Scientists to unravel bio fuel production from microalgae

Scientists from a consortium of nine central laboratories have undertaken a project to discover potential of making bio fuel commercially from microalgae.

The project called-'New Millennium India Technology Leadership Initiative'(NMITLI)-initiated by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in 2006 to develop a scalable commercial model of producing biofuel from microbes has taken off recently and research has got underway."Members of the nine inter laboratory consortium shall be assessing techno-economic viability of making bio diesel from microalgae," said, Pushpito Ghosh, director of the Bhavnagar-based Central Salt and Marine Chemical Research Institute (CSMCRI).The objective of this project is to create primary reliable data bank and also assess techno feasibility of commercial production of bio diesel from microalgae using core research strength of each of the consortium laboratory.

World over a general belief prevails that microalgae can grow very fast and is able to produce large amount of bio-mass. "But, when it comes to putting them (microalgae) in use for manufacturing high volume and low value products like bio diesel then not many practical established processes are still known," Ghosh said.