Alliance BioEnergy Plus is touting the benefits of Harvesting Technology CoProMax for an ethanol plant. When combined with the ALLM CTS process, the company reports a 55 million gallon per year (mmgy) biorefinery can add more than $17 million to the bottom line to a corn ethanol plant without bringing in outside feedstock. According to Alliance BioEnergy, the CoProMax system …
UT & Genera Harvest Poplar Trees for Biofuels
University of Tennessee AgResearch Center is harvesting its first batch of popular trees to be used as biomass to create biofuels. The 10-acre plot of hybrid poplars was planted about four years ago and now the 30-foot trees are expected to produce between 60-100 tons of woody biomass. The harvest is part of a five-year $15 million multi-disciplinary research and development …
Mid American Agri Products Adds Cellunator
Mid American Agri Products/Wheatland (MAAPW) has gone online with Cellunator from Edeniq at its ethanol and biodiesel facility located in North Platte, Nebraska. According to Edeniq, the technology will increase the plant’s 44 million gallons per year (MGPY) of ethanol production by pretreating the corn slurry to liberate additional starch. The MAAPW facility also produces three MGPY of biodiesel. The …
Berkeley Lab’s Enzyme Reduces Plant Lignin
One of the barriers to efficient second generation biofuels is creating a better way to break down the lignin in plants that is then converted to the sugars that create the building blocks of biobased products such as cellulosic ethanol, biomaterials and biochemicals. But this hurdle may be getting lower with research out of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Scientists have …
UNCTAD Report: Advanced Biofuels Here Now
Second generation biofuels made from non-food biomass are here right now according to a new report from UNCTAD. “Second-Generation Biofuel Markets: State of Play, Trade and Developing Country Perspectives,” finds these biofuels are a commercial reality in the context of advanced technologies, economic pressures and a political will to act on climate change. The report focuses on the role advanced …
Cellulosic Ethanol Prices Hinges on Feedstocks
A new study from Lux Research finds innovation is still needed to make advanced biofuels competitive. The report cites six cellulosic ethanol facilities online and finds Raizen has the lowest projected minimum ethanol selling price of $2.17 per gallon. Abengoa’s $500 million Hugoton plant has the highest price of $4.55 with feedstock cost as the most critical variable. (It should …
Flint Hills Licenses Edeniq’s Cellulose Technology
Flint Hills Resources has signed an agreement to license Edeniq‘s Pathway Technology for all of its ethanol plants. The ethanol group has been an investor in the company since April of 2012 and a customer since June 2012. “This comprehensive Pathway agreement is the seventh license agreement between our companies, including the installation of Edeniq’s Cellunators at three of FHR’s …
ExxonMobil, REG to Study Biodiesel from Cellulose
Big oil is partnering up with a giant in biodiesel production to explore the potential of biodiesel made from cellulosic sugars. This news release from Renewable Energy Group (REG) says the green fuel company is partnering with ExxonMobil to make the biodiesel by fermenting renewable cellulosic sugars from sources such as agricultural waste. REG has developed a patented technology that …
Grasses Hold Promise for Biofuels in Midwest
A recent study shows that perennial grasses are economical biofuel crops to meet U.S. fuel goals and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, the West will have to contribute to the biofuels market in ways other than grasses. Tara Hudiburg, an ecologist in the College of Natural Resources at University of Idaho along with researchers from the University of Illinois, Colorado …
Pacific Ethanol Begins Cellulosic Production
Pacific Ethanol biorefinery located in Stockton, California is now producing cellulosic ethanol using Edeniq, Inc.’s Pathway Technology. The Stockton plant, a facility with a production capacity of 60 million gallons per year, is expected to produce up to 750,000 gallons per year of cellulosic ethanol with the Pathway process. Neil Koehler, president and CEO of Pacific Ethanol, said of the …