Researchers at a facility in New Mexico have reached a significant milestone in their hopes of producing biodiesel from algae.
This story from the Carlsbad (NM) Current Argus has details:
The Center of Excellence for Hazardous Materials Management recently harvested commercial-scale quantities of algae from its test salt water ponds located at New Mexico State University Agriculture Science Center in north Eddy County, according to Wren Prather-Stroud, spokeswoman for the nonprofit organization based in Carlsbad.
She said the produced oil appears to have all the right profiles for making high quality biodiesel fuel.
The algae are harvested from the ponds and pressed into a green paste, from which the oil is extracted.
Since 2006, the center has been conducting applied research in growing, harvesting and extracting oil from algae to find the most productive species to provide a biofuel.
The center hopes to produce enough algae oil to feed a commercial-sized biodiesel plant in the next 18-24 months.
Spread the News: 
Del.icio.us 
1 response so far ↓
Another misleading, inaccurate and totally useless article on algae oil development. The following two statements from the article totally contradict each other.
- “Algae-Biodiesel Nears Commercial-Scale in New Mexico.”
- “The center hopes to produce enough algae oil to feed a commercial-sized biodiesel plant in the next 18-24 months.”
While “near” might be considered a relative term, a period of “18 months to two years” left to reach commercial production is the typical period allowed for many pilot projectd to develop to commercial scale. This groups already two years into the development and it thinks it still has two years more to go - and you think that sounds like near? Sounds half way or less to me. It means commercial production is not near at all.
The article might have meaning if it had bothered to convey more specific details of the “significant milestone.” Producing algae paste and a little oil is not significant milestone per say, unless you say how much was produced and at what cost. Of course if they had offered any details of their actual production costs - we would all know just how close to commercialization they really are. It appears that actual algae oil production costs are the last thing these developers want to discuss. Probably with good reason. No economics - no credibility at all. None, nada, zip. Don’t bother to write about it if you can’t include real numbers.