Going Green At Harley

Scientists all around the globe are trying to find new ways to power our cars and reduce our carbon emissions. Some students at the Harley School are doing the same thing!

Two students are looking towards the future. They are conducting an experiment to learn how to use algae to help save the planet.

"We hope to take the algae and then experiment with making it into biofuels," says Kevin Stottler, a Senior at Harley.

They are growing algae in ten tubes. They want to know which conditions are the best.

"With algae, we have just in a couple of weeks, grown from just a little drop of algae to a full tube of it," says Nathan Dobson Junior at Harley .

"We want to begin to look at the production of algae so we can incorporate the idea of a closed loop energy production in the science program," says the Head of School Tim Cottrell.

Once they figure out how to grow it fast, they can use it in a number of different ways.

"You can take this and squeeze it to extract oils and you can actually refine that into a gasoline substitute," Stottler says.

"There are cars these days that are converted to run on vegetable oil and we can run the car directly off algae oil," says Dobson.

It's an important lesson for these students, who will someday be the ones fueling our world.

"At some point in the future we'll run out of oil that we pump out of the ground and we'll have to find fuels in other ways," adds Cottrell.

Company Uses Cement Plant’s CO2 Emissions to Create Algae-based Biofuel

It’s hard to imagine a cement plant going green. Creating cement is a scarily dirty process, and the industry is responsible for about five percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. One Canadian company aims to change that situation. Pond Biofuels, a three-year-old start-up, hopes to capture a cement plant’s carbon emissions in algae. The algae would then be turned into a biofuel and used to fuel cement kilns and company trucks.

Pond Biofuels will grow its algae right next to Ontario’s St. Mary’s cement plant. The plants will absorb the cement plant’s emissions, growing into a nutrient-rich algae slime. Pond Biofuels will then use industrial waste heat from the cement plant to dry out the algae and turn it into a biofuel. The company then hopes to use that fuel along with fossil fuels to power cement kilns and company trucks.

The process is still currently being tested, so we’ll have to stay tuned to see how the whole idea shakes out. Still, the idea of synergy between industrial companies and biofuel makers should be lauded as innovative. If the project proves successful, similar schemes could be implemented across all sorts of industries.

Aquentium Announces Open House to Discuss The Company's Alternative Energy Projects

Aquentium, Inc. (OTCBB: AQNM | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) announced today that the company will be hosting an open house on April 8 from 5-8pm at the company offices in Perris, California to discuss their current alternative energy projects.

Aquentium has recently signed a power purchase agreement to provide electricity to a municipality in China from the conversion of waste-to-energy. The company is also pursuing an algae bio-fuel project.

For those interested in attending, please RSVP: 951-657-8832.

About Aquentium, Inc.

Aquentium is a diversified publicly traded company listed on the Over-the-Counter Bulletin Board under the symbol (AQNM). Aquentium is dedicated to bringing energy saving solutions and technologies to companies and countries throughout the world.

The company is involved in waste-to energy, alternative energy, water treatment, non-chemical sanitation equipment, structural insulated building panels, affordable housing, and re-deployable / emergency housing.

The business of Aquentium also includes an ongoing effort to acquire or invest in new technologies or businesses.

www.aquentium.com

Tel: 951-657-8832

Note: Certain statements in this news release may contain "forward-looking" information within the meaning of rule 175 under the Securities Act of 1933 and Rule 3b-6 under the Securities Act of 1934 and are subject to the safe harbor created by those rules. There can be no assurance that such forward-looking statements will be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.

Corporate Address:

Aquentium, Inc.

5188 Western Way

Perris, CA 92571

USA

Phone: 951-657-8832

Note: The following news is from Aquentium, Inc., and World Stock Wire, Inc. is not liable for the contents of this news.

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RIL considering feasibility study on algae-derived biofuel

Feasibility study of algae as an alternate feed stock for biofuels should be undertaken as a part of meeting challenges for biofuels in India, a top Reliance Technology group official has said.

“Algae seems to be the most promising feed stock. Microalgae are uncellular biofactories that can provide oil from sunlight and carbon dioxide,” M. Ganapati, President, Corporate Planning, Reliance Technology Group told PTI after delivering a talk on ‘Biofuels Scenario in India’

Algae oil can be used to make bio-diesel or other refinery feed stocks, he said.

“Critical Research and Development objective should be to promote premium quality fuel from Algae at a cost competitive with petrol and diesel,” Mr. Ganapati said.

Mr. Ganapati also hinted at RIL considering a proposal on setting up of a biofuel refinery. He also said that the government should offer tax incentives and selective investment grants to biofuels which will facilitate the update of biofuels. He stressed the need on required dedicated R&D for the development of second generation biofuels.

