Japanese scientists create diesel-producing algae

For all the ultra-libs who instantly equate anything to do with oil to Satan, you do realize this is essentially carbon-neutral?

The algae 'eat' carbon dioxide and make diesel. It'd be the same as growing trees for firewood, the net effect as the cycle continues is zero.

In fact, if this can actually be ramped up to full-scale production, it can even be carbon negative if the algal cells that die are scooped up and buried, perhaps in the emptying oil reservoirs themselves.

I'd always wondered if someone would come up with this, as I suspected at the very least photosyntheitc bacteria could be engineered to produce hydrocarbon chains. Finding it naturally in algae is a big plus.

I still have my doubts as to whether it would ever be scalable to satisfy all oil needs, but at least it'd be another slice out of the pie. No one alternative is going to meet the needs, as the needs are too vast for most people to even comprehend. It'll take a little of every technology to do it, whereever those technologies will work most efficiently.

I'd like to see the US build pebble-bed nuclear reactors. They're safe, inexpensive relative to the individualized plants we have now for which each part must be custom-made, use interchangeable parts, and have recyclable fuel pellets that can reclaim virtually all of the still-useful uranium, drastically reducing the nuclear waste and extending the lifespan of our nuclear fuel reserves.

Wind will work in some places, and where it works well it should be used. Solar still has many short-comings people don't like to talk about. The current panels can't be recycled and are doped with toxic heavy metals, and their cost is still far too high for the average citizen to manage, especially given that their full-productivity lifespan is fairly short.

And ethanol. Using grains just isn't going to cut it. The production is too low and ends up causing massive food spikes. A cheap, effecient cellulosic method is critical for viability in temperate climates. Brazil benefits from sugarcane, which is high-density energy is pretty much the whole plant. Corn take a full year to grow, and you can only use the kernels. The majority of the plant is chaff. Plus, corn requires replanting, depletes the soil rapidly, and requires many pesticides and other chemicals that in turn take energy to produce.

I would propose instead using a plant like kudzu, which is considered the worst weed imaginable. Why? Because it grows like mad. It produces a vast amount of biomass in little time with almost no fertilization and zero pesticide needs, and a dense root system that stops erosion, plus adds nitrogen to the soil (it's a legume, root nodules with nitrogen-fixing bacteria)... exactly what one needs in a crop for energy. A little genetic tweak here and there to boost sugar content in its stems and bam! A crop that can grow practically forever on the same land and produce vast quantities of fuel.

*Charles has all the answers, for he IS the Great One!* >:}

Heh, Fuel is already over $6 a gallon over here in the UK, nyehehehe...