Genetically Engineered Cells Will Sweat Ethanol and Diesel Fuel in Texas Pilot Plant

PopSci.com
By Jeremy Hsu
Posted 05.05.2010 at 2:00 pm

The tiny single-cell plants eat, reproduce, and then sweat fuel

Tiny organisms such as algae offer great promise for a clean energy future by creating biofuels or even hydrogen, if only scientists can figure out how to use them in a cost-efficient way. A startup named Joule Unlimited has hit upon a possible solution, with a genetically tailored organism that sweats out its fuel and lives on to continue making more, New York Times reports. The company broke ground recently on a Texas pilot plant that will house the single-cell plant organisms in flat structures resembling solar panels facing the sun.

Water flowing through the panels will carry off the hydrocarbon fuel for separation. Hydrocarbon oils such as diesel produced by the organisms separate from water and make the gathering easy, while distilling technology already exists for separating out the ethanol from water. Workers will regularly flush the system every eight weeks and start with fresh batches.

Read more