Domestic Fuel

For the second year in a row, Iowa high school students have been rewarded for their creative videos promoting renewable fuels.

At the 6th Annual Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit in Des Moines on Tuesday, Ames High School senior Sam Ennis was declared the first place winner of the 2nd Annual “Fuel the Future” video contest for Iowa high school students. For his highly creative, entertaining and informative music video entitled “I Got You Ethanol” Ennis was awarded the $1,000 grand prize by the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association. Ennis is pictured here with Andy Anderson of the law firm Faegre Baker Daniels LLP, which sponsored the contest.

Second place and $600 was awarded to Clay Central Everly Community School tenth grade students Gabby Huss, Rebecca White and Blair Montgomery for their video entry called “Ethanol for the Economy.” Third place and $400 went to eleventh graders Cassandra Davis, Haley Jewell, Lauralin Berkley, Cody Corchado, and Meredith Brister of Pleasant Valley High School in the Quad Cities for “Dear 25 Year Old Me.”

All the videos can be seen on IRFA’s YouTube channel. Watch “I Got You Ethanol” below and listen to the song here: I Got You Ethanol

Photos from 2012 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit

At the recent National Agri-Marketing Association Trends in Agriculture conference one of our panel discussions focused on “Trends In Energy/Alternative Fuels.” On the panel were Nathan Schock, POET & Matt Roberts, PhD. Here’s what their session focused on.

What are the main influences escalating the demand for ethanol and other plant-based energy? This session examines the trends in the alternative fuel market and the initiatives needed to drive the production to meet the demand. You’ll also discover the messages and opportunities on which ag communicators and marketers need to focus.

Thanks to Paulsen Marketing for supplying this video clip with Nathan who talks about government’s role in ethanol’s future.

Researchers at the University of Georgia have developed a “super strain” of yeast that can efficiently ferment ethanol from pretreated pine.

“Companies are interested in producing ethanol from woody biomass such as pine, but it is a notoriously difficult material for fermentations,” said Joy Doran-Peterson, associate professor of microbiology in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences.

Their research, published online in Biotechnology for Biofuels, shows that the pine fermented with the new yeast can successfully withstand the toxic compounds and produce ethanol from higher concentrations of pretreated pine than previously published.

Read more from UGA news and see a video about this research below:

A short animated video just released by Pearson Fuels shows the benefits of biofuels for the United States.

Produced with the support of the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) and the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), “Fuel Better in Sixty Seconds” is a short but sweet summary of why alternative energy is important for the nation and how it is making a difference. “With the election season ramping up and daily conversations occurring in the media around budget cuts and tax policy, it is important that the public be educated on a few facts about alternative fuels,” said Pearson Fuels co-founder Mike Lewis. “The bottom line is that alternative fuels, and biofuels in particular, displace a massive amount of foreign oil every day in this country. Once Americans understand the benefits of alternative fuel, they can demand the same from their government leaders.”

“Many Americans don’t realize the contributions that alternative fuels like ethanol make to the economy and our environment,” said RFA director of market development Robert White. “Pearson did a great job in getting the message across in an educational and entertaining way.”

California-based Pearson Fuels has been a leader in providing alternative fuels to both the public and government entities, opening the nation’s first Alternative Fuel Station in 2003. Located in the center of San Diego and specializing in bringing alternative fuels to the public, Pearson was the first facility of its kind and pioneered the first public E85 station on the West Coast.

Watch the video here.

Sunday was National Plug-in Day and among many events around the country was a parade of electric vehicles (EV) with over 200 EV drivers taking part in Santa Monica, California.

The day was organized by Plug-in America and included EV events in over 20 simultaneous venues from Honolulu to New York with displays and demonstrations of plug-in vehicles by Nissan, GM, Mitsubishi, Toyota, SMART, Tesla, Ford, Coda and others.

“Only a few years ago, major automakers were literally crushing electric cars. Today, virtually every auto company in the world is selling or developing a plug-in car, and consumers are snapping up each and every one, stimulating our economy while helping the environment,” said Plug In America co-founder Paul Scott.

Among the event’s promoters was Nissan, which encouraged the 7200 Leaf owners nationwide to take part. “One year ago, the Nissan Leaf was just gaining public awareness. Today, thousands of drivers have chosen to go all-electric, with many more to come,” said Brian Carolin with Nissan North America.

