Blue Oil - the cure for oil dependence?

Dave · Mar 31, 2011

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20110331/bs_afp/spainenergyalternativeenvironmentresearch

Works by combining algae & CO2. What do you guys think?

In a forest of tubes eight metres high in eastern Spain scientists hope they have found the fuel of tomorrow: bio-oil produced with algae mixed with carbon dioxide from a factory.

Almost 400 of the green tubes, filled with millions of microscopic algae, cover a plain near the city of Alicante, next to a cement works from which the C02 is captured and transported via a pipeline to the "blue petroleum" factory.

The project, which is still experimental, has been developed over the past five years by Spanish and French researchers at the small Bio Fuel Systems (BFS) company.

At a time when companies are redoubling their efforts to find alternative energy sources, the idea is to reproduce and speed up a process which has taken millions of years and which has led to the production of fossil fuels.

"We are trying to simulate the conditions which existed millions of years ago, when the phytoplankton was transformed into oil," said engineer Eloy Chapuli. "In this way, we obtain oil that is the same as oil today."

The microalgae reproduces at high speed in the tubes by photosynthesis and from the CO2 released from the cement factory.

Every day some of this highly concentrated liquid is extracted and filtered to produce a biomass that is turned into bio-oil.

The other great advantage of the system is that it is a depollutant -- it absorbs the C02 which would otherwise be released into the atmosphere.

"It's ecological oil," said the founder and chairman of BFS, French engineer Bernard Stroiazzo-Mougin, who worked in oil fields in the Middle East before coming to Spain.

"We need another five to 10 years before industrial production can start," said Stroiazzo-Mougin, who hopes to be able to develop another such project on the Portuguese island of Madeira.

"In a unit that covers 50 square kilometres, which is not something enormous, in barren regions of southern Spain, we could produce about 1.25 million barrels per day," or almost as much as the daily export of oil from Iraq, he said.

CrimsonSoul · Mar 31, 2011

I read about that on yahoo earlier. Really I guess it depends on how much energy it takes compared to how much energy you get out of it. If it is able to produce that much per day once it's operational I would think it could be a good investment.

sixpackshaker · Mar 31, 2011

Now it will be, he who controls the algae controls the universe...
Added at: 19:08
Then we will have to worry about algae spills...

Dave · Mar 31, 2011

Now what will happen will be that we will be funneling all of our CO2 into algae plants to make bio-fuel, then plants will start to die out for lack of it, which will lessen our oxygen. This damned biofuel will KILL US ALL!

CrimsonSoul · Mar 31, 2011

I doubt that will happen Dave, if so then we would have ran out of oxygen before industry started and we started pumping co2 into the atmosphere.

Emrys · Mar 31, 2011

Or that much algae packed together will slowly gain sentience, break free from their prison and take over the world.

I, for one, welcome our slimy mutant algae overlords.

CrimsonSoul · Mar 31, 2011

Nothing a flamethrower won't take care of, Emrys. It has a two fold effect too, it gets rid of the sentient algae AND it puts the CO2 back in the air that we were taking out from the plants we can't lose!

@Li3n · Mar 31, 2011

Blue energy? Quick, someone dangle a rodent in front of those scientists...

Emrys said:
Or that much algae packed together will slowly gain sentience, break free from their prison and take over the world.

I, for one, welcome our slimy mutant algae overlords.

Then we can rename the planet Pandora... at least until the sand trout get here and everyone starts calling it Dune.

Azurephoenix · Mar 31, 2011

If this works I'll be out of a job... guess I better start saving!

Seriously though, if those production numbers are sustainable... that's pretty darn amazing.

Gusto · Mar 31, 2011

Sounds incredible!

Neon Pirate · Mar 31, 2011

But if it is so amazing then why is it so blue? Cheer up slimy oil, you're great stuff! Suddenly we need more factories to pile algae on top of!

Grytpipe-Thynne · Mar 31, 2011

If it shows any sign of being practical the oil companies will buy up the plants and dismantle them!

Azurephoenix · Mar 31, 2011

Grytpipe-Thynne said:
If it shows any sign of being practical the oil companies will buy up the plants and dismantle them!

More likely they will buy them up and monopolize them... oil companies have to look forward to the future.

figmentPez · Mar 31, 2011

I like the idea where they feed the algae to some fish, and then harvest the fish oil, better.

There have been articles in Popular Science about oil from algae for years. Lots of problems with it. The special oil-rich strains of algae tend to get pushed out by other algae if there is any contamination. The big tubes are hard to keep clean and don't provide a lot of surface area for sunlight. There are still a lot of kinks to work out.

Necronic · Mar 31, 2011

Seriously, as soon as that becomes profitable the oil companies will start running them. It's not new tech, seen demos of this for at least a decade now. This is the first large installment of it I have ever heard of though, will be interesting to see how it develops.

ThatNickGuy · Mar 31, 2011

So THAT'S how the Navi turned blue!

@Li3n · Apr 1, 2011

And while we're at it, Science also gives you Yellow* Plastic: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12904777

*coz it's chicken...

PatrThom · Apr 1, 2011

Now all we need is red and white oil so we can make it right here in the good ol' States of Amurrica.

--Patrick

Null · Apr 2, 2011

If it can be made into a practical, sustainable fuel, I'd say it's a good idea. As is biofuel from non-corn plants, like kudzu. Basically, the more alternatives, the better.