provides thermal and sound insulation
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ā¢ Algae biomass can be harvested and converted
pharmaceutical and food products
to biogas, or used in
SolarLeaf ā bioreactor faƧade
http://syndebio.com/biq-algae-house-splitterwerk/
40. What Changes might enable
Farming in buildings?
Glass Production Technology
Algae
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Ultra-strong glass with thinner walls
Increased light penetration and larger volumes
Mechanical stability allows continuous in-line cleaning
Efficient use of Lightings
ā¢ Redirect sunlight into building interior
ā¢ Use of existing LED lightings at night for continuous algae production
Genetic Modification of Algae
ā¢ Significantly higher concentration in terms of mass per litre
ā¢ Grow in the dark algae strains created through genetic modification
Policies enabling the use of empty spaces
ā¢ External walls, rooftops & walls of stairwells
Cost per kilowatt hour needs to become lower
ā¢ Current estimates: cost per kilowatt-hour produced by algae bioreactors would be 7
times as much as solar power and 14 times as much as crude oil
44. Conclusion
Algae Biofuel is a very promising candidate to replace fossil fuels
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Algaeās cultivation does not require that it compete with food crops
Ability for algae to be cultivated on non-arable land, using saltwater,
greatly reduces its impact on the environment
Produces over 20 times the oil production of any food crop - an acre of
algae can produce almost 5,000 gallons of biodiesel
Production can reach 60 billion gallons/year that could replace all diesel in
the U.S.
However, current economic climate makes development of algal programs
quite costly
For algae to be truly competitive, it should receive its own share of the
subsidies currently only allocated to feedstock
A highly feasible way to continue biofuel development while remaining
commercially competitive is to produce algal fuel as a co-product to more
lucrative products such as animal feed and nutraceuticals product
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