Plug In Day will be followed up this Friday with the opening of the critically acclaimed documentary Revenge of the Electric Car in Los Angeles and New York. Filmmaker and electric-car advocate Chris Paine directs the movie, which follows executives including Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn in his industry-leading pursuit of zero-emission leadership.

Watch the movie trailer below:

The Renewable Energy Group (REG) celebrated the official opening of the REG Albert Lea biodiesel plant in Minnesota on Monday, with representatives of the state and local community and agriculture industry.

REG President and COO Dan Oh says they were involved in the construction and operations of the plant when it originally was built and opened by SoyMor. “We have worked together since 2003,” said Oh. The plant unfortunately got caught up in the economic issues that hit the renewable fuels industry back in 2008 and had to shut down, but REG felt it was a significant plant that needed to get back in operation, so they worked to make it happen for the local economy. “Think of a gallon of biodiesel in roughly every bushel of soybeans, this is a 30 million gallon biodiesel facility, so that really adds value back to a bean bushel,” Oh said.

Listen to or download interview with Dan Oh here. REG President Dan Oh

Representatives of the Minnesota soybean industry were on hand today for the grand opening, including Jim Willers, who is a farmer from Beaver Creek and a director on the United Soybean Board, as well as a member of the Minnesota Soybean Research and Promotion Council. After touring the plant, Willers said he was impressed with the shape it is in after being shut down for three years. “I found out that it was in excellent condition when they closed it down and the start up was way better than they thought,” he said. “It’s a state of the art facility and in six months they’re going to be a BQ-9000 plant.”

Listen to or download interview with Jim Willers here. Minnesota soybean farmer Jim Willers

Watch the ribbon cutting below and see photos in the REG Albert Lea biodiesel plant photo album

The Blue Angels, the U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron, performed over the Labor Day weekend using a biofuel blend at the Naval Air Station (NAS) Patuxent River Air Expo. All six F/A-18 legacy Hornets were powered with a 50-50 blend of conventional JP-5 jet fuel and a camelina-based biofuel.

“Changing the kinds of fuels we use and the way we use them is critical to assuring the Navy and Marine Corps remain the most formidable expeditionary fighting force the world has ever known,” said Secretary of the Navy, Ray Mabus in a press statement leading up to the air show. “The Department of the Navy will be taking another visible step toward testing biofuel in our aircraft when all six of the Blue Angels perform using the same 50/50 blend of drop-in biofuel we’ve used in so many of our other aircraft.”

The event marked the first time an entire unit has flown on a biofuel mix.

Capt. Greg McWherter, Blue Angels commanding officer/flight leader said of the show, “As public representatives of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, the Blue Angels take pride in leading the country’s efforts to reduce fossil fuel consumption and increase our energy security.

McWherter, who says there is no discernible differences from the cockpit, stressed that the goal of the program was to demonstrate that there is no difference in performance between the biofuel blend and standard-petroleum-based JP-5.

In another semi-related story, the USDA is looking for Eastern Washington farmers to grow camelina as part of the Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP). The program is designed to incent growers to grow emerging crops for biofuels.

This is kind of fun. Have you wondered how much power you can really get from a home solar power system? You’re not alone. A new video, “Solar Overload” demonstrates just how much power can be produced from a home solar power system. HelioPower has created “Solar Overload, How Many Appliances Does It Take to Spin the Meter Forward?” and features a 4 kilowatt (kW) residential solar power system in Laguna Niguel, California trying to “overload” the solar system. Scott Gordon had the system installed in 2006 and today he is the vice president of residential sales for HelioPower.

More accurately, Gordon along with his colleague Bret Pursuit, demonstrate how many appliances it takes in Scott’s 2200 square foot home to incur a utility charge, or “spin the meter” forward – what happens to most of us folk not benefiting from solar energy.

“As a leading solar installation firm in California, HelioPower is committed to educating consumers on the benefits of solar,” said Gordon. “In ‘Solar Overload‘ I’m able to show just how many appliances it takes to activate a utility cost from my residential solar power system. Over the five years I’ve had the solar panel system my family has saved $10,000 in utility bills. We are able to demonstrate how that happens when you see the many appliances it takes to spin the meter forward.”

