September is officially Renewable Fuels Month in Nebraska now after a proclamation signing by the governor today at Husker Harvest Days. Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman joined state soybean board chair Lisa Lunz, NASCAR Nationwide driver Kenny Wallace and Alan Tiemann, chairman of the Nebraska Corn Board, in making the declaration. “Nebraska’s renewable fuels sector contributes to local communities by providing …
How to Properly Handle Chemicals in a Biorefinery
I’ve spent the last few weeks speaking with people in the biorefining industry in an effort to learn more about safety issues and best practices. The result is a series on Biorefinery Plant Safety and part one focuses on chemical safety. Chemicals are a necessary component of producing ethanol or biodiesel. On the ethanol side, some plants use chlorine dioxide …
Day in the Life of Biofuels Photo Contest
Biofuels Digest editor Jim Lane is looking for photos depicting “A Day in the Life of Biofuels” for an upcoming photo essay and he’s paying $1000 for the best photo he gets. “It has to relate to biofuels in some way – as a consumer, researcher, policymaker, producer, journalist, feedstock grower, industry supplier, student, enthusiast, carmaker, mechanic, and so on,” …
Canadian Firm Developing Industry Oilseed Crops
Vancouver-based Linnaeus Plant Sciences has been awarded $1.2 million in support from Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) to further advance production of green alternatives to petroleum oils. SDTC support will help Linnaeus advance production of camelina and safflower-based oils as renewable feedstock that can substitute for petroleum in a variety of high-value, non-fuel applications including polymers, lubricants, surfactants and other …
Students Launch Facebook Campaign to Raise Cash for Biodiesel Program
Rockwood Summit High School located in Fenton, Missouri is on the hunt for dollars to help expand their biodiesel project. But they are not selling candy bars or giving car washes on a Saturday afternoon. They have taken to Facebook to promote their fundraising campaign. The fundraising campaign is not limited to Rockwood Summit High School. Famous Footwear and Converse …
ACE Announces Winner of Merle Anderson Award
The winner of this year’s Merle Anderson Award goes to USDA Under Secretary for Rural Development Dallas Tonsager for his support of the ethanol industry. The honor was given by the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) following their ethanol conference. Tonsager, who said he was pleased to win the award, was honored for his lifetime commitment to the promotion of …
Book Review – The Powers That Be
I felt like an academic when I read this week’s book, “The Powers That Be Global Energy For The Twenty-First Century And Beyond,” although author Scott L. Montgomery wanted the book to be “fun.” I sported my black geek glasses and curled up in a chair at a local coffee shop and attempted to give off the personae that I’m …
This School Year, Transport Your Kids In Cleaner Buses
School is in session. Millions of children across the country have already started or will head back to class after Labor Day weekend. It’s a good time to ask the question, How clean is the air your children are breathing on the bus? With nearly 450,000 school buses transporting more than 24 million students each day and covering more than …
REG Adds Bioheat & Biodiesel Sales Manager
Paul Predaris has joined Renewable Energy Group (REG) as the company’s new Biodiesel Sales Manager. In his role, he will oversee the company’s Bioheat development of the biodiesel market in the Northeastern United States. This part of the country is rapidly adopting Bioheat for home heating and Predaris will closely work with home heating oil and petroleum distributors as well …
UOP Breaks Ground on Hawaii Cellulose Plant
UOP, a honeywell company, has broken ground on a biofuels demonstration plant in Hawaii that will convert forest waste, algae and other cellulosic biomass to fuel. The project is being helped along by a $25 million U.S. Department of Energy grant. The project will help meet federal biofuel mandates as well as help Hawaii reach its clean energy goals of …