Comments on: Algenol, Dow Chemical Team Up on Algae Fuel Plant

By: Carbon capturing Algae Oil 101

Carbon capturing Algae Oil 101 — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 01:01:27 +0000

Hey great article! I have recently wrote an article that discusses the progress made by two algae bio fuel companies. Check it out! New Technology goes through three stages:
First it is ridiculed by those ignorant of its potential
Next, it is subverted by those threatened by its potential
Finally, it is considered self-evident.
This article is in response to an Oil Drum article linked below.
Take a look at the article to get a good understanding on how I shaped my response.
http://www.theoildrum.com/node/5440
The Oil Drum article may have been relevant when published back in may of 2009 but many of these limitations have and will be overcome by advances in technology, along with increases in private and public investments. With global investment in carbon capturing in the billions, the race has been set to see which companies can emerge as technology leaders. The companies that do succeed will only realize success when they integrate their technologies with one another to create a superior technology. These integrations will help push the industry forward and eventually will create a paradigm shift in carbon capturing.
The scenario for success I just explained, closely resembles Origin Oil and MBD Energy’s current relationship. Many are ignorant and threatened by the potential of capturing carbon to produce biofuel, they simply say “It can not be done.” Step one and two regarding phases of new technology complete. The oil drum article vaguely communicated to readers the failure of Green Fuel and with Green Fuel’s failure tried to subvert their audience into believing if one fails, they all fail! This notion that if one fails all fails holds very little weight. Present day knowledge and opportunities to turn carbon into a viable fuel source has become self evident.
When a technology becomes self evident it has reached it’s final stage, commercialization. This stage has been evolving the past year with major R&D projects being funded by the largest publicly traded oil companies in the world. Bp, Shell, Royal Dutch and the biggest investor of them all Exxon Mobil are all in the race. The big boys now consider these technologies self evident and see the need to invest in order to secure their competitive advantage amongst one another. It is only a matter of time before we see the first industrial scale carbon capturing plant that can produce algae as a biofuel. In my opinion MBD Energy and Origin Oil, through the integration of their technologies, will be the first to achieve this amazing feat.
Origin Oil’s market strategy is unique because they look to integrate their technologies with other thriving companies to establish a competitive advantage. They were voted by BiofuelDigest.com top 30 most transformative technologies in 2010. Their portfolio consisting of 10 patent pending technologies are crucial to their success and are regarded to as industry game changers. CEO Riggs Eckleberry and CTO Dr. Brian Goodall combine for over 50 years of networking and industry experience. Origin Oil’s ability to create synergy between them selves and existing biofuel companies by integrating technologies will serve them well in the long run. This unique market entry strategy will drive their industry growth and will enable them to become industry leaders in technology innovation and integration.

By: Christopher Calder

Christopher Calder — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 01:05:59 +0000

Growing algae to make biodiesel is being touted as a cure-all for all our biofuel problems, but we are still stuck with the fact that algae need solar energy to turn carbon dioxide into fuel. To make biodiesel, algae are used as organic solar panels which output oil instead of electricity. Researchers brag that algae can produce 15 times more fuel per acre of land than growing corn for ethanol, but that still means we would need an impossibly large number of acres (about 133 million acres) of concrete lined open-air algae ponds to meet our highway energy demands. Those schemes that grow algae in closed reactor vessels, without sunlight, necessitate the algae being fed sugars or starches as a source of chemical energy. The sugars or starches must then be made from corn, wheat, beets, or other crop, so you are simply trading ethanol potential to make oil instead of vodka. If we construct genetically engineered super-algae that are capable of out-competing native algae strains that contaminate open air algae ponds, the new gene-modified algae will be immediately carried to lakes, reservoirs, and oceans all over the world in the feathers of migrating birds, with unknown and possibly catastrophic results.

By: Algae Fuel Startup Solix Ups Funds to Start Production, Eyes Asia

Algae Fuel Startup Solix Ups Funds to Start Production, Eyes Asia — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 17:01:57 +0000

[...] No Comments Posted June 30th, 2009 at 10:00 am in Biofuels,Startups Algenol Biofuels, with its just-announced plans to build an algae fuel demo plant in partnership with Dow Chemical, isn’t the only startup taking the demise of a well-funded [...]

By: Algenol, Dow Chemical Team Up on Algae Fuel Plant - TechChuck Green

Algenol, Dow Chemical Team Up on Algae Fuel Plant - TechChuck Green — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 14:01:27 +0000

[...] that will be able to produce up to 100,000 gallons of ethanol per year. Read the whole story on Earth2Tech or try our ToolbarRelated stories from top sites:WASHINGTON — Congress has taken its first [...]