ALGAL OIL -THE NEXT DIESEL FUEL? A STRATEGIC NICHE MANAGEMENT APPROACH TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF NREL'S ALGAL OIL RESEARCH

Abstract

The present paper analyzes how the experiment conducted by the US Government's National Renewable Energy Research Laboratory (NREL) on algal oil as biodiesel influenced the development of the biodiesel technology. The research, known as the Aquatic Species Program (ASP), was funded by US Department of Energy with an objective of determining the technological, environmental and economical feasibility of using high-oil algae for biodiesel. The discussion is limited on the United States transportation sector during the year of 1978 to the present. Using a Strategic Niche Management (SNM) approach, we examine actors' expectations, their social networks, and methods of learning processes on algae technology.

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40 JURNAL MATRIX VOL. 1, NO. 1, MARET 2011
Copyright ©JURNAL MATRIX 2011
ALGAL OIL - THE NEXT DIESEL FUEL?
A STRATEGIC NICHE MANAGEMENT APPROACH TO THE
DEVELOPMENT OF NREL’S ALGAL OIL RESEARCH
I Wayan G. Santika
1)
, Jackie T. Lava
2)
, Dieu Thanh Ho
3)
1)
Mechanical Engineering Department, State Polytechnic of Bali
Kampus Bukit Jimbaran, Badung, BALI
Phone:+62-361-701981, Fax:+62-361-701128, Email: wayangs@yahoo.com
2)
STEDIN, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
3)
Business Support Associates (Ltd.), Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Abstract: The present paper analyzes how the experiment conducted by the US Government’s National
Renewable Energy Research Laboratory (NREL) on algal oil as biodiesel influenced the development of
the biodiesel technology. The research, known as the Aquatic Species Program (ASP), was funded by US
Department of Energy with an objective of determining the technological, environmental and economical
feasibility of using high-oil algae for biodiesel. The discussion is limited on the United States transportation
sector during the year of 1978 to the present. Using a Strategic Niche Management (SNM) approach, we
examine actors’ expectations, their social networks, and methods of learning processes on algae
technology.
Keywords: Algal oil, strategic niche management, NREL, and aquatic species program
Minyak Alga - Bahan Bakar Diesel Masa Depan? Sebuah Analisis Strategic Niche Management
Mengenai Pengembangan Riset Minyak Alga oleh NREL
Abstrak: Tulisan ini menganalisa pengaruh penelitian minyak alga sebagai biodiesel terhadap
pengembangan teknologi biodiesel yang dilakukan oleh National Renewable Energy Research Laboratory
(NREL) milik pemerintah Amerika Serikat (AS). Riset yang disebut Aquatic Species Program (ASP) ini
dibiayai oleh Departemen Energi AS dan bertujuan untuk menentukan kelayakan penggunaan alga sebagai
bahan biodiesel dikaji dari sudut teknologi, lingkungan, dan ekonomi. Pembahasan dibatasi hanya pada
sektor transportasi AS dari tahun 1978 hingga kini. Menggunakan pendekatan Strategic Niche
Management (SNM), kami menelaah ekspektasi para aktor, jaringan-jaringan sosial, dan metode-metode
proses pembelajaran terhadap teknologi alga.
Kata kunci: minyak alga, strategic niche management, NREL, dan aquatic species program
I. INTRODUCTION
The transportation sector consumes a
significant amount of energy. In Asia alone, this
consumption is expected to rise from 6.9
Quadrillion Btu in 2010 to 10.6 Quadrillion Btu in
2030 [1]. Unfortunately, this sector depends highly
on petroleum based products, an energy source that
is limited and polluting. The Energy Information
Administration (EIA) projects that transportation
will experience the fastest energy growth among
sectors that use energy [2].
The 1973 global oil crisis also contributed to
the instability of the transport fuel regime. The oil
crisis started when the Arabian members of OPEC
announced that they will not permit shipping or
exporting of oil to nations that supported Israel in
its ongoing war with Syria and Egypt. As a result,
prices of oil rose sharply throughout the western
part of the world from $0.25 to $1.0 in just a couple
of months [3].
