Marine biomass program. Annual report 1 Jan-31 Dec 79

Technical Report · Fri Oct 17 00:00:00 EDT 1980

OSTI ID:6487502

Tompkins, A N

The Marine Biomass Program is a Research and Development Program which has as its overall objective the development of integrated processes for production and harvesting of seaweed in the ocean and conversion of that seaweed to methane at costs competitive, on a commercial scale, with other alternate energy production systems. The General Electric Company has been the prime contractor in the conduct of this RandD Program for the Gas Research Institute since December 1976. The United States Department of Energy has also sponsored research on this program by funding to the California Institute of Technology, and has provided additional support to the program through a cooperative grant made to General Electric in 1978. Experimental data has shown that controlled cultivation of macroalgae is feasible, and that fuels can be derived from marine biomass feedstocks. Extensive work with Macrocystis has indicated that it can be grown in the open ocean when fertilized by artificially upwelled deep ocean waters. Kelp thus derived has been shown to be favorably suited to methane production by the process of anaerobic conversion. This report expands upon this data base with emphasis on the technical and economic requirements of the critical parameters associated with biomass yield and overall energy balance.

• Research Organization: General Electric Co., Philadelphia, PA (USA)
• DOE Contract Number: GRI-5010-323-0014
• OSTI ID: 6487502
• Report Number(s): PB-81-113185
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

09 BIOMASS FUELS
10 SYNTHETIC FUELS
METHANE
PRODUCTION
ALGAE
ANAEROBIC CONDITIONS
BIOMASS
BY-PRODUCTS
FUELS
SEAWEEDS
ALKANES
AQUATIC ORGANISMS
ENERGY SOURCES
HYDROCARBONS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
PLANTS
RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES
140504* - Solar Energy Conversion- Biomass Production & Conversion- (-1989)
090120 - Hydrocarbon Fuels- Preparation- (1976-1989)