By Ronica Shannon
Eastern Kentucky University students and faculty working to turn algae into energy recently were awarded a $220,000 biofuels research grant through the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund.
“We are going to be establishing several research plots with switchgrass to evaluate different methods of establishment and to have a source of biomass to test for the breakdown of biomass into sugars that are usable for algae,” said Bruce Pratt of EKU’s Department of Agriculture. “Other parts of the project that will be initiated will be utilization of co-products from the biomass breakdown, such as lignin and products from the algae oil extraction process. The research dealing specifically with algae will be done by our corporate partner, General Atomics. We would like to be able to initiate some algae research on campus in the near future.”
Several efforts have gone into funding the project, Pratt said.
Rep. Ben Chandler helped secure a $4 million earmark for the 2009 fiscal year that was passed down from the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) through the Defense Logistics Agency.
“We have completed all of the hurdles and red tape and the funding should be available by the end of the month we hope,” Pratt said. “I thought EKU had a lot of red tape, but the DOD I think has everyone beat in that department.”
The Appalachian Regional Commission also has provided $350,000 for the project.
“The (agriculture) development funding was established through the tobacco buyout program in part to help Kentucky agriculture establish alternative crops,” Pratt said.
A $27,000 state Perkins Equipment Grant helped purchase a bioreactor to give students experiences in this emerging technology, he said.
Madison and Clark counties each donated $10,000 in funding.
“We feel that biomass crops have the potential to help Kentucky producers with one more opportunity,” he said. “The initial funding from all of these sources are a great start, but it will take a much larger investment to ‘buy down’ the technology before it is ready for commercial investment.”
The complete research project will take several more years and a lot more funding, he said.
“We are in the process of putting together several other grants to continue this project in the future,” Pratt said. “If you look at Exxon-Mobil, they have committed $600 million for their phototrophic algae to fuel project. Also, BP oil has also made a $10 million commitment to the first phase of their heterotrophic algae to oil process. They both realize the enormity and complexity of the process and are willing to make the investment.”
Other EKU faculty involved with the project include Frank O’Connor, who is working on economic analyses, Don Llewellyn, who is doing part of the biomass research and Nathan Tice and Laurel Morton from the college’s chemistry department who are helping with the research project.
O’Connor’s economic analysis was started with funding from the university, Pratt said.
Ronica Shannon can be reached at rshannon@richmondregister.com or 624-6608.
