Biofuels are currently one of the most talked about renewable energy options. World needs more renewable energy not just to reduce the total amount of greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change but also to ensure the security of future energy supply. Why? Because fossil fuels are finite resources that will eventually be exhausted.
Using algae for biofuel production is still far from becoming commercially viable but science is nonetheless conducting countless studies in order to determine the most cost-effective solution to produce biofuels from algae.
Why use algae for biofuels? First of all world cannot afford to focus only on corn for ethanol and soybeans for biodiesel because this would in long run lead to rise in food prices and would cause even more hunger in the world.
Using food to produce biofuels is not acceptable from moral point of view, especially not when you consider that at this moment there are around one billion hungry people in the world.
By focusing on algae for biofuel production world would finally be able to get rid of food vs. fuel debate. Algae can be grown in the smallest amount of space using the least amount of resources. Heck, they can be even grown in wastewater and denuded land.
Algae do not belong to energy sources with no carbon emissions and they can produce some CO2 when burned but this CO2 can be sequestered during their growth which gives algae a clear edge over fossil fuels in terms of being environmentally friendlier source of energy.
