Clean Energy's posts with tag: algae
| Video: GreenFuel Uses Algae For Biofuel? Posted: 19 May 2008 03:30 PM CDT Dr. Isaac Berzin, an Israeli scientist in love with "all things algae" has discovered a unique way to extract fuel from the tiny creatures in order to help ease our world's dependence upon fossil fuels.
(Video Credit: Newfangler Productions, via GreenFuel Technologies) Video: http://www.brightcove.tv/title.jsp?title=715992788 (Haaretz.com) When Berzin looks at algae, he sees a new world and a revolution. Dr. Berzin, 40, is wearing a blue suit, and his hair is held in place with glistening gel. Eight months ago he returned to Israel from the United States after generating a research breakthrough that changed his life. Berzin, the founder of GreenFuel Technologies - a U.S. company that produces green fuel from algae - discovered that "green slime" contains one of the keys to the alternative fuel the world is seeking. His company is the first ever to develop and produce biofuels from algae that are bred on gases emitted by power plants. [...]
"I feel a bit like Thomas Edison, who invented the light bulb," he says. "He tried thousands of materials until he arrived at the filament. My intuition, too, told me that it was possible to do something that people were only dreaming of - to build a device from algae to produce energy at market-compatible costs.
Even though other Israeli scientists are using seaweed as a means of alternative fuel, using algae may prove to be a lot more economical (not to mention easier to grow as well). Note: More info regarding GreenFuel Technologies can be found over here. |
Project Better Place reflects a commendable vision "an oil-free future and a healthier, safer planet". The program projects fully electric automobiles - with a battery swapping program as well as numerous recharge outlets. However, to the surprise of almost everyone, batteries may soon be technologically obsolete. When that occurs, all new cars and vehicles, of every conceivable variety, are likely to feature all-electric propulsion.
Hans Coler, a German inventor, demonstrated an electronic alternative to batteries in 1926. His work was examined by two teams of university professors. A distinguished scientist found there to be “no fraud, hoax or fault” involved. The device, called the Magnetstromapparat (magnet current apparatus), was described in a Report by British Intelligence in 1946. In 1978, 34 pages of the Report were declassified. They are readily found on the internet. One of these devices is reported to have run for three months in a locked room in the Norwegian Embassy in Berlin. Coler stated that the magnet strength remained constant. He suggested the device was tapping a new source of energy. He called it "Raumenergie" (space-energy).
Space, since the time of Paul Dirac, is believed by eminent scientists to be chock full of energy. Converting some of this energy, seemingly from nowhere, is now the subject of revolutionary science and technology. This work does not violate thermodynamic laws. It opens a path to powering our planet without the need for fossil or uranium fuels. It can replace the need for batteries of all sizes with a power source, similar in size, which maintains constant output and never needs to be recharged.
The first application to automobiles will involve removing the plug and cord from a plug-in hybrid and substituting a two kW (2,000 watt) generator that converts this abundant, renewable, cost-effective, new energy source. With a bit of luck, this should happen within the next 12 months. It will be a harbinger of the end of the era of fossil and uranium fuels. Every automobile manufacturer will ignore the event only if they are ready to cede market share to competitors.
The next application to cars will involve replacement of the need for an engine or fuel-cell. On a prototype basis, this should be possible in no more than three years. It might even happen sooner. At that point, cars so equipped will never need gas or oil. Automobile manufacturers can expect to sell every such vehicle they make. Production volume will expand. Jobs will be created. The economy will experience new growth.
The ultimate application will turn parked cars into power plants. Equipped with fuel-free generators that produce perhaps an average of 100 kW - parking lots can be equipped so that power can be sold to the local electric power utility. No physical connection will be necessary, as technology already exists that can wirelessly transmit up to 150 kW to the power grid. Car owners can be paid. Cars will become a source of income. Many vehicles are likely to pay for themselves over a reasonable period of time.
Finally, when parked at home, the car can wirelessly transmit 10kW to the home. Imagine the advantages during storms or other emergencies.
People everywhere, who experience these changes, will be living in a far better place.
