Algae’s Potential as BioFuel

Amanda Barry, a Los Alamos National Laboratory scientist and affiliate of the New Mexico Consortium, published her work on algae using raw plants as a carbon energy source. This research has shown that the microalgae, Auxenochlorella protothecoides, is capable of directly degrading and using non-food plant substrates for improved cell growth and lipid production. This is useful for boosting the algae’s potential value as a biofuel.

Congratulations to Amanda and all the researchers involved including the other NMC affiliates who worked on this project: Shawn Starkenburg, Nilusha Sudasinghe, and Jenna Schambach.

Publication: Characterization of plant carbon substrate utilization by Auxenochlorella protothecoides. Brian W. Vogler, Shawn Starkenburg, Nilusha Sudasinghe, Jenna Y. Schambach, Joseph A. Rolin, Sivakumar Pattathil, Amanda N. Barry. Algal Research 34C. 2018. 37-48.

To read the entire LANL article highlighting this work: Feeding Plants to this Algae Could Fuel Your Car

Science Daily article: Feeding Plants to this Algae Could Fuel Your Car

Santa Fe New Mexican article: LANL Researching Algae to Convert to Affordable Fuel