Biological energy in its purest sense refers to the ability of living organisms to generate the energy necessary for their survival through the use of various micro-processes found within cells. Typically this involves the production and utilization of ATP, the fuel source generated within an organism and utilized to power its reproduction and other processes.

While energy derived from biological processes such as ethanol derived from the fermentation of yeast in plants with a high base sugar content (such as corn) has proven particularly effective for utilization in a number of common energy methods the fact is that this is a byproduct of a biological process and does not take full advantage of the actual energy production that takes place within cells on a regular basis.

Because cellular activity utilizes a large quantity of energy for a number of reasons the result of the consumption and usage of this energy tends to generate a significant amount of heat. A fever caused by a cold or flu, for example, is a direct result of heightened cellular activity within a body due to the body’s natural defense in fighting off an invasive disease.

While it’s true that for most cellular energy processes the level of heat and other energy that is radiated outward from a cell is of relatively low magnitude and therefore unsuitable for most conventional energy usage it does pose a high potential to be used for other means. Biologically powered heat syncs, for example, could transfer heat captured from cellular workings into enclosed systems and circulated throughout an area much like geothermal energy is used to provide both heating and cooling in a number of locations around the world through the use of heat sync devices embedded deep into the ground to tap into the Earth’s natural constant temperature a few meters below the surface.

Other processes are being explored into how to utilize cellular energy directly to create more efficient fuel to be used in a number of applications. The direct manipulation of some cellular particles found in algae, for instance, is leading some developers to create quick, easy to produce petroleum alternatives directly from the cellular process occurring naturally that can help offset our current fuel needs while cleaning carbon dioxide from the air at the same time. Other research is also being done into incorporating biological processes into various other alternative energy sources as well such as improving solar energy collection. This process, however, is time consuming due to the fact that creating a successful bio-mechanical link is proving to be difficult at such a small scale.

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