Attached File Magnetic Power, Inc. - MPI The MPI story begins in 1877, when Wesley Gary, a Pennsylvania inventor, received a patent on a mechanical, magnetic, device - which apparently tapped a previously unsuspected source of energy. According to an article that appeared in Harper’s Weekly during 1879, he showed his invention to Harvard and MIT professors, who were favorably impressed. The article, readily found on the internet, ends with a comment that one day, Gary’s invention might power a locomotive. The four wheeled automobile was invented six years later. We may never have needed oil to power vehicles.
The possibility of tapping this thus far uncommercialized source of energy, by means of electronic devices, became evident in 1937, when German inventor, Hans Coler, demonstrated a working 6 kW, solid-state, magnetic "space energy receiver”. A WWII Allied bomb destroyed his work. While Coler didn’t comprehend the source of energy generated, he understood its significance. In 1946 he cooperated with British Intelligence which published a classified report confirming his work. In 1979, 34 pages of what was likely a larger report were declassified and are now on the internet.
Even earlier, Nikola Tesla had recognized the earth is immersed in an extremely dense sea of energy. He theorized that one day this energy would become a source of ubiquitous power usable by humanity. In 1891 he said – “Our machinery will be driven by a power obtainable at any point in the universe. Throughout space there is energy.” The list of scientists and engineers who agree is growing.
Fast forward to today, with MPI seeking to supply the world with clean, abundant, and inexpensive electricity…no fuel…no pollution...no emissions. This is the future of GENIE™ (Generating Electricity by Nondestructive Interference of Energy), one of MPI’s proprietary, cost-effective, magnetic technologies that may capture this untapped energy source.
With applications throughout the $6 trillion worldwide energy market, as well as the automotive market and likely other, yet undefined applications for compact, powerful energy, revenues are projected to begin in 2008 with early license fees, and grow rapidly.
Products & Applications
MPI’s magnetic generator technology represents an unprecedented means of electrical generation achieved by converting a previously uncommercialized, renewable, abundant (but thus far little known) energy source. Expected electrical performance will be very similar to chemical batteries sourcing an electric current, except that the output voltage does not gradually decline with time, but remains indefinitely constant.
The firm is currently developing devices of advanced design capable of producing a few watts of electricity on a self-sustaining basis.
- When these demonstration devices are completed, MPI will be ready to begin the commercialization process for magnetic generators as a scalable power source, analogous to an inexhaustible electric battery.
- A Proof-of-Concept GENIE prototype was evaluated by Lee Felsenstein, EE. He concluded it to be analogous to the early work on the transistor, which eventually led to a Nobel Prize and the creation of Silicon Valley.
- Expect 10 Watt, 20 Watt and 250 Watt prototypes in 2008. 1 kW pre-production modules are a goal for year end.
- Further engineering can now apply this novel effect as a permanent, compact source of electricity in a wide variety of designs from toys to laptop computers, home heaters and other powered devices.
- Small scale generators will be an excellent fit for compact technologies such as laptop computers, cell phones and portable electronic devices. Larger ones will be able to run desktop computers, servers, and larger devices.
- GENIE and other MPI magnetic generators operate continuously, without fuel or emissions, converting an abundant, renewable, extremely dense, ever-present energy source.
- Cost of electricity generated using magnetic is projected to compete favorably with all existing power sources.
- The majority of cost is capital investment. Operating expense should be very low.
GENIE and other MPI generators are: - Clean. Both in manufacture and use, they pollute much less than other power generation systems.
- Reliable. While field data remains to be collected, solid state MPI generators are expected to need minimal maintenance and should have a long product lifespan.
- Scalable. Generators can be scaled to a wide range of applications, eliminating the need for batteries of all sizes.
- Modular. MPI generators can be combined or stacked, similar to linking solar cells.
- Straightforward. No exotic materials will mean rapid commercialization and ramp up stages adaptable to a range of existing electronics manufacturing facilities.
- Compact. A 1 kW self-sustaining generator design might fit into an 8” cube. Two such MPI generators could replace the plug otherwise required by a plug-in hybrid car.
- Revenue generating. Parked cars, wirelessly transferring 100-150 kW of power, will make parking lots multi-megawatt decentralized power plants, an extraordinary Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) solution. They can wirelessly provide 10 kW to a home or small business. Imagine the advantages, including power during storms, etc.
