• Up Next: Biofuels From Algae

  Filed under Biofuels companies, algae, biofuels
  Mar 19
  Modification of photosynthesis in green microalgae may permit the generation of biofuels in a very different way. Why Algae? Because these microorganisms naturally accumulate oil, have a fast rate of growth (ever seen pond scum in the summer?), grow in hot conditions and can use land not otherwise usable for food crops. Even better, algae are photosynthetic, and can grow on CO₂ and sunlight as raw materials. At least, that is the theory behind why algae may be a source of clean, renewable and economically viable biofuels. However, specific biological problems associated with a sustained, high yield photosynthetic production of algal biofuels remain to be addressed. Engineering algae is not as easy as yeast or simple bacteria. In fact, as you will see in upcoming profiles, some algae companies have abandoned the idea of photosynthesis entirely, and grow their algae on sugar in the dark! In that case, the algae are going head to head with yeast, and that makes for tough competition. The next group of companies are all staking their future on algae as The Next Big Thing in fuels.

  Tagged as: algae, biofuels, Biofuels companies, photosynthesis
  
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