“There should be demonstration of technology for second generation biofuels. Another factor for meeting challenges in biofuels is availability of feed stocks, collection storage, logistic Jatropha plantation, high yield variety development and harvesting, technology among others,” Mr. Ganapati added.

Russell Industries Production Grows Algae

Apr 07, 2010 (Close-Up Media via COMTEX) --

Russell Industries, Inc.'s William R. Wilder, Ph.D., President of Axis Environmental Services, Inc., reports that the full scale production pilot reactor has been successfully growing algae since early March.

The Company said Initial low dosage inoculation has resulted in substantial population density, with current tests focusing on nutrient balance optimization and harvesting/extraction methodologies. The bench scale reactor has been inoculated with a high dose culture and is currently being monitored for growth curve parameters as well as nutrient consumption and CO2 dosage requirements. All operational goals are at or ahead of schedule, and samples for extraction efficiency will be collected in early April. Additional samples for verification of chemical and physical characteristics will also be collected in April and submitted to independent laboratories to validate suitability for various fuel applications.

Russell Industries is a developing alternative and renewable energy company. The Company is the majority owner of 255 unpatented Uranium mining claims in San Juan County in Southern Utah. The Company said it is also pursuing development of a commercial scale algae production facility through its subsidiary, Algae Farm.

More information:

russind.com

((Comments on this story may be sent to newsdesk@closeupmedia.com))

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Biofuels; More Than Fulfilling Early Promises.

Summary


This will be a summer of countless negative articles on ethanol in the American press because some significant pieces of ethanol policy are due to expire at year’s end. EPA is also expected to approve an increase of the maximum ethanol blend from 10% to 15%, a 22 billion gallon market for ethanol.

News stories influence public opinion and public opinion drives policy, so it is no wonder ethanol opponents are starting a media war. 22 billion gallons is a market share worth fighting over.

Analysis

Needless to say, as the ethanol industry continues to grow, the level of opposition continues to increase and the battle has become much more visible. Historically anti-ethanol rhetoric has originated from the American Petroleum Association (API) and associated “Big oil” companies but they have now recruited some strange bedfellows of activist organizations to their cause, including the following corporate food interests and environmental groups.

· Friends of the Earth:
· American Meat Institute:
· Clean Air Task Force:
· Grocery Manufacturers Association:
· National Council of Chain Restaurants:
· Natural Resources Defense Council:
· Oxfam America:
· Taxpayers for Common Sense:

These organizations have also found a willing media made up of lazy journalists who will read a few articles, quote a study generated by oil dollars and then write a story repeating the concepts provided to them. A typical example of this is the following article that recently appeared in The Economist.

http://www.economist.com/business-finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=15773820

Consider these inaccurate excerpts from the article:

“The fact that corn-ethanol production has continued to grow, despite the failure of a number of firms in late 2008 and early 2009, points to the efficacy of the various protections and subsidies it enjoys (falling maize prices helped too), though it says nothing about their efficiency or wisdom.”
The FactsThe author jumps to his own conclusion. The primary reason corn-ethanol continues to grow is because we have huge supplies of corn, we are the world’s low cost producer and we are capable of greatly increasing yields. Contrary to the story, it also does say a great deal about efficiency; because production has become very efficient and the ethanol market price, without any subsidy is currently 35% lower than unleaded gasoline! The April 6 market price for ethanol on the CBOT is $1.51/gallon, unleaded gasoline on the NYMEX is $2.35/gallon. When the $0.45 VEETC tax credit for ethanol is added, ethanol is $1.29 cheaper than gasoline ($2.35 - $1.51 + $0.45 = $1.29).

It also speaks to wisdom, because ethanol is cheaper and can replace a dirty, highly subsidized, imported product like oil that has a negative influence on our foreign policy.

"Despite ample investment, however, production costs remain high"
The Facts: “Ample” means sufficient and no one should consider the current investment in cellulosic ethanol sufficient to build the necessary production infrastructure. All investment dollars to date have been dedicated to R&D with only a handful of demonstration facilities built beyond the pilot plant stage. Efficiency will happen and costs will come down when there is investment capital available to build commercial sized production facilities.

"Ethanol is not a particularly good fuel"
The Facts: Ethanol is a wonderful fuel. It is just not a particularly good fuel for an engine that was designed specifically for gasoline. An engine that is optimized to utilize the 115 octane level and clean combustion of ethanol will outperform gasoline in all respects, including performance, environmental and fuel economy.

“Even if cellulosic ethanol were to get cheaper, though, it would still be ethanol, a poor fuel. The alternative is to produce something better, such as an advanced biodiesel.”
The Facts: It is amazing how quickly various fuels and energy sources can become fashionable and then everyone will jump on the bandwagon. This article endorses biodiesel, despite that it is more expensive to produce than ethanol and it is ready to support algae as the next biofuels answer without any documentation of how many years away it is from commercialization. Algae has potential as a clean energy source but it is at the same stage of development that ethanol was a decade ago. Once algae becomes close to looking like a solution, rest assured, both oil interests and radical environmentalists will oppose it.

