The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health awarded a $1.4 million grant to the University of Arizona‘s Mel and Enid Zumerman College of Public Health along with the department of mining and geological engineering. The three-year project will compare exposure and health effects of miners using diesel versus biodiesel fueled underground mining equipment. During the past few years, miners …
Will Global Biofuel Investments Continue?
Historically, 2009 was a hard year for biofuels. Biofuel spending was down to $5.6 billion from $15.4 billion in 2008. Investments in the industry focused on cellulosic technologies and sugarcane. This according to NRG Expert’s World Biofuels Report. The report cites sugarcane-based biofuels as being the most competitive with oil and also have the lowest greenhouse gas emissions. The worst …
Federal Court to Hear Arguments Against Cali LCFS
Last December, U.S. District Judge Lawrence O’Neill ruled California’s Low Carbon Fuels Standard (LCFS) unconstitutional. However, a stay was issued allowing implementation of the law until a federal appeals court hears arguments in the case. This is set to take place this week. The Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA) is lobbying for the end of the LCFS. Executive Vice President Michael …
USDA Announces 6th Regional Biofuels System
The U.S. Department of Agriculture today announced a research grant to develop next generation biofuels in the Northeast. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today awarded Pennsylvania State University a five-year research grant valued at roughly $10 million to develop biomass supply chains for the production of liquid transportation and aviation biofuels in the Northeast. This is the sixth such award made …
Navy: Biofuel Technology is Here
According to an article on Military.com, biofuel technology has arrived. While several legislators fight to stop the military from pursuing the use of biofuels, Secretary Ray Mabus says the Navy will continue to develop biofuel technology for use in its ships and aircraft. During a luncheon on October 9th, Mabus said the technology is already here. Research shows that between …
Gevo Awarded Two Patents
Gevo, a company focused on developing biobutanol technology, has been awarded two patents. The first is US Patent No. 8,273,565, entitled “Methods of Increasing Dihydroxy Acid Dehydratase Activity to Improve Production of Fuels, Chemicals, and Amino Acids.” The patent covers suppression of a glutaredoxin protein called GRX3. In combination with other Gevo patented technologies, deletion of GRX3 significantly increases the …
Paseo Biofuels Begins Expansion
Paseo Biofuels is making plans to expand their biodiesel facility located in Kansas City, Missouri by 40 percent. The plant uses soybean oil as its primary feedstock and currently produces 40 million gallons of biodiesel and 30 million pounds of glycerin each year. The expansion is expected to be completed by March 2013. “Our partnership with Paseo has gone very …
Cali Senators Call for Cali Gas Price Investigation
According to a Los Angeles Times article, California Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif) have called for a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigation into California’s high gas prices. In one week, the per gallon price of gas jumped 50 cents. Fuel analysts attribute the increase to an oil pipeline problem, maintenance procedures, and refinery mishaps. According to Feinstein, …
Study Looks at Converting Biomass & Electricity to Fuel
In a collaborative effort between University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Massachusetts-Amherst and Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, a continuous process for converting biomass and electricity into renewable liquid transportation fuels has been developed. The researchers used a proton-exchange-membrane fuel cell to convert the model biomass compound acetone into isopropanol. This chemical compound can be used in a myriad of …
Vilsack Defends Ethanol at Dairy Expo
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack held a town hall meeting at World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisconsin this week and took questions from the audience, one of which concerned ethanol and the impact it has had on livestock producers. The questioner, who was from California, said ethanol was “not a very popular word” with dairy farmers in her state. “Where …