With only a few months left to run on the EnAlgae project, researchers and collaborators are once again preparing to host a stand-alone Algae Event at this year’s EUBCE in Vienna.
The focus this year will be on getting a better understanding of algae production and utilisation on how and why algae can be used for biorefineries.
Discussions will be focussed on energy input and output, mass balance, avoiding greenhouse gas emissions, chemicals and fuel production and market perspectives.
“This year’s programme aims to build on the huge success we saw with our first Algae Event last year at EUBCE in Hamburg,” said Dr Shaun Richardson, EnAlgae project coordinator. “And once again we will be highlighting the interactions between research, industry and policy makers for the algae sector. “I hope the event will prove to be as popular and successful as last year’s, and we look forward to welcoming delegates.
“This is the last year for the EnAlgae project, and the summer will see the unveiling of two of our lasting legacies which will go on to inform and interconnect people interested in algae and the algae industry for decades to come.
“The EnAlgae project has worked towards finding sustainable pathways for algal bioenergy and both of these outputs will enable that work to flourish and continue in the weeks, months and years ahead.
“The first one to mention is our Decision Support Tool. This output has captured all the evidence gathered from across the project and translated it into a set of intuitive tools which can inform and guide businesses and individuals who are looking to cultivate algae.”
Providing a virtual lab and virtual algae pilot, the DST will walk people through the process of growing algae, the best practices to adopt and the likely outcomes which can be expected.
Aimed at everyone from students to businesses and even policy makers, the DST is there for anyone who needs to access credible scientific information on growing, harvesting, processing and using algae.
“There is nothing which currently exists that is similar to our DST, and we hope it will enable accelerated adoption and promotion of algal technologies,” added Dr Richardson.
“The DST will be managed by the project’s secondlegacy, the Algal Information Network. This network will manage and implement the results obtained by EnAlgae as well as improve cooperation and exchange of knowledge between research organisations and policy and decision makers.
“The AIN, which offers free membership, will also manage support centres across Europe. These will consist of regional information desks, where designated experts will operate as contact points able to offer support and help stakeholders tap into the algae market in each of the North West Europe Regions.”
All the information you need about AIN can be found on its website :www.algae-network.eu
EnAlgae is proud of these outputs and the work undertaken by the project as a whole. Europe has incredible strength in terms of algal research and technology and our hope, with the help of these two initiatives, is that investors will see real opportunities for using this location as a hub of excellence and knowledge to progress the algae industry.
The EnAlgae project is led by Swansea University and funded by the European Union under the INTERREG IVB North West Europe programme. EnAlgae unites experts and observers from 7 EU member states to determine the potential benefits of algae as a future sustainable energy source.
Anyone wishing to learn more about the EnAlgae project can visit www.enalgae.eu.
