Algae research innovation delivers a breath of fresh air
Celebrating the UTS research unlocking the potential of algae to solve modern problems
This Wednesday 12th October marks World Algae Day, and though it might not be the premier event in your social calendar, there is plenty to celebrate about algae at UTS.
Over the last decade, research into algae and algae biotechnology has grown to become a cross-disciplinary research strength at UTS. Chemists, geneticists, engineers, designers and innovation experts are working with pioneering businesses and companies to harness the potential of these aquatic ‘plants’ to produce valuable materials, without the carbon footprint.
Algae is a photosynthetic organism that grows in water, and like its plant descendants, produces valuable carbon-based compounds within its cells through photosynthesis. You may have already consumed algae-based products this morning for breakfast, in the form of carrageenan, a red-algae compound commonly found in plant-based milks and yoghurts. You have definitely consumed algae’s primary photosynthetic by-product, oxygen (which by the way, didn’t exist in the atmosphere until algae evolved) and benefitted from the protection of the ozone layer, formed by algae’s ancient ancestors around 600 million years ago.
This is the amazing story of an ancient and little known organism that has the potential to transform the way we live, produce and consume.
Algae are the earliest ancestors of all plants, first appearing around 2.5 billion years ago.
Since then they have diversified to somewhere between 30 000 to 1 million different species, coming in all different shapes and sizes.
Microalgae are tiny cells, invisible to the naked eye and smaller than the diameter of a human hair.
Macroalgae are more complex and made of many cells - with some species, like kelp, reaching lengths of nearly 60m.
Anywhere there is water, algae can grow. They are abundant in the oceans and in rivers, lakes and streams.
Most algae are photosynthetic, which means they use the sun’s energy to turn water and carbon dioxide in the air into sugar for energy.
Algae are the forests of the ocean, and collectively produce up to 50% of the Earth’s oxygen - you can thank algae for every second breath you take.
Just like plants, algae convert the sugars from photosynthesis into 3 important products to build their cells - protein, carbohydrates, and oils. .
But they can do this much faster, with some species able to double in size in just 24 hours.
Furthermore, algae only needs a fraction of the land area and water to grow the same amount of protein in a steak or a piece of tofu.
This means algae doesn’t compete for land or precious resources.
Algae are efficient and sustainable little biofactories, and scientists and business are exploring algae alternatives for a variety of industries - including food, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, animal feed for livestock and aquaculture, pigments, fertiliser, bioplastic for packaging, and materials for clothing and footwear.
Algae can even utilise waste streams to grow - including excess nutrients from wastewater and captured carbon dioxide from industry.
In this way, algae can create products and processes that are carbon neutral, climate friendly, sustainable and better for the health of communities and the environment.
A greener, brighter future is possible with algae.
To learn more visit us at the Deep Green Biotech Hub.
This ability to produce a variety of useful compounds - all whilst absorbing carbon dioxide - is what is getting researchers, businesses, manufacturers, consumers and policymakers excited about algae.
The prospect of being able to produce materials without the carbon and land footprint of traditional fossil-fuel derived or agricultural materials is one of hope and utmost necessity as the global population swells in a rapidly warming world.
So what algae projects are happening at UTS? Algae innovation at UTS is helping to shift key sectors of the economy away from dependence on fossil fuels. Read on to explore how algae has taken over exciting Australian events, is being leveraged by startups, tackling carbon emissions, and even features in a speciality-build, world-first facility right here on the UTS campus!
The music, the mud and the algae.
The team at Deep Green Biotech Hub were back alongside Australian music stars, as UTS and Splendour in the Grass returned to the North Bryon Bay Parklands after a two-year hiatus.
The Living lights installation glowed green by day and multiple colors at night. Festival-goers shared with the DGBH Algae team their dreams for a green future and some algae love!
In July 2022, festival goers at Australia’s largest music festival, Splendour in the Grass, were in for a surprise. As they walked through the mud, thousands of green, microscopic organisms were putting on a show, all while absorbing carbon dioxide from the air.
As the UTS “algae crew” spoke to everyone young and old about the magic in the Living Lights algae installation tubes, everyone walked away with a new appreciation for algae, a better understanding of how algae can create a greener global future, and how UTS is on the forefront of this exciting research space.
But the take home message for everyone was clear, according to one festival-goer: “algae is a total catch!”.
Even Costa Georgiadis, host of ABC’s Gardening Australia and plant photosynthesis enthusiast, stopped by the Living Lights installation to share a love-note for algae (opens external site).
