Domestic Fuel

A Texas company is moving forward with technology that converts non-food biomass into chemicals that can be processed into ethanol and other renewable fuels.

Terrabon has developed and is currently licensing its MixAlco™ biomass conversion technology to commercial customers. The company will dedicate its research facility on November 7 in Bryan, Texas to test the scaled-up commercial feasibility of the MixAlco technology.

Terrabon CEO Gary Luce addressed the National Renewable Resource Laboratory’s (NREL) 21st Growth Forum meeting this week in Denver. “Terrabon’s MixAlco technology is a cost effective, sustainable solution to the urgent need to produce biofuels and bio-chemicals that satisfy the world’s appetite for renewable energy resources and reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil,” Luce said. “MixAlco, which was inspired by the digestive processes of the ordinary cow, is an advanced bio-refining process that employs carboxylic acid fermentation followed by downstream chemistry to convert biomass products such as municipal solid waste, sewage sludge, forest product residues and non-edible energy crops, into industrial chemicals and renewable gasoline.”

When completed, the new semi-works facility in Bryan will have the loading capacity of 400 dry tons of biomass, equal to a loading rate of five dry tons per day. The Company will use sorghum as the primary feedstock with the objective of producing organic salts and converting them to ketones, which can be converted to renewable gasoline. The MixAlco technology has already been successfully tested for the past three years at Terrabon’s pilot plant in College Station, Texas.

The Illinois Corn Growers Association today unveiled two landmark studies on ethanol that conclude production of the biofuel leaves a smaller carbon footprint than gasoline and has substantial room for growth without affecting corn supply to the food and feed sectors.

Dr. Steffen Mueller, principal research economist at the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Energy Resources Center, studied the carbon footprint of the Illinois River Energy facility near Rochelle, Illinois which produces 55 million gallons of ethanol annually.

“We looked at the global warming and land use impact of corn ethanol produced at the Illinois River Energy ethanol plant — which is a modern, natural gas fueled facility — on a full life-cycle basis,” said Mueller. “We found conclusively that the global warming impact of the modern ethanol plant is 40 percent lower than gasoline. This is a sizable reduction from numbers currently being used by public agencies and in the public debate. The study also documents the significant net energy benefits of ethanol when compared to gasoline. And, additional opportunities exist to expand that margin even more through technological improvements and on farm changes in corn production that reduce green house gas emissions. Furthermore, corn supply for the ethanol plant was primarily met through yield increases in the surrounding area and, as documented with satellite imagery, without conversion of non agricultural land to corn.”

The study by Ross Korves, economic policy analyst at ProExporter Network, analyzed the consequences of a technology-driven revolution that is occurring throughout America agriculture which would see average corn production increase from 155 bushels an acre today to 289 bushels over the next two decades. The study suggests that sufficient amounts of corn will be available to increase ethanol production from the current level of 7.1 billion gallons last year to 33 billion gallons by 2030 with current technology. The study also factors in increased future demand for corn from both export and livestock (feed) sectors. Korves also looked at the environmental impact of ethanol production, predicting that the global warming impact (GWI) of the average ethanol plant would decline dramatically through increased efficiencies in coming years.

“The GWI of the average ethanol plant is expected to decline 27 percent by 2030,” said Korves. “By that year, the GWI of corn ethanol processed in a plant using a biomass combined heat and power system will be less than one-third of the GWI of gasoline.”

The Illinois Corn Growers Association also announced that the state has become a technological and commercial leader in corn-based ethanol.

The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded a $1.2 million grant to Clemson University in South Carolina to assess the potential of switchgrass and sweet sorghum as feedstocks to produce ethanol in the southeast. The grant also will fund development of a small-scale biofuel processing plant at Clemson University’s Restoration Institute in North Charleston.

The South Carolina Bioenergy Research Collaborative has been formed to demonstrate the economic feasibility of using plants, such as switchgrass, trees and sorghum, to make ethanol. The collaborative includes scientists at Clemson, the Savannah River National Laboratory, South Carolina State University and industry incubator SC Bio, as well as industrial partners who are committed to building a pilot plant in the state.

At the same time, a group of Clemson and USDA-Agriculture Research Service scientists is investigating switchgrass production systems in South Carolina, including soil and crop management, new variety development and measuring environmental impacts.

Leftovers from fields, orchards, and vineyards could be combined with other household garbage to make ethanol and other kinds of bioenergy.

USDA Agricultural Research Service scientists are investigating the possibilities at the agency’s Western Regional Research Center in Albany, Calif.

