New Voice

You might recall from a while back my look at some of the new technologies being introduced to tackle the global issue of climate change. Maintaining that focus I thought I would comment on the continued expansion of biofuels, of which so many potential sources have be found that it would take a veritable ocean of web space to begin to mumble around the fringes of this tumultuous field.  Needless to say, one specific element has piqued my interest.  A number of years ago (the eighties, a shockingly interesting time for novel scientific endeavour with sadly many of the original ideas produced petering out by the end of the decade), some scientists noted that algae (an awful looking autotroph, most of us would know them as seaweed) was a possible candidate for renewable energy given its photosynthetic machinery, and its tough and resilient nature.  How they could operate it as an energy source was derived from the fact that algae produces oil, during its processes, which, not being fossilized, is clean of carbon. But, as was the way of the period, this theorizing failed to gain enough credence and by the end of the decade with little material investment the energy source failed to acquire backing.  As time passed and the requirement for alternative energies became notably stronger and all potential biofuel sources received further attention, it seems that algae was viewed as too difficult, and expensive, to develop. Until some far-reaching science was manufactured that changed its potential.

The founder and CEO of Synthetic Genomics, J. Craig Venter, was pivotal in advancing the Human Genome Project, and following its successes created SG to forward alternative fuel projects through biological engineering. SG’s projects (I’ve looked at a few of them online – tough to even write about) are extremely complex, but one stands out in its potential: its algal biofuel production system, not surprisingly. Taking off where others left off, Venter and SG began engineering specific forms of algae to create a strain of the autotroph, through changes to its genetic structure, with superior oil producing and photosynthetic capabilities. The plan endeavours to create a super–strain of algae that can be utilized to produce a biofuel that is useable for all requirements, automobiles, aviation, the production of electricity and so forth. Their aim is to bring the systems online only when they are at a stage that they can reduce significantly, and in quick operation, global fossil fuel necessity. A relatively small company with such a global aspiration might commonly be viewed as being, well, aspirational. SG appears to have surpassed that by acquiring a phenomenal funding partnership / investment by none other than Exxon Mobil Corporation, the world’s largest oil and gas company. One can only imagine that Exxon are getting involved as the potential for this fuel is, at least, very promising.

I wonder whether biofuels (of all types, not just necessarily algae) will be at the centre of the next phase of the globe’s energy consummation. It is very clear that the main issue for new energy is whether it can be used, cleanly and safely, in international transportation systems. Feeding energy to houses will remain a much easier requirement than intercontinental air travel, when fossil fuels are gone. Most policy makers worry about what will happen to economic systems if current globalization stalls, or is abruptly ended by lack of energy.  Thus the endeavour is to find a source of energy that is stable enough to operate in conditions of stress (40k feet, please God don’t blow up), but is cheap enough so that said flight is not only marketable to billionaires. There is lots of writing around major advancements in the production of batteries that could potentially be used in transportation (you charge up the battery, attach it to the engine and away you go) that can be charged from any source, even unsafe ones, say hydrogen, etc.  Will biofuel production leap above these other areas? It’s not certain, but it certainly looks promising. And the more areas like this that are making waves, so to speak, the happier we should all be.

The Science of Survivial – Part 1 and Part 2