Bioenergy Technologies Office

What’s Happening with the AlgaePrize Finalist Teams?

There is more to algae beyond the sea—and the AlgaePrize finalists are showing us how versatile algae can be! From developing software that promotes bioenergy and extracting electrolytes for use in batteries, to growing algae in the desert and designing 3D-printed petri dish modules, the AlgaePrize teams are doing incredible work advancing algae technologies.

The U.S. Department of Energy Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) is excited to share what’s happening with the AlgaePrize competition. The finalist teams have been working hard to bring their innovative algae ideas to reality. Here's a brief update on what the teams have accomplished so far:

1. Algaeorithm: is improving their software algorithm to better predict algae cell growth.
2. Advanced Cultivation Monitoring E (A.C.M.E): designed their initial 3D-printed disposable petri dish modules and have started developing them.
3. FitoEnergy Team: successfully extracted sodium alginate from sargassum and is working on the next stage of solid-state electrolyte development.
4. Keep Calm and Chlamy On: successfully created a long-chain, algae-based monomer to use in polyol formulations.
5. Kelp! I Need Some Algae: located algae beds that are easily accessible and have purchased and acquired materials for the structure they will be deploying.
6. PhycoSight: engineered a new data processing pipeline that extends object detection and segmentation protocol.
7. Polyculture Jam: managed to grow a variety of algae strains in their shaking platform in preparation for inoculating batch cultures.
8. Pond Doctors: identified a set of 87 potential abiotic stress biomarkers for their PondDoctor tool.
9. PUPR AlgaePrize Team: achieved a breakthrough in creating 120 grams of filament containing 30% algae powder without any additives.
10. Purdue ChemE: made steady progress in developing a techno-economic analysis and is close to completion.
11. The Clean Water Cultivators: collected samples for testing and are building their photobioreactor design.
12. The Cyantific Method: assembled a construct in algae cloning and has identified updated far-red light-harvesting genes to target.
13. Toxic Ambrosia Salad: introduced algal polycultures to the first level of their upscaling process and is monitoring the growth rate.
14. UC Davis Giant Kelp Team: is close to finalizing the quantification of their first round of extractions.
15. Underground Ocean Farmers: is working to cultivate seaweed using brackish water from underground aquifers in the desert state of New Mexico.

All fifteen teams are making great progress with their respective projects, and it is exciting to see their innovative ideas coming to life. We can't wait to see what they achieve in the coming months! Learn more on the AlgaePrize website.

The AlgaePrize competition is sponsored by BETO, in partnership with the Algae Foundation and National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Through the AlgaePrize, BETO is committed to fostering a competitive environment that values and celebrates the diversity of student’s ideas, cultures, and educational backgrounds. The AlgaePrize recognizes that a diversity of thought fosters a diversity of scientific ideas, which brings new and innovative solutions to address the nation’s bioenergy needs. Through this challenge, students will gain real-world science, technology, engineering, and mathematics experience, helping to develop the next generation of bioenergy professionals.

Stay up-to-date with the latest AlgaePrize news

Sign up for BETO updates! And follow the AlgaePrize hashtag (#AlgaePrize) on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.