Agricultural wastes like rice straw, almond hulls, and the oversize outer leaves of iceberg lettuce – as well as municipal solid waste – would have to be pretreated before being used as a bioenergy resource. The pretreated agricultural waste could then be transferred to a biofermenter where yeasts and enzymes would be added to make ethanol.

Engineering technician David Bozzi and microbiologist Diana Franqui, (both pictured) along with research chemist Kevin Holtman are working on determining the best ways to use just water and heat to pretreat the farm wastes to keep the biorefining process as environmentally friendly as possible.

Read more from USDA ARS.

A team of researchers from Dartmouth’s Thayer School of Engineering and Mascoma Corporation say they have found a way to produce genetically engineered bacteria that ferment cellulose to produce ethanol more efficiently.

The group reported last week that, tor the first time, they have been able to genetically engineer a thermophilic bacterium, capable of growing at high temperatures, and this new microorganism makes ethanol as the only product of its fermentation.

“Our discovery is one potential avenue for research to facilitate turning inedible cellulosic biomass, including wood, grass, and various waste materials, into ethanol,” said Dartmouth engineering professor Lee Lynd. “In the near term, the thermophilic bacterium we have developed is advantageous, because costly cellulase enzymes typically used for ethanol production can be augmented with the less expensive, genetically engineered new organism.”

Lynd explains that this discovery is only the first step for future development of ethanol-producing microbes that can make ethanol from cellulosic biomass without adding enzymes. Lynd is the corresponding author on the study and the chief scientific officer and co-founder of Mascoma Corporation, a company working to develop processes to make cellulosic ethanol.

Wal-Mart Foundation recently donated $369,000 to the Arkansas Biosciences Institute at Arkansas State University to help fund biomass to ethanol research.

According to a university news release, the donation will be used to meet the cost share requirement for a U.S. Department of Energy grant awarded to the university. The Arkansas Biosciences Institute is researching the commercialization of biobased product development built upon the state’s agriculture and forestry resources. The Wal-Mart grant will support research focused on making ethanol from plant stalks and leaves, agricultural residues and forestry residues.

A process used in breweries and wastewater treatment facilities could make corn ethanol more energy efficient.

Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis are exploring the use of oxygen-less vats of microorganisms that naturally feed on organic waste produced from the ethanol fermentation process.

According to a university release, a WUSTL team has tested anaerobic digestion on waste from ethanol plants and found that the process could cut down an ethanol facility’s use of natural gas by 50 percent. They published the results in the recent issue of the journal Environmental Science and Technology.

A complete story on the research is available at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Technology Review.

Researchers at Ohio State University say they have found a way to efficiently convert ethanol and other biofuels into hydrogen.

According to OSU professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering Umit Ozkan, a new catalyst can makes hydrogen from ethanol with 90 percent yield, at a workable temperature, and using inexpensive ingredients.

Ozkan says the catalyst could help make the use of hydrogen-powered cars more practical in the future, she said.

“There are many practical issues that need to be resolved before we can use hydrogen as fuel — how to make it, how to transport it, how to create the infrastructure for people to fill their cars with it,” Ozkan explained.

The process starts with a liquid biofuel such as ethanol, which is heated and pumped into a reactor, where the catalyst spurs a series of chemical reactions that ultimately convert the liquid to a hydrogen-rich gas.

The new catalyst is much less expensive than others being developed around the world, because it does not contain precious metals, such as platinum or rhodium.

The research was presented last week at the American Chemical Society meeting in Philadelphia.

By a margin of 2 to 1, American voters believe increasing the use of renewable fuels like ethanol should continue, according to a new poll conducted by the Democratic firm of Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research and the Republican firm Public Opinion Strategies.

The survey of 1,200 registered voters conducted June 23 – July 1 also revealed that nearly half of Americans believe that skyrocketing gasoline and fuel prices are the factors most responsible for rising food prices.

According to the survey, asked if they favor or oppose continuing to increase use of ethanol, 59 percent come out in favor, while just 30 percent opposed. Support is even higher (63 percent) among environmentalists. “Men and women, older voters and younger voters, high school educated and college graduates, and voters from all regions in the country support this alternative fuel,” said the survey analysis. Most impressive, however, is that both Democrats and Republicans polled agree on the increased use of ethanol.

The survey was commissioned by the Renewable Fuels Association. “Overwhelming broad, bipartisan support for increasing the use of ethanol clearly shows that coordinated efforts designed to demonize American farmers and ethanol producers are not having the desired affect,” said RFA president Bob Dinneen. “Americans see through the smoke and mirrors, weigh the merits of both sides, and conclude that ethanol is an important component of our nation’s energy future.”

