Domestic Fuel

One of the exhibitors at the recent National Biodiesel Conference that I met with was Drew Harrison, Analytical Sales Manager for IKA Works, Inc. The company was displaying its new Bio Reactor, seen brightly lit in this photo.

Drew says IKA is a hundred year old company. Working with a marine science center they helped them build a photo bio reactor to grow algae. They built a prototype which the marine center used effectively and now they’ve come out with a production model which was on display at the trade show. The unit is a small R&D 10 litre fermenting tank with light for the photosynthesis reactions. He says this can be done in larger volumes too. They will work with a client company to build one to the size they need. Their customers will be “anybody who is looking to harvest algae for biodiesel, nutriceuticals, pharmaceuticals and food.”

You can learn more by listening to my interview with Drew here:

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As we’ve reported before, Biodiesel Analytical Solutions is teaming up with Mcgyan Biodiesel. I learned more about this at the recent National Biodiesel Conference when I spoke with David Wendorf, Mcgyan Director of Marketing. He’s seen here in their booth.

David says Mcgyan was formed about 6 months ago as the company to license their new biodiesel technology. It’s a process that uses a fixed bed catalyst using metal oxide to produce biodiesel. They can use all types of feedstock. That makes them flexible and able to choose the least expensive feedstock available. Feedstock is the most expensive component of the production process. He says they started out a couple years ago after discovering the process. Since then they’ve been scaling up to what is now a large size production facility. He says the plant is performing beyond their expectations.

You can listen to my interview with David here:

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Earlier this month, the EPA finally released its new Renewable Fuels Standard, better known as RFS2. It was just in time as both the biodiesel and ethanol industries held their national conferences just days after the announcement, prompting multiple sessions at each gathering to discuss the implications of the new rules.

In this edition of the Domestic Fuel Cast, we hear from National Biodiesel Board Vice Chairman Gary Haer with Renewable Energy Group, who spoke at the National Biodiesel Conference and Expo, and President and CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association, Bob Dinneen, talking from the National Ethanol Conference in Orlando, Florida, and get their thoughts on RFS2.

It’s an interesting conversation, and you can hear more of it below.

You can also subscribe to the DomesticFuel Cast here.

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In case you can’t tell, I’m a big fan of the music of Emily Richards and Jason Brock since I first met them at a National Biodiesel Conference years ago. The photo is from one of the screens that was displaying them during their time on stage at the conference.

Emily announced that she and Jason have been working on a music project since last year’s conference. They’re using a service called CCMixster and have published the first of three albums. This first one is available for a free download right now. It’s already on my iPhone.

Emily says they wanted to create an album of music on biodiesel. They created a project called, “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Remix” or R4. They had about 50 musical contributions from the CCMixter community. The Brown album is the first of what will now be 3 albums. You can learn more about how the R4 project worked with this link.

After the final general session concluded I interviewed Emily and Jason along with CCMixster member Bob Nunnally. Jason describes the CCMixster community and how it fits in well with the biodiesel community.

You can listen to Emily’s comments about the new album project and their performance of one of the songs, Harmony, here:

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You can listen my interview with Emily, Jason and Bob here:

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National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album

With RFS-2 being such an important topic to anyone in the industry right now I conducted another interview on the subject with Larry Schafer, The Diamond Group. Larry moderated one of the panel discussions on the subject at the National Biodiesel Conference.

He says that the EPA has published the regulatory rules on line and there are a number of forms that will need to be completed for purposes of registration. NBB will conduct a number of webinars on the subject before July 1st which is the date set for the regulatory requirements of RFS-2. He encourages companies to get registered as soon as possible. All plants will need to be registered even if they were under the older RFS program. He says registration will take a while but there is time to get registered before the new start date. He encourages you to go to the EPA website for more information now.

I realize there are still a lot of questions about RFS-2 but as Larry says, the rules were just published last week and everyone is working hard to get up to speed on them and what they mean.

You can listen to my interview with Larry below.

National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album

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During the National Biodiesel Conference, Renewable Energy Group (REG) held an outlook conference at which they provided an overview of the company as well as a look ahead. One of the speakers was Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Gary Haer.

Gary says the new RFS-2 gives the industry a good foundation for demand. He says the industry took a step back last year but he sees good market opportunities coming. Another driver for growth will be state initiatives like those in states like Minnesota. Some are in place now or are expected at a future date. He says REG assists in these state processes with staff that work on government relations. Other drivers include the biodiesel specifications that may require labeling in some states.

Gary says that the company plans to have a free webinar available on RFS-2 on February 24th. Information about it should be available on their website.

REG has released several reports that are available for download:

“Feedstock and Biodiesel Characteristics” (pdf)
Steryl Glucosides Study (pdf)
Moisture Study (pdf)
Soap Study (pdf)

You can listen to Gary’s comments below.

National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album

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Here are this year’s National Biodiesel Board “Eye on Biodiesel Award” winners. These were presented during the last general session. Award descriptions were provided by NBB.

