Where There's Algae, There's Fuel

Scientists have recently made breakthroughs in the feasibility of
creating biofuel from algae. What follows is one of a number of
articles on the subject that exist out there. Do we know a place that
produces tons of algae? Let's put on our thinking caps...

http://saltonseachronicles.blogspot.com/

Source: The Seattle Times

An Arizona energy company is betting big on algae. PetroSun Biofuels
has opened a commercial algae-to-biofuels farm on the Texas Gulf Coast
near scenic Harlingen Texas. The farm is a 1,100 acre network of
saltwater ponds, 20 acres of which will be dedicated to researching
and developing an environmental jet fuel. PetroSun's game plan is to
extract algal oil on-site at the farms and transport it to company
bideisel refineries via barge, rail or truck. The company plans to
open more farms in Alabama, Arizona, Louisiana, Mexico, Brazil, and
Australia in 2008. Of all the options for future jet biofuel
production, algae is considered one of the most viable. It yields 30
times more energy per acre than its closest competitor, and requires
neither fresh water, arable land used for cultivation, or consumable
food, giving it an advantage over ethanol. PetroSun asserts that an
area the size of Maryland could produce enough algae biofuel to
satisfy the entire fuel requirements of the United States. Perhaps
seeing the writing on the wall, the once skeptical Boeing is now said
to be working with alternative fuel developers from around the world
to accelerate alternatives to jet fuel, which at $110 a barrel is
threatening to sink the major airlines. Continental has said that it
will conduct a biofuel test flight next year, the first US airline to
do so. Earlier this year, Virgin Atlantic flew a 747 partially powered
by coconut and babassu oil. In addition to its commercial
applications, PetroSun says, somewhat cryptically, that it is also
working with a "government laboratory" to co-develop an algae-based
fuel for military use.
Gordon LeBlanc, Jr., the CEO of PetroSun, is quoted as saying that the
company's success is a combination of a superior technological
approach, sheer luck, and a "redneck can-do attitude."