Algenol Biofuels and DOW Announce Pilot Project to Produce Ethanol from CO2, Salt Water, Sunlight and non-Arable Land

By Chris de Morsella on June 29, 2009 Comments Off on Algenol Biofuels and DOW Announce Pilot Project to Produce Ethanol from CO2, Salt Water, Sunlight and non-Arable Land advanced materials, algae, algae biofuel, algal biofuel, Algenol Biofuels, biofuels, bioreactors, biorefinery, California, carbon dioxide, carbon footprint, Clean tech, CO2, Corn Ethanol, Department of Energy, DOE, Dow Chemical, ERoEI, ethanol, Freeport, Georgia, Georgia Institute of Technology, green economy, Membrane Technology and Research, Menlo Park, Paul Woods, photobioreactor, photosynthesis, specialty films, stimulus bill, Texas

Algenol Biofuels, a Florida biofuels startup and DOW Chemical Company announced a pilot-scale algae-based integrated biorefinery that will convert CO2 into ethanol. The patented technology developed by Algenol Biofuels uses CO2, salt water, sunlight and non-arable land to produce ethanol, which can be used as a fuel or as a feedstock, replacing natural gas in the production of plastic. The algae is grown in long plastic covered troughs, called bioreactors that are filled with salt water that has been saturated with carbon dioxide gas, which provides the carbon the algae needs for photosynthesis.