Domestic Fuel

The World Biofuels Markets conference has kicked off in Rotterdam, Netherlands and the Global Renewable Fuels Alliance (GRFA) is taking the opportunity to highlight the positive influence ethanol production is having on reducing global greenhouse gas (GHGs) reductions.

A third party consulting firm, (S&T)2 Consultants Inc. has produced data that shows estimated world ethanol production for 2011 will reduce global GHG emissions by 105 million tonnes. This equals a reduction of approximately 287,000 tonnes per day.

“This is very promising news,” explained Bliss Baker, spokesperson for the GRFA. “These figures clearly show that biofuels are playing a critical role in reducing harmful GHG emissions around the globe. Biofuels can curb our global addiction to oil – especially considering today’s rising oil prices – and in the wake of the recent United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference in Cancun, this data is proof that biofuels are vital in the fight against climate change.

Of special note:

• • World ethanol production is currently replacing the need for a million barrels of crude oil per day which would otherwise create 545,000 tonnes of GHG emissions daily.
• • In 2010, world ethanol production was 85.7 billion litres and is estimated to have reduced GHG emissions by 101 million tonnes – a GHG reduction of more than 276,000 tonnes per day.
• • GHG emission reductions of 101 million tonnes represents the equivalent of 18.7 million cars being taken off the road or the total GHG emissions reported by Austria in 2005.
• • In cooperation with F.O. Licht the GRFA are predicting global ethanol production in 2011 to grow by over 3% to 88.7 billion litres. This increase in production will result in a 9% growth in GHG reductions.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) is hoping to avoid a vote in the Senate on the amendment introduced last week by Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) that would repeal the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit (VEETC).

Grassley said today during his weekly agricultural media conference call that there are two ways the vote can be avoided. “Either talking him out of it, or denying unanimous consent to bring it up, and I think we can do the latter,” he said. Grassley say he is trying to “reason with” Coburn and urge him to take up the issue within the context of energy legislation so to “have ethanol be viewed as part of an overall energy program” instead of having it be part of the spending bill debate.

According to Grassley, Coburn says he has 55 votes. “He probably needs 60 votes. I think we can probably keep him from getting 60 votes. But, quite frankly, I don’t want anybody on record, if we can avoid it, on the ethanol issue until we get down to discussing it as part of the energy debate.”

Listen to Grassley’s comments in answer to a question by Dan Looker of Successful Farming. Sen. Grassley

Meanwhile, as the future of the VEETC remains unsure in Congress, ethanol interests are reportedly in negotiations on a proposal for moving beyond the VEETC. According to DTN/The Progressive Farmer, representatives from the American Coalition for Ethanol, Growth Energy, National Corn Growers Association and Renewable Fuels Association have been working on a compromise proposal this week, getting input from lawmakers in Washington.

Led in part by the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), the Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels (RSB) has launched the first global third-party certification system for sustainable biofuels. To be certified “sustainable” the fuel must meet a set of environmental, social and economic principles and criteria set forth by the group. The certification process takes place online and there are online tools available to assist in the process.

“It’s one thing to say your product is sustainable and another to prove it,” said Barbara Bramble, Senior Advisor for the International Climate and Energy Program at the National Wildlife Federation. “This new system makes it easy to differentiate between biofuels that are environmentally destructive and biofuels that deliver on the promise of sustainability.”

Many groups and organizations have lobbied global concerns over the development of biofuels including indirect land use, food versus fuel, biogenic emissions and land grabbing. The certification system covers all of these major issues and more including their contribution to climate change mitigation and rural development; their protection of land and labor rights; and their impacts on biodiversity, soil and water pollution, water availability and food security.

“All biofuels are not created equal,” said Bramble. “Bringing accountability, consistency and transparency to the global biofuels market is a giant first step toward stopping those practices that result in tropical deforestation, habitat destruction and increased pollution. The RSB is all about enabling biofuels markets to reward those producers who protect natural resources and avoid negative impacts on local communities.”

The certification system will be operated by RSB Services, which is the “business arm” of the RSB, providing access to the certification process, licensing, and auditors’ training among other activities. During the meetings to approve the certification, more than 120 organizations that included farmers, refiners, retailers, and NGOs came to an agreement. Now the group is asking the marketplace to recognize the industry leaders who are producing sustainable biofuels.

