Who said algal blooms were a problem? Truth be known, when we stare at a slimy green sludge atop the favourite watering hole we may be looking at one of the best prospects there is for fuelling cars and power stations in the future.
Professor
Steve Halls puts algae firmly in the biofuel basket. “They will be one
of the most important fuel commodities in the world in the 21st Century. It’s
widely accepted that when oil prices are above US$S25 a barrel, biofuels are
cheaper,” he said. This is good news as international oil prices are
currently around US$60 a barrel!
And while the focus of biofuel research so far has been on conventional crops – everything from sugar cane to canola – the interest in algae is rising rapidly, and it is easy to see why. A soybean crop can yield 40m3 to 50m3 of oil per square kilometre, while a good turgid brew of algae could yield up to 400 times more. There are over 400 species of algae suited to biofuel production.
Murdoch University is working closely with the Mandurah-based Peel Development Commission on biodiesel production from the region. Before you leap to the conclusion that there is interest in transforming the Peel-Harvey Estuary to an algae farm, be assured that is not the case.
Instead, what is contemplated is a battery of large vats or ‘photo-bio reactors’, into which the nutrient-rich run-off from surrounding farmland would be diverted. Fuel oil would emerge as the end product. “It would be a brilliant solution for the recurring algal blooms that threaten crab harvests and annoy the life out of tourists and residents alike,” Professor Halls said.
According to Professor Halls, so attractive are the prospects for the venture that a Perth-based commercial partner is poised to commit to a feasibility study. This local interest mirrors the global picture. Oil giant BP is well advanced with ethanol processing and Shell recently acquired Canada’s Iogen, one of the world’s largest biodiesel producers. Hot on the heels of Japan legislating that three per cent of national fuel consumption must be ethanol, Japanese corporations are exploring options in Queensland for harnessing the mountains of sugar cane waste that the State produces each year.
“Biofuels are the future, no doubt,” said Halls. He points to a stunning list of statistics that should make us all stop and think about how we might make the world’s resources go a bit further. The annual cost of one person in a city office, for example, is 5 tonnes of carbon dioxide, one tonne of coal and 550 litres of petrol.
Fuel from Peel algae would help rein in such excesses and help build a more sustainable future. “We’re not talking about replacing hydrocarbon fuels altogether, overnight. Volumes of that magnitude cannot be produced in the foreseeable future. Rather, gaining a foothold in Australia’s total mix of fuel consumption is what we’re chasing,” Professor Halls said.
After that, and with the economics so favourable, who knows!
Ranked in the top schools within Australia, Murdoch’s School of Environmental Science offers several degrees in environmental science, including the flagship four year Bachelor of Environmental Science.
The School combines areas of environmental management and policy with relevant aspects of environmental systems and engineering in an integrated degree program that also provides students with the flexibility to specialise.
At Murdoch University, students can pursue interests in allied areas such as conservation biology, marine science, chemistry, energy studies, or extractive metallurgy.
