Category Archives: Bioethanol Production

Algae power reaches for the sky

October 13, 2010   Karl

British Airways and Airbus are supporting a project at the UK's Cranfield University to investigate ways of harvesting algae for jet fuel in commercial quantities.

Air travel could be powered from vast seas of algae growing close to airports within four years, according to researchers and airlines hoping to find a green future for aviation.

Industry giants including British Airways and Airbus are supporting a project at the UK’s Cranfield University to investigate ways of harvesting algae for jet fuel in commercial quantities.

The project gets underway as 1,500 delegates from governments and the aviation industry leave Montreal after the triennial conference of the International Civil Aviation Organization, which finished on October 8.

Targets to improve fuel efficiency up until 2050 were agreed at the conference, but many believe the organization is moving too slowly.

Steven Tebbe, a consultant advising the industry on improving its green credentials, pointed out that the best airlines are improving their fuel efficiency by around 1.5 percent a year, but the aviation industry as a whole is growing by 4 to 5 percent a year.

Other measures, including alternative low carbon fuels and economic incentives will be needed make air travel greener, he said.

The key to sustainability is not putting all your eggs in one basket.
–Professor Feargal Brennan, Cranfield University

Researchers at Cranfield argue that algae present a better option than other bio fuels because they do not compete with land for food production.

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New enzymes yield “sustainable biofuel”

October 11, 2010   Karl

New enzymes yield "sustainable biofuel"

Researchers at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences at Aas, Norway, claim to have broken the code for hyper-effective production of biofuels.

The discovery of a whole new type of enzymes may lead to optimized production of biofuels, enabling a switch from the use of food plants to use of less valuable biomaterials, the scientists believe.

The production of biofuels has long been the subject of heated discussion, because much of the current production of bioethanol comes from food plants, such as sugar cane, maize, rapeseed and othercrops that occupy land dedicated to food crops.

This conflict may now be resolved due to the discovery of new enzymes by researchers at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences. With these novel enzymes the decomposition and conversion of other types of biomass – such as straw, forestry waste products and the by-products from food production – to biofuels becomes highly effective.

“Major breakthrough”

“Our research team has discovered a totally new type of enzyme, which helps break down cellulose and other robust sugar polymers in biomaterials, such as chitin, found in prawn shells. We have got this new enzyme to work, which means that enzymatic decomposition goes much faster,” says Researcher Gustav Vaaje-Kolstad.

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Bioheat Focus of National Biodiesel Board Webinar

October 06, 2010   Karl
biofuel_plants

Bioheat Focus of National Biodiesel Board Webinar

The success of New York City’s 2 percent biodiesel requirement in heating oil … a mix known as bioheat … was recently touted during a webinar hosted by the National Biodiesel Board (NBB).

City Councilman James F. Gennaro, who spearheaded the Big Apple’s bioheat mandate, explained that New York started with using biodiesel in its heavy duty truck fleets. That success led to including biodiesel in the city’s one billion gallon a year heating oil plans.

“I saw this as a great way to move in a very good direction and help us clean the air in New York City.”

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UC researchers win 2010 Earth award to bring Biofuel foam to market

October 05, 2010   Karl
earth awards

2010 Earth Awards

A  University of Cincinnati professor won a 2010 Earth Award, a global award for innovative, consumer driven ideas, for an artificial photosynthetic foam that can be converted into biofuel.

David Wendell, PhD, assistant professor of biomedical engineering and civil and environmental engineering designed the foam with Carlo Montemagno, PhD, dean of the College of Engineering and Applied Science.
Wendell won the award, which comes with $50,000 to bring it to market.
The foam pulls energy from the sun and carbon from the air and converts it into sugars. Those sugars can be turned into biofuels like ethanol which power some cleaner burning vehicles. The foam’s design is based on the foam nests of the semi-tropical Tungara frog, whose long-lived foams nurture growing tadpoles.

