Algae has everything going for it as a biofuel. It produces anywhere from 10 to 100 times as much energy per acre as current crops. It doesn't tie up farmland--or suck down rivers and acquifers. It grows 40 times faster than other plants. And as it grows, it sops up greenhouse gases.
The trouble with algae is scale. To produce it in commercial quantities is a staggering obstacle that currently runs about $20-a-gallon for fuel. And yet "BusinessWeek" reports that the smart money is beginning to back a commercial reality for the slimey stuff. Boeing, Chevron and Honeywell have all started up algea business units. Venture Capital firms are placing bigger bets on biotech firms that are developing new strains of algae. This is the key. Extracing fuel from the plant requires drying and processing it, which is cumbersome and expensive. Companies such as Synthetic Genomics are using genetic engineering to create strains that would produce fuel continuously.
Photo: AlgaeFuel.org
