Algae is seeming to be a great product used to make biofuels. It could possibly lower the demand of the use of many food crops that make biofuels, like palm oil. But before anything can be done the cost of algae must go down. According to Rene Wijffels, a professor at Wegeningen University in the Nederlands, right now algae biofuel is ten times the price of palm oil biofuels. Algae has been proven to be more efficient than palm oil; algae’s oil content is much higher. Therefore, for each hectare of algae between 20,000 and 80,000 liters of oil can be produced, compared to palm oils mere 6,000 liters per hectare. Algae is proving to become popular and seen as a great new found technology. Large oil companies like Exxon Mobil are now investing in algae production technology in order to develop biofuel. But Algae is not going to go very far in the renewable energy world if better and cheaper technologies are created. "Algae have huge potential," Rafaello Garofallo, executive director of the European Algae Biomass Association, said "There are even some efforts to have seaweed in the offshore wind parks. But the real challenge is technology." Unfortunately, Wijffels predicts that the production of these new technologies could take up to 20 years.
Great Article about the future scope of alage. According to this the future of algae based biofuel depends upon its price. Algae biofuel have great potential and can be ised in place of other energy resources.
ReplyDeleteNow that I know Algae is more expensive to harvest and process into oil, I still think that any future technology that will be developed will outstrip the need for such a commodity. Its like how a current mold remediation company wasn't needed back then, but is a very important service now.
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