There are three branches of algae production: open ponds, closed photobioreactors, and a hybrid of the two, where closed reactors are used as incubators to re-seed open ponds, and algae are zapped with ultrasound and harvested 3 times per day. Open pond technology will be commercialized sooner than expensive closed systems. Spirulina and Chlorella have been grown in open ponds for ages and is now a multiBillion dollar nutritional supplement industry. That�s why Shell is experimenting with open pond technology in Hawaii, next to existing open algae farms. Shell is already getting 24 tons of biodiesel per acre per year from open ponds, which is 5,635 gallons per acre, not including what�s left after the oil is pressed, about 50% biomass. This can also be made into additional biofuels. Or, the algae biomass byproduct can be integrated into an adjacent symbiotic facility. For example, high protein algae byproduct is fed to adjacent dairy cows or livestock, and their manure is disposed of in an anaerobic digester, producing methane fuel and effluent to feed the algae. INTEGRATION and management, available now, is what will make algae commercially viable, long before isolated and complicated photobioreactors will hit the streets.

Thanks for the insight.

What a great technology! The potential is huge.

Interesting, isn't it, that the big oil companies are funding this research. In fact, they fund a tremendous amount of alternative energy research and development. Maybe they're not all bad after all.

Some one needs to look at the Rivera proses of turning algae into a viable oil . The char that is left over after the proses is a 7-3-7 fertilizer.

Petrolatum � Derived from the Latin word for green (viridis) and the Latin word for oil (oleum). As the word petroleum describes crude oil obtained from the ground (lit. oil from rock), VertroleumTM is a word coined to describe the bio crude oil obtained from all green resources, or biomass.

Sustainable Power Corp.
This proses has been verified by USDA and the bio crude has been verified by AmSpec one of the most respected test facilities in the world. I don't think a company such as this would jeopardies their reputation on something that did not deliver what was promised.

One of the most impressive & pragmatic applications of this technology that I have seen was in Arizona. They utilized a long enough tube system to produce the algae with the needed sunlight. It could be reproduced just about anywhere, as long as the money was feasible. The ability to use this technology to create small sustainable ecosystems is worth further research.