Bob Dinneen Keynotes Fuel Ethanol Workshop

Chuck Zimmerman

At the 2011 Fuel Ethanol Workshop the Reverend of Renewable Fuels, Bob Dinneen, CEO, Renewable Fuels Association took the stage as a keynote speaker. Bob started his presentation with a report on several policy issues and then moved to a “conversation” with attendees in which he took questions.

Bob first touched on yesterday’s EPA announcement of a label for E15. He says it’s not everything they hoped for but it’s not as bad as had been feared. It does show that the EPA considers E15 a viable fuel. Hopefully we’ll see the fuel in the market soon. Bob then moved on to the latest votes in Congress and what was really going on in the background and what those votes really mean. You can listen to Bob’s presentation here: Bob Dinneen Keynote

You can also watch Bob on stage with the first part of his presentation before he took questions and answers:

2011 FEW Photo Album

Our coverage of the 2011 Fuel Ethanol Workshop is being made possible by the Renewable Fuels Association.

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, FEW

Dr. Bruce Dale Receives FEW Award of Excellence

Chuck Zimmerman

This morning at the 2011 International Fuel Ethanol Workshop, the 2011 Award of Excellence was presented to Dr. Bruce Dale, Michigan State University, by BBI International VP, Tom Bryan.

Dale, professor of chemical engineering and associate director of the office of biobased technologies at Michigan State University, received the award for his extensive research in the areas of indirect land use change (ILUC) and the production of cellulosic ethanol. Earlier this year, he co-authored an analysis of ILUC which found no correlation between U.S. biofuel production and land use change in other countries.

In accepting the award, Dr. Dale recounted how he was the son of a mining engineer and that the towns where he grew up are now ghost towns because the ore has been depleted. “Because the industry on which they were based is not a renewable industry,” he said. When he became a chemical engineer and realized that he was most likely to end up working for the oil industry, he committed himself instead to develop large-scale renewable fuels.

Listen to the rest of his remarks here: Dr. Bruce Dale Remarks

2011 FEW Photo Album

Our coverage of the 2011 Fuel Ethanol Workshop is being made possible by the Renewable Fuels Association.

Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News, FEW, University

Ethanol Wins at Sonoma

Joanna Schroeder

The ethanol industry was in full force this past Sunday during the NASCAR Toytota/Save Mart 350 race at Sonoma Infineon Raceway. The winner of the race was Kurt Busch driving the #22 car and ethanol-sponsored Clint Bowyer #22 finished in fourth place. Rounding out the top spots were Jeff Gordon #24 finishing second and Carl Edwards #99 finishing in third place.

Among the estimated 100,000 fans at the race was ethanol enthusiast Paul Wikoff. He reported, “The air was full of the loud sound of E15 fuel powerfully propelling these cars forward at speeds averaging over 90 miles per hour on this twisty track of 1.99 miles, with 110 laps for completion.” The track has 11 turns and cars finishing the race completed 1, 210 turns, a different challenge compared to the traditional oval track.

The National Corn Growers Association hosted dozens of ethanol enthusiasts during the race and Dr. Mike Lynch, Managing Director of Green Innovation for NASCAR, made a visit to the grandstand box sponsored by American Ethanol. Lynch is credited with helping to bring Sunoco Green E15 to NASCAR and said during his remarks that the drivers and the dyno testing witness the added horsepower gain for the race cars.

Darrin Ihnen, Chairman of the National Corn Growers Association, was also in attendance and voiced his special gratitude to those in California that have embraced clean, renewable, and domestic ethanol fuel. The ethanol industry has been facing some hurdles in recent months with proposed legislation that would make ethanol ineligible for state funding programs including the California Ethanol Producer Incentive Program.

Ethanol, NASCAR

Biomass Crops to Be Grown on Airport Property

Joanna Schroeder

Michigan State University (MSU) is partnering with Wayne County Airport Authority (WCAA) who operates the Detroit Metropolitan Airport and Willow Run Airport to grow, harvest and process biomass crops on airport owned land. This is the first of its kind partnership in the Midwest and demonstrates WCAA’s commitment to advancing aviation biofuels development.

“How does aviation protect itself in the future against the depletion of fossil fuels and the uncertainty of foreign sources of energy?” asked WCAA Interim CEO Genelle M. Allen. “Part of the answer may be to grow it.”

The AgriEnergy Technology Demonstration project is funded by a $476,000 grant from the Michigan Energy Office, part of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. Combined, the two airports have nearly 1,700 acres of property that could be suitable for growing biomass crops. Already, WCAA has leased three acres of land to MSU Extension where several biomass crops have already been planted, including canola and oriental mustard seed, and this fall will be harvested, refined and tested.

Allen added, “WCAA has been interested in exploring the potential of developing airport-owned property around both airports for bioenergy production for some time. If successful, this project could attract businesses to the vicinity of the airports that would produce alternative fuels for use in aircraft and other vehicles. This project has possibilities for not only bringing economic development to Southeast Michigan, but also protecting land around our airports from further encroachment.”

In addition to airport property, the grant also includes bioenergy sites on other types of land not traditionally used for growing biofuel crops such as vacant urban lots and highway right-of-ways. According to MSU Extension Project Manager Dennis Pennington, he expects the project will also determine the economic impact of growing, refining, storing, and transporting the biomass as a drop in fuel alternative, aka biojet fuel.

The project is expected to be completed by February 2012.

Biodiesel, biojet fuel, biomass

DDCE Selects Nevada, IA for Cellulosic Ethanol Plant

Joanna Schroeder

DDCE has selected Nevada, Iowa for its cellulosic ethanol biorefinery to be located adjacent to Lincolnway Energy, LLC’s corn-ethanol plant. The company has entered into an agreement to purchase land when completed, where the plant will be sited. The biorefinery will be one of the first commercial scale cellulosic ethanol plants producing fuel from corn stover, corn cobs and leaves, remaining after grain harvesting. Currently, DDCE is producing fuel at its demonstration facility in Vonore, TN and is in the process of scaling up the process to globally license its end-to-end production system.

