For years scientists have been experimenting with bacteria in an effort to solve the dual problems of global warming and renewable energy, a result of the overuse of fossil fuels and the need to develop alternative fuel supplies.

Algae in their many forms already produce up to 80% of the world’s oxygen through the process of sequestration of CO2 from the atmosphere. This is an established and well-known part of the eco-system. Concurrently, the biofuel community has always had the expectation that biofuels would one day play a significant role in our energy future. There has been much scientific research that leads in this direction. The major problems encountered, ones not hitherto overcome, are that global warming and renewable energy, a result of the use of fossil fuels, and the need to develop alternative fuel supplies.

1. to exploit the known science vast tracts of land or sea have had to be employed, and
2. the algae employed has typically simply died before the end of the process.

In summary, the processes employed to date have been wasteful in both resources and space, and inefficient.

GreenCell Research Pty Limited has invented and patented a process that overcomes these problems: the process is compact, efficient and measurable.

Between 1978 and 1996, the US Department of Energy funded research into technologies that could have significant impacts on the consumption of fossil fuels. 

The focus of this research became the Aquatic Species Program, which investigated renewable fuel production (bio-diesel) from high-oil algae species, fed by the waste CO2 from coal-fired power plants. 

Researchers whittled down over 3,000 strains of micro-organisms into the most productive 300, and constructed 1000 sq. meter test ponds outside of Roswell, NM.

The ponds were set up as sort of algae ‘race-tracks’, where algae were circulated around shallow, oval-shaped ponds as carbon dioxide bubbled through the mixture. 

Results were successful and in some ways encouraging, but the program was abandoned after almost two decades, as a result of budget constraints and a preference for allocating resources to researching ethanol as a substitute for low cost fossil fuels.

GREENCELL develops the GNUL Bio Processer

GreenCell Research Pty Ltd has now taken these ideas to the next level.

Utilizing the intellectual property of Ian Wright, GreenCell Research Pty Ltd constructed a number of bio-processors at Yatala, Queensland to prove the concept.

Scientists from the Atmospheric Research Facility at CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, provided advice on algae selection.

To minimize the use of land and water resources, a proprietary bio-processor was created to grow the algae.

Invoplas Pty Ltd, a plastics R & D company, built the processors.

The final bio-processor has been named the GNUL – “lung” in reverse – breathing in CO2 and breathing out O2.

The perfect discrete environment for controlled photosynthesis.

Emulating nature algae are grown and are periodically harvested from the bio-processor: mature algae are dislodged and collected while immature algae cling to a membrane and continue to grow. Light is collected and distributed via vertical rods centered in the growth membranes.

 Oil extracted from mature algae can be converted to biofuels using well established technologies. Thus a double benefit is obtained from a virtuous circle: keeping CO2 from entering the atmosphere, and producing renewable products that will reduce the need for fossil fuels.

The  contain specially-selected species of micro-algae, suspended in water and nutrients; this provides for optimal growth. Fresh, salt, artesian or recycled water can be used in the process, as can poor quality water. A stream of gas is drawn from the exhaust stack by a blower and passed through the bioreactor where the algae, illuminated by synthetic sunlight, consume the CO2 component by photosynthesis.

Algae can also break down nitrogen and sulphur-oxide pollutants. To achieve this, the greater portion of the algae is periodically drawn off and put through a ‘dewatering’ process; this concentrates the algae so as to finally yield a solid algal cake, suitable for oil extraction and other processing. Most of the water (95%) is returned to the bio-processor. The entire process has a very low energy requirement.

 The GNUL can be retrofitted to existing smokestacks, such as those at coal-fired power stations, at relatively low cost with minimal disruption. The micro-algae lock up the carbon in their cells and these can be harvested from the GNUL and the lipids, proteins and carbohydrates then converted into biofuel, ethanol, methane or other useful products, using conventional methods.

Instead of Greenhouse gases being fed into the atmosphere, these are fed into GreenCell GNUL Bio-Processors and converted into usable forms of energy and other useful products including but not limited to:

• Light sweet crude.
• Pharmaceutical grade amino fatty acids, proteins and oils.
• The bio mass can be further processed using the cellulous fibre for fabrics; plant, stock and fish food.
• It makes a high-density insulation material.
• It can be used to feed power stations as a supplement to coal.
• The water involved in the process is recycled and cleaned via the process to a natural standard.

GreenCell Research Pty Ltd is optimistic that the GNUL will prove an effective way to reduce Greenhouse gas emissions at power stations and other industrial sites.

 The GNUL technology opens the door to multiple applications.

Algae types can handle most types of water and industrial waste.

We will find the GNUL designed into the infrastructure of tomorrow’s buildings.

GreenCell Research Pty Ltd has completed preliminary trials on its  methane digester design and has  already had interest from commercial piggeries. 

Further research with stand alone diesel motors has shown that the GNUL design is also effective in the elimination of oxides from the exhaust of stationary motors as well as lowering CO2 emissions.

GreenCell Research Pty Ltd is also confident that the GNUL will be highly effective in the treatment of polluted water – utilizing algae in the same way as conventional methods but in a controlled and compact space.

Use of the GNUL in aquaculture should reduce the blooms of red and blue/green algae and improve the growing conditions considerably.

GNULS are manufactured from recycled, everyday plastics and are specialty moulded using our exclusive patented process.

The same carbon neutral manufacturing process produces very low cost water tanks and methane digesters, which are themselves, recyclable. These are used as component and ancillary parts of the whole system, however, they are stand-alone items in themselves as they can be “blown” to previously unachievable dimensions. 

Metering is via an EPA standard environmental gas analyser.

GreenCell Research Pty Ltd will continue to explore the potential of algae and bacteria in its role as environmental cleanser and is committed to developing the best bio-processor for each individual application.

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• A full-size plant built around a five layer stack of Bellows GNULs is expected to be capable of capturing 5 tonnes of CO2 per square metre of floor area each year.

• The GreenCell GNULs use a two-stage process to maximise input and output. The first stage creates “sporadic water” in the Bellows GNULs and the second stage grows mature algae cells in the FlatPak GNULs.

• A GreenCell GNUL plant, as a fully closed system, can operate continuously 24/7, unaffected by environmental conditions outside the plant.

• The system used by GreenCell does not require prior scrubbing of nitrogen oxides from the input emissions.

• The inexpensive nature of the materials used, the small land footprint, and the valuable by-products produced,mean that the installation of a GreenCell GNUL plant could be expected to pay for itslf within a few years.

• The carbon capture efficiency of the closed system is continuously and accurately measurable by gas content at the input and output points of the plant.

• The GNUL lighting system can be tailored to individual algae species requirements.

• In extreme environments, the GNUL system can be moved underground, unlike open carbon capture systems.