Laboratory for Algae Research and Biotechnology

Video: The skies go green with algal jet fuel

ovprea — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:00:00 -0600

Qiang Hu examines a tube of algae in his research lab at the ASU Polytechnic campus.

Going green isn't just for the earthbound anymore. ASU scientists Milton Sommerfeld and Qiang Hu are taking green research to the skies, making biofuels that can be used to fly airplanes.

The researchers are collaborating with Heliae Development, LLC and Science Foundation Arizona to develop, produce and sell kerosene-based aviation fuel derived from algae. In pilot studies, the researchers have shown significant cost-reduction benefits when compared to traditional methods for producing kerosene from petroleum.

Watch a brief video about the research:
Windows Media
Quicktime

Learn more about environmentally-friendly uses for algae in "Fuels of green"

Big effects from small stuff: Nanotech and the environment

ovprea — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 17:29:23 -0600

First there was the Stone Age. Then came the Bronze Age. Recently the Information Age dawned. As the 21st century looms before us, we may well be looking into the "Nano Age."

Virtually every industry–from computers to cosmetics–is working to take advantage of nanotechnology. Nanotechnology refers to the ability to create and manipulate materials that are between 1 and 100 nanometers–or one-billionth of a meter–in size. A single hair is about 100,000 nanometers wide.

Nanomaterials can be found in products such as sunscreen, stain-resistant fabrics, and household appliances. And scientists are working on ways to incorporate nanomaterials into an even broader range of applications.

Unfortunately, a growing body of research suggests that nanoparticles may have an adverse effect on the environment. One of these studies was produced by a high school student from Chandler, Arizona. The results of her work indicate that nanoparticles can harm aquatic ecosystems.

Jingyuan Luo graduated from Chandler's Hamilton High School in 2007. She studied the effects of titanium dioxide nanoparticles on Chamydomonas reinhardtii, a type of green algae. Titanium dioxide nanoparticles are found in sunscreen, among other products.

"Research is really important at Hamilton High School," Luo says. She decided she wanted to get some hands-on experience, so she looked up faculty biographies on ASU's web site. She found Qiang Hu, a professor of applied biosciences with the Laboratory of Algae Research & Biotechnology (LARB) at ASU's Polytechnic Campus.

"Jingyuan contacted us about working on an environmental problem associated with nanomaterials," says Hu. "The decision to take on a high school student is not taken lightly. They require guidance and assistance, as well as supplies and materials."

When a student expresses interest, the researchers look at the student's grades, ask for a schedule and time commitment to the project, and request a research proposal that outlines the goals and plan of work.

"While the proposal is preliminary, it provides an indication of the level of thought that the student has put into the project. We also get a glimpse of the student's writing and organizational ability," explains Hu.

Luo had all the qualities of a good researcher.

"She is incredible. She was very mature for a high school student," says Sommerfeld.

She started doing work at the lab the summer after her sophomore year in 2005. She worked with Hu and postdoctoral researcher Jiangxiang Wang.

"They are some of the greatest people to work with," says Luo. "They are very intelligent, encouraging, and also very realistic. At 17, you have a lot of big ideas and they pull you back a little. They were very patient with me."

Luo exposed the algae to varying levels of titanium dioxide over five-day periods. She analyzed cell appearance and population growth. She also tested algal stress response at the genetic level.

She found that as titanium dioxide concentrations increased, the algal growth rate and cell populations decreased. Also, some stress genes were overexpressed in response to the presence of the nanoparticles.

Her results show that the nanoparticles had a large toxic effect on the algae. However, larger particles did not.

Because algae form the basis of most aquatic food chains, these particles could have an impact on entire aquatic ecosystems. Luo wanted to find out if they do.

"I always wanted to do bioaccumulation research. But due to time and knowledge constraints I wasn't able to at first," she says.

With a foundation in basic lab techniques, Luo was able to undertake a more complicated study in January 2007. This time she looked at the effects of two different nanoparticles–zinc oxide and carbon fullerenes–on both green algae and Daphnia magna, a water flea that feeds on the algae.

Nano-scale zinc oxides are used in sunscreens and scratch-resistant glass. Carbon fullerenes are also known as "buckyballs." They have potential applications in drug delivery systems, hydrogen fuel cells, superconductors, and cosmetics. But little is known about the effect these materials have on the environment, particularly in terms of bioaccumulation.

Bioaccumulation refers to an organism containing a higher concentration of a substance than the surrounding environment. This commonly happens when the substance works its way up the food chain by being eaten.

Luo conducted three tests. In two of the tests, she added nanoparticles directly to water containing either algae or fleas. In a third test she added nanoparticle-treated algae to fresh water for the fleas to eat.

