The future of biofuel may not lay in the fields, but on the surface of a pond.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has recently received $1.9 million in funding toward algal biofuel research, the study of using oil produced by algae as an energy source. Along with several planned projects, part of the Beadle Center’s greenhouse facilities will also be converted into a center for algal research by the end of the year.
Talk of algal biofuels has accompanied every oil crunch since the mid-1980s. The goal is to engineer and collect lipids – a group of materials including fats, oils and waxes – from algae that could be converted into fuel. With the technology and researchers involved in the project, that goal may finally be within reach, according to Donald Weeks, a biochemistry professor at UNL.
The research, conducted in large part through an on-campus organization called the Nebraska Center for Algal Biology and Biofuels, will deal with both basic science and more complex aspects of algae biology.
Early projects will look into the regulation of genes involved in algal lipid production, and eventually, researchers plan to manipulate metabolic pathways in order to specify the amount and kind of oil produced.
“We know next to nothing about genetic regulation of oil production, or if there can be algae breeding to potentially increase oil production,” Weeks said. “There’s been little or no effort made to genetically engineer algae to produce greater amounts of oil.”
To aid research, the Beadle Center will house 5-foot long bags of algae, a small, shallow pond known as a raceway and a photobioreactor core.
George Oyler, a research associate professor of biochemistry hired last fall to oversee the project, helped form a consortium of universities known as the Algal Bioenergy Alliance. He sees exciting opportunities in UNL’s algal research.
“UNL has brought together a world-class set of researchers in the biology of lipids, oil synthesis and algal research including the foremost lab in the world in algal viruses ... It’s really amazing to be a part of that,” he said.
Despite the opportunities, Oyler also noted that the future of algal biofuel faces a number of barriers.
“The biggest challenge is the cost of production,” he said. “That is due to cost at every stage. Systems for growing algae can be simple as raceway ponds, which have their own problems, to expensive systems like photobioreactors. Next is identifying best species of algae, which will likely have to be bioengineered, and then how to harvest algae – how to concentrate and remove oils from it.”
Yet, to algae’s benefit, it lends itself to agriculture remarkably well. Because it can grow in a number of environments, including bog-like land where no crops are possible, it does not disrupt food production. In addition, algal photosynthesis could help remove excess carbon dioxide if grown near factories and power plants, according to Oyler.
Algal research at UNL is just entering its initial stages. Long-term goals such as the manipulation of oil production may be as far as five years out. However, with a multitude of funding and business propositions, those involved remain optimistic.
“I can reasonably promise that in 10 to 15 years, we’ll be seeing algal oil in the marketplace and making significant contribution,” Weeks said. “But a number of engineering challenges must be met and overcome before it can compete with petroleum. Petroleum is awfully darn cheap.”
iansacks@dailynebraskan.com
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