How to Make Bio Plastic From Algae
Oct. 1, 2010
In this issue:
Algae Biodiesel News
Powdered Algae Jet fuel anyone?
The problem: By 2015 we run out of fuel for the United States
Military. Over the past year, the United States military consumed 75
million barrels of petroleum oil, most of which was used to keep the US Air Force in flight. Prices are going up,
availability is going down. If the Middle East disrupts the US supply or instability creates a loss of production,
US Military aircraft are grounded.
 The Solution: Powdered algae jet fuel has been
developed by Compact Contractors for America (CCA), a Southern Utah-based
company that is developing dry process biofuels from algae, camelina seed, and other non-fossil fuel sources.
Dry process biofuels are essentially powders that can be injected and combusted in jet turbines and other
engines.
Full text here:
http://algaeaviationfuel.com/algae-jet-fuel/powdered-algae-biofuel-displayed-at-milford-renewable-energy-fair-today/
Anyone Want to Make
Money?
I'm interested in starting an algae biodiesel project in Central America
and/or the Caribbean. Panama would be perfect, as well as any of the Caribbean islands, but anywhere
around there is also good.
Basic Plan
Overview/Summary:
The overall objective with this plan is
designed to empower farmers in developing countries, or the USA, with non-productive land, to grow algae. This
would be accomplished with micro-loans. Profit potential can be calculated once location and
system parameters are known.
Advantages:
2. Able to put large numbers of people to
work.
3. Able to use non-productive
land
4. Won’t compete with food
crops
5. Environmentally friendly/No
carbon footprint.
6. Local production of animal
feed and/or organic fertilizer for export, or sell back to farmers for their food crops.
7. Removes dependence on
imported petroleum fuel and attendant cost increases.
8. Create usable
exports
9. Create sustainable economic
base for the future
10. Empower citizens with
training, education, and technology.
11. Land = Free (farmers use
their own land)
12. Labor = Free (farmer supply
labor)
13. Low
cost implementation
14. Pilot program
$25,000K
This plan incorporates algae biodiesel as well as a number of other by-products not currently
being used to their full potential to realize full profit potential.
It is backed up by a business outline, hard science, as well as university white papers
detailing the feasibility of such a project.
If any of my readers are interested in starting a joint-venture project, let me
know. I'd be willing to supply on-location expertise, and waive my consulting fee in building an open pond
refinery. You'd only have to pay the actual expenses. Contact me below if interested.
Cool Stuff:
Vertical Farming
OK, I'm the first to admit I'm a little goofy on this subject. But to me, it makes such
perfect sense and has such environmental symmetry that I get giddy every time I think about it. Now this is the
cutting edge of urban architecture. Designing buildings so not only are they energy efficient but also able to make
fuel, AND grow crops. They are already doing this in office buildings in Europe and Asia. Take a look at the
pictures below to grasp what I'm talking about.
As I shared in the last newsletter, algae building are already
being built. With the algae being used to supply heating/cooling to the building itself. OK, why can't we apply the
same idea to a home dwelling? I'm talking about (re)designing your house in such a way THAT IT PAYS YOU TO
LIVE IN IT.
Follow me on this. For human beings to survive, 3 things must be
present...
(Re) Design your house in such a
way (terraced, southern exposure, passive solar, etc) that you're able to incorporate "bio-ponds" on the ground floor for growing algae. (Re) Design the upper floors, or terraces,
for crops. Incorporating this into a house plan you'd be able to...
-
Use the algae to create biodiesel to power and/or heat your house. (Or
sell)
-
Use the leftover biomass as organic fertilizer for the crops. (Or
sell)
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Use the biomass as a food and/or health food supplement for overall
health. (Or sell)
-
The biomass also has many medicinal aspects that could be used to treat
illness.
In this fashion, the house instead of being someplace you "Live" (and pour money
into) it contributes to every aspect of your basic survival. Not only is it comfortable, but it is a year around
source of free fuel and food.
So I decided to put my money where my mouth is last summer. One side
of my house gets full sun all day. Using old, canvas over-the-door shoe holders (look at the picture above on
the right...not mine, but same concept.) I planted a number of crops vertically up the side of the
house.
First off, using the algae organic fertilizer they grew like gangbusters. But here's
the kicker...it also brought down my utility bill by more than 25%. Why? Because that side of the house had been
absorbing heat and releasing it into my house. By covering it with plants it shaded the house and dissipated the
heat. i.e. less energy spent cooling the house. Plus, I'm eating the vegetables right now.
Now, granted, that is not exactly what I'm talking about but it is a start. Next year
I'll do more to take this concept another step. Take a look at what these people are doing in Germany. This video
is rather long, but the first few minutes are all you need.
Am I out to lunch, (sometimes it's hard to tell :+) or do you think this idea has merit? Let me know in the form
below.
Algae Biodiesel Tips and
Tricks
Choosing an Algae Strain in
Your Local Environment
Can I use the algae growing
in my pond? (stream, swimming pool, birdbath, etc) I get this question all the time. The short answer is
probably not.
There are over 300,000 KNOWN
strains of algae, (some say a million) yet only a couple dozen or so have been studied for oil content. So the
chances of you having an oil bearing species are pretty slim. This doesn't mean you don't, it just means it's worth
looking into, but not pinning all your hopes and dreams on.