With this global oil crisis going on and the
growth projections for the transportation sector, the
US government was faced with the challenge of
finding alternative sources of fuel to ensure a
continuous supply to the country. One of the
alternatives is to find suitable renewable sources
that can, if not completely but gradually, replace
our dependency on these remaining precious fossil
fuel reserves. Biomass is seen as one of the major
alternatives and definitely one of the biomass
sources is algae.
The present paper analyzes how the
experiment conducted by the US Government’s
National Renewable Energy Research Laboratory
(NREL) on using algae as biodiesel influenced the
development of the biodiesel technology. The
research, known as the Aquatic Species Program
(ASP), was funded by US Department of Energy

SANTIKA et.al.: ALGAL OIL – THE NEXT DIESEL FUEL? … 41
with an objective of determining the technological,
environmental and economical feasibility of using
high-oil algae for biodiesel [4]. The discussion is
limited on the United States transportation sector
during the year of 1978, when the research was
started, to the present. In the present paper, we only
discuss actors expectations, social networks, and
learning processes on algae technology.
II. METHODOLOGY
The case study methodology is used to
aproach the problem since we are going to answer
the questions of how and why [5]. We use multiple
source of information during data collection. All
data are written materials and mostly collected from
the ASP close out report, NREL website, research
papers, newspapers, and some company websites.
No interview was conducted.
III. THE CASE STUDY
The Aquatic Species Research Program (ASP),
established in 1978, was funded by the United
States Department of Energy (US DOE). The
primary goal of the ASP was to investigate how
waste CO2 from coal fired power plants can be
used to cultivate high lipid-content algae to produce
biodiesel [4]. The project initially focused on
cultivating macroalgae, microalgae and emergents
and using it to sequester CO2 from the coal-fired
plants as well as hydrogen production from algae.
However, after observing that some algae have high
oil content, the project switched emphasis and
focused on growing microalgae for producing
biodiesel [6]. The shift in emphasis was not
mentioned explicitely in [4] however, we can only
infer that diesel production was not the main trigger
for the research but it was CO2 capture. The project
started in 1978 and ended in 1996. From the
research, it was concluded that biodiesel from algae
can replace the US’ yearly diesel demand with less
resources needed [6].
According to [4], the research mainly focused
on the feasibility of the technology and touches
briefly on the social events that were ongoing
during the course of the research. The program
performed several experiments in California,
Hawaii and New Mexico. At the beginning of the
program, no previous experiments were performed
in algae technology, researchers had to start from
the beginning and build a collection of the
different species of algae that can be used.
Demonstrations on open pond systems were also
conducted in an attempt to simulate mass
production.
A reduction in government budget caused the
DOE to terminate ASP and focus its efforts and,
consequently, its finances to the development of
bioethanol. In the close out report [4], it was
mentioned that the technology still requires R & D
and that the cost of biodiesel from algae is double
the cost of petroleum diesel. When the research
started, they projected that the price of crude oil
will continuously increase thus, research was
justified. However, in the early 1990’s the price of
crude oil were not as high as expected. The
situation brought about a change in expectation in
the cost efficiency in the algae technology as well
as the loss in motivation to develop the technology.
The results of the ASP experiment have
inspired private companies to start their own
research work on algae technology. Sky high crude
oil prices are bringing back interest of government
and private entities in this field. Even oil giants
such as Chevron and Shell have shown interest in
investing in this technology [7,8].
2.1. Algae Technology
Algae (singular alga), the most primitive form
of plants, is considered to be an efficient converter
of energy because of its simple cellular structure
[4]. Algal fuel is a third generation biofuel and
compared to the second generation biofuel, algal
fuel is high-yield feedstock (10/kg and 30 times
more energy per acre than terrestrial crops) [9]. In
addition, algae consumes a lot of carbon dioxide
during cultivation therefore also provides a mearns
for recycling waste carbon dioxide.
The technology has been around since the
1950’s where it focused more on using wastewater
to grow algae [4]. The ASP extended algae fuel
concept and developed the technology. The ASP
program collected microalgae species, studied the
physiology and biochemistry of the algae, process
engineering and mass production of the algae
cultivation, and conversion to the fuel process.
