Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and Recent Accounting Pronouncements (Policies)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Basis of Presentation	Basis of Presentation - The accompanying unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and include all adjustments necessary for the fair presentation of the Company’s condensed consolidated financial position, results of operations and cash flows for the periods presented. The condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Solazyme Brazil Renewable Oils and Bioproducts Limitada (“Solazyme Brazil”), the operations of which began in the first quarter of 2011, and Solazyme Manufacturing 1, L.L.C, which was formed to own the Peoria, Illinois facility assets and related promissory note in the second quarter of 2011. All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. The Company has an interest in an active joint venture entity that is a variable interest entity (“VIE”). Determining whether to consolidate a VIE in accordance with Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 810, Consolidation, requires judgment in assessing (i) whether an entity is a VIE entity and (ii) if the Company is the entity’s primary beneficiary and thus required to consolidate the entity. To determine if the Company is the primary beneficiary of a VIE, the Company evaluates whether it has (i) the power to direct the activities that most significantly impact the VIE’s economic performance and (ii) the obligation to absorb losses or the right to receive benefits of the VIE that could potentially be significant to the VIE. On November 3, 2010, the Company entered into a joint venture, Solazyme Roquette Nutritionals, LLC (“SRN”), with Roquette Frères, S.A. (“Roquette”), 50% owned by the Company and 50% owned by Roquette. The Company determined that this joint venture was a VIE and the Company was not required to consolidate its 50% ownership in this joint venture. Therefore, this joint venture was accounted for under the equity method of accounting. In June 2013, the Company and Roquette agreed to dissolve SRN and on July 18, 2013, SRN was dissolved (see Note 8). On April 2, 2012, the Company entered into a joint venture agreement ("Joint Venture Agreement") with Bunge. The Company’s joint venture with Bunge (“Solazyme Bunge JV”) is a VIE and is 50.1% owned by the Company and 49.9% owned by Bunge. The Company determined that it was not required to consolidate the 50.1% ownership in this joint venture and therefore accounts for this joint venture under the equity method of accounting (see Note 8). The unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the same basis as the audited consolidated financial statements and, in the opinion of management, reflect all adjustments of a normal recurring nature considered necessary to present fairly the Company’s interim financial information. The results of operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2014 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2014, or for other interim periods or future years. These unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013, as filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on March 14, 2014. The December 31, 2013 unaudited interim condensed consolidated balance sheet included herein was derived from the audited consolidated financial statements as of that date, but does not include all disclosures, including notes required by GAAP for complete financial statements.
Inventories	Inventories - Beginning in 2014, inventories also include manufacturing and related third party contract costs associated with the production of the Company's intermediate/ingredient products that met applicable regulatory requirements. Prior to products' meeting any applicable regulatory requirements, and during scale-up of the manufacturing process to nameplate capacity, a portion of the manufacturing and related production costs are charged to research and development expenses.
Product Revenue	Product Revenue - Product revenue is recognized from the sale of the Company's branded consumer products, which currently includes its Algenist^® and EverDeep^® skin care lines, and from the sale of the Company's intermediate/ingredient products including its Tailored^™ oil products and blended fuel sales, the latter of which is part of the Company's fuels marketing and development programs.

Disclosure of accounting policy for major classes of inventories, bases of stating inventories (for example, lower of cost or market), methods by which amounts are added and removed from inventory classes (for example, FIFO, LIFO, or average cost), loss recognition on impairment of inventories, and situations in which inventories are stated above cost. If inventory is carried at cost, this disclosure includes the nature of the cost elements included in inventory.

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- Definition

Disclosure of accounting policy for revenue recognition. If the entity has different policies for different types of revenue transactions, the policy for each material type of transaction is generally disclosed. If a sales transaction has multiple element arrangements (for example, delivery of multiple products, services or the rights to use assets) the disclosure may indicate the accounting policy for each unit of accounting as well as how units of accounting are determined and valued. The disclosure may encompass important judgment as to appropriateness of principles related to recognition of revenue. The disclosure also may indicate the entity's treatment of any unearned or deferred revenue that arises from the transaction.

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