Ecotec Biodiesel

Palm Oil for Bio-diesel from Palm

Belize’s climate and location offer an excellent environment for the cultivation of an emerging, valuable, and sustainable resource. Palm farming for palm oil will provide a rich source of renewable raw material for the manufacture of bio-diesel fuels. Bio-diesel fuels are immediately compatible with existing diesel engine technology.

The palm oil processed in Belize will be exported for further processing into bio-diesel. On the global market, bio-diesel provides a growing source of income for the agriculture and related industries.

Due in a large part to the British farming of hardwoods before the turn of the 19th century, Belize has thousands of acres of un-utilized meadow land ideal for the farming of palm oil. The cultivation of a palm farm requires ongoing tending and hand harvesting, providing many new jobs and there is absolutely no deforestation required.

FROM WIKIPEDIA:
Thus, by utilizing both the biomass from the plantation as well as the processing residues from palm oil production (fibers, kernel shells, palm oil mill effluent), bioenergy from palm plantations can have an effect on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Examples of these production techniques have been registered as projects under the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism.

Bio-diesel from Jatropha

Similar to palm oil (above) jatropha is another excellent source of oil for bio-diesel. Growing naturally in the Belize environment, jatropha has many advantages over other biofuel crops. Primarily, it is not a food source, it is fast growing and grows well in marginal soil while increasing the fertility of the land. Jatropha can be intercropped with many cash crops such as palm, coffee, sugar, fruits and vegetables with the jatropha offering both fertilizer and protection against livestock. Jatropha yields over 202 gallons of oil per acre per year. Additionally, jatropha absorbs large amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and therefore earns carbon credits.

Bio-diesel from Algae

Algae is the original source of the earth's ancient "fossil fuel" oil reserves. Algae is the richest source of renewable "oil" for conversion to bio-diesel.

Gallons of Oil per Acre per Year
Corn	18
Soybeans	43
Safflower	83
Sunflower	102
Rapseed	127
Micro Algae	5000-15000

The natural growth cycle of algae photosynthesis utilizes CO2 as a food source, thus helping reduce greenhouse gas, one of the major sources of atmospheric pollution. The by-product of algae photosynthesis is oxygen. Harvesting of algae yields 70% oil for bio-diesel. The remaining 30% can be further refined into ethanol and/or used as a food source for some aquatic species (shrimp, conch, lobster, etc.)

Research has been ongoing for decades, only recently, with the increased per/barrel cost of oil, has bio-diesel from algae become economically viable. Belize is natural candidate for the cultivation and harvesting of bio-diesel from algae with It's plentiful water supply, sunshine, and pristine environment.

The research has shown that a typical difficulty of algae cultivation is invasion/infestation by inferior algae strains thus lowering ultimate oil yield. Ecotec is developing a high yield contained breeding matrix for the isolated growth of hybrid algae species in the natural environment. Aside from the harvesting of the algae oil, once implemented, our system will greatly reduce the choking of the natural water ways and restore a healthy, oxygen rich, aqua culture to Belize.

Additionally, Ecotec has partnered to developed a proprietary Enclosed Photobioreactor (EPBR) design which enables the controlled growth and harvesting of hybrid algae species in a totally isolated environment. Utilizing advanced illumination and hydroponic principles the EPBR reduces or eliminates the naturally occurring variables. Still under development and testing, as a modular/scaleable system an EPBR array can, theoretically, reduce the per/acre footprint by a minimum factor of 24. Thus, one acre of land could yield 345,000 gallons of oil per year, 3 acres yields 1 million gallons per year. A geographically independent system, we are currently seeking additional development/investor partners for this revolutionary idea.