Business Strategy - Target applications that maximize customer value, once cost per unit of electricity output related to generator size is better understood.
- Identify and target ‘sweet spots’ with best potential return on investment and price accordingly.
- Solidify patent portfolio.
- Two energy generation patent applications are pending. Several more will follow.
- Build a foundation to support worldwide market adoption of MPI technology.
- License jointly developed products to strategic partners to facilitate large scale manufacturing ramp up and global sales and distribution.
- Revenues – 2008 - $25 mil, 2009 - $100 mil, 2010 - $300 mil, 2011 - $600 mil, 2012 - $1 billion.
- Absorb Room Temperature Superconductors, Inc., (RTS) presently a subsidiary, as a division of MPI.
- Provide an Initial Public Offering when market conditions are right.
Key People
 Mark Goldes - Chairman and CEO - Founded non-profit Aesop Institute in 1973. Chairman and CEO of the Aesop Company, a specialized financial consulting firm. Later, founded SunWind Ltd, a renewable energy company. MPI was the 2nd firm to be born from the Institute. Co-Founder, Chairman and CEO of RTS, MPI’s subsidiary. (See website for bio).
Sue Engle - Corporate Secretary & Project Manager - Project Management & Product Development with The Children's Group - major children's toy catalogs. Compliance inspector for worker and environmental practices, and materials sourcing. Sue established her own company, Marble Hill, in 1999, focusing on product development & manufacturing in Asia, including all phases of product development.
Lee Felsenstein – Electrical Engineering Consultant - Earned his BSEE at UC Berkeley, then started career at Ampex. Moderated Homebrew Computer Club in Silicon Valley, for more than a decade. Members started 23 companies. They included Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak who co-founded Apple. Senior Associate with Interval Research, from 1992 to 2000, a computer lab funded by Paul Allen, to help create and support future computing technologies. Designed two computers now residing in Smithsonian Institute. Received the Editor’s Choice ACE Award by Electronic Engineering Times magazine in April 2007. Discusses our breakthrough without citing MPI, which has permission to use this short interview. http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=379134&fr=yvmtf
Dr. Kevin Shambrook – Scientific Consultant – Senior Project Manager with Hughes Aircraft and Vice President at Doric Scientific Inc. 30 years experience includes management of diverse engineering and manufacturing projects, corporate planning, and new product introductions. Earned his Ph.D. at UCLA. Served as President, Chief Scientist, and co-founder of MPI’s subsidiary, RTS, for 14 years.
Funding Status
MPI and RTS can each utilize $100 million in new funding. $10 million is sought in the form of equity. $5 million can be new equity investment in MPI and $5 million new equity investment in RTS. Remainder of funds may be largely sought from revenues…including substantial advance license fees.
· Contact: magneticpower@gmail.com magneticpowerinc.com
Phone: 707 829-9391
· © 2008 Magnetic Power Inc. All rights reserved. Updated 3-26-08
| By Karin Kloosterman August 24, 2007 There may be a revolution blowing our way: The Israeli company Seambiotic has found a way to produce biofuel by channeling smokestack carbon dioxide emissions through pools of algae that clean it. The growing algae thrives on the added nutrients, and become a useful biofuel.
For the last two years, the company has done something that other alternative fuel companies have dreamt about and are only starting to do now: they've tested their idea with an electric utility company - a coal-burning power plant in the southern city of Ashkelon operated by the Israel Electric Company (IEC).
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Looking high into the sky, it is far too obvious how badly power plants and factories are polluting our environment. One of the most worrying gases produced by power plants today is carbon dioxide, which is believed responsible for global warming.
In Israel, as in the US and the rest of the world, it is estimated that power plants produce about 40% of all greenhouse gases. By employing tactics designed by nature, however, Seambiotic believes it can lock up carbon dioxide emissions through a process called biofixation. And they have employed a slimy plant from the algae family to do the job.
Algae are marine-derived plants that thrive on carbon dioxide and sunlight.
"Algae grow fast and continuously," says Seambiotic CEO Amnon Bechar. "An algal pond can produce oil 365 days a year and much more oil per hectare of land than traditional plant crops."
