Researchers from the University of Connecticut have come up with a better way to brew up biodiesel. This article from PHYSORG.com says Professor Richard Parnas, who you might remember from my story last October also is finding a way to use hemp as a biodiesel feedstock, has developed a patented biodiesel reactor that uses gravity, heat, and natural chemical reactions …
USDA to Measure Biodiesel, Ethanol Co-Product Usage
The USDA wants to know how livestock producers are using co-products from biodiesel and ethanol production. This story from Ethanol Producer Magazine says the National Agriculture Statistics Service will be taking comments until March 28, 2011 with plans to release the results by next January: NASS expects to contact 70,000 various livestock and poultry operations in early January to gain …
Happy National Biodiesel Day!
Since today is the anniversary of the the birth of the first proponent of biodiesel, it is also National Biodiesel Day. It was on March 18, 1858 Rudolf Diesel was born. As a proponent of using peanut oil in his diesel engine invention, Herr Diesel also became the first backer of biodiesel, thus today being recognized as National Biodiesel Day. …
Petroleum, Not Biodiesel to Blame in Heating Oil Issue
Some recent issues with biodiesel-blended heating oil in the Northeast U.S. might be because of a bad batch of petroleum, not the biodiesel mixed with it. This blog post from Biodiesel Magazine says that the issue came up at this week’s meeting of the Oilheat Council of New Hampshire, where some members of the group had issues with coking of …
Cobalt CEO: Biochems More Profitable than Biofuels
The head of a company that produces biochemicals and biofuels says the chemical market, although smaller, is much more profitable than the renewable fuel market. According to this piece from Biofuels Digest, during the recent BioPro Expo and Conference in Atlanta, Cobalt Technologies CEO Rick Wilson questioned the wisdom of focusing on biofuels when the better money is in biochemicals: …
New Jersey Utility Installs Rooftop Solar Array
New Jersey’s oldest and largest publicly owned utility has put in a 921-kilowatt rooftop solar at the power provider’s Central Division Headquarters. With some help from Solis Partners, a leading developer and integrator of commercial solar power systems, Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) put in the U.S.-made SolarWorld flat, glass-plated crystalline panels and Solyndra thin film panels, part …
US Oilseed Growers Protest EU Biofuel Requirement
Oilseed growers, led by the American Soybean Association (ASA), have raised concerns with U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack and U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Ron Kirk over the European Union’s (EU) Renewable Energy Directive (RED), particularly the part that is keeping American soybeans out of Europe for biofuel production. The ASA is asking to meet with Vilsack’s and …
Finding Homes for Biofuels Alongside the Beaten Path
While biofuels development and production have been a bit different, some of the latest efforts to find room to grow non-food feedstocks for biofuels are being found alongside the beaten path. In this case, we’re talking about using areas, such as ditches and medians along the nation’s highways, as good spots to grow the raw materials to keep the cars …
KiOR to Sell Biomass Product to Oil Company
Maker of biomass-based renewable gasoline and diesel products KiOR will sell its biocrude to oil company Hunt Refining Co. This article from Reuters says the Hunt Texas oil empire will buy an unspecified amount of the product from Khosla’s first plant, still to be built in Columbus, Mississippi: KiOR says its “Biomass Catalytic Cracking Process,” aided by a catalyst developed …
Researcher Makes Foam from Biodiesel By-Product
A researcher from The Ohio State University has found a way to make a polyurethane foam from a by-product of biodiesel. Yebo Li, a biosystems engineer with the university’s Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center (OARDC) in Wooster, has found a way to turn glycerin into a renewable, cheaper foam: “Polyurethane foam made with our bio-polyol is renewable, biodegradable and …