“We have so much to learn from [algae],” he said. “That’s what is exciting – the unknown – and the opportunity to turn the unknown into opportunity!”.
The algae on site would absorb the same amount of carbon dioxide as one hectare of Australian bush, turning it into oxygen with just the simple help from the sun, oxygen and some water. After the fun ended, the algae were returned to the soil to fertilise and help the festival grounds recover from thousands of dancing feet.
Although the music line-up is what draws people in, throughout the festival, culture, art and science shined through, with science superstars enchanting audiences in the Splendour Forum Science Tent, such as Dr Karl, Costa Georgiadis, and Anjali Sharma taking centre stage at The Science Tent. (Opens in an external site)
GreenLight – ready, set, algae!
Deep Green Biotech Hub is back again for another round of the Green Light Accelerator program, dedicated to supporting and strengthening the algae biotech solutions being pioneered by small businesses and startups in NSW.
Green Light teams learn to refine, develop and pitch their business idea and grow networks with business, industry and research leaders (Photo: Yeah Rad)
Have you got a game-changing algae idea that is keeping you up at night?
After successfully graduating 3 cohorts of the Green Light program in 2019-2020, the Deep Green Biotech Hub (DGBH) is back once again to accelerate and illuminate innovation from budding and established algae businesses in NSW. The 12 week curated Green Light program is set to kick off in February 2023, with teams having the opportunity to work with a research mentor from DGBH’s host research institute, The UTS Climate Change Cluster, as well as a dedicated entrepreneurial facilitator to grow their business.
Applications are open now for the 2023 cohort. Interested in learning more?
Visit the DGBH website to learn more and submit an expression of interest.
Introducing the Green Genie
Green Genie is a new, innovative leap forward in ‘carbon capture and use’ that repurposes waste water and carbon emissions into algae biomass ready to be transform into commercial products – all within a shipping container!
Green Genie is an algae bioengineering system in a 6m shipping container (Image credit: Vanessa Hung, Studio Stu)
Green Genie is a next generation carbon capture technology that utilises the photosynthetic abilities of algae to trap carbon at a rate 20 times the efficiency of previous platforms.
Developed by UTS scientists and engineers at the UTS Faculties of Science and Engineering and Information Technology, the Green Genie technology can fit inside a standard six-metre shipping container. It can be used for direct-air carbon capture, wastewater treatment, or algae biomass production in an affordable, effective, and scalable manner.
Due to its modular size and technology, Green Genie can be integrated into various industrial processes, such as power generation, waste incineration, and brewing, as a circular means to repurpose waste products. Once the algae is grown, the biomass can be harvested, and used for a broad range of purposes, such as biofuel production, chemicals, bioplastics, fertiliser and agricultural feed products.
Read more about Green Genie here
(Image: Emma Fineran)
A world first: Algal Phenomics Facility
The Climate Change Cluster (C3) have opened a world-first phenomics facility designed for rapid screening of algal strains and transformants, in a fully automated and multi-instrumented laboratory.
A sense of the scale: for each run of the Phenomics Facility system, there are a possible of 4608 samples that can be tested at once.
The first of its kind anywhere in the world, the UTS Algal Phenomics facility is an exciting leap forward for science. The facility can rapidly screen, test, and evolve algal genetic strains, and determine the potential for each algae species/strain in developing new products, accelerating production and innovative sustainable biology.
Phenomics has been used for hundreds of years to improve the quality and yield of food types over generations of breeding cycles and trial and error. Whereas within the new Phenomics facility, these insights into optimal algal properties can be gleaned within days.
This facility utilises robotics and artificial intelligence to identify “elite” algae strains with preferable traits, as well as the optimal light, carbon dioxide and nutrient conditions under which these algal strains thrive. These algae strains can be rapidly grown and utilised for tailored research and commercial purposes, such as identifying a species highly suited for making a new food or plastic.
The algal phenomics facility will enable the accelerated development of sustainable micro and macroalgae solutions for agricultural and environmental sectors by drastically shortening the timeframes for trialling and obtaining knowledge about algal properties.
Learn more about the Facility here.
Start the conversation
Does algae spark your interest? To learn more about how you can apply algae innovation to your research or industry problem. Get in touch.
Dr. Alex Thomson Industry, Engagement Manager Climate Change Cluster (C3)
Alexandra.thomson@uts.edu.au
