Iowa State University is using some high technology to try and boost the release rates of corn sugars for ethanol production. According to an ISU release, a team of Iowa State researchers has demonstrated that pre-treating milled corn with ultrasonics can break the corn pieces into even finer particles. That exposes more of the corn’s starch to the enzymes that …
Idaho Biodiesel School
The University of Idaho is holding a one-day crash course in biodiesel June 15 in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho. Among the topics are Growing Oilseeds in the Pacific Northwest, Biodiesel Production Practices, and Biodiesel Economics. The course is just $75. More information available here.
IL Governor Argues Against New Ethanol Research Center
Looking at the headline you would think Governor Rod Blagojevich is against new ethanol research. Not so. According to the AP story, he is against the government wasting money, building a new center when they can just upgrade the current National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Center in Edwardsville instead. The new center is proposed to research cellulosic ethanol, however, so the current …
VeraSun is Hot
Forbes is calling the pending IPO of VeraSun Energy a hot investment. “VeraSun Energy is profitable. Its planned IPO will be a winner, as the price of oil has hit about $70 per barrel amid high worldwide demand and growing concerns about the stability of the Middle East. VeraSun says it’s the second-largest ethanol producer in the United States with …
Mt. Vernon Plant Plans
ASAlliances Biofuels LLC plans to build a $125 million ethanol plant in Mount Vernon, Ind., according to news reports. ASAlliances Biofuels is a partnership comprised of the some of the biggest names in the ethanol and agribusiness industries – Cargill, Fagen and United BioEnergy. The Mount Vernon plant would be located adjacent to a Cargill grain elevator and would produce …
BioWillie Distributor Buys Into NC Plant
Earth Ethanol, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Earth Biofuels, Inc., today announced that it has signed a letter of intent to acquire majority interest in North Carolina-based Albemarle Biorefinery, Inc. of Raleigh, North Carolina. According to a Business Wire release, the company intends to build a state-of-the-art ethanol facility in the town of Jamesville, Martin County, North Carolina. Earth …
Fast Fine Tuning
Chuck is in Nashville this week and plans to visit with a guy he interviewed at the Indy 500. Brad Mayo is a “tuner” – he fine tunes street cars to make them run faster on ethanol blended fuel. You can listen to Chuck’s interview with Brad about the finer aspects of fine tuning here: Brad Mayo Interview (5:14 min …
Ethanol Plant News
As always, it’s a challenge to keep up with all the ethanol plants being opened, planned, expanded, etc. But, here’s some of the latest in a nutshell. Illinois – Johnson Grain has announced it will build a 200 million gallon capacity plant near Springfield, IL (Belleville News Democrat-AP) Minnesota – Highwater Ethanol, LLC is planning a 50 mgy plant in …
Greenspan Sees Future in Cellulosic Ethanol
Testimony of former Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee yesterday has gotten quite a bit of news coverage, especially his comments about ethanol. In his written remarks to the committee, Greenspan said “Corn ethanol, though valuable, can play only a limited role, because its ability to displace gasoline is modest at best. But cellulosic …