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Biofuel developer Aurora Algae expands Australia operations

October 05, 2010   Karl
Aurora ALGAE

Biofuel developer Aurora Algae expands Australia operations

US-based algae biofuel developer Aurora Algae is to expand its Australia operations by opening new regional headquarters in West Australia’s capital of Perth and ramping-up commercial operations in the region.

The new office will be led by Australian managing director and Aurora Algae co-founder Matthew Caspari, who will oversee the construction and operation of the company’s first commercial-scale facility in the northwest region of Australia.

Aurora said it plans to more than double its number of employees by the end of the year.

The expansion closely follows Aurora’s launch of the industry’s first photosynthetic platform for the production of sustainable products.

In the third quarter of 2010, the company announced its expansion of its product portfolio to include renewable fuels as well as various food products.

‘As we searched for the ideal location of our first commercial production facility, we identified a number of key factors that were critical to delivering maximum value from our high-tech farming process,’ said Caspari.

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Malaysia considers cutting diesel subsidy to boost biofuels

October 04, 2010   Karl
Malaysia biofuel

Cutting diesel subsidy to boost biofuel

Malaysia said Monday it would consider cutting a diesel subsidy next year in a bid to make its biofuel industry more attractive after production of the alternative fuel virtually ground to a halt.

Malaysia has aims to become a global leader in biodiesel, but the once-vaunted industry has come to a standstill since March, when the government delayed a move to require oil companies to sell it alongside conventional fuels.

The plan was originally due to take effect in 2007 but will not now come into force until June 2011.

Malaysia Palm Oil Board (MPOB) figures show that the production of biodiesel, a mixture of diesel and five percent processed palm oil, dropped 99 percent from 12,640 tonnes in March to just 137 tonnes in July.

Plantations and Commodities Minister Bernard Dompok said the government was looking at cutting the subsidy for diesel, which currently costs 1.75 ringgit (0.58 dollars) per litre, to encourage the use of the biofuel.

“Because of the subsidy on diesel, it has somewhat distorted the price for biodiesel to be utilised,” Dompok told reporters at the sidelines of a palm oil conference.

“There is an element of increase in the pump price (of diesel) and this is what the government is looking at I think by 2011.”

He said the new rule on biofuel sales was on track for June next year, with the government providing funds to several oil firms, including Malaysia’s Petronas, to set up biofuel blending facilities.

The fall of oil prices from mid-2008 highs, when biofuels were a significantly cheaper alternative, has led many to stick to conventional fuel, raising questions over the future of biodiesel.

The rising price of Malaysia’s palm oil means the cost of manufacturing biofuels is high, and industry leaders are concerned they cannot cover their costs without government subsidy.

Malaysia has approved 56 licences for biodiesel output, which would create a production capacity of 6.8 million tonnes, but most plants have not been set up.

Malaysia aims to produce 17.8 million tonnes of palm oil this year with the country’s second largest palm oil firm, IOI, bullish that prices would hit the 3,000 ringgit per tonne benchmark “soon” due to tight supply.

“There are rains every day and we have a labour shortage (on the plantations),” IOI executive chairman Lee Shing Cheng said, adding that he believes the government is working to resolve the labour shortage.

Palm oil was trading between 2,650 to 2,700 ringgit per tonne on Monday.

Malaysia is the world’s second-largest exporter of palm oil after Indonesia, and the two countries account for 85 percent of global production.

Source mysinchew.com

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Hardest part of reaching biofuel goal awaits

October 03, 2010   Karl
biofuel sticker

halfway to achieving its goal of 36 billion gallons of renewable transportation fuel

The United States is roughly halfway to achieving its goal of 36 billion gallons of renewable transportation fuel by the year 2022, but the last half likely will be harder, and probably more expensive, than the first.

John Whitaker, Iowa executive director for Farm Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, told a symposium last week that as many as 527 new biofuel plants will be needed, in addition to the 171 ethanol plants now working, to meet the mandate.

The cost: $168 billion.

