Washington State Algae Alliance secures funding

(30/12/2009)

The Washington State Algae Alliance, comprised of bioscience firm Targeted Growth, Inc. (TGI), Inventure Chemical (Inventure) and Washington State University (WSU), will benefit from $2 million in funding through WSU as part of the 2010 Senate Energy and Water Development appropriations bill.

U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) was instrumental in securing funding for the Alliance, which will jointly develop a new system for the production of sustainable and renewable fuels, chemicals, and chemical intermediates, creating jobs and furthering the state’s growing clean technology base.

“This funding will support cutting-edge research that will create jobs and continue to position Washington state as a leader in the clean energy economy,” said Senator Murray. “It provides a shot in the arm for Washington state biofuels research, and will help our country move toward cleaner and more efficient energy use.”

The Alliance has three objectives: First, to develop an efficient and integrated algae cultivation system for the production of fuel and other products; second, to build first class capabilities; and third, to advance related science and technologies. These objectives align with initiatives identified in the National Algae Fuel Roadmap developed by the US Department of Energy.

Each partner in the Alliance is responsible for developing a specific link in the value chain. Targeted Growth will focus on the development and optimization of strains of cyanobacteria, a blue-green algae, to yield high levels of lipid and other products, while reducing needed inputs and ultimately driving down costs. WSU will develop advanced phototrophic (light) and heterotrophic (nutrient) bioreactors and harvesting technology to enable cost-efficient, year-round growth of the algal strains developed by TGI. After the algal biomass is harvested, it will be sent to Seattle-based Inventure for conversion into fuel and other valuable products such as renewable chemicals.

“Algae hold tremendous promise as the raw material for a variety of sustainable and renewable products, from chemicals to fuels,” said Margaret McCormick, general manager of Bio-based Materials at Targeted Growth. “Thanks to Senator Murray, the funding for the partnership will accelerate the commercialization and environmental benefit of algae.”

Earlier this year, Targeted Growth announced its expansion into algae including a breakthrough development increasing lipid content of cyanobacteria by approximately 400 percent. This move was a natural extension of the company’s legacy of deep experience and success in agricultural bioscience. Since 1998, the company has leveraged both genetic and traditional agricultural methods to help solve some of the world’s most pressing issues related to the use of agriculture for both food and fuel.

Washington State University is a leader in fostering the development of biofuels. The WSU Algae Initiative led by Professor Shulin Chen in the Department of Biological Systems Engineering has developed four patent pending technologies for algae culture systems, harvesting, and nutrient recycling. WSU researchers associated with the Alliance are addressing key technical challenges for the development of the algae biofuel industry, including a novel high-throughput screening process, photosynthetic efficiency, co-product development and extraction, algal biofuel production systems for the northern states, and process modeling for life cycle assessment and decision making.

WSU researchers in the Alliance and other alternative fuels experts from the WSU Center for Bioproducts and Bioenergy and the WSU Extension Energy Program work closely with the biofuels industry and state and local governments to promote the use and production of renewable fuels in Washington State.

“The Alliance is a perfect example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts,” said Dr. Howard Grimes, Vice President for Research at Washington State University. “This puts some of our state’s top scientists and researchers on the same team to achieve extremely exciting and important breakthroughs for renewable energy and clean technology.”

Inventure unites life science/synthetic biology expertise with material process technologies to revolutionize the production of renewable, cost effective chemicals and fuels. The company can process a variety of algae species including salt water and fresh water species, converting it to a range of biofuels and chemicals. Its process generates near the theoretical maximum conversion yields of >99% of total lipids, >90% of carbohydrates, >90% of protein mass. It also captures the remaining organic material (cellulose, starch and protein) and converts the majority of these fractions to useful amino acid and glucose derivatives, adding value to the entire mass.

“By closely coordinating the algal species selection with the production and refining technologies, we will be able to optimize the entire process, leading to higher quality products at a lower cost,” said Mark Tegen, CEO of Inventure Chemical.

Related categories:  Biofuels and biomass