“Even as producers have urged the EPA to lift this bar, it has challenged them to move beyond corn and make ethanol from cellulose, the abundant, inedible portion of most crops. Using inedible inputs avoids fights about diverting food crops for fuel, and frees the industry from reliance on a single commodity.”
The Facts: On March 31, USDA came out with the first planting intentions report that projected a 3% increase in corn plantings in 2010. They also projected a huge surplus at the end of this marketing year of 1.8 billion bushels. Corn prices have gone down to $3.45 per bushel on the CBOT and even as low as $3.10/bushel in the country. The amazing productive capability of american agriculture refutes any issue of food vs. fuel and the theory of indirect land use impacts.

Interview with Algal Biomass Organization's Executive Director Mary Rosenthal [Part I of Three Part Series]

This is the first of a three part interview with Mary Rosenthal, the executive director of the Algal Biomass Organization.

Robert Gluck: Ms. Rosenthal, what is your background and how did you arrive at the Algal Biomass Organization?

Mary Rosenthal: For the last twenty-plus years, I have spent time in a variety of roles in the food industry – ranging from business development to marketing to public affairs. For the five years just prior to joining the Algal Biomass Organization (ABO), I was the marketing and public affairs leader for the leading bioplastics company, Natureworks LLC – a wholly owned business unit of Cargill.

RG: What can you tell me about the ABO and its history? What is the mission of the Algal Biomass Organization?

MR: The Algal Biomass Organization is a non-profit trade association that was founded in 2008 with a goal of promoting the development of viable commercial markets for renewable and sustainable products derived from algae.

Currently, we have more than 170 members, and our membership is comprised of people, companies and organizations across the value chain, including scientists, technology developers, legal and finance experts, producers, and end users.

RG: In January 2010 your organization challenged the conclusions of a published report in Environmental Science and Technology claiming that "conventional crops have lower environmental impacts than algae in energy use, greenhouse gas emissions and water."

If, in fact, as your organization stated, the report in ES&T was based upon obsolete data and grossly outdated business models, as well as overlooked improvements in technology and processes across the production cycle, then can you point to your report or a report showing new data and new business models that disprove their point? If so, what is that report and can you briefly fill us in on some of that data?

MR: The ABO and its members do believe that University of Virginia study in ES&T was based on obsolete data and outdated business models and that it overlooked significant improvements in technology and production processes.

As part of its Final Rule on the recently implemented Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS), the EPA found that algae-based biodiesel and renewable diesel reduce emissions by at least 50% compared to petroleum-based diesel.

This determination was based on a methodology that included an analysis of the full life-cycle of algae-based fuels, and provides further support that algae-based fuels provide significantly greater carbon reductions compared to corn-based ethanol.

In addition, many of our member companies have conducted comprehensive cradle-to-grave life cycle analysis (LCA) studies that have shown that algae-based fuels provided carbon reductions upwards of 60%. In understanding a solid LCA, it is specific to process (cradle) and final end use (grave).

Therefore, a LCA for company A with a certain end-use such as jet fuels will be different from an LCA of company B that has a different end-use. With the variety of different algae production methods from open ponds to closed photo bioreactors to fermentation, there currently isn’t harmonization of data to provide an “industry” LCA.

National Algae Association Announces Additional Speakers for April 29-30 Conference

Oil is already over $80 a barrel. Do we need to wait for oil to go to back up to $150 a barrel or more again before we do something?

Algaepreneurs are sprouting up all over the US to address this issue. They believe that algae is one solution to help the US get off of foreign oil and are quickly moving technologies out of the lab and into commercial-scale production throughout the US. Algae research will continue but some existing proven technologies are being implemented today. Enhancements will surely come as algaepreneurs move into production. They are united in wanting the US to get off of foreign oil, creating jobs in the US and reducing emissions. Since our government and corporate America are taking their time and spending their money on research, algaepreneurs are taking on the task of doing it themselves. Many new algae production plants are scaling-up to produce biocrude and co-products.

We are pleased to announce the following additions to its agenda for the conference at the Doubletree Hotel Houston Intercontinental Airport:

Dr. Brian Goodall - newly appointed CEO of BioCentric Energy
Mike Vaughn- Millpore Corporation - applications that Millipore brings in cell research, bioprocess monitoring and lab water filtration

You do not need to be a member of the NAA (nationalalgaeassociation.com) to attend any of our events. All you need is an interest in collaborative sharing of information and know-how to help mold this new industry. If you believe the US needs to get off foreign oil, become energy independent and create new green jobs, please join us in Houston on April 29-30.

Exhibits will be permitted at this conference.