A team of Agriculture Department researchers may have found a new use for a by-product of ethanol production – controlling weeds in potted plants.

Rick Boydston and his team with USDA’s Agriculture Research Service recently completed a study on the use of dried distillers grains, or DDGS, as a weed deterrent in container-grown ornamentals. The study was published in the February 2008 issue of HortScience.

According to Dr. Boydston, they found that when applied to the soil surface, “Weed control was not perfect, but could reduce the amount of hand-weeding typically required.”

When mixed into the potting media, however, dried distillers grains were toxic to transplanted rose, coreopsis, and phlox plants. The researchers concluded that DDGS may be useful for reducing weed emergence and growth in container-grown ornamentals when applied to the soil surface at transplanting.

Dr. Boydston sees the results of this and similar ARS studies as a win/win for ethanol producers and the agriculture industry, noting, “identifying new uses for byproducts likes distillers grains could increase the profitability of ethanol production”.

What we know and what we need to know was Peggy Caswell’s, USDA-ERS, topic here at the Farm Foundation Transition To A Bio Economy conference. She says we need to know things about how farmers or the providers of biofuels and feed stocks are going to have to change the way they do business. She used the example of having to look at different types of contracts and financing.

She said that ethanol companies are going to need a consistent and reliable source of product and that farming by nature is very variable. So farmers will be taking big risks and that’s why contracting will be necessary. She also calls for a lot more research, something we heard earlier in the program from other speakers.

You can listen to my interview with Peggy here: ff-bio-08-caswell.mp3

You can also download the interview using this link (mp3).

Transition To A Bio Economy Photo Album

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (1.2MB)

Our USDA Under Secretary for Research, Education and Economics is Gale Buchanan. He was here at the Transition To A Bio Economy conference to talk about the need for research in a growing bio economy. In fact, he sees a need for a tremendous amount of research to address the opportunities presented by the whole energy picture.

He also talked about how impressed he was at last week’s Bio Energy Awareness Days in Washington, DC where 35 different universities made presentations.

You can listen to my interview with Gale here: ff-bio-08-buchanan.mp3

You can also download the interview using this link (mp3).

Transition To A Bio Economy Photo Album

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (1.3MB)

We hear a lot about co-products with ethanol production like the DDGS but what about in cellulosic ethanol production? Well, Danielle Julie Carrier, Arkansas State University is doing work on that subject.

I was very interested to hear that there are some possibilities. She’s working with switchgrass and they’ve found that if you wash the feedstock prior to the pre-treatment for ethanol production that you get a water mix with flavonoids which help reduce bad cholesterol. Co-products like this have potential and may help make the production of cellulosic ethanol more attractive.

You can listen to my interview with Julie here: ff-bio-08-carrier.mp3

You can also download the interview using this link (mp3).

Transition To A Bio Economy Photo Album

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (2.4MB)

The luncheon speaker at the Transition To A Bio Economy conference focused on managing risk. Paul Willems works for BP Energy Biosciences Institute. He says it’s a collaboration between the University of California, Berkely, the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the University of Illinois and BP.

Paul says that their mission is to apply modern biology towards energy problems. The Institute was started in November of 2007 and is currently almost 70 percent staffed. They’ve already committed funding to about 50 projects and programs. Some examples of these programs include feedstock research and the discovery of new enzymes.

One of Paul’s key messages was not to get carried away with problems since solutions will take a while to achieve.

You can listen to my interview with Paul here: ff-bio-08-willems.mp3

You can also download the interview using this link (mp3).

Transition To A Bio Economy Photo Album

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (1.7MB)

Two key words in a presentation at the Transition To A Bio Economy Conference were flexibility and diversification. These are important to managing risk, especially in R&D for renewable fuels.

Our presenter was Gordon Rausser, University of California, Berkeley, who was here with his assistant Maya Papineau. I interviewed them both together after the presentation. Gordon says that we should be looking at R&D risk as a portfolio of opportunities. He says we should be managing the overall risk by recognizing the inter-relationships among the technologies and their ultimate commercialization. He also says that stand alone analysis will miss much of the opportunities that will arise.

When it comes to flexibility he suggests giving yourself options so that you can take advantage of new opportunities as they arise. He says that current ethanol plants are vulnerable going forward since they don’t have the flexibility to move to different feedstocks.

Maya talked about probably breakthroughs in renewable energy technology. She says that it’s important for how you use public and private R&D resources to maximize the investment.

You can listen to my interview with Gordon and Maya here: ff-bio-08-rausser.mp3

You can also download the interview using this link (mp3).

Transition To A Bio Economy Photo Album

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (2.7MB)