Algae were cultivated in raceway ponds where
water and nutrients are continuously fed. Waste
CO2 is continuously “bubbled” into the pond and
captured by the algae. Figure 1 shows the algae
pond schematic.
Figure 1. Algae Pond Schematic [4]

42 JURNAL MATRIX VOL. 1, NO. 1, MARET 2011
Test sites in California, Mexico, and Hawaii
showed that for ponds greater than 1000 m
2
, 90% of
the CO2 injected into the pond was consumed by
the algae [4]. Once the algae are harvested, oil is
then extracted thru the process of
transesterification.
2.2. The US Diesel Market
In the year 1975, the energy demand for
transportation was 18.2 quadrillion Btu, rising to
24.8 in 1996 and is projected to reach 36.5
quadrillion Btu by 2020 [2]. Petroleum products
such as gasoline, jet fuel, and diesel dominate the
energy use in the transportation sector while
alternative fuels remain low. The demand for diesel
fuel is still about 5 quadrillion Btu in 1996 [2].
During the time the ASP program was
terminated (1996), the price of diesel fuel was
$1.141/gallon and the projected 2020 price was
$1.327/gallon [2]. The ASP study showed that the
cost of biodiesel from algae would range from
$1.40 to $4.40 per gallon based on long-term and
current projections indicating that the technology
could not compete with the current and projected
costs of diesel [4]. Since the fossil fuel technologies
are already well developed and optimized, they can
be sold at a cheaper price. Meanwhile, new energy
technologies like algal oil still need to overcome
institutional and social barriers like unclear
government policies and acceptability of the
technology to the public [10].
Despite this relatively gloomy outlook on the
future of biodiesel from algae and there were still
some lessons to be learned on the development of
the algal oil technology. The results of the Aquatic
Species Program were instrumental in influencing
other government departments, private research
companies and oil companies in exploring the field
of the biodiesel from algae technology. It leads us
to the question: How did companies, government
organizations and other concerned parties learn
about the results of the Aquatic Species Program?
What were the types of learning processes involved
and which processes were dominant?
IV. ANALYSIS OF THE NICHE PROCESS
4.1 Voicing and Shaping Expectations
Expectations play a crucial role in the
direction of an experiment. As can be seen from the
ASP’s fate, failure to meet expectations can also
result in the termination of an experiment.
Expectations statements can be classified in three
(micro, meso and macro) depending on the level of
detail [11]. Micro expectations are problem
specific, they talk about artifacts and process to be
developed. Micro expectations influence the local
agenda. Meso expectations are less specific they are
more about the functional requirements of a certain
technology. Lastly, macro expectations are broad
and general expectations. They are the least specific
of the three and give the overall expectation from
the technology.
Micro Expectations. The micro expectations
on the algae technology are that the oil extracted
from the feedstock will have the same (or better)
properties as the conventional diesel fuel. It must
follow the same ASTM specifications for diesel
fuel. The list of ASTM requirements for biodiesel
can be seen in [12] with the importance of each
parameter included.
Micro expectations are mostly from the users
of the algae technology. They are the car
manufacturers and most importantly the vehicle
owners and drivers. These expectations shape up
the research agenda of the scientists/researchers
involved in the algae technology.
Meso Expectations. Meso expectations are
formulated by actors who use the technology and
actors who are involved in policy making. These
are the government representatives, environmental
organizations, health organizations and people
involved in the algae fuel industry.
We recognise three meso expectation in this
case. First, carbon dioxide emissions should be
within the allowed levels of the existing regulations.
This expectation is already taken into account when
the algae technology was considered. Algae
consume a large amount of CO2 during cultivation.
Second, the alternative should use less resources so
as not to compete or affect the food production.
Today's biofuel production through traditional
agricultural crops produces 100 gallons per acre
each year. Through algae based production that
number can increase from up to 10,000 gallons per
acre each year depending on which species is used.
The amount of water it takes for 1 acre traditional
crops can be used to supply nearly 100 acres of
algae bioreactors. In addition, this technology is
expected to address the issue of using food for fuel
[13]. Third, the technology should create
employment opportunities. Algae can either be
grown in the wild or in controlled environments.
Either option will require people to run the plant. In
addition, it may also stimulate growth in the area of
R&D for the process equipment to be used.
