A method of increasing the lipid content of cyanobacteria by approximately 400 percent was announced today (27th July) by Targeted Growth International. This discovery, says the company, will dramatically increase the oil yield per acre, decreasing the cost of algae production and, potentially, helping algae-based biofuels become price-competitive with petroleum.
During the past four years the entire genome of cyanobacteria has been sequenced by researchers. TGI molecular biologists and their collaborators have, says the company, identified and tested every active gene and made major breakthroughs in both adding new genes and manipulating their functions to create a high oil-yielding algae strain. The company has filed multiple patent applications on these innovations.
"There's no way that algae are sustainable as a feedstock for fuel or energy unless you can dramatically increase the yield per acre and optimize the strain for use as an energy source," said Tom Todaro, CEO of Targeted Growth. "Any type of modification requires intricate understanding of and experience with molecular biology as well as significant testing. Our decade of working at the molecular level on other photosynthetic organisms has given us a significant advantage in working with cyanobacteria."
In addition to developing algae strains for use as a feedstock for conventional diesel, TGI is also testing algae's ability to be converted to biojet fuel through a partnership with refining technology developer UOP LLC. UOP's renewable jet fuel process technology has produced renewable fuels from various oil-based feedstocks, including algae, for use in three separate airplane test flights in the past year.
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