Biotech firm Dyadic International has introduced a new advanced biofuels enzyme at this week the World Biofuels Markets exhibition in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

According to the company, AlternaFuel® CMAX™ has proven to be effective in converting multiple forms of biomass into fermentable sugars which is the critical step in the production of cellulosic ethanol and other advanced biofuels and biochemicals from non-food feedstocks.

The World Biofuels Markets is Europe’s largest biofuels congress and exhibition, supporting the world’s development and search for alternative energy sources. Dyadic’s President and CEO, Mark Emalfarb, will also be presenting the most recent data regarding the performance of AlternaFuel® CMAX™ at the World Biofuels Markets on Wednesday, March 23rd at the Biobased Chemicals session and on Thursday, March 24th at the Advanced Biofuels session.

Gas prices aren’t the only thing on the rise. Utility prices are also going up, up and away. Pennsylvania largest power utility is getting ready to raise rates. As a result, One Block Off the Grid, a clean energy group, has announced the launch of two 90-day group deals on home solar systems. One in Philadelphia and one in Long Island. Using group purchasing power, One Block Off the Grid is offering a 15 percent discount on both solar panels and installation on behalf of Philly and Long Islanders in partnership with panel manufacturer Canadian Solar and installer Mercury Solar Systems.

“With the utility rate hike in Philadelphia and no more cap to prevent further increases, now is definitely the time to go solar,” said Dave Llorens, CEO and founder of One Block Off the Grid. “Our group deal allows homeowners to get panels on the roof much less expensively than they could on their own, but it only lasts 90 days, so we’re urging Philadelphia homeowners who’ve been considering solar to move forward now.”

The way One Block Off the Grid works is around the country, they organize group deals in markets where there are strong incentives and programs in place supporting solar energy. For example, in Philly, homeowners can couple the One Block Off the Grid discount with the state’s Solar Renewable Energy Credit (SREC) program. The Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) has a program where a homeowner can have $17,500 of his or her solar installation costs covered. And the federal tax credit is still available for homeowners to receive 30 percent of the cost for going solar.

“We are pleased to assist One Block Off the Grid in the drive to make solar available to homes and businesses,” said Alan King, vice president of Canadian Solar USA. “This opportunity provides the community a cost-saving advantage to install clean, renewable solar power.”

Jared Haines, president of Mercury Solar Systems added, “We have partnered with One Block Off The Grid in several markets, including Philadelphia last year. We believe our success is driven by our ability to offer local homeowners the best product on the market: a top-of-the-line solar system at great price, installed by one of the most experienced companies.”

The Philadelphia and Long Island group discount on solar kicks off on March 21, 2011 and is available until June 21, 2011. To participate and get a free evaluation for solar over the phone, homeowners should sign up on the One Block Off the Grid website.

Two Illinois companies are working together to produce an ethanol co-product that has a variety of food, industrial and chemical product applications.

Prairie Gold (PGI) of Bloomington, and GTL Resources USA of Itasca, Illinois have agreed to collaborate on the construction of a zein protein production plant. Zein is a high valued co-product that can be produced from the corn ethanol process. Zein is a natural food-based polymer that can be used to make coatings for candies, gum, and pills, as well as confectioners glaze, flexible films, and biodegradable plastics and fibers. Zein is edible and in its pure form is colorless and odorless which makes it ideal for many applications in the food, pharmaceutical, and specialty chemical industries. It has already been used for many years in the pharmaceutical industry and as a textile fiber substitute, but interest in the product is growing because it is a natural substitute for existing fossil fuel based alternatives. However, until now zein has been too expensive to enter into high volume applications.

PGI, a technology development company, has been testing their propriatary Corn Oil and Protein Extraction (COPE) process at GTL’s 110 million gallon ethanol plant located near Rochelle, IL. GTL, in concert with their ethanol subsidiary Illinois River Energy, provides the space, utilities, and feedstock to extract zein protein from corn. In 2009 GTL and PGI constructed a 2400 sq. ft. pilot plant on GTL’s ethanol plant site. The objective of the pilot plant project was to demonstrate the efficient extraction and purification of soluble zein protein from the corn kernel, prior to fermentation. The pilot trials have also provided zein samples for market development activities with customers.

Japan-based auto maker Isuzu has debuted a utility van that will be more compatible with higher blends of biodiesel.