Studies have shown that algae may be one of the world's most promising biofuels. It is capable of producing 30 times more oil per acre than the current crops used for the production of biofuels; algae biofuel is non-toxic, contains no sulfur, and is highly biodegradable.
The company's prototype algae farm in Ashkelon uses the tiny plants to suck up carbon dioxide emissions from power plants. Seambiotic's eight shallow algae pools, covering about a quarter-acre, are filled with the same seawater used to cool the power plant. A small percentage of gases are siphoned off from the power plant flue and are channeled directly into the algae ponds.
Originally when the prototype started operating, a common algae called nannochloropsis was culled from the sea and used in the ponds. Within months, the research team noticed an unusual strain of algae growing in the pools - skeletonema - a variety believed to be very useful for producing biofuel.
According to Noam Menczel, Seambiotic's director of investor relations, the company's developments have stirred interest around the world, specifically in Brazil, which has become one of the champions of R&D in the area of alternative and renewable fuels.
"A Brazilian professor wrote to us recently, 'if that algae of yours has the better features as you say it does, we will close our sugar cane operations and switch to algae,'" said Menczel.
If all goes according to plan, Seambiotic plans to build its first large-scale biofuel reactor by next year and hopes to do so with a large international partner. Several potentials are already knocking on the door.
Menczel reports that Seambiotic is meeting with electric plant operators from Hawaii, Singapore, Italy and India, all keen on hearing about Seambiotic's technology.
"As we have already developed and produced algae through the process, our main goal is to market the installation and development of our unique algae growing system around the world," notes Menczel, who adds that Seambiotic's approach includes a special system to filter out heavy smoke.
IEC senior engineer Gabriel Jinjikhashvily says that besides offering their coal-burning site as a pilot plant for Seambiotic, the power station also lends its know-how to help fulfill the company's dream. And in return, the IEC is getting some vital experience from Seambiotic.
Recently, the IEC became part of a European consortium, working with universities from Holland, Germany and France, aimed at developing new water technologies in the scope of climate change - project GLOWA 'Global Change in the Hydrological Cycle'.
"Seambiotic provided an opportunity for us to test the applicability of membranes [gas filters] developed by our European consortium, where we aim to separate carbon dioxide from the other flue gases," said Jinjikhashvily.
"The greatest problem today when dealing with carbon dioxide emissions is separating them from the other gases. The target of this multi-national group is to develop new membranes that are both cheap and efficient," he added.
According to Seambiotic's CEO Bechar: "By raising the level of carbon dioxide emissions in the water we increased the yield [of algae] one million-fold compared to the natural state in the sea."
While Seambiotic's approach may be novel, using algae for biofuel or "biofixation" is not a new idea. An Israeli scientist now in the US had a similar idea for cleaning emissions and joined US-based GreenFuel some time ago. Earlier this year, GreenFuel announced that it would be building a prototype for a Louisiana power plant in New Roads. But current reports on funding issues, suggests that the fate of this project is not clear.
When the project was announced David Crane, the CEO of the Louisiana plant said: "Coal is - and will remain - the premier domestic fuel source for power generation purposes in the United States for the foreseeable future. This means it is incumbent on us not only to build new coal plants using technology which limits or eliminates greenhouse gas emissions but also to find the best way to retrofit the country's existing fleet of coal plants for post-combustion carbon capture."
John Laumer, an environmental consultant from Philadelphia and a writer for TreeHugger.com thinks that algal farming, when it aligns closely to that found in nature, will give the most promising results.
"The use of cooling ponds and other artificial, shallow impoundments; and to learn how to cultivate and harvest sequential blooms. This is the path that will be proven economical and environmentally acceptable," he says.
This appears to be the approach taken by Seambiotic, which has modestly spent only $2 million on R&D funding up until now. Knowing how to use investment money, concludes Menczel, is the strength of Israeli entrepreneurs:
"This is Israeli ingenuity for you - knowing how to conserve investor dollars. In Israel, we have creative ways for taking short cuts and don't always live by the rules. This approach allows us to do much more with much less resources."
In the context of climate change and a future energy crisis, let's hope Seambiotic uses its creativity and resources to make algae the next big thing. Perhaps even one day, the slimy green stuff that we scrape off of our boats and fish tanks, may be worth as much as gold. |
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