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Title: Energy from fresh and brackish water aquatic plants

Abstract

Aquatic plants can achieve relatively high biomass productivities when compared to terrestrial plants because they need not be water-stressed and can be optimally supplied with nutrients. Based on literature reports, productivities in southern US regions of about 40 to 60 t/ha-yr (dry weight basis) can be predicted for green algae or marsh plants and about 80 t/ha-yr for water hyacinth. Higher productivities may be possible in exceptionally favorable locations by assuming development of advanced cultivation technologies and genetic selection of improved strains. The lack of established cultivation systems and low-cost harvesting processes imposes great uncertainties on the cost of biomass production by aquatic plants. Three potentially practical aquatic biomass energy systems are chemicals production from microalgae, alcohol production from marsh plants, and methane production from water hyacinths. At present, aquatic plants are not being used commercially as a fuel source any place in the world. Nevertheless, it is clear that aquatic plants have potentially high biomass productivities and, specifically for the case of microalgae, could produce a high-quality, high-value biomass suitable for conversion to fuels and extraction of other products. A list of the relative advantages and disadvantages of aquatic plant energy systems in comparison with the concepts of terrestrialmore » tree or herbaceous plant energy farming is given. Three favorable aspects of aquatic plant biomass systems should be stressed - the relative short-term research and development effort that will be required to determine the practical feasibility of such systems, the continuous production nature of such systems, and the relative independence of aquatic biomass systems from soil characteristics and weather fluctuations. The fast generation times of most aquatic plants allow rapid data acquisition, as compared to even short-rotation trees.« less

Authors:
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Ecoenergetics, Inc., Richmond, CA
OSTI Identifier:
6487457
Report Number(s):
CONF-790415-P8
Journal ID: CODEN: ACSMC
Resource Type:
Conference
Journal Name:
ACS Symp. Ser.; (United States)
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 144; Conference: 177. national meeting of the American Chemical Society, Honolulu, HI, USA, 1 Apr 1979
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
09 BIOMASS FUELS; AQUACULTURE; TECHNOLOGY ASSESSMENT; ALGAE; AQUATIC ORGANISMS; BIOMASS PLANTATIONS; CATTAILS; COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS; ENERGY SOURCE DEVELOPMENT; PRODUCTIVITY; SEAWEEDS; WATER HYACINTHS; PLANTS; 140504* - Solar Energy Conversion- Biomass Production & Conversion- (-1989)

Citation Formats

Benemann, J R. Energy from fresh and brackish water aquatic plants. United States: N. p., 1981. Web.
Benemann, J R. Energy from fresh and brackish water aquatic plants. United States.
Benemann, J R. 1981. "Energy from fresh and brackish water aquatic plants". United States.
@article{osti_6487457,
title = {Energy from fresh and brackish water aquatic plants},
author = {Benemann, J R},
abstractNote = {Aquatic plants can achieve relatively high biomass productivities when compared to terrestrial plants because they need not be water-stressed and can be optimally supplied with nutrients. Based on literature reports, productivities in southern US regions of about 40 to 60 t/ha-yr (dry weight basis) can be predicted for green algae or marsh plants and about 80 t/ha-yr for water hyacinth. Higher productivities may be possible in exceptionally favorable locations by assuming development of advanced cultivation technologies and genetic selection of improved strains. The lack of established cultivation systems and low-cost harvesting processes imposes great uncertainties on the cost of biomass production by aquatic plants. Three potentially practical aquatic biomass energy systems are chemicals production from microalgae, alcohol production from marsh plants, and methane production from water hyacinths. At present, aquatic plants are not being used commercially as a fuel source any place in the world. Nevertheless, it is clear that aquatic plants have potentially high biomass productivities and, specifically for the case of microalgae, could produce a high-quality, high-value biomass suitable for conversion to fuels and extraction of other products. A list of the relative advantages and disadvantages of aquatic plant energy systems in comparison with the concepts of terrestrial tree or herbaceous plant energy farming is given. Three favorable aspects of aquatic plant biomass systems should be stressed - the relative short-term research and development effort that will be required to determine the practical feasibility of such systems, the continuous production nature of such systems, and the relative independence of aquatic biomass systems from soil characteristics and weather fluctuations. The fast generation times of most aquatic plants allow rapid data acquisition, as compared to even short-rotation trees.},
doi = {},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/6487457}, journal = {ACS Symp. Ser.; (United States)},
number = ,
volume = 144,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1981},
month = {Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1981}
}

Conference:
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