“Corn ethanol has gotten consumers to accept ethanol as a fuel,” Whitaker said. But he noted that the congressionally imposed mandate sets a 16 billion-gallon limit on ethanol’s contribution to biofuels. The rest has to come from other sources such as switchgrass and miscanthus, algae, wood biomass and electrification.

Robert Brown, who directs biofuels research at Iowa State University, observed that Iowa and other corn states contributed to the big surge in ethanol production in the last decade without major technological breakthroughs.

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Waste grease & oil thefts on the rise

October 02, 2010   Karl

Used cooking oil targeted for making biofuel

It’s almost like a blast from the past. We got somewhat used to stories of people stealing waste grease from outside restaurants back in 2008 when gas was costing four-plus dollars a gallon. Whether because today’s national average of $2.70 is still to high for some people or because the poor economy is encouraging people to do illegal things, grease thefts are on the rise out there.

The National Renderers Association, which takes the used cooking oil and turns it into biofuel, is currently conducting a survey to discover just how much grease is being stolen these days. Tom Cook, the NRA president, told USA Today that:

Virtually all of our members who are in the business of picking up used cooking oils are experiencing grease theft to some degree or another, in some cases, pretty significantly.

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Ford Scientists Look To Algae As Potential Biofuel

October 02, 2010   Karl
ford_focus_bio_ethanol_green_car

Ford Scientists Look To Algae As Potential Biofuel

Ford scientists are working to understand the suitability of renewable sources such as algae as potential automotive biofuels. This effort is an integral part of Ford’s desire to better understand the use of biomass to produce future biofuels as part of an overall strategy to reduce the nation’s dependence on foreign oil and address climate change.

“Ford has a long history of developing vehicles that run on renewable fuels; and the increased use of biofuels is an important element of our sustainability strategy now and moving forward,” said Tim Wallington, technical leader with the Ford Systems Analytics and Environmental Sciences Department. “We look ahead from a technological, economic, environmental, and social standpoint at potential next-generation renewable fuels that could power our vehicles.”

Algae for oil Industry forecasters and trend magazines such as The Futurist have highlighted “algae for oil” as one of the hottest technologies and thought-provoking ideas for 2010.

Algae biofuel research received an added boost this spring when the House of Representatives introduced a bill (HR 5142) –known as the GREEN JOBS Act of 2010 – to encourage investment tax credits for algae-based biorefineries.

This year, Ford researchers visited Wayne State University’s National Biofuels Energy Laboratory, which is actively analyzing suitable algae strains that could be used as a feedstock for biodiesel. The Ford researchers, part of the company’s Systems Analytics and Environmental Sciences Department, also have conducted in-house research on the opportunities and challenges of producing biodiesel from algae oil.

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Growth of biofuel industry hurt by GMO regulations

October 02, 2010   Karl
Regulations

Growth of biofuel industry hurt by GMO regulations

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Faster development of the promising field of cellulosic biofuels – the renewable energy produced from grasses and trees – is being significantly hampered by a “deep and thorny regulatory thicket” that makes almost impossible the use of advanced gene modification methods, researchers say.

In a new study published today in the journal BioScience, scientists argue that major regulatory reforms and possibly new laws are needed to allow cellulosic bioenergy to reach its true potential as a form of renewable energy, and in some cases help reduce greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming.

“It’s extraordinary that gene modification technology, which has been adapted more rapidly than any other technology in the history of agriculture, and had some profound environmental and economic benefits, has been regulated virtually out of existence for perennial cellulosic biofuels crops,” said Steve Strauss, a distinguished professor of forest biotechnology at Oregon State University, and lead author of the paper.

In the report, the authors noted that exotic plant species pose a serious risk of spread and ecosystem impacts, but face much less stringent regulation or obstacles than genetically engineered crops, which are carefully designed to solve problems, not cause them.

A genetically modified plant in which one or a few genes have been changed is treated as more of a risk than an invasive species that has thousands of new genes, and as a result is often resistant to multiple pests and has novel adaptive traits such as drought and heat tolerance, they said.

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