One of the things you want
to look for is there an oily sheen on the water around the algae. But be careful here. It could be that
there is some sort of waste discharge up-stream as well and it is collecting around the algae. But it is a good
sign if there is. If you do find an oily sheen around the algae the first thing you want to do is try and identify
the species. You can do this with a microscope and by examining the photos in culture
laboratories.
You can also take a small test tube
specimen to you local university biology department and asking them to identify the species for
you.
At the end of the
day, your time might be better spent identifying an algal species congruent with your environment and
buying a culture. They're relatively inexpensive, and you'll know you're working with an oil bearing
species.
I go into this in detail in
"Making Algae Biodiesel at Home" on how to identify, and/or where
to buy algae cultures, in the US, as well as around the world.
Tell me what you'd like to know more
about. Let me know what subjects you'd be
interested in knowing more on. If you have a question about algae biodiesel, ask me. I'm interested in just about
any alternative energy subject, so it doesn't even have to be about algae or biodiesel. I'd like to explore all
kinds of alt. energy subjects with this newsletter.
Free Stuff
Bio plastics Definition:
Bio plastics, are plastics that are biodegradable and are usually made mostly
or entirely from renewable resources. Frequently there is also a focus on environmentally friendly processing.
Green plastics are the focus of an emerging industry focused on making convenient living consistent with
environmental stability.
Like all plastics, bio plastics are composed of a polymer, combined with plasticizer and additives, and
processed using extrusion or thermosetting. What makes green plastics "green" is one or more of the
following properties:
- they are biodegradable
- they are made from renewable ingredients
- they have environmentally friendly processing
You can do this in your kitchen, with easily found ingredients you buy at the grocery store. And you
can see what "algae bio plastic" really looks and feels like...
Once you start thinking about this the uses become
endless. You can't go one minute in the modern world without encountering something made from plastic. One of the
most expensive aspects of making a PBR is the cylinders. What if you could use the algae to make bio plastic
Bioreactors?
How To Make Bioplastics
First, a little history. when people talk about "seaweed" they are actually talking about
algae. What we are talking about in the context of bio plastics: red algae, also known as "red seaweed." The
specific chemical that we are interested in is agar, which appears in red seaweed in abundance. When you hear
Cereplast and other companies talk about developing bio plastic made from seaweed, they really mean that they will
be using the chemical agar, which is extracted from the seaweed.
Agar is used as a food additive in confectionaries, desserts, beverages, ice cream and health foods. It's also used
as a non-food additive in toothpaste, cosmetics, and adhesives. It's not that difficult to get: if you can't find
it at the grocery store, you can Google "buy
agar" and you get plenty of results there.
Before we get to the actual recipe for making your very own "algae plastic", you should
understand what role agar actually plays. Like all other plastics, bioplastics are composed of three basic parts:
one or more polymers, one or more plasticizer's, plus one or more additives. Roughly speaking:
-
Polymers give plastic its strength. Agar is a bio polymer.
-
Plasticizer's give it its bendable and mouldable qualities,
-
And additives give it other properties (color, durability, etc).
From the Green Plastics book:
Agar, either by itself or in blends with other bio polymers, appears to impart favorable properties to plastic
sheets. In plastics containing agar and glycerol (a plasticizer), the effectiveness of the glycerol lasts longer,
because the agar seems to slow down the increase in brittleness. Agar also seems to improve resistance to microwave
radiation, and it improves clarity in sorbitol formulations. Agar is more expensive than starch, which limits its
large-scale use.
Your basic procedure for making the bioplastic will be the same as described in the video
below. The main difference will be in the actual ingredients and proportions. Here are some suggestions you can
try. Each of the following combinations will produce slightly different plastics with different properties.
Agar Only
Agar-Starch Blend
Gelatin-Agar Blend
Procedure
The procedure is basically the same in every case.
-
Mix all of the ingredients together in the amounts above, and stir.
-
Keep mixing until there are no clumps and it is as dispersed as it's gong to get.
-
Then heat the mixture to 95 C or to when it starts to froth (whichever comes first).
-
Stir the mixture while you are heating it, and once it is at the right temperature (or starts to froth),
remove the heat and keep stirring.
-
Scoop out excess froth with a spoon, and make sure there are no clumps.
-
Carefully pour the mixture into a drying pan, and make sure to spread it out to let it dry.
How long it takes will depend on the temperature and humidity in the room, and it may take several
days (depending on your formulation). You won't be able to remove the plastic from the drying sheet easily until it
is completely dry, so be patient! If your first batch turns out too sticky or slimy, you can try it again with
slightly less plasticizer. Remember, the above recipes are just starting points.... have fun trying different
proportions and combinations, and see what kinds of plastic it makes!
(For many more recipes like these, and a lot of good information about the background and science of bio plastics,
get the Green Plastics book.)
Making Biodiesel Books News and
Specials
The "Algae Biodiesel Made Easy" membership site is coming along. I've added about 250 pages
so far. I'm still not sure when it will be ready. I'm having a hard time deciding what should be free, and what
should be paid material. But to all of you who signed up for the free one month subscription, you haven't been forgotten. Once I get
it to where I want it, I will release it to you first.
The update to the " Building Open Ponds" book has been delayed, mostly because of a
engineering snag. I still plan of releasing the update free to buyers. It's just going to take me a little longer.
It's worth the wait.
Till the next time and thank you for allowing me to email you.
Sincerely,
David Sieg
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Coming Up in The Next Issue...
EV's (Electric Vehicles)
And how to build your own.
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