This company press release says the new Reach will not only be green, but it will last a long time, too:

Powering the Reach is Isuzu’s state-of-the-art, biodiesel fuel compatible 4JJ1-TC 3.0-liter turbocharged engine generating 150 horsepower, mated to a Aisin medium-duty six-speed automatic transmission with double overdrive, lock-up torque converter and power take-off (PTO) function. In independent testing, this powertrain achieved a whopping 35 percent better mileage than traditional commercial vans. This impressive fuel economy does not come at the expense of long-term durability; the engine has class-leading B10 durability ratings of 310,000 miles, meaning that 90% will reach that mileage before requiring an overhaul…

Combining efficiency, performance and durability with clean-diesel technology, the Reach offers both low cost of ownership and environmental friendliness—the ideal combination for our times.

You can get the Reach in 10-, 12- and 14-foot versions.

Researchers from the University of Connecticut have come up with a better way to brew up biodiesel.

This article from PHYSORG.com says Professor Richard Parnas, who you might remember from my story last October also is finding a way to use hemp as a biodiesel feedstock, has developed a patented biodiesel reactor that uses gravity, heat, and natural chemical reactions to make the biodiesel and separate the glycerol in one step:

As the chemical reactions take place inside the giant tube, temperatures reach more than 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The glycerol starts to coagulate in opaque swirls inside the tube. Because the glycerol droplets are heavier than the biodiesel fuel, they gradually sink to the bottom, where they are siphoned off. At the same time, the biodiesel fuel floats to the top of the tube and is pumped into a holding tank, where it undergoes refinement before being mixed with petroleum-based diesel fuel and used in the University’s bus fleet.

“That motion and those swirls you are seeing when you look at the reactor are the result of both a chemical reaction and phase separation in real time,” Parnas says. “Phase separation is like what happens when you have an oil and vinegar salad dressing … In other biodiesel processes out there, the reactants are very highly mixed and come out of the reactor together.”

While Parnas’ refinery is producing only about 2,000 gallons of biodiesel a year right now, he hopes a $1.8 million grant from the Department of Energy will help them move that production up to commercial quantities soon.

The 411th Flight Test Squadron at Edwards Air Force Base successfully flew an F-22 Raptor at supercruise on March 18 on a 50/50 blend of conventional petroleum-based JP-8 and biodiesel produced from camelina. The flight was the capstone in a series of ground and flight test events where ultimately the Air Force selected the F-22 weapon system to be the biofuel blend flight test pathfinder aircraft.

The purpose of the test was to evaluate whether the biofuel blend was suitable for use in the F-22 weapon system. According to the Air Force, testing consisted of air starts, operability, and performance at different speeds and altitude throughout the flight envelope. In addition, the F-22 Raptor performed several maneuvers including a supercruise at 40,000 ft. reaching speeds of 1.5 Mach. Supercruise is supersonic flight without using the engine’s afterburner.

“The F-22 flew on Friday, March 18 and performed flawlessly on the biofuel blend citing no noticeable differences from traditional JP-8,” said Jeff Braun, director of the Alternative Fuels Certification Division, part of the Aeronautical Systems Center at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio.

The Air Force has deemed the flight a success and determined that another milestone has been completed. The Alternative Fuels Certification Division is supporting the Air Force’s 2016 acquisition goal to cost-competitively acquire 50 percent of the domestic aviation fuel requirement via alternative fuel blends.

The camelina blend that was used during this test flight falls within the parameters of this goal. More specifically, it falls into a class of hydro-processed blended biofuels known as hydrotreated renewable jet fuels, or “HRJs.” The HRJ fuel can be derived from a variety of plant oil and animal fat feedstocks. In February of 2011, Air Force officials certified the entire C-17 Globemaster III fleet for unrestricted flight operations using the HRJ biofuel blend.

Energy was part of the agenda when President Obama visited Brazil over the weekend.

During his visit, Obama and Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff agreed to launch a Strategic Energy Dialogue, to focus on both oil and biofuels. “Now even as we focus on oil in the near term, we shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that the only long-term solution to the world’s dependence on fossil fuels is clean energy technology,” Obama said in his address at the at CEO Business Summit in Brasilia, Brazil. “And that’s why the United States and Brazil are deepening our cooperation on biofuels and why we’re launching a U.S.-Brazil Green Economy Partnership, because we know that the development of clean energy is one of the best ways to create new jobs and industries in both our nations.”

The two presidents noted the progress achieved under the Memorandum of Understanding to Advance the Cooperation on Biofuels and stressed “the importance of mobilizing public and private research institutions in the two countries to intensify cooperation in developing innovative technologies to produce advanced biofuels, and committed to enhance the bilateral and multilateral dialogue on sustainable production and use of bioenergy.” They also expanded the existing MoU to include the Partnership for the Development of Biofuels for Aviation, with the goal of developing sustainable aviation biofuels.

