Joule Biotechnology Makes Landmark Biodiesel Discovery

[Nathanael]

Joule Biotechnology may have found a cost-effective alternative fuel that does not a lot of land or biomass. Their biofuel process is very compelling:


Joule Biotechnologies has made a significant achievement in alternative fuels.

At the Pacific Rim Summit on Industrial Biotechnology & Bioenergy, Joule Biotechnologies announced that it has achieved direct microbial conversion of carbon dioxide into hydrocarbons via engineered organisms, powered by solar energy. This means that unlike all other renewable fuels, Joule's biofuel does not require land, biomass, or multiple steps for production.

Using genome engineeering and its SolarConverter system, the company is able to make microbial organisms directly secrete hydrocarbon molecules. So, by mixing sunlight and carbon dioxide with genetically engineered synthetic organisms, Joule produces ethanol and diesel on the spot. This process only requires carbon dioxide.


Source: http://www.energyboom.com/biofuels/joule-biotechnology-makes-landmark-biodiesel-discovery

[rurallib]

1. If I read that right, this is like the Holy Grail.

[glitch]

2. Or ice-9 ;) (sorry, couldn't resist) nt

[WheelWalker]

3. Exactly. Hate to have those little buggers get loose. My trees and vegetables

will have a cow when the CO2's all in the tank and there's nothing left for them.

[joshcryer]

8. We've been discussing direct hydrocarbon production for years.

Awesome that they seem to be making strides.

[formercia]

4. Without land?

They will need a lot of Hectares to collect Sunlight.

[GliderGuider]

5. You just don't understand. They're going to make it in these tall skinny towers

that have virtually no surface area at all. :sarcasm:

[formercia]

6. One Kilowatt per square Meter, and that's about max.

They can stand on their heads with buttocks exposed for all I care, but they can't defeat physical principles. It takes light to make the fuel. More light, more fuel.

[Nathanael]

7. Land Is Required

There is no doubt that land will be required for this process. But the question is, will it require less than other biofuel feedstocks? Also, it appears the land that will be required will not have to be suitable for growing crops either; so does that factor make this process a more logical and desirable way of generating alternative fuel?

The great thing about this discovery is it just adds another dimension to the biofuel sector--there are so many feedstocks we can utilize to create fuel besides using oil. The more options, the better.

[formercia]

9. Good point.

The land used for such a project would likely be a desert or semi-desert environment.

[joshcryer]

10. You can put it on roofs for one, but yes, their "without land" statement isn't precise.

They're trying to show that the technology doesn't require geoagriculture to work, it just sits whereever it can get sunlight and is a self-contained cell that produces ethanol and biodiesel. In other words, it's that whole "no more fermenting necessary" thing we've been hoping for, for quite some time.

It probably isn't super efficient though, and efficiencies are important. If it's more efficient to grow and produce switchgrass, then we'll probably continue growing and producing switchgrass.