Macro Expectations. Macro expectations steer
the technology in the direction where it is expected
to grow by the actors. These types of expectations
are general and try to take into account inputs from
all actors.

SANTIKA et.al.: ALGAL OIL – THE NEXT DIESEL FUEL? … 43
Three expectations are considered. First, the
technology should contribute to Energy Security.
This is arguably the most important driver for the
Biofuels program of the United States. During the
1980’s the US was importing more oil than it is
generating. They have become dependent on
foreign oil. Most of the imports come from the
Persian Gulf, thus, the US is vulnerable to any
event happening in the Persian Gulf which affects
crude oil production. A decrease in supply can
bring about an increase in fuel prices which may
bring about an increase in the cost of basic
commodities. Second, affordability of the
technology. It is expected that once this technology
reaches the mainstream, the cost of investments will
decrease and once knowledge on the operation and
maintenance of algae plants become widespread,
operation costs will also decrease. Currently, the
cost of biodiesel from algae is $ 1,40 - 4,40 per
gallon [4] which is still more expensive than
conventional diesel. Third, synergy of coal and
microalgae. About 25% of the world’s coal
reserves are in the United States. It is projected that
coal will continue to supply the US’ energy
demand. The production of electricity from coal
emits a significant amount of carbon dioxide.
Therefore, there is a need for technologies which
solve the energy crisis and clean up the
environment as well.
4.2 Ups and Downs in Expectations
Expectations in algae technology fluctuated
over time. Ups and downs in expectations will be
divided in two periods, the first period is before and
during the experiment, and the second is the current
conditions. One concern is that the experiment was
vulnerable to oil price fluctuation. Ups and downs
in expectations were, and still are, greatly
influenced by crude oil prices,as dictated by the
Foreign Oil Exporter Countries. This condition is
external and beyond the control of the experiment
and even the regime.
Expectations during the experiment period
(1978 – 1996). Other than energy security, climate
change and synergy of coal and microalgae,
expectations were not clearly stated in the closeout
report. At the beginning of the research (micro
expectation), algae cultivation was dedicated in
wastewater treatment and expected to absorb CO2
emitted by power plants. The expectation shifted
when it was noticed that the algae has high oil
content. New technological opportunity (as
expectation) emerged.
When a new expectation emerged, generated
externally or from previous work, its protagonists
formulated promises about future performance and
functionality to attract attention from sponsors. If
the promises are accepted, they are translated into a
share expectation, new goals, specifications,
requirements and task divisions, for which projects
are developed [14]. Funding increased from one
year to the next.
However, after the boom funding years of
1984 and 1985, funding fell rapidly to its lowest
value in 1991 [4]. Due to external changes in the
project (change in crude oil prices) the expectations
became harder to meet and making the project less
viable. In early 1990’s, fossil fuel prices were lower
than expected and the prices were predicted to be
stable in the coming years. Higher costs in
producing algae biofuel turned to negative
expectation among actors. According to Geels &
Raven as in [14], when learning processes produce
outcomes that do not meet the expectations, this
lead to a backlash in expectations that turn from
positive to negative. When actors’ beliefs turn sour,
networks fall apart and resources are reduced,
leading to decline in development [14]. Aquatic
Species Program funding was eliminated in 1996
due to limited budget available in US Department
of Energy. Negative expectations were used to
legitimate the decision to stop the funding in algae
researches.
Recent Expectations. High oil prices recently
(Northern California retail diesel oil price in May
2008, for example, reaches $4.908 per gallon [15])
has turned back the expectation positively on algae
biodiesel research. New promises are formulated,
new goals are set, new actors get involved and new
networks and researches are established. Oil
companies start to provide funding for the
researches. Chevron in collaboration with NREL
[8], for example, has agreed to fund further research
development in algal strains that can economically
be processed into transportation fuels.
Most of the countries around the world have
ratified Kyoto Protocol as a commitment to reduce
CO2 emission [16]. Sustainable energy productions
such as algae technology regain its momentum in
reducing CO2 emission expectation. Expectation in
algae as a promising oil source also spreads around
the world. Japan announces a slogan to become an
oil exporter country by 2025 based on algae derived
oil [17]. In Australia, Queensland Premier
announced $166,000 in government funding for a
biodiesel plant and algae farm in Townsville, which
would produce around 290 million tonnes of
biodiesel by 2010 [18].
