Blue-Green Algae to Save the World

New Source for Biofuels Discovered by Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin | The University of Texas at Austin

Two scientists at University of Texas at Austin discovered how to use photosynthetic organisms, known as cyanobacteria, to make ethanol, which is a type of alternative fuel. These organisms get energy from the sun and use the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to convert it into organic components, such as cellulose, glucose and sucrose. These simple sugars are the major sources used to produce ethanol.

• The new cyanobacteria uses sunlight as an energy source to produce and excrete sugars and cellulose.
• Glucose, cellulose and sucrose can be continually harvested without harming or destroying the cyanobacteria.
  
• Cyanobacteria use carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and can fix nitrogen in the soil.
  

Brown and Nobles are now researching the best methods to scale up efficient and cost-effective production of cyanobacteria, which may be grown in saltwater in the middle of a desert. The researchers would like to create an energy farm to grow the cyanobacteria on about 5,000 square miles of land in either West Texas, Nevada or Utah, which would sustain the U.S. need for transportation fuel.

Tags: cyanobacteria, glucose, cellulose, sucrose, biofuel, ethanol