Tag: Algae

Some test animals do get a happy ending after all. Better still, a US research team wants to ensure animal testing can be bypassed in sustainable and cost-effective ways with the help of marine red seaweed, known as Pacific dulse. Following cleaning and drying of the seaweed the US team used an anionic surfactant to remove all its cells,...

Wastewater from soybean production can provide fodder for fish. Meantime, a university research team from the US has been experimenting with wastewater from beer and potato production, as the sodium acetate it contains is a carbon compound offering a low-cost alternative to glucose. Like glucose, it can be a carbon source for the protein-rich microalgae Chlorella sorokiniana. The team...

A robot can clean oceans by dropping harmful seaweed below the surface. Yet in Brasil, a research team has found a new use for sargassum, a rapidly-spread brown algae that stinks out beaches. The team mixed the seaweed with clay, using 20% sargassum in one batch and 40% in the other. These samples were compressed at temperatures of 800-1.000°C...

Sustainable toilet paper made from oranges and aloe vera is helping to seed flowers. Meanwhile sanitary towels and pantyliners can be manufactured using banana fibres. And now, a female-led startup in Berlin is making nappy liners and tampons from seaweed. Dried brown algae is ground into powder and an off-white substance extracted from it. It is free from heavy...

Waste from breweries is a breeding ground for sustainable livestock feed. But the methane produced by these animals during the digestive process has a significant impact on the environment. For a female-led startup in Hawaii, however, the solution lies in a particular species of red algae called Asparagopsis taxiformis (instead of kangaroo babies). According to tests conducted on livestock,...

Seaweed can be used as a fire retardant. In Berlin, meanwhile, a female designer has developed a thin algae-based film and coated it with a natural dye. The aim? To stop still edible food being wasted. Her film changes colour according to the pH value of what it’s covering, reacting upon contact with gases like ammonia, produced when fish...

Recycled glass is saving beaches from erosion; while a remote-controlled buoy could rescue those in peril at sea. Seaweed’s high CO2 uptake means that it is contributing significantly to climate rescue. Still, Sargassum, a brown algae that spreads rapidly (see the 5,000 mile long slick in the Atlantic) has unwanted side effects. It deprives marine life of vital light...

Fire retardants and soft drinks can help reduce CO2 levels. Why? Because they are made from algae. Now, a US startup is using the environmentally-friendly plant to produce organic, black printing ink. The algae is grown using sunlight, water and carbon dioxide from air. First, the natural blue pigment phycocyanin is extracted for use in food. Applying a process...