Gulf Ethanol Corporation is pursuing a dual biofuel development strategy focused on processing feedstocks for ethanol in the U.S. and manufacturing biodiesel in Central America. Company officials say they will mainly focus on using its technology to develop non-food feedstocks for ethanol manufacturers in the United States. In Central America, Gulf will utilize feedstocks, such as palm oil, for the …
Demo Cellulosic Plant Enters Start-up Phase
Verenium Corporation has announced that its demonstration-scale cellulosic ethanol facility in Jennings, Louisiana has entered the “startup” phase. According to officials, the site has been electronically energized and the turnover of individual systems to start-up and operating teams has begun so that the functional capabilities of each system can be tested. In total, more than forty separate systems will be …
Roller Coaster Ride for Team Ethanol
It was a roller coaster ride on a wet track for Team Ethanol at the IndyCar Series Honda Grand Prix in St Petersburg, Florida on Sunday. Spirits were high for driver Ryan Hunter-Reay at the start of the race where he had qualified for sixth pole position. After ten laps behind the pace car in the rain, the field opened …
Cellulosic Ethanol Fueled Vette Makes History
Corvette Racing made motorsports history Saturday, scoring the first victory on 85 percent cellulosic ethanol racing fuel (E85R) in American Le Mans Series competition. Drivers Oliver Gavin and Olivier Beretta won their second consecutive class victory on the waterfront street circuit in St. Petersburg, Florida. “This was our first race running cellulosic E85 ethanol, and we had great performance and …
Green Racing Showcases Ethanol
St. Petersburg, Florida will be the site of the greenest racing event in history this weekend when both the IndyCar Series and the American Le Mans Series will compete on the streets in the Honda Grand Prix and Acura Sports Car Challenge. This is the second year that the IndyCar Series is racing on 100 percent ethanol and the first …
New Iowa Plant Gets Approval
Ethanol start-up, Red Rock Renewables LLC, is moving into the next phase of development on a new fuel ethanol plant to be located in Pleasantville, Iowa. Last week, the company received approval on a final development agreement with the city of Pleasantville and the plant will now move into the next and most critical phase for ethanol plant construction, funding. …
Senator Pushes for Higher Ethanol Blends
Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) is continuing to push for the use of higher ethanol blends in regular car engines. Last fall, Grassley and several other senators wrote the Environmental Protection Agency requesting testing of blends of ethanol above 10% for non-flexible fuel vehicles. Now Grassley is asking car makers what they are doing in the area of research and testing …
Partnership for Cellulosic Technology
The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has entered into partnership with ConocoPhillips and Iowa State University to identify promising cellulosic biomass conversion technologies for the future. The collaboration will bring three independently established programs together to help identify the most efficient and cost-effective methods for making liquid transportation fuels from plants. “Research cooperation among government, industry …
Albany Ethanol Plant Approved
The Albany Port District Commission has approved a proposal to build an ethanol plant on port property which officials say it the largest development project in the history of the port. According to the Albany Times-Union, the developer, Albany Renewable Energy LLC, would bring in 60 million bushels of corn annually — about what is produced in all of New …
Cellulosic Firm Surpasses $100 Million in Funding
Range Fuels has announced that it has received private financing totaling over $100 million to complete the construction of the first phase of its commercial cellulosic ethanol plant located near the town of Soperton, Georgia. The first phase of construction for the Soperton Plant is targeted to produce approximately 20 million gallons of ethanol and mixed alcohols per year and …