Algae As A Biodiesel Feedstock

When a fossil fuel is burned it releases carbon (as carbon dioxide - CO2) that was used by plants millions of years ago. This CO2 trapped (or, as scientists call it “fixed”) by the ancient plants as part of photosynthesis is released when fossil fuels are burned and is added to the CO2 currently in the atmosphere. Humans have added a huge amount of “new” CO2 to Earth’s atmosphere by aggressively burning fossil fuels over the past 150 years. Biofuels are said to be “carbon-neutral” because the next crop of biofuel feedstock (corn, sugar, etc.) grown captures the same amount of CO2 from the prior crop of biofuel feedstock that was produced and burned as fuel.If, however, a fossil fuel is used as the heat source to brew and distill a biofuel (as is commonly the case today), then unwanted “new” or incremental CO2 emissions creep into the picture. To be optimally “carbon-neutral,” the entire biofuel production process must be considered: the heat used to brew and distill the biofuel should be derived from biomass like sugarcane bagasse or corn stover; the farm machinery used to plant, maintain and harvest the feedstock should be running on biofuels; the trains and/or trucks used to transport the feedstock to the plant and later to the end-users should be running on biofuels; and, even the fertilizer used to help grow the feedstock should be a bi-product of the biofuel production.In a society where fossil fuels will still be used for decades to come, a truly carbon neutral position is hard to achieve, but smart biofuel processes can greatly reduce the amount of new CO2 entering our atmosphere and are humankind’s best available weapon to fight Global Warming.

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