A ground breaking Australian experiment that uses algae to absorb carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions could have the rest of the world green with envy.
AAP newsagency reports that Queensland government-owned power corporation Stanwell will trial the clean energy technology developed by James Cook University at its coal-fired plant at Kingaroy, in the state’s southeast.
The trial involves trapping carbon emissions from the power station and pumping them into water that is used solely to grow algae.
Because of the high concentration of CO2, the algae doubles in mass every one to two days and in vast quantities it can be used to produce either bio-diesel fuel or cattle feed.
AAP says the university spent three years developing and trialling the technology on a much smaller scale.
MDB Energy will oversee the trial at Stanwell over a one-hectare plot and determine its long-term viability and commercial prospects.
If successful it could be a major breakthrough in lowering carbon emissions.
“It’s a one hectare blueprint, using the gasses from the power station to produce commercial products,” MBD managing director Andrew Lawson said.
“It’s a really great step towards commercial ways of using CO2.”
He said the algae were from local rivers and the water was purified so if there were spillage into any waterways it wouldn’t damage the environment.
“Algae has been sourced from the local streams, it’s not modified in anyway,” Mr Lawson said.
“So if any breaks out or there is any leaking into local waterways, it’s algae from those waterways.
“It’s really just taking the algae and giving it the perfect conditions to grow.”
Mr Lawson said producing feed for cattle could be a highly profitable by-product of the experiment.
“Queensland imports a billion dollars of soy meal from overseas (for cattle),” Mr Lawson said.
“This is an opportunity to offset that import.”
Queensland’s Labor Premier Anna Bligh said the project had huge potential because both the idea and the algae products could be exported.
“This is world first technology, using algae and innovations created at James Cook University,” Ms Bligh said.
“If it is successful over the next 12 months we can take this technology to the world,” the premier added.
Stanwell boss Helen Gluer said the experiment also had a spin-off for customers as the carbon used by the algae meant less carbon emissions for which the power plant had to pay.
