Category: Blog

A couple of weeks ago ABO’s executive director Matt Carr was able to visit an innovative carbon utilization project in Boone County, Kentucky. The University of Kentucky/Duke Energy Algae Demonstration Site is comprised of several photobioreactors growing algae with the CO2 taken directly from a coal powered generation plant operated by Duke.

Staff from Duke Energy and researchers from the University of Kentucky were on had to describe the operations, as was Congressman Thomas Massie, representing Kentucky’s 4th District.

The tour included a close-up inspection of photobioreactors at the site that convert the CO2 in flue gas to algal biomass, via photosynthesis. The biomass is then periodically harvested to supply feedstock for upgrading into value-added products. The low energy harvesting system recycles water and unused nutrients.

The University of Kentucky’s Center for Applied Energy Research (UK CAER) is an interdisciplinary research center focused on the energy needs of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

Demonstrations like this are proving how algae cultivation can be used to mitigate CO2 emissions at a profit, rather than the costs associated with other technologies.

As the need for carbon utilization technologies grows, collaborative projects such as this one will be more important than ever.

Congratulations to the selected projects: Producing Algae and Co-Products for Energy (PACE), Colorado School of Mines, Golden, CO; Marine Algae Industrialization Consortium (MAGIC), Duke University, Durham, NC; Global Algae Innovations, Inc., El Cajon, CA; Arizona State University, Mesa, AZ; University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA; Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA.

We’d like to thank all those ABO members that submitted applications. Your efforts help show the DOE just how dynamic and widespread algae commercialization efforts are becoming. Keep up the good work, we will continue our efforts to make these kinds of opportunities available.

The Environmental Protection Agency today recognized several companies as leaders in green chemistry with the 2015 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Awards, and ABO is proud to congratulate two winners that are bringing carbon utilization technologies to commercial success.

It’s great to see the EPA recognizing the efforts to turn the climate problem into an opportunity for the both economy and the environment. These companies, and many others in the algae industry, are hard at work perfecting the technologies that can use carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases as a feedstock for countless useful products.

ABO member Algenol was awarded for their algae cultivation technology that transforms carbon dioxide into ethanol, gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. As described in EPA’s press release:

“Algenol in Fort Myers, Florida, is being recognized for developing a blue-green algae to produce ethanol and other fuels. The algae uses CO2 from air or industrial emitters with sunlight and saltwater to create fuel while dramatically reducing the carbon footprint, costs and water usage, with no reliance on food crops as feedstocks. This is a win-win for the company, the public, and the environment. It has the potential to revolutionize this industry and reduce the carbon footprint of fuel production.”

Also among the winners is LanzaTech for their progress in commercializing a technology that consumes industrial sources of carbon monoxide and other waste gases, turning them into ethanol and other products:

“LanzaTech in Skokie, Illinois, is being recognized for the development of a process that uses waste gas to produce fuels and chemicals, reducing companies’ carbon footprint. LanzaTech has partnered with Global Fortune 500 Companies and others to use this technology, including facilities that can each produce 100,000 gallons per year of ethanol, and a number of chemical ingredients for the manufacture of plastics. This technology is already a proven winner and has enormous potential for American industry.”

Congratulations to both of these companies! More information about all the winners is available on EPA’s website.

Want to see the algae industry in action? Come to the Algae Biomass Summit in Washington, DC! Click on the banner below to learn more.

The Algae Biomass Organization has added two new tours to the Algae Biomass Summit being held in Washington, DC Sept 29- Oct 2, 2015. Get  a first-hand look at the latest progress in technical and commercial developments, or network during a reception and exclusive nighttime tour of the monuments on the National Mall.

Read on for details about the exciting opportunities for attendees of the 2015 Algae Biomass Summit in Washington, DC!

Be sure to register soon! Early bird-rates expire this Wednesday, July 15!

Algae Innovation in Maryland Tour
Tuesday, September 29, 2015
9:00 am – 4:00 pm

Price: $175  –Limited seating available–

Algae Biomass Summit registration is required to attend this tour!

Get a first-hand look at algae industry activity taking place just outside the host city of the 2015 Algae Biomass Summit!

You will also visit Baltimore’s inner harbor, home to the University of Maryland’s Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology (IMET) and some of the region’s leading algae research. Enjoy a buffet lunch in the IMET atrium while you learn about other algae-related efforts in Maryland.

Maryland is home to many commercial and academic algae-biomass related efforts. During this tour you will visit HYTEK-BIO’s demonstration-scale project at the City of Baltimore’s Back River Waste Water Treatment Plant. At the Back River facility, you will see how flue gas output is captured from a 3MW methane-fired power plant and used to produce high value products from algae.

Lastly, just steps away from IMET, you will be led on a special “algae insider’s tour” of the renowned National Aquarium, our nation’s first aquarium, where you’ll discover the role algae play in the aquarium ecosystem and beyond.

Tour buses will depart the conference hotel at 9:00 am sharp and returns at approximately 4:00 pm, traffic permitting.

Register for the Summit today and select this tour ticket!

Twilight on the Terrace Reception and Illuminated Monuments Tour
Friday, October 2, 2015
6:15 pm – 10:00 pm

Buses will leave the lobby of the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel at 6:15 pm to head over to K&L Gates for an evening reception with dessert and drinks, followed by a 7:15 pm tour to view Washington’s famous National Mall and monuments, illuminated by lights as the sun sets. An expert guide will point out landmarks such as the Smithsonian Museums, the Washington Monument, the U.S. Capitol Building and the Jefferson Memorial, tribute to one of the United States’ most famous founding fathers. All offer incredible photo opportunities.

Next, join the group for a visit to the National World War II Memorial and a stroll through the National Mall to visit the Lincoln, Vietnam Veterans and Korean War Veteran Memorials. Time permitting, the group will have an opportunity to see the newest memorial in our nation’s capital, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial.

Register for the Summit today and select this tour ticket!