So how much did it take? At 2 pm on a sunny afternoon, he turned on two refrigerators, two DVRs, one laptop, a 21″ monitor, and one cell phone charger. Guess what? The meter was still spinning backwards. He also added 56 light bulbs, one attic fan and five ceiling fans set on high. Still not running the meter forward. Now take a guess and see what happens when he adds a microwave, electric clothes dryer, energy efficient washing machine, and a pool pump.

Each year at the Legends Ride, now in its 4th year, photographer Michael Lichter, takes a photo of the participants in front of the famous Franklin Hotel in Deadwood, SD. He gets a little higher angle than I did but these are the folks that were about to take off on their bikes for the ride yesterday.

Rfa’s Robert White has his bike here and took part in the ride. At the end of this video clip you’ll see him wave as he rides by me on the street.

2011 Sturgis Motorcycle Rally Photo Album

I’ve been traveling around the country quite a bit this summer and I can’t get over the growth of the wind industry. On a few occasions I’ve watched components of wind turbines pass me by and I’ve always wanted to get up close just to see how big these blades and the base really are. Well now I know. I pulled over at a rest stop in Davenport, Iowa on Monday and there were four trucks carrying wind turbine blades parked in the lot and boy were they creating interest.

So just how big are these blades? I walked from tip to tip and it took me 39 seconds walking at a normal pace. Here is a video of my journey. BTW – the song is called “Wind Energy Song” and was written by Monty Harper. Here are some of the lyrics:

This is the sun shining down on Earth.

This is the warmth of the
sun shining down on Earth.

This is the air rising up through the
warmth of the
sun shining down on Earth.

This is the wind blowing in beneath the
air rising up through the
warmth of the
sun shining down on Earth.

This is the rotor spinning in the
wind blowing in beneath the
air rising up through the
warmth of the
sun shining down on Earth.

I also took photos as I was driving (don’t try this in the car!) and I have pictures of a wind farm off of 1-80 Iowa. Did you know that Iowa is the second leading state for wind power generation behind Texas? The state is also the leader in renewable energy – 20 percent of Iowa’s power comes from renewable resources. Take that California! I also took pictures of a wind farm in off of 1-74 in Illinois. Click here to see my Summer 2011 photo album.

If you missed the Ethanol Summit this year, no worries. It is now available online via a dedicated YouTube channel. Sessions available online include all panels, plenary sessions and ceremonies from the event held this past June 6 & 7 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The summit was hosted by UNICA, the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association and as the keynote speaker featured former U.S. President Bill Clinton.

Here is a little navigational help: all specific sessions can be accessed from the “webcasts” page. From this section, you can find specific sessions based on where they were held. For example, the opening and closing ceremonies as well as the main plenary session is housed under the “auditorium” tab while the 15 panels are stored by themed room names including technology, sustainability, markets and investments.

According to UNICA Corporate Communications Director Adhemar Altieri, the YouTube channel provides a historical record of the Ethanol Summit and serves other useful purposes. “It disseminates the information presented at the event to a much larger audience than could be accommodated at the event venue in two days and it allows event participants to view sessions they could not attend in person. With five theme-specific rooms offering sessions simultaneously, this is the only way to take it all in.”

In addition to the 2011 Ethanol Summit, the YouTube channel also houses the 2009 event.

Following a visit to the Beltway to conduct its member meeting and meet with politicians, the Advanced BioFuels Association (ABFA) has launched its first online advertisement to promote the successful uses of advanced biofuels. The ad is a first in a series. Michael McAdams, ABFA president said, “As Washington confronts our nation’s energy and economic challenges, we must demonstrate that advanced biofuels are real and successfully being put to the test today, all across the country. Advanced biofuels are today’s reality, not scientific hyperbole.”

The first ad is called, “Building Better Fuels Today and Tomorrow,” and opens with the statement, “There are those who speculate America’s day has passed…”

“This is an important opportunity for us to provide real world examples of advanced biofuels delivering ready to use fuels for cars on the road today as well as commercial airliners and our national defense structure,” McAdams added. “No waiting for the day when costly changes are made on car assembly lines or gas stations.”

According to a new study released today by Vestas Wind Systems, 90 percent of consumers worldwide want more renewable energy, 65 percent prefer to purchase brands produced using wind energy and 53 percent in China and 7 percent of respondents in the U.S. view climate change as the greatest challenge. The Global Consumer Wind Study 2011 as well as the Corporate Renewable Energy Index (CREX) 2011, show the relationship between consumer demand for renewable energy in the products and services they purchase. In addition, the studies highlight what corporations are or are not doing to meet consumer demands for greater use of renewable energy.