She found that the nanoparticles were more toxic to the organisms than larger particles, and the zinc oxide was more toxic than the carbon. These results were greatest in the long-term, suggesting that future studies should examine the effects of nanoparticles over time.

Data on the bioaccumulation of nanomaterials was inconclusive, but suggests that the particles are transferred to the fleas from the algae.

Her work earned Luo a first place award in Environmental Science at the 2007 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair and a second place award in 2006. About 1,500 students from more than 40 nations compete in this annual event. She also received the National Stockholm Junior Water Prize for 2007, and represented the United States in Stockholm, Sweden in August.

Working under the supervision of the ASU scientists, Luo also gained a firsthand understanding of the research process.

"Once I started doing science research I really loved it. Yes, it's frustrating and sometimes you want to pull your hair out, but you sit back afterwards and you've accomplished something. I learned that I have to be a lot more patient. Sometimes things go wrong. You have to learn to adapt and adjust," she says.

Read more about algae research at the LARB in "Whatcha' gonna do with that green junk?"

Fuels of Green

ovprea — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 14:57:11 -0600

by Diane Boudreau

You know algae. It's the gunk that collects on the sides of a fish tank when you forget to clean it. It's the slime that makes you slip on rocks while crossing a stream. You probably think of algae as a nuisance, if you even bother to think of it at all.

Milt Sommerfeld and Qiang Hu think of algae as one of the most useful substances in existence. And they think about it every day. In fact, they have an entire laboratory dedicated to the study of algae. The Laboratory for Algae Research & Biotechnology (LARB) is located at Arizona State University's Polytechnic Campus.

"We have algae everywhere," says Sommerfeld with a smile, gesturing around the lab at flasks and beakers filled with bright green liquid. There are algae spinning in centrifuges and algae shaking on platforms. There are algae growing in bubbling bioreactors. There are algae in refrigerators and algae under microscopes.

No murky pond scum here–these algae are the shade of a shamrock on St. Patrick's Day.

Where other people see slime, the ASU professors of applied biological sciences see solutions. They see environmentally friendly fuel. They see pollution control. They see food. They see fertilizer. In short, they see it as an answer to many problems that currently stare humanity in the face.

Clean and green
One of those problems is agricultural wastewater. Runoff from crops and livestock contains fertilizer, pesticides, and other materials that can contaminate water supplies. People living in rural areas often pump drinking water from private wells that are not monitored for these contaminants.

Nitrates found in fertilizers are particularly dangerous to human health, especially to babies less than six months old. When nitrate-laden water is used to mix infant formula, the contaminants can interfere with oxygen absorption, causing "blue baby syndrome." The syndrome can cause brain damage and death.

Agricultural runoff also makes its way into the oceans, disturbing the balance of aquatic life. Too much fertilizer in ocean water can produce algal blooms that deplete oxygen, "choking" other plants and animals. Also, some species of algae produce toxic blooms known as red or brown tides, which can poison fish and mollusks.

Sommerfeld and Hu want to fight algae with algae. By running wastewater through bioreactors that contain algae, they can produce their own isolated algal blooms that don't disrupt anything around them. The algae gobble up nitrogen and phosphorus—two common fertilizer nutrients—leaving the water cleaner and safer than before.

The wastewater feeds the algae. The ASU scientists can then harvest the algae for a variety of possible uses.

"We're working on algae that have a purpose," Sommerfeld explains. "The goal is to collect the algal biomass and use it as fertilizer or animal feed, and return the water free of nutrients."

Fish tank to gas tank
Another potential use for all this algae is biofuel.

Imagine if you could scoop algae out of your fish tank and put it in your gas tank. It's not quite that easy, but it is possible to extract usable fuel from algae. Sommerfeld and Hu are working on a way to produce algae-based biodiesel for cars and trucks.

Biodiesel is a cleaner alternative to regular diesel fuel. Diesel is produced from nonrenewable petroleum. Biodiesel comes from renewable sources such as vegetable oils or animal fats. Biodiesel also burns cleaner than diesel, and it is biodegradable.

Scientists around the world are working to produce alternative fuels from a wide variety of plant materials. Ethanol derived from corn is already widely used. Unlike corn, however, algae aren't food crops. And algae doesn't have to be grown on arable soil—soil that could be used for growing food.

The problem with using food crops for fuel came to international attention early in 2007 with the Mexican "tortilla crisis." As international corn prices skyrocketed, the cost of corn tortillas rose nearly 14 percent from 2006 to 2007. Low-income Mexican families became unable afford this staple of their traditional diet. Economists point to the increased demand for corn-based ethanol as the main reason for the price increases.

