 |
| Photo courtesy of biofueldaily.com |
It has been revealed that algal oil could
potentially be used as a fuel after researchers at the Scottish Association for
Marine Science (SAMS) discovered large quantities of 'super-algae' that could
provide a new source of oil.
Following this discovery, the micro-algae
strains were examined in the Culture Collection of Algae and Protozoa (CCAP),
an algal store based at SAMS in Oban. This was to find out which ocean-based
strains had the highest oil content.
The screening brought attention to two
marine strains: Nannochloropis oceanica
and Chlorella vulgaris, which had a dry weight oil content of more than 50
percent. This makes them perfect bio fuel sources for vehicles and aircraft.
As a consequence, it has been predicted
that there will be lots more research into the uses of algae as a fuel source
in the near future.
Nannochloropis, for example, has
demonstrated efficiency when converting nutrients and therefore has the perfect
combination of high oil content and high productivity.
The report’s lead author, Dr Stephen
Slocombe, SAMS research associate in molecular biology, said: “In
order to produce bio fuels from micro-algae we will have to generate high yields,
so we need to know which strains will produce the most oil.
“While there is a lot of work being done on micro-algae biotechnology – currently around 10,000 researchers across the world – no-one has identified a shortlist of the best performing strains and how their properties could be used.”
“While there is a lot of work being done on micro-algae biotechnology – currently around 10,000 researchers across the world – no-one has identified a shortlist of the best performing strains and how their properties could be used.”
Although micro-algae synthesise high levels of oil, carbohydrates and
protein from sunlight, only a few species are grown commercially for health
foods. This suggests that they may also be useful for the production of
aquaculture feed.
This 'super-algae' will help researchers
decide which strains to produce for mass culture.
The Aquaculturists
This blog is maintained by The Aquaculturists staff and is supported by the
magazine International Aquafeed which is published by Perendale Publishers Ltd
For additional daily news from aquaculture around the world: aquaculture-news
No comments:
Post a Comment