Algae to produce fuel of the future

June 5, 2008 by Terence

Biodiesel and ethanol better watch out since there is a new biofuel in town. Using little more than algae, sunlight and waste water,  US-based Sapphire Energy has announced that it has created a process produces ASTM certified 91-octane petrol.

While other bio-fuels may be produced in similar fashion, Sapphire’s process is a unique technique that produces a uniform product that can be used in gasoline engines without any modifications. Sapphire insist that their fuel is neither ethanol or biodiesel.

Unlike the production of ethanol, Sapphire’s production process doesn’t use land for fuel or food crop and virtually eliminates any emissions in the creation process. The end result is a green liquid that is virtually identical to petrol.

And just to prove their point, an employee of Sapphire Energy, Brian Goodall just completed a cross-Atlantic flight in a plane powered by the company’s new biofuel.

With petrol prices now at a super high of RM2.70 and predictably higher in the near future, I sure wouldn’t mind using cheaper petrol alternatives such as Sapphire Energy’s biofuel but only time will tell how long before such technology will reach our shores.

For more information on Sapphire Energy and its biofuel, see here.

Posted in International News