Impact: Terry Taylor, Sysco Corporation.
Sysco, North America’s leading foodservice marketer and distributor, has led the way in implementing biodiesel in private industry. The company first began using biodiesel in 2005 as part of its comprehensive sustainability program. Terry Taylor, Sr., Director ˆ National Purchasing, says he saw it as a greener alternative that was a simple way to help our country also reduce its use of foreign oil. Sysco has distribution centers across the nation and in Canada and has a company policy to use biodiesel blends, wherever possible, up to B20. The company today uses about 2 million gallons annually of blended product in its fleet of 9,000 diesel tractors and straight trucks, and 11,000 refrigerated trailers.

Inspiration: Wayne Hettler, St. Johns Public Schools, St. Johns, Mich.
This Michigan school bus fleet manager convinced his district to switch to B20 in 2002. It has since clocked more than 3 million miles on B20. His enthusiasm for biodiesel has helped inspire other fleets make the switch. He has talked to many school districts and other fleets from across the U.S., offering technical advice and support. Hettler also partnered with NBB to provide detailed data on maintenance. His records showed that thanks to fewer oil changes and not needing to buy fuel conditioner, his fleet saved money with biodiesel.

Industry Partnership: The American Oil Chemists’ Society and Gina Clapper.
AOCS is a global professional scientific society in the fats, oils, surfactants, detergents and related materials fields. In keeping with its mission to be a forum to promote the exchange of ideas, information, and experience, AOCS has provided numerous opportunities for those in the biodiesel field to share knowledge, including two international congresses on biodiesel, several publications, short courses, and technical sessions at its annual meeting. Technical Specialist Gina Clapper has been instrumental in coordinating the development and approval of new biodiesel test methods. Faster, simpler, more cost-effective tests help the industry provide high quality biodiesel meeting ASTM standards at a lower cost to consumers. Clapper also has taken leadership roles within International Organization for Standardization (ISO) activities and the Biodiesel Expert Panel of the AOCS.

Initiative: The Iowa Soybean Association, Minnesota Soybean Growers Association, and Nebraska Soybean Association.
When NBB issued a call to action for the biodiesel industry to submit comments to EPA on its proposed Renewable Fuels Standard rules, soybean farmers answered the call. These three organizations led the way for the biodiesel industry in submitting comments into the EPA. They alone generated more than a third of the 8,000 comments biodiesel supporters submitted regarding the proposed standard. The result demonstrated biodiesel’s and the Renewable Fuel Standard’s importance to a broad range of stakeholders.

Influence: Ramiro Lopez, City of Irving, Texas.
Lopez initiated B20 in the City of Dallas in 2002. Since then he has mentored other fleets, and about a dozen fleets now use biodiesel in the area. He has also mentored fleets nationwide, and spoken at national events about his successful program. He now works for the City of Irving.

“The biodiesel industry is blessed with many champions and true believers,” said Joe Jobe, NBB CEO. “Each of these winners has helped carry the biodiesel torch, fostering understanding, mentoring others and encouraging broader use of a cleaner burning, sustainable fuel.”

National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album

If you’ve ever attended a National Biodiesel Conference then you know Emily Richards and Jason Brock. These music stars are passionate about their belief in renewable fuels and have been regular performers at the conference.

This morning they took the stage during the closing general session and played some songs from a new album they’ve put together to promote biodiesel. I’ll have more on that in a later post as well as more stories from the conference. You can also find coverage on the Biodiesel Conference Blog.

In the meantime, I thought you’d enjoy a video of Emily and Jason being joined on stage by National Biodiesel Board Chairman, Ed Hegland and CEO, Joe Jobe. They did a variation of a song you’ll recognize and so give a listen to “Time For A Fuel Change.”

You can also listen to the song here.

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Joe Jobe, CEO of the National Biodiesel Board took the stage to lead the final general session today. I spoke to him afterward to get his comments on the conference and the industry in light of what the speakers have said during the last several days.

Joe says “it’s really been good” referring to the conference. There was an expectation that attendance would be down and especially with the weather and the announcement of the final rule on the RFS-2 last week but people showed up. Joe says that NBB is planning webinars to help the industry understand the new rules. He says that he echoes a feeling of optimism as expressed by many of the speakers who were on the program. Looking ahead he says that the industry is policy driven and NBB will work as hard as it can to “get the policy right.” That includes not only the RFS-2 but a long term biodiesel tax credit.

You can listen to my interview with Joe below.

National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album

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The final general session of the National Biodiesel Conference featured a panel session titled, “Feeding the Biodiesel Machine: Understanding Feedstock Realities of Today and Tomorrow.”

Captivating new feedstocks for biodiesel have grabbed headlines around the world. But which hold the most promise for expanding the biodiesel industry’s immediate and long-term feedstock needs? What’s the secret behind playing the commodities market… and winning? In this panel we heard from industry experts with the inside track on feeding the feedstock machine. They included Dr. Dick Auld – Texas Tech University, Anne Frick – Prudential, Dallas Hanks – Utah State University, FreeWays to Fuel, Mary Rosenthal – Algal Biomass Organization and David Slade – Renewable Energy Group.

You can listen to the panel discussion below.

National Biodiesel Conference Photo Album

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