Ditlev Engel, President and CEO of Vestas said, “Consumers around the world see climate change as the greatest single challenge, and 90 percent of consumers want more renewable energy. This shows a real global desire to reduce carbon emissions. It gives corporate decision makers something to think about and act upon.”

The Global Consumer Wind Study 2011 is the largest undertaken of its kind with 31,000 respondents participating in 26 countries. The goal of the survey was to learn more about consumer demand for products made with renewable energy. Consumers were asked how energy decisions made by companies affect their purchasing decisions. In addition, consumers were asked about their perceptions of climate change. The annual study was commission by Vestas and conducted by TNS Gallup.

“The Global Consumer Wind Study provides insight into the role of renewable energy, in particular wind, in relation to the products and services consumers buy,” added Engel.” This in turn should drive the adoption of renewable energy sources by the corporations that sell these products and services.”

The Corporate Renewable Energy Index, with 176 respondents, was based on data from CREX, commissioned by Vestas and conducted by Bloomberg New Energy Finance. The companies using the most renewable energy are News Corp., Plum Creek Timber, Kohl’s Corporation, and Whole Foods Market, who uses 100 percent wind energy and has been named Global Wind Energy Champion.

The Ethanol Express was one of more than 50 racing boats that sped around Cedar Valley Reservoir running ten percent ethanol fuel (E10) at the National Boat Racing Association (NBRA) “Garnett Ethanol Hydroplane Nationals” this past weekend in Garnett, Kansas, sponsored by the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA).

The custom boat is piloted by “Burnin’ Vernon” Barfield, a boat racer from Kansas who hosted the race in Garnett. “We’re running a bone stock engine on that particular boat and it has been testing out about 81-82 miles an hour,” said Barfield, pictured below showing off the boat to some young fans.

RFA partnered with NBRA earlier this year to help dispel concerns about the use of ethanol fuel in boat engines. “We’ve stuck with pump fuel, right out of the same pump that everyone else is using to put in their cars. We mix in our oil, and that’s what we run in our two-strokers, been running it all year and I personally have had no problems whatsoever,” said Barfield. “The only thing that I’m seeing, which is a pleasant surprise, is just a little more speed.”

Barfield says he believes that with proper maintenance, boat engines run just fine on ethanol-blended fuel. “I think it’s just an unfair scenario that everybody likes to blame ethanol because he’s the new kid on the block,” and he thinks over time every one will embrace ethanol “because it keeps Americans working.”

Listen to my interview with Vernon Barfield here: Burnin' Vernon Barfield

Each race in each class is just three laps around a relatively small course, which takes a total of about three minutes. Takes a look in the video below:

See photos from the race here: NBRA Ethanol Boat Race

All of the more than 50 boats that raced in this past weekend’s National Boat Racing Association (NBRA) “Garnett Ethanol Hydroplane Nationals” had to prove they were using 10 percent ethanol fuel in order to compete for prize money in the race sponsored by the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA).

“We have fuel testing to make sure we’re running ethanol because of the contingency prize money,” said NBRA president Dan Crummett. “We are testing all the fuel before the race and then the top three entries in any class are tested when they come in to make sure they are running ethanol.”

The simple fuel test is done with a vial marketed by Mercury Marine that uses water to allow the ethanol to come out of suspension with the fuel to be measured. Most of the racing fuel is purchased at local gas stations since regular unleaded in most areas contains 10 percent ethanol.

The NBRA races include a number of different classes with light, single person boats than run as fast as 96 miles per hour. “We race stock and modified outboards with hydroplanes and runabouts,” said Crummett. Ethanol is a sponsor for all the NBRA races being held around the country this year to show its performance in marine engines. Crummett says most of the issues that boaters experience when using ethanol-blended fuel are maintenance related. “Any fuel will degrade over not a long period of time once the oil is mixed in it,” he says, which is why it’s so important for boaters to avoid leaving fuel in the tank for an extended time without running the engine.

Listen to my interview with Dan Crummett here and watch him demonstrate the ethanol test in the video below: NBRA President Dan Crummett

See photos from the race here: NBRA Ethanol Boat Race