Unlike corn plants, algal bioreactors can be placed on land that isn't suitable for farming. The algae require only water and sunlight. Arizona has plenty of sunlight and numerous farms producing nutrient-rich wastewater.

"One dairy cow produces 800 pounds of nitrogen per year," says Hu. "The average dairy farm has 1,000 to 2,000 cows. We can convert 100 percent of the nitrogen they produce into fuel. In Arizona we have plenty of waste nutrients. Any kind of farm that produces manure—cattle, hogs, chickens—would work."

Another reason algae make good candidates for biofuel is their sheer productiveness. Like all plants, algae turn sunlight into fuel using photosynthesis. But algae do it more efficiently.

"What makes algae interesting is that every cell is like a leaf cell," says Sommerfeld. "Every cell is photosynthetic. Algae are more productive than corn or soybeans because every cell is a factory."

"Plants have roots and stems. But only the leaves can photosynthesize. Most algae are single-celled. The entire organism can do photosynthesis and access nutrients from all directions instead of only roots. Its metabolism is 10 to 20 times faster than rooted plants," adds Hu.

The researchers choose from among the nearly 40,000 known species of algae. They look to find types that are highly productive in Arizona's climate. So far they are working only with naturally occurring species. However, they are open to the possibility of further genetic modification down the line, if necessary.

If anyone knows algae, it's Sommerfeld. He has been studying the properties of various algal species at ASU for more than 30 years. He is always on the lookout for species that reproduce rapidly.

"Our goal was to have organisms that could do at least one doubling per day," he says. His group is now working with cells that can reproduce two to three times in a 24-hour period.

The researchers are also looking for species that produce the largest quantities of lipids—or fats—under local conditions. Biodiesel is produced from the lipids. Growing algae in a reactor, it turns out, helps increase lipid production.

"Algae increase production of oils when they are stressed. They grow fast in a bioreactor," Sommerfeld says. "When they've used all the nutrients they can, and can't grow any more due to nutrient limitations, they store chemical energy in fat. That is in contrast to humans. When we eat too much, our bodies accumulate fat. Algae accumulate fat when they are starved."

Reacting with efficiency
Located in Mesa on the eastern end of the Phoenix metropolitan area, ASU's Polytechnic Campus and the surrounding area are just beginning to hit their own growth spurt. Set against a backdrop of the Superstition Mountains, the campus still has a desert wilderness feel. It's not uncommon to spot roadrunners or Gambel's quail trotting alongside students rushing off to class. It was all this open space—space for a laboratory, and land space for bioreactors—that lured Sommerfeld and Hu from ASU's main campus in Tempe.

Their lab is housed in the new, crisply modern Interdisciplinary Science and Technology Building 3 But their green potions are not constrained to just one lab. Out behind ISTB3 stretches a 30-foot-long bioreactor. Although the tank is only a fraction of the size that a full-scale production model would be, it allows the researchers to test and tweak the efficiency of the reactor.

Hu is the go-to guy for bioreactor design. A biologist by training, he has always been strongly interested in engineering and in developing bioproducts. The researchers have also teamed with faculty and students from the Department of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering Technology.

Efficient bioreactor design is imperative for producing a commercially viable fuel. Obviously, the researchers don't want to expend more energy than they produce. So they are working to create the most efficient, cost-effective reactors possible.

The reactor located behind ISTB3 holds 1,000 liters. It is a small-scale testing reactor that can produce about 20 pounds of algae feedstock per batch. That in turn yields about 2 gallons of biodiesel—enough to fuel a small car for 40-60 miles.

The reactors don't require much energy, but they do need some. For example, pumps are needed to circulate the water. And in hotter weather, the reactor runs an evaporative cooling system.

In addition, the algae need to be harvested and dried. Currently the researchers run it through a centrifuge, kind of like the bathing suit dryers you'd find at the gym. The centrifuge spins the water out of the algae, leaving a paste. The machine can process 450 gallons of liquid per hour.

Sommerfeld and Hu are always looking for ways to make their production more efficient.

"We know we can make diesel from algae," explains Hu. "The next question is—is it economical?"

The pair is betting that it is. They believe that algal-based biofuel could be a commercially viable technology in three to five years. If that happens, people may start thinking a lot more highly of that slimy green gunk.

Read about other environmental research from LARB in "Big effects from small stuff."

Research on algal bioremediation is funded by Arizona Public Service, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the U.S. Geological Survey. Biofuel research is supported by XLTechGroup and Arizona Technology Enterprises. For more information, contact Milton Sommerfeld at 480.727.1050 or Qiang Hu at 480.727.1387. Send email to milton.sommerfeld@asu.edu or huqiang@asu.edu