President and CEO of the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association (UNICA), Marcos Jank, was able to witness some of the Obama visit to Brazil firsthand and noted that several companies are developing aviation fuels based on sugarcane, including a three-way partnership between Brazilian regional jet manufacturer Embraer, engine manufacturer General Electric and California biotech company Amyris. In 2012, the trio intends to stage the first-ever flight using jet fuel produced from sugarcane, using an Embraer aircraft equipped with GE engines and owned by Brazil’s Azul Airlines.

“These developments add to the signs of growing awareness we’ve been witnessing in the United States in recent months about the need to develop clean energy solutions cooperatively and reduce barriers to its trade and development. Even avid supporters of heavy subsidies and steep tariffs that prevent Brazilian ethanol from entering the U.S. market competitively are now openly discussing what happens next, both in terms of technologies and policy. Without admitting it, they’re in fact recognizing that the current situation can’t last much longer because it works against everyone’s best interests. U.S. consumers are being denied access to clean, renewable Brazilian sugarcane ethanol, which could be contributing to lower greenhouse gas emissions and save Americans money at the pump,” said Jank.

Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. is going to develop a 10MW solar installation that when complete will be one of the highest on earth around 4,000 meters above sea level. Being dubbed the “roof of the world,” the solar system will be located in Chek Kang village in the Sangri County Shannan Prefecture, Tibet. The solar system should be completed by the middle of 2011 and when finished, will generate around 20,000 MWh of renewable electricity per year. The energy will be used to help facilitate economic development in Tibet.

According the Suntech, for the most part, the mountainous region has relied heavily on hydroelectric resources for much of its baseload power production. However, a shift in weather patterns has caused droughts to become more frequent and water volumes to drop in hydroelectric reservoirs leading to shortages of electricity. This has caused the region’s economic growth to be stunted. The hope is that the new solar power plant will alleviate peak power shortages and that a consistent and reliable energy load will bring growth.

“With intense sunlight and cool temperatures, Tibet is extremely well-suited for the utilization of advanced photovoltaic technology,” said Dr. Zhengrong Shi, Suntech’s Founder, Chairman and CEO. “We’re proud to invest in preserving the region’s fragile ecosystem by providing an economically-viable and sustainable solution for electricity generation. From the desert sands of Arizona to the peaks of the Himalayas, anyone can look up and harness nature’s cleanest and most abundant energy resource.”

This is not the first solar project in Tibet for Suntech. During the past few years, Suntech has donated more than 50 independent solar systems for schools, community centers, and houses throughout the region. In 2008, Suntech installed a solar system at Mt. Everest base camp to provide trekkers with clean and reliable access to power. In gratitude, a team of mountaineers carried a Suntech flag to the very peak of the world.

Dr. Shi concluded, “As we approach grid parity, we’re seeing a groundswell of appetite for multi-megawatt projects in Asia and emerging markets around the world. I’m confident that China will really turn some heads this year and perhaps even become a gigawatt market. In this exciting transitional period, we will continue to diversify our global footprint to drive solar industry growth everywhere under the sun.”

Here is a feel good story for a Monday. Yingli Green Energy Holding Company Limited’s U.S. subsidiary Yingli Green Energy Americas, Inc. has formed a partnership with GRID Alternatives, a nonprofit solar installer, to provide solar modules for 400 low-income families during 2011. Yingli Americas is a photovoltaic manufacturer (PV), and GRID Alternatives provides renewable energy and energy efficiency services, equipment and training.

“Social responsibility is a key pillar in our mission, and we’re very proud to announce this partnership with GRID Alternatives,” said Robert Petrina, Managing Director of Yingli Americas. “At Yingli, we believe in making solar power an affordable option for everyone, and addressing our local underserved communities is an important step in achieving this — we’re delivering clean energy and job training where it’s required most.”

The team will consist of a network of community volunteers and green job trainees who along with GRID Alternatives will install the 1 MW of solar energy systems in 400 low-income homes. The solar modules will be a combination of those donated and purchased from Yingli at fair market value. It is estimated that over their lifetime, the solar energy systems will generate $10 million worth of renewable energy. The systems will also provide solar PV installation training to thousands of people interested in entering the industry.

