Auto news site InsideLine posted an exclusive story last weekend that OnStar will soon be able to help drivers find E85 stations. OnStar President Chet Huber said his company will unveil a new service in June to let customers know if their vehicle is E85 compatible and help them find ethanol filling stations. Customers will receive an e-mail telling them …
Ethanol Imports
Analysts are saying that the US will be importing more ethanol this summer to keep up with demand caused by the phase-out of MTBE. According to a Dow Jones story, U.S. cane-based ethanol imports are expected to more than double in 2006 from 511 million liters in 2005. “Moving U.S. ethanol, produced in the heartlands, to population centers on the …
Guster Raises Biodiesel Consciousness
Members of the band Guster joined officials from the City of East Lansing on the Michigan State University campus this week to announce the growing use of biodiesel in the town, according to the National Biodiesel Board. Guster was in East Lansing for a performance at MSU as part of the Campus Consciousness Tour, which raises awareness in college towns …
Plant Plans
Indiana – The Andersons Inc. is considering a third ethanol plant in Dunkirk, Ind. (Toldedo Blade) (see previous post) Florida – United States EviroFuels LLC received a state permit to construct an ethanol production plant at Port Sutton. (Tampa Bay Business Journal) (see previous post) Michigan – A company formed by former state Rep. Rick Johnson wants to build a …
First Fuel Cell Police Car
Wayne State University in Detroit is the proud owner of the world’s first fuel cell-powered police car introduced this week by DaimlerChrysler. According to their release, the Wayne State University Police Department will operate the Mercedes F-Cell as a supervisor’s vehicle on and in the immediate vicinity of the campus, located in Detroit’s Cultural Center. Outfitted with a third-generation police …
Energy Secretary Promotes Energy Initiative
U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman made lots of friends in the hydrogen fuel cell business yesterday when he announced plans to award $50 million over the next three years in research grants to advance the technology. AP reports that universities, national laboratories and private companies will compete for the grants starting later this month. They are part of the …
Bio Biking
Environmentally-conscious bikers may be interested in easy riding with Ecorider, “the only production diesel motorcycles offered for sale to the public in this country.” According to an email we got from Dusty Beckstrand, western US rep for Ecorider, they have been contacted lately by biodiesel companies interested in the bikes, “which use a German, Hatz diesel engine that gets 125 …
Small Company with Big Plans
A California company is planning to become a major ethanol producer with some new backing. A release this week from Altra, Inc. announced that it has attracted some heavy-hitter investors – private equity firms Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Omninet Private Equity, LLC and Sage Capital Partners, L.P. along with two leading private equity funds focused on high growth companies …
A-peeling Fuel Research
Now here’s an a-peeling idea for a cellulosic fuel source. Researchers at the Agricultural Research Service Citrus and Subtropical Products Laboratory in Winter Haven have been looking at the possibility of using citrus peels to make ethanol. According to this ARS story, citrus waste materials are rich in pectin, cellulose and hemicellusic polysaccharides, which can be hydrolyzed into sugars and …
Plug In to Hybrids
Found this good story on the Bioconversion Blog. Flex-fuel vehicles can run on gasoline or ethanol or any blend in between. But the liquid fuel MPG is not very good. Hybrid cars can extend the MPG of an automobile by substituting electricity generated within the car in place of liquid fuel – but you need to run the car on …