4.3 Social Networks
3.3.1. During the experiment period (1978-1996)
During the course of the experiment of
biodiesel from algae, 4 actors can be observed:
government, users, NREL, and universities. US

44 JURNAL MATRIX VOL. 1, NO. 1, MARET 2011
Government expectations on algae biofuel are
related to carbon dioxide emission reduction,
employment creation opportunity, and contribution
to energy security. US Government acted as
resources of protective regulations and financial.
US Government involved from the beginning of the
experiment in 1978 until it ended in 1996 as the
main financial sponsor of the experiment.
In 1970 government through Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) came out with a passage
called Clean Air Act that gives rights to EPA to
more tightly regulate the emission standards of air
pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, carbon
monoxide, ozone, etc. Although it was not meant to
directly regulate to protect the development of
researches in biodiesel, this act has made the United
States reconsidered to use biodiesel as a cleaner
source of fuel. Another regulation passed in 1992
by EPA named Energy Policy Act aimed at
increasing the usage of alternative fuels by the US
government transportation fleets in order to reduce
the dependencies on foreign fuels [18]. The
regulation boosted researches on renewable energy
sources.
Users may be considered as actors who use the
product of biodiesel. In this case they might be car
manufacturers and power plant owners. The
involvement of car manufacturers has not been
mentioned explicitly in the experiment. This
condition in turn might have weakened the
importance of the experiment as a niche since users
might give critical input in shaping the direction of
the experiment. Car manufacturers’ expectation is
usually related to the affordability of the
technology. Since the production costs of algae
biofuel were higher than conventional fuel prices,
this expectation could not be met. Fortunately, with
the recent increase in fuel prices, the technology is
becoming economically feasible.
The power plant owners simply expect the
synergy of coal and microalgae. As stated in the
closeout report of Aquatic Species Program, algae
technology can extend the useful energy we get
from coal combustion and reduce carbon emission
by recycling waste CO2 from power plants into
clean-burning biodiesel [4]. This kind of
expectations motivated power plant owner to
support the experiment. Power plants owner in New
Mexico, to give an example, provided their power
plants as the site of the researches conducted by
The Roswell.
The termination of the ASP project in 1996
might cause doubt to the feasibility of the
technology. The fact that power plant owners
recently pay more attention to Carbon Capture and
Storage (CCS) technology may indicate that
expectation in algae technology has diminished and
shifted to CCS.
NREL, the laboratory that carried out the
experiment, is the main actor at which all the
expectation, from micro, meso, and macro, are
expected to be achieved. Promises (and promising
researches) that led to expectations are all related to
NREL. NREL should have set high promises to
attract other actors’ attention, resources, time and
money. NREL is classified as the inside firm who
possesses two important resources consisting of
engineering expertise to develop biodiesel from
algae and financial expertise to raise fund. NREL is
the U.S. national primary laboratory for renewable
energy and energy efficiency research and
development.
The laboratory's scientists and researchers
support critical market objectives to accelerate
research from scientific innovations to market-
viable alternative energy solutions [20]. The total
cost of the Aquatic Species Program is US$ 25.05
million over a twenty-year period [4]. NREL
involved in the experiment throughout its period of
about twenty years and played the major role in
implementing and managing the research.
There are also NREL’s subcontractors who
involved in the early phase of the research to
conduct site collecting of different algae species
and in different conditions in the west, the
northwest and the southeastern regions of the
continental U.S. as well as in Hawaii [4]. Their
specific tasks were in growing algae to help the
research in screening, isolating and collecting algae
organisms. After diatoms and green algae species
were selected the subcontractors dropped out the
research. Then NREL researchers focused on how
to improve oil production of these algae species.
Universities, including their scientist and
engineers, are actors that usually work in micro
expectations. At the beginning, a small research
was held at University of California Berkeley’s
Richmond Field Station to investigate the
combination of algae based water treatment and
fuel production. University of California and
University of Hawaii that studied a variety of
fundamental operational issues on small scale tests
from 1980 to 1987 and Georgia Institute of
Technology that combined experimental and
computer modeling worked in late 1980s.
