Also known as Oilgae, it is being considered as the third generation biofuel. Its production is low cost and high yield, almost 30 times more energy production per hectare compared to the land required by other conventional feedstocks to produce biofuels. At present, algae farming (seaweed farming) is conducting research to produce different fuels to harvest to make vegetable oil, biodiesel, bioethanol, biomethanol, biobutanol and other biofuels and it seems that if the methodology is sustainable than other biofuels available, then using algae to produce biodiesel would be the only viable method to replace the need for gasoline used today for the automotive industry.
Biofuels are considered the best way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and switch to polluting fossil fuels. But recently, according to the findings of Nobel laureate Paul Cortzen, some of the most widely used biofuels, bioethanol from corn and biodiesel from rapeseed, release nitrous oxide (N2O) and are contributing far more to global warming than fossil fuels in this moment. Processing biofuel in the form of algae has been proven to capture large amounts of available CO2 and N2O in the atmosphere (40% on a full day and 80% on sunny days) and one acre of algae can produce enough oil to make 5,000 gallons . of biodiesel in a year.
In my view, biodiesel and bioethanol from rapeseed and corn not only contribute to global warming, but cannot be economically sustainable because it is one of the main sources of edible oil. The demand for ethanol may threaten food prices. A recent study by the Iowa State University Center for Agricultural and Rural Development revealed that, given the high crude oil price scenario, ethanol production in the US would lead to higher beef prices for the US. consumers, reduced production in general for all segments of the meat sector, and even further reductions in grain and meat exports. Considering the sustainability and the economic factor, biofuel from algae farming seems to be the most promising fuel for the future.