Ethanol producers need to squeeze every penny out of their operations. But one expert in the field of corn oil wonders why some refiners aren’t trying to capture the corn oil produced when they make ethanol. “It seems to be a fundamental piece of ethanol plant profitability,” Joe Riley, General Manager with FEC Solutions told Joanna during the recent Iowa …
Urban Air Initiative Worried About Stocks, Not Ethanol
Ethanol is good for taking harmful particles out of automobile emissions, but a group committed to cleaner air is worried that gasoline makers might just end up putting more particulates in the blendstock. “The [ultra-fine particulates] profile of the ethanol is very, very consistent,” but Greg Krissek, Director of Government Affairs for ICM, part of the Urban Air Initiative, told …
Changing Tunes on Brazilian Ethanol vs. US Biodiesel
A pair of University of Illinois researchers say the reinstatement of the $1 a gallon biodiesel blenders credit has changed the equation back in favor of American biodiesel versus Brazilian ethanol. Back in December and even earlier this month, Darrel Good and Scott Irwin found that Brazilian sugarcane ethanol, which qualifies as an advanced biofuel under the Renewable Fuels Standard, …
FAPRI: RIN Prices Could Be on the Rise
There could be big money in store for Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs)… or not. A new report from the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute at the University of Missouri (FAPRI-MU) says that the ethanol blend wall could have the biggest effect on how RIN prices rise or fall: Expanding ethanol use in the future could require more E15 and …
New E85 Station Opens in Atlanta
Holiday travelers in Atlanta might be singing “I’ll Have a GREEN Christmas Without You” to their old petroleum-only based gas pumps this holiday season, as the newest E85 station has opened in the area. The E-Z Trip Chevron, Indore Oil Company and Protec Fuel joined forces to launch the 14th E85 station early last week in the metro at 3601 …
New Billboard Touts E15 to Iowa Motorists
A new billbord courtesy of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association introduces E15 to motorists in in Marion, Iowa. This IRFA news release says the new billboard will go up at Linn Co-op Oil Company, the first EPA-approved retailer in Iowa to sell E15 for 2001 and newer vehicles, SUVs, and light-duty trucks. “We’re excited that we’re only a week away …
Military Will Buy Biofuels But Won’t Drive Market
The U.S. military plans to up its share of biofuels, including biodiesel and ethanol, by nearly a billion gallons over the next few years. But this article from Biofuels Digest says officials warn that won’t be enough to be the sole driver in the market: Mark Iden of the Defense Logistics Agency confirmed that the US government proposed to purchase …
Iowa State Develops Biodiesel, Ethanol Plant Simulator
Researchers at Iowa State University have developed a simulator that allows them to replicate all the functions of biodiesel and ethanol plants. According to this article from the school, the I-BOS (the Interactive Biorefinery Operations Simulator) will help students in Iowa State’s biorenewable resources and technology program learn about biofuel production, as well as helping the biofuel industry train employees: …
Propel Tells Senate to Fund Ethanol, Biodiesel Pumps
The man in charge of a company that sells biodiesel and E85 ethanol to the public has told Congress that it needs to keep funding programs to help offset the costs of infrastructure that make the green fuels available to the public. This post from Biodiesel Magazine says Matt Horton, CEO of Propel Fuels, told the Senate Committee on Energy …
USDA Awards Grants for Sustainable Biodiesel, Ethanol
The U.S. Department of Agriulture has announced nearly $37 million in research grants to promote the production sustainable biodiesel and ethanol production. This USDA press release says the money is designed to help the country meet the goal of 36 billion gallons of biofuels per year by 2022 and focuses on three areas: crop protection for sustainable feedstock production systems, …