So here’s an interesting idea.  The green scum that affixes itself to the interior of your stock tanks might end up fueling your tractors.

Algae is becoming the next big thing in biodiesel.  There are already several companies that are investing in Oil algae production.  Why algae?  Oil is just the really old, compressed version of algae, which with enough heat, pressure and time, has turned into oil.  From there we pull it out of the ground and refine it.  The technology that is being developed makes all of that happen faster.

Researchers discovered that microalgaes have a lipid concentration of about 30% by weight.   On a per acre basis estimates indicate that algae can produce up to 200 times more yield than the best producing vegetable/plant oil crops.  It is usually during times of environmental stress, particularly nutrient deficient periods that lipid concentrations are highest.  Algae actually produces more lipids when starved of Nitrogen, so fertilizer in a traditional sense won’t even be necessary for successful cultivation.  The most efficient variety of algae has yet to be determined since most of them are about equal in terms of yield. 

The byproduct of “oilgae” (as it is sometimes called) has proven useful in ethanol production as well as in chicken feed because it is a high source of protein.  It can also be used as an organic fertilizer.  In addition to being incredibly efficient in terms of yield, algae is also one of the most eco friendly forms of fuel out there.  Unlike other common oil producing crops, algae can be grown pretty much anywhere – not just on farm land.   It is a very hardy, organism that thrives around sewers and power plants since it digests the pollutants that are produced at both locations.

One of the most obvious places to grow algae is in a pond where it is a prolific organism.  Problems with this involve the unintentional acquisition of unwanted species of algae in addition to not cultivating the wanted varieties quick enough.  Large scale algae farms are still in the works. 

Like other up and coming fuel sources, oilgae is not designed to be a complete replacement for oil, but a supplement in order to relieve the strain of paying for foreign oil.  -For more information on this topic check out: http://www.oilgae.com/.