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United States announces $24 million for algal biofuels research

Tuesday, 29 June 2010 04:29

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The consortia consist of partners from academia, national laboratories, and private industries that are based across the country, broadening the geographic range and technical expertise of DOE partners in the area of algal biofuels. Projects are expected to continue for a period of three years. Together, they represent a diversified portfolio that will help accelerate algal biofuels development with the objective of significantly increasing production of affordable, high-quality algal biofuels that are environmentally and economically sustainable.

The three consortia selected for funding are:

Sustainable Algal Biofuels Consortium (Mesa, AZ) - Led by Arizona State University, this consortium will focus on testing the acceptability of algal biofuels as replacements for petroleum-based fuels. Tasks include investigating biochemical conversion of algae to fuels and products, and analyzing physical chemistry properties of algal fuels and fuel intermediates. (DOE share: up to $6 million)

Consortium for Algal Biofuels Commercialization (San Diego, CA) - Led by the University of California, San Diego, this consortium will concentrate on developing algae as a robust biofuels feedstock. Tasks include investigating new approaches for algal crop protection, algal nutrient utilization and recycling, and developing genetic tools. (DOE funding: up to $9 million)

Cellana, LLC Consortium (Kailua-Kona, HI) - Led by Cellana, LLC, this consortium will examine large-scale production of fuels and feed from microalgae grown in seawater. Tasks include integrating new algal harvesting technologies with pilot-scale cultivation test beds, and developing marine microalgae as animal feed for the aquaculture industry. (DOE funding: up to $9 million)

National Algal Biofuels Technology Roadmap

Despite algae's potential, many technical and economic challenges must be overcome for algal biofuels to be commercialized. To identify these hurdles and guide research and development activities, DOE convened the National Algal Biofuels Technology Roadmap Workshop, bringing together more than 200 experts and stakeholders from across the country. The Department synthesized workshop results and released a draft report for public comment in June 2009. The final National Algal Biofuels Technology Roadmap released today reflects the substantive comments received and is intended to guide future work and investments in algal biofuels. Under the Recovery Act, the Department awarded funding earlier this year to an algal research consortium to tackle a broad range of barriers identified in the roadmap report.

View a copy of the National Algal Biofuels Technology Roadmap (PDF - 7.45MB). Additional information on algal biofuels is available on the Department's Biomass Program website.

Source: U.S. Department of Energy