“GRID Alternatives is grateful to Yingli for helping us make solar power available to the working families that need the savings the most, while helping build the clean energy workforce of the future. We are also proving that if solar is a viable technology for low-income families, it can work for anyone anywhere,” said Erica Mackie, Executive Director and Co-Founder of GRID Alternatives. “We are thrilled to announce this partnership – which is the first of its kind in our organization’s history – and commend Yingli Americas for their vision and dedication to helping disadvantaged communities in the US.”

Mr. Liansheng Miao, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Yingli Green Energy, added, “We have a long-standing commitment to global social responsibility and to improving the lives of our future generations. That’s why we seek out collaborations such as this one with GRID Alternatives in order to make a tangible difference.”

Everything you ever wanted to know about corn is contained in the latest edition of the World of Corn from the National Corn Growers Association.

This year’s publication, available online now, highlights the wide variety of roles that farmers must play, from environmentalist to technology geek, in order to ensure that both their farm and their industry as a whole continue to meet growing demand in a sustainable manner. A special edition of the World of Corn featuring statistics in metric measurements will soon follow.

“Corn fuels nations around the world; as a food ingredient, a feedstock, a fuel, a fiber, an ingredient in building materials and pharmaceuticals, and beyond,” NCGA President Bart Schott and Chief Executive Officer Rick Tolman note in the introduction. “It is possibly the most versatile crop in the world, and demand is at an all-time high. Most importantly, we are fortunate to have enough corn for all needs and all customers around the globe.”

World of Corn Online

Erratic behavior on the futures market for corn over the past few weeks is evidence that paper bushels, not ethanol, are driving corn prices, according to Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Bob Dinneen.

“Corn futures prices have tumbled by $1/bushel just since March 3, as huge index and hedge funds and other large speculators are pulling out of the market as fast as they jumped into it last fall,” wrote Dinneen in a post on the RFA E-xchange blog this week. “While biofuel opponents have garishly attempted to blame ethanol for the recent run-up in corn prices, the speculative gyrations in the marketplace over the past several months underscore once again that the market is being driven by the whims of non-commercial investors who will never see a kernel of the corn they bet on from their Wall Street offices – so-called paper bushels.”

Dinneen says the big drop in price has been attributed to Japan. “The theory is that Japan, the world’s largest importer of U.S. corn, will dramatically cut back its shipments because major ports were damaged and demand has essentially frozen amidst the turmoil resulting from the earthquake and tsunami. But is it logical that the situation in Japan would curtail corn demand enough to knock $1 off of corn prices (about 14%) in a week’s time, especially when other demand underpinnings haven’t changed?”

The point is this: the market is extremely (and unnecessarily) jittery and volatile because any event that has even the slightest potential implications for corn use often triggers massive over-reaction by speculators. And they move like a flock of sheep; if the bellwether finds a hole in the woven wire, the rest of the flock is sure to quickly follow for fear of getting left behind.

Read more here.

Two POET ethanol plants have each produced 1/2 billion gallons of ethanol. POET Biorefining – Big Stone produced its 500 millionth gallon of ethanol since going online in 2002 and back in December, POET Biorefining – Chancellor reached the same milestone. These are the only two POET plants to achieve this feat to date.

“For years, POET Biorefining – Big Stone and Poet Biorefining – Chancellor, and the team members working there, have been models of efficiency and stability for the ethanol industry,” POET CEO Jeff Broin said. “I remember when these plants produced their first gallons of ethanol, and I am proud to see them now surpassing half a billion gallons.”

Blaine Gomer, the General Manager of POET Biorefining – Big Stone noted, “The entire team at POET Biorefining – Big Stone has worked hard to reach 500 million gallons of ethanol. We have 15 original startup team members still working at the plant. All can still remember the plant startup and first gallons produced in June of ‘02. There have been many challenges and achievements along the way. Today, we celebrate a half-a-billion gallons of clean, green, and renewable ethanol produced.”

According to researchers at the Argonne National Laboratory, one gallon of ethanol reduces CO2 emissions by 6.41 pounds. Therefore, the half a billion gallons of ethanol produced over the lifespan of POET Biorefining – Big Stone have reduced carbon emissions by 1.6 million tons and the same amount has been reduced by POET Biorefining- Chancellor.

“This was achieved by a great team effort of POET Chancellor staff, the POET organization and local producers supplying good quality corn. We are proud of the fact that we are stimulating the economy for agriculture and producing clean renewable fuel for the environment and America,” add Rick Serie, general manager of POET Biorefining – Chancellor.