After these actors dropped out from the
experiment, scientists and researchers at NREL
took control the researches and scaled up the algae
mass productivity to large scale open pond
operations and then came up to the conclusion of
the research. There were shifts in actor expectation
from water treatment goals to energy production
and carbon dioxide capturing emphasis.

SANTIKA et.al.: ALGAL OIL – THE NEXT DIESEL FUEL? … 45
3.3.2. Recent social networks
Three actors are recognised in recent social
networks: governments, research centers and
universities, and private company. Recent issues
such as fossil fuels depletion, high oil prices,
energy security, food production security, and
global warming due to CO2 emission have turned
the attention back to algae technology. Algae
technology is believed will contribute in solving the
problems. Governments from different countries
such as Japan and Australia, encourage further
development of the technology and provide funding
for research centers and universities.
NREL is now continuing research on algae
biofuel for jet fuel applications in collaboration
with Chevron [8]. More universities are involved in
algae technology researches around the world
recently. Researchers at University of Tsukuba,
Japan can produce 3.5 grams of dry-weight algae
containing oil from a liter of culture fluid in the
laboratory and they are now also preparing for
outdoor tests [17]. James Cook University in
Australia plans to build a 35,000 tonne algae pilot
farm followed by a 400-hectare algae farm by 2010
which can ultimately consume in excess of two
million tonnes of carbon dioxide and provide algae
oil for a 250,000 tonne biodiesel plant [18].
Researchers at Oregon State University are working
to find an efficient method of processing bio-diesel
fuel and ethanol from one of the world’s most
plentiful organisms–algae–which could lead to
breakthroughs in reducing the world's dependency
on petroleum [21].
Privat actors are new actors that emerged
recently providing funding, time and resources for
new experiments and pilot projects in algae
technology. When the expectation grows positively,
new actors get involved. They replace governments
in providing money for the experiments.
For examples, Green Star Product Inc.
announced that a major breakthrough has been
achieved which substantially increases algae growth
rate of certain strains of microalgae [22]. Another
company named Green Shift has patented CO2
Bioreactor to convert a concentrated CO2 into
oxygen and biomass, and the biomass can be
converted into fuel through traditional means [23].
3.3.3. The role of landscape actor
Landscape, a wider context in which a regime
is embedded, consists of material and immaterial
societal factors such as demographics, political
culture, lifestyle, and the economic system [24]. In
this case, we consider Organization of Petroleum
Exporter Countries (OPEC) as a landscape actor.
Observation shows that OPEC also played an
important role in biodiesel from algae experiment.
As an outsider, its influence can be seen in the
fluctuation of the crude oil prices in the world. Arab
oil embargo in 1973-1974, and Iran Revolution in
1978-1979 followed by reduction in domestic oil
production had increase oil prices in US. The
situation, coupled with Clean Air Act regulated by
EPA as described above, led researchers to consider
other alternative sources of energy [19]. Research
in algae was necessary and started in 1978 [4].
Cheap oil prices in 1996 that made the
production costs of algal biodiesel could not
compete with the cheap oil prices probably became
one of the reasons why the experiment on biodiesel
from algae was stopped. The role of foreign oil
exporter countries was apparent.
4.4 Learning Processes
Knowledge dissemination of ASP’s study
occurred in a variety of ways depending on the
actors involved. Despite the termination of the
program, NREL still made information on
microalgae technology known. After NREL made
its research findings public by putting together a
closeout report and posting it in their website in
1998, it took sometime before activities in the
biodiesel from algae field began. We can only
presume that it is because the actors did not feel the
need to explore more alternative sources of fuel due
to the cheap diesel prices. It was only until early
2000 that companies such as Green Fuel
Technologies (founded 2001) [21], Green Shift
(founded 2005) [25], Solix (founded 2005) [26] to
name a few, began to invest in this technology. Oil
companies such as Chevron [8] and Shell [7] began
to invest money in research and pilot plants for
algal oil production.
