Comments on: Chevron, NREL to research algae fuel

Algae has been the terrain of start-ups, but now Chevron is interested too.

[johnsmith1967B]

Green Energy is Good Business

The fact that there exists cutting-edge energy companies might not just make good environmental sense, but it could be the right path for earning profits. After all, the old guys are experience shrinking profits. ExxonMobil is a case in point. The NewsVisual article shows the company?s directors are very experienced, but can they plan for a precarious future and still make profits. Read the article at: http://www.newsvisual.com/newsvisual/2007/11/exxonmobil.html

[Joe Real]

Something wrong with understanding about algae!

It could be true that there is 1000 parts water per 1 part algae in a culture solution, where the alagal cells are growing. Not much energy is really required to separate the algae from the solution that they are grown. It involves simple filtration which can be done with reusable filters, you know, algal cells are several orders of magnitude larger than salt ions or other molecules so there's no need for membranes and such, that even a coffee filter could work via simple gravity. You don't need to evaporate the 1,000 parts water so that you could get the algae, that is a waste of energy that only morons do that.

Now all you have to do is deal with the 50% lipid and 50% water or perhaps other chemicals. After filtration, there is not as much energy required to isolate the oils compared to when it is 1 parts per thousand as the author lead us to believe. A simple mechanical crushing of the cells could release the oil, and a simple phase separation can be done without the need to evaporate the water.

This is not going to be an energy rip-off, and is not that hard to do! Sometimes a little common sense chemistry and physics should be used by reporters before publishing what should have been a much better report!

[prabusrk]

Extraction of Algal cells by filtration may not prove efficient

Algal cells could not be seperated from the solution by simple process like filtration.It needs to pay much attention and carry out other processes like centrifugation, sedimentation to effeiciently sort out the cells from their solution.