Lumen Winter 2015 - Flipbook - Page 18
stor ies by Con n i e D u t t on
Sustainability research
supports a greener
future for Australia
Creating a new type of crude oil
Harnessing the sun’s ene
R
T
enewable fuels company
Muradel, co-founded by the
University of Adelaide, could
help Australia become a world leader
in biofuels production.
Led by Associate Professor David
Lewis (BE 1999, PhD 2004), Muradel
is a joint venture between the University
of Adelaide, Adelaide Research
and Innovation (the commercial
development company of the University
of Adelaide), Murdoch University, and
commercial partner SQC.
Australia’s first demonstration plant
producing sustainable fuels launched
in Whyalla in October 2014. Using
Muradel’s Green2Black technology, the
plant sustainably converts microalgae
produced on site, plant biomass and
organic waste into green crude.
Within minutes Muradel’s energyefficient water reactor converts
16 Lumen | Winter 2015
biomass into a green crude oil
equivalent to fossil crude.
Standard oil refining then produces
a cost effective and environmentallyfriendly transport fuel which could
replace the fuels we use today.
“Green crude is exactly the same as
fossil crude. The only difference is that
green crude is renewable,” David said.
“We are also working towards
renewable diesel and jet fuel which could
transform the transportation industry.”
The $10.7 million demonstration
plant will produce 30,000 litres of green
crude per year. It is a first step towards
a commercial plant with the potential to
produce more than 50 million litres of
sustainable fuels per year.
Muradel plans to open its first
Australian commercial plant by late 2017.
Below: Muradel’s 4000m2 production pond in Whyalla.
(Source: Muradel)
he University’s Centre for Energy
Technology (CET) has positioned itself
at the forefront of concentrating solar
thermal power research and development.
Under the leadership of Professor Graham
‘Gus’ Nathan (BE (Hons) 1984, PhD 1989),
CET leads the Solar Fuels project which forms
part of the Australian Solar Thermal Research
Initiative (ASTRI).
ASTRI brings together leading partner CSIRO
with solar thermal research partners from six
Australian universities as well as collaborators
from the United States.
The aim of the Solar Fuels project is
to reduce the operating and maintenance
costs of concentrating solar thermal (CST)
power stations.
To produce CST power, mirrors are used to
concentrate sunlight between 50 and 2000
times its normal strength. The reflected sunlight
is directed along a pipe filled with a fluid or
particles and heated to a high temperature.
Using inbuilt storage capacity, the heated fluid
or particles are captured and stored as thermal
energy in a gas liquid or solid form.
This stored thermal energy is used in a turbine
to produce electricity and can also be used to
supply heat for industrial processes such as in
timber, textile and paper processing.
While common household solar panels
use sunlight to create electricity instantly, an
alternative energy source is required when the
sun isn’t shining.
However, stored thermal energy isn’t
instantly transformed into electricity so has the
advantage of being more flexible about how and
when it is used.