Through workshops, like the Workshop on
Algal Oil for Jet Fuel Production, NREL was able
to share the findings on algae technology to users of
the fuel. This workshop, which was organized
together with the United States Air Force discussed
the feasibility of using microalgae oil as bio-based
jet fuel. The two government organizations also
invited experts on the microalgae technology to talk
about research issues related to microalgal oil
production as well as environmental laws and
regulations that may impact the technology [27].
Through forums and seminars, like the
NREL Industry Growth Forum, NREL was (and
still is) able to demonstrate the environmental,
economic and technical feasibility of the
technology to entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and
corporate investors [28].
Through publications of the Aquatic Species
Program Closeout Report and Lessons Learned
Report, universities and private research companies
are able to use the ASP research report further on

46 JURNAL MATRIX VOL. 1, NO. 1, MARET 2011
the issues identified in the report. This ensured the
continuity of NREL’s research on the technology.
The University of New Hampshire even has a group
that specifically addresses the issues raised by the
ASP regarding the technology [6]. Research
companies focusing on algae were also formed.
Solix, a biofuel company, even claims to be a direct
intellectual descendant of the ASP [26].
Through the establishment of knowledge
networks, like The International Network on
Biofixation of CO2 and Greenhouse Gas
Abatement with Microalgae [29], information
sharing and co-ordination of research projects
regarding the technology were possible. NREL is
able to provide technical assistance to the members
who are conducting research on the technology.
Through partnerships with oil companies
further research can be done to make the cost of the
technology compete with current diesel cost.
Researchers from oil companies like Chevron can
provide insights on the diesel market and provide
pilot plants to serve as test facilities for the wide
scale production of algal oil.
Having illustrated the avenues with which the
results of the Aquatic Species Program were
disseminated, we can see that three of the four
methods of learning: searching, doing, and
interacting [5] are present but in varying degrees
and in some cases overlapping with each other.
The universities and private research
companies learned about the ASP by searching.
Since a closeout report and additional information
on the ASP are posted in websites, universities can
easily read about the findings and lesson learned
during the course of the program. Universities can
perform further R&D in the field to develop the
technology further. Chevron learned (or will learn)
by doing through using the technology developed
by the ASP and using it in their test facilities. By
testing the technology in their pilot plant, problems
that were not seen during the experiments of the
ASP can arise and hopefully get solved. The users
of the technology such as research companies,
investors, and also Chevron learned about the
technology by interacting with NREL through
forums, workshops and knowledge networks. This
method, in our assessment, is the dominant method
in disseminating the information on the algae
technology. Through interaction, companies were
able to communicate directly with NREL and raise
their concerns. NREL was also able to demonstrate
the technology and get feedback from the
participants. This interaction between NREL and
the participants of the forums, seminars and
knowledge network contribute significantly to the
growth of the microalgae technology.
V. CONCLUSIONS
In conclusion, we believe that the method of
learning by interaction was the dominant method in
disseminating the information on the algae
technology. Through forums, workshops and
knowledge networks the users of the algal oil
technology such as research companies, investors,
and also Chevron learned about the Aquatic Species
Program. Through interaction, companies were able
to communicate directly with NREL and raise their
concerns. NREL was also able to demonstrate the
technology and get feedback from the participants.
This interaction between NREL and the participants
of the forums, seminars and knowledge network
contributed significantly to the growth of the
microalgae technology. In addition, the process of
learning by searching was also instrumental in the
development of the technology since the
universities and research companies also used this
method to learn about the ASP. The learning by
doing process will become dominant once more
companies put up algal oil pilot plants.
It is also interesting to notice the role of the
landscape actor in the direction of the experiment.
The landscape actor in the form of Foreign Oil
Exporter Countries was influential in the
expectation shift of the experiment and also in the
stability of the regime. The landscape actor which
influenced the termination of the project is also
influencing the current revival in the interest in this
technology. The landscape actor among other
factors, we believe, is giving the algal oil niche the
much needed boost for it to become a problem
solver.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The present paper is the first part of our
project during the System Inovation & Strategic
Niche Management course at Eindhoven University
of Technology. We would like to thank Prof. Geert
Verbong, dr. ir. Rob Raven, and dr. ir. Frank
Veraart for their comments and great lecturing.
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