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| Sep 29 2006, 9:39 PM EDT (current) | jimmiller5417 | |
| Sep 29 2006, 9:38 PM EDT | jimmiller5417 | 1 word added, 2 words deleted |
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JAMES E. MILLER P. O. Box 1172, Belgrade, MT 59714 Email: jimmiller@yahoo.com 406-599-6391 August 8, 2006
Dr. Clifford Montagne
Land Resources and Environmental Science
Montana State University
Dear Dr. Montagne: Permission is requested for enrollment in LRES 470-01, independent study (23400), for the fall semester, 2006. Four credit units are requested. This senior project will be the examination of the science and resources necessary to produce algae for food and fuel in a controlled environment. Use of this living system will be based on the hydroponic production of one specie of alga primarily for food and a second specie for its oil content for biodiesel. The study will examine the science of algae production and transesterification of oil into biodiesel. The deliverables will be two fold: A professional paper in academic format, and a WikiWeb site which will serve as a research archive, publishing medium, interactive forum and a public outreach medium. See: http://montanasynergy.wetpaint.com/page/BUSINESS+PLAN+FOR+SPIRULINA+CULTURE+AND+PRODUCTION SCIENCE The biological and physical science will be applied in the selection of the best fit specie of algae for each end use, including considerations for yield, resistance to pathogens, nutrient requirement, carbon sequestration, ease of management and type and amount of inputs. The collection, transfer and distribution of sunlight will be accomplished by a sun tracker farm of parabolic dishes pointed sun, the light from which, after concentration, will be fed into fiber optic cables which transmit the energy to reverse parabolic troughs which reflect the sunlight onto the growing medium. One or more physicists will be consulted on the best means of creating this system. Carbon sequestration by injection of gaseous CO2 in the hydroponic bath will be studied and a method resolved. Harvest by a rotating, perforated vacuum cylinder will collect the mature algae. Water will be removed from the algae and recycled via a centrifuge and then dehydrated by a waste oil fired, forced air heater. ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY Environmental policy which favors use of renewable sources of food and energy will be applied so as to transfer the science to commercially viable markets. Potential funding with grant, loan and equity funds will be catalogued and preliminarily explored. The legal vehicle is Montana Synergy, LLP; the draft of a business plan is cited above. This WikiWeb, the World Wide Web and other computer resources will be the central intellectual repository. HOLISTIC TOOLS The project is to be approached and completed in accordance with the general holistic principals advocated by Alan Savory in Holistic Resource Management, 1988. The study will also benefit from what I learned through your course, LRES 421. My search for tools will build on these resources and my business and legal background. One outcome could well be my development of talent and experience to become a qualified candidate for post graduate work and attainment of a Certified Education certificate from Savory’s Holistic Management International [ http://www.holisticmanagement.org/new_site_05/CE/CE1_certif_educ.html ]. SYLLABUS The progression of the study to its conclusion will generally follow this course:
- Survey of scientific literature relative to food and oil types of algae, their growth, yield,nutrient requirements, pathogens, biocontrol of pathogens, sources, required inputs, and hydroponic environments.
- Selection of cultivars and design and pricing of growing structures, harvest methods, water and oil extraction, dehydration and processing of meal into flour.
- Transesterification of algae oil and waste vegetable oils and animal fats into biodiesel. Specifically the selection of either ethanol versus methanol and the selection of sodium hydroxide versus potassium hydroxide. The design of the production plant including testing methodologies such as near infra-red spectrometry and titration techniques.
- Selection of location considering cost, availability of water, nutrients, labor and transportation. Design of the plant, including the of growing facilities, harvest and processing machinery, source of carbon dioxide and means of sequestration,
- Application for permits, including local building permits and environmental permits from State of Montana Department of Environmental Quality.
- Completion of a paper including a business plan with financials: Capital cost, Startup expense, Operating Expense, General and Administrative Expense, Gross Sales and Revenue, Net operating profit, Net profit before taxes and after taxes, return on investment and cash flow. The plan will also set forth the marketing plan, administrative and management guidelines.
- A prospectus directed toward funding the project and a preliminary assessment of the SEC and Montana security requirements for a limited, private stock or partnership offering.
