[ExI] Automotive problems

[Brian Atkins]

(from transhumantech)

http://www.greencarcongress.com/2008/12/petroalgae-rais.html

PetroAlgae Inc., a Florida-based developer of systems to derive biodiesel fuels
from algae, closed a $10 million capital raise through the sale of approximately
3.2 million of newly-issued shares of common stock to two existing investors.

Proceeds from the offering will help finance the commercialization of the
company’s first biodiesel product derived from algae.

PetroAlgae licensed a library of 12 strains of high oil-yield algae from Arizona
State University developed in conjunction with the National Renewable Energy
Laboratory (NREL) Aquatic Species Program, which concluded in 1996.

The algae have been further developed through process of directed selection for
high oil content (>50%) and rapid growth (doubling in 24 hours). PetroAlgae
estimates that its algae can yield up to 14,000 gallons of oil acre-1 year-1.
Such a yield would exceed calculated practical maximum yields as presented at
the recent Algae Biomass Summit in Seattle (earlier post).

There, Dr. Kristina Weyer of Solix presented a calculated a theoretical maximum
algal oil production of 53,000 gal acre-1 year-1. In the practical cases, the
yield ranged from a low of 4,900 gallons in Kuala Lumpur to a high of 6,500
gallons in Phoenix. In the concluding presentation of the Summit, Dr. John
Benemann calculated maximum production with current technology at around ~2,000
gallons acre-1 year-1, with a potential upside of 2-3x with genetically improved
algae.

-- 
Brian Atkins
Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence
http://www.singinst.org/