Race to Go Green Sweepstakes

Cindy Zimmerman

Race ContestThe Ethanol Promotion and Information Council is teaming up with the IndyCar® Series, Sinden Racing Service, and Rahal Letterman Racing for a national sweepstakes. The “Race to Go Green” Sweepstakes offers a chance to win lots of instant prizes and have their name entered in a grand prize drawing.

Instant winners will be drawn online and notified throughout the season. The grand prize winner will be announced on August 5, and will be flown with a guest to Chicago for the season ending race at Chicagoland Speedway. During the race weekend, winners will receive the ultimate IndyCar experience including: a two seater ride, a pace car ride, a garage tour and much, much more.

Fans can enter to win on the EPIC website.

EPIC, Ethanol, Indy Racing, News, Promotion, Racing

35 MPG SUV

John Davis

Challenge X logoLooking to beat the three-and-half bucks a gallon gasoline sweeping the country… but don’t want to give up the size and security of your SUV? Students at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology have built a sport utility vehicle able to get up to 35 miles a gallon.

They’ve put together a biodiesel hybrid electric Chevy Equinox in General Motors’ Challenge X engineering competition.

Check out this story posted on PlanetSave.com:

The sport utility vehicle will be tested alongside vehicles produced by 16 other North American colleges and universities at the end of the third year of the international challenge. The competition will be conducted at the General Motors Corporation’s Proving Grounds in Milford, Mich., on May 30 to June 7.

About 45 students worked throughout this past school year to replace the stock gasoline engine with the biodiesel power plant. Not only did they kick up the fuel economy, but they also improved acceleration:

“We have completely stripped down a brand new vehicle (Equinox) and put it back together again, with several new features, in less than two years,” stated senior mechanical engineering major Clint Hammes, the team’s mechanical integration team leader. “We have a vehicle that’s filled with cutting-edge technology and innovative features.”

GM originally intended to wrap up the Challenge X program this year, but due to popularity, officials are extending it to next year.

Biodiesel, Car Makers

Coffee Growers Brew Biodiesel

John Davis

Known for their beans that start the world’s day, Brazilian coffee growers might soon be known for brewing the fuel that starts your car.

According to this story in the Wall Street Journal’s on-line version, tests are being done to see if the beans not suitable for your cup will be good for your tank:

The studies, which are being conducted at the Federal University of Minas Gerais, suggest that making both biodiesel and ethanol via coffee residues is technically and economically viable, at least for small-scale use within the country’s coffee cooperatives, said Leandro Soares de Oliveira, a professor of chemical engineering at the university, in an interview.

“We began working with the idea of extracting oils from coffee beans that weren’t of good quality,” he said. “We were looking at alternative uses for these beans for producers, instead of just having them thrown into the domestic coffee supplies and depressing its quality.”

Officials believe not only does this provide another source for biodiesel, it takes bad beans out of the system… raising the overall quality level of the coffee.

They’re also looking at using the coffee bean husks to make ethanol.

Biodiesel, International

Ethanol Event at CBOT

Cindy Zimmerman

Officials from the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) joined with government officials and representatives from the IndyCar Series and the ethanol industry on Monday in a tribute to the “Greening of Racing.”

CBOT Event

Pictured from left to right are Terry Angstadt, IndyCar Series president; CBOT Executive Vice-President for Marketing and Business Development Chris Malo; USDA Under Secretary for Rural Development Thomas Dorr; CBOT Chairman Charlie Carey, Team Ethanol car driver Jeff Simmons; Illinois Director of Agriculture Chuck Hartke; EPIC Executive Director Tom Slunecka; and Doug Scott, Director of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.

Prior to the opening bell, CBOT Executive Vice-President for Marketing and Business Development Chris Malo talked about how the commodity exchange created ethanol contracts two years ago as a price discovery tool for the industry.

“When we launched our ethanol futures contract in March 2005 we knew we were early to the market place,” said Malo. “However, we recognized the increasingly important role that ethanol can play in meeting the nation’s energy needs before ethanol became a daily news story.”

U.S. Department of Agriculture Undersecretary for Rural Development Thomas C. Dorr played a part in the tribute, detailing the enormous growth of the ethanol industry.

“Ethanol production in 2000 was 1.6 billion gallons, today its six billion gallons and new capacity under construction will add another 6.4 billion gallons,” said Dorr. “Cellulosic ethanol will give us the potential to supply a third or more of our liquid fuels.”

Tom Slunecka, Executive Director of the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC) said that ethanol has become more than just a product. “Ethanol is a movement,” he said. Besides being proud to partner with the Indy Racing League, Slunecka says EPIC is “proud to partner with the American consumer to help change our future.”

Terry Angstadt, IndyCar Series president, says the partnership with ethanol fits in perfectly with their mission.

“The Indianapolis Motor Speedway was built in 1909 literally as a test track to support the auto industry in technology and innovation,” he said. “That’s why the association with the ethanol industry, EPIC, the Rahal Letterman race team, Jeff Simmons is a perfect association for a business and series that is so aligned with technology and innovation as our cornerstone.”

EPIC, Ethanol, Indy Racing, News

CBOT Honors IndyCar Ethanol

Cindy Zimmerman

CBOT Bell RingingThe Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) on Monday hosted Team Ethanol Driver Jeff Simmons and his 100 percent fuel-grade ethanol race car in a tribute to the “Greening of Racing” and a salute to the IndyCar® Series.

“Ethanol is sharing the track with a great American past time,” said CBOT Chairman Charlie Carey. “For the first time a renewable fuel will power a vehicle past the checkered flag at the Indy 500. Congratulations to the IndyCar Series.”

Team Ethanol driver Jeff Simmons opened the Monday morning event by driving up in an IndyCar Series vehicle on CBOT Plaza and later stood on the platform with Carey for the ringing of the opening bell on the trading floor.

“When we go out there Memorial Day weekend for the 91st running of the Indianapolis 500, it’s really going to be a proud moment for all of us to be a part of the ‘greening of racing,’” said Simmons. “This is something that’s not only good for American and our environment, but also for the performance of your car and good for the security of our energy future.”

The 91st Indianapolis 500 will take place on May 27th.

You can listen to the complete CBOT press conference here: Listen To MP3 CBOT Press Conference (20 min MP3)

Audio, EPIC, Ethanol, Indy Racing, News, Racing

Ethanol, Biodiesel, and Milk

John Davis

XL BiorefineryAn Arizona dairy is looking at expandng its operations into biofuels. Phoenix-based XL Dairy Group is planning to build a dairy/biorefinery at a site about 100 miles west of Phoenix.

According to this story in the East Valley Tribune in Phoenix, when finished, the complex will produce 100 million gallons of ethanol, 25 million to 30 million gallons of biodiesel fuel and 21 million gallons of milk a year:

The concept is to use waste produced by the dairy cows to make energy that would be used to turn corn into ethanol and biodiesel, said Dennis Corderman, chief executive and chairman of XL Dairy Group. Byproducts of the ethanol and biodiesel production will be cycled back to produce internal energy for the biorefinery and to provide feed for the dairy cows, he said.

“The biggest difference between us and other ethanol plants is we will use waste streams from the dairy to produce our own energy,” he said. “It will provide the electrical and heat and steam energy for the entire facility.”

The plant is expected to have an energy efficiency ratio of 10-to-1. Most ethanol plants have a 1.2-to-1 ratio.

Company officials expect the whole operation to be even more efficient when the feedstock for the biofuel is switched to algae, obviously more available with the Arizona desert sun fueling its growth than Midwestern corn.

Biodiesel, Ethanol

DHL Testing Biodiesel

John Davis

DHLShipping giant DHL is looking at testing some of its United Kingdom delivery fleet running on 100% biodiesel. According to this story on the Biofuel Review web site, the testing will begin at the end of this month:

Bill Bacon, National Account Director from DHL Exel Supply Chain said: “We are committed to being an environmentally responsible business and are always looking at innovative ways to create sustainable supply chains. This is a superb example of everyone’s collaboration into exploring new technologies and alternative fuels that could potentially lead the way into long term sustainability. As the leading provider of contract logistics services we have a responsibility to set best practise solutions to reduce the carbon footprint of our vehicles.”

UK biodiesel producer Argent Energy will provide the fuel made from old restaurant and pub cooking oil.

Biodiesel, International

E85 Police Tahoes in Georgia

Cindy Zimmerman

GA e85The General Motors Police Package Tahoe was featured and demonstrated to the crowd at the grand opening of a new E85 station in Georgia on May 1. The Fillers/Chevron facility is the seventh E85 site to open in the state, according to the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition.
GA e85 2

Middle Georgia Clean Cities Coalition Executive Director Charise Stephens said, “Our goal is to have General Motors E85 Police Tahoe in each of our counties and the fuel to sustain the program. Currently Middle Georgia has more biofuel stations than any other part of the state and we look forward to having the first E85 Police fleets in the state.”

E85, Ethanol, Flex Fuel Vehicles, News

Boating with Ethanol

Cindy Zimmerman

As summer quickly approaches, many in the boating community are in the process of transitioning their fuel use to an ethanol-enriched blend. Through the introduction of an informational campaign, boaters can learn how to best optimize performance of their watercraft with E10, a blend of 10 percent ethanol and 90 percent gasoline.

Manufacturers of all major brands of marine motors approve the use of up to a 10 percent ethanol blend in their equipment without voiding the warranty. The National Marine Manufacturers Association (NMMA) no longer requires a sticker warning about alcohol fuels to be placed on new boats as there are now far fewer issues with the use of E10.Boat US

“We found that once the transition to E10 is complete and the first few tanks of ethanol-enriched fuel are run through the system, the issues with E10 are manageable,” said Bob Adriance, Technical Advisor with BoatU.S. “We’ve also seen that owners who use their boats frequently and cycle through fuel have less problems than those whose boats are only occasionally used.”

Some suggestions for boat owners include:

Inspect fuel filters frequently since ethanol acts as a solvent and it will loosen particles that commonly settle in fuel tanks over time.

Top off tanks for winter storage to 95 percent full to leave room for expansion.

Check fiberglass fuel tanks since older boats with fiberglass fuel tanks can experience significant difficulties with E10.

More information about using E10 in marine vehicles can be found at boatus.com and at drivingethanol.org.

EPIC, Ethanol, News

Students Take Mileage Challenge

Cindy Zimmerman

As gas prices in Minnesota top $3 a gallon, hundreds of Minnesota middle and high school students are preparing for the Minnesota Supermilage Challenge at the Brainerd International Raceway on May 13-15, an annual contest to see which team of students can build the most fuel efficient vehicles — and prove it on the track. In addition to gasoline-powered vehicles, some teams are building racers that use the cleaner-burning alternative fuel E85.

American Lung Association of the Upper MidwestThe students’ use of a less polluting fuel in the contest caught the attention of the American Lung Association of the Upper Midwest, a strong supporter of E85, biodiesel and other cleaner fuels and transportation technology.

“Minnesota is not only the clear leader in E85 sales and E85 outlets, our kids also know how to get the most out of this cleaner-burning, largely homegrown fuel,” said Bob Moffitt, communications director of the Clean Fuel and Vehicle Technologies program of the American Lung Association of the Upper Midwest. “For example, last year’s E85 division defending champion (a joint Chippewa Middle School, Shoreview and Moundsview High School team) got an amazing 621 miles per gallon using E85.”

Biodiesel, E85, Ethanol, News