“We’re producing cellulosic ethanol sustainably and economically today, and the market is ready and interested to deploy large-scale biorefineries,” said Joe Skurla, CEO of DDCE. “We are purchasing the site next to Lincolnway because it will meet the business needs for our project, and provides potential economic and environmental synergies for both facilities.”

This fall, the company plans to collect thousands of tons of stover from Iowa fields with its 2011 Stover Collection Program. This program will help create cost effective harvesting and distribution techniques. DDCE is collaborating with Pioneer Hi-Bred and Iowa State University to establish best practices in harvesting, storage, and transportation, and assure the agronomic and environmental integrity of cornfields.

biofuels, Cellulosic, Ethanol

Rick Serie Joins ACE

Joanna Schroeder

Ethanol industry veteran Rick Serie has joined The American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) as its Director of Market Development. Brian Jennings, the organization’s executive vice president, said Serie’s talents make him a perfect fit for ACE and will help the advocacy fulfill its mission to make U.S. ethanol the consumer fuel of choice.

Ron Lamberty, ACE senior vice president said its members are becoming increasingly interested in supplying E85 and midlevel blends at the plant level. “Plants are becoming impatient with ‘kinks’ in the supply chain, and Rick’s experience as a supplier of E85 and midlevel blends at the ethanol plant level will be a great resource for producers considering their options,” said Lamberty. “The addition of Rick as Director of Market Development gives ACE unmatched real-world expertise in getting ethanol from the plant to the pump.”

Serie said he is excited to be part of such a dedicated team. “I am passionate about ethanol and rural America and I am thrilled with this opportunity to work with ACE members in helping expand and develop new markets for the ethanol industry,” said Serie.

Ethanol, Ethanol News

Sydney, Australia Home of New Algal Biomass Facility

Joanna Schroeder

Algae.Tec Limited in collaboration with Manildra Group have announced the construction of an algae demonstration facility in Shoalhaven One, in Nowra south of Sydney, Australia. Manildra Group is the country’s largest ethanol producer. Algae.Tec Executive Roger Stroud said the partnership contract has been signed and final logistical plans are being made and submissions for permits are also in the works.

“The Algae.Tec algae photo-reactors will be sited next to main facility and take a carbon dioxide feed from the main ethanol fermenters,” said Stroud. “Algae.Tec is one of only a few advanced biofuels companies globally with a technology designed to grow algae on an industrial scale and produce valuable biofuels that replace increasingly expensive fossil fuels.”

According to Algae.Tec, their technology captures carbon pollution from power stations and manufacturing facilities which feeds into the algae growth system. Currently, photo-reactors are being assembled at their Algae Development & Manufacturing Centre in Atlanta, Georgia. These photo-reactors use one-tenth of the land that is required when growing algae in ponds and the company said their enclosed module system is designed to produce the highest yield of algae biomass in nearly any environment on Earth.

algae, biofuels, International

Four Ethanol Plants to Install Advanced Oil Systems

Joanna Schroeder

Four ethanol plants have committed to installing ICM’s new patent-pending Advanced Oil System (AOS) corn oil extraction technology. According to ICM, AOS uses an emulsion-breaking approach to deliver a higher oil recovery rate than other technologies. The system can be added to plants without any current corn oil technology via separate skid mounted units or a modified version can be added to plants that currently have ICM’s first generation corn oil extraction technology.

Chris Mitchell, executive vice president of ICM said, “We’re thrilled to announce the deployment of our Advanced Oil System™ technology, and we’re eager to demonstrate how we’ve focused our efforts on creating solutions that deliver rapid payback and continuous value-added co-product streams for the renewable energy industry. We believe our competitive advantage comes from equipping our customers with the highest yielding and most efficient oil separation technology available.”

Ethanol, Ethanol News

Worldwide 90% of Consumers Want More Renewable Energy

Joanna Schroeder

According to a new study released today by Vestas Wind Systems, 90 percent of consumers worldwide want more renewable energy, 65 percent prefer to purchase brands produced using wind energy and 53 percent in China and 7 percent of respondents in the U.S. view climate change as the greatest challenge. The Global Consumer Wind Study 2011 as well as the Corporate Renewable Energy Index (CREX) 2011, show the relationship between consumer demand for renewable energy in the products and services they purchase. In addition, the studies highlight what corporations are or are not doing to meet consumer demands for greater use of renewable energy.

Ditlev Engel, President and CEO of Vestas said, “Consumers around the world see climate change as the greatest single challenge, and 90 percent of consumers want more renewable energy. This shows a real global desire to reduce carbon emissions. It gives corporate decision makers something to think about and act upon.”

The Global Consumer Wind Study 2011 is the largest undertaken of its kind with 31,000 respondents participating in 26 countries. The goal of the survey was to learn more about consumer demand for products made with renewable energy. Consumers were asked how energy decisions made by companies affect their purchasing decisions. In addition, consumers were asked about their perceptions of climate change. The annual study was commission by Vestas and conducted by TNS Gallup.

“The Global Consumer Wind Study provides insight into the role of renewable energy, in particular wind, in relation to the products and services consumers buy,” added Engel.” This in turn should drive the adoption of renewable energy sources by the corporations that sell these products and services.”

The Corporate Renewable Energy Index, with 176 respondents, was based on data from CREX, commissioned by Vestas and conducted by Bloomberg New Energy Finance. The companies using the most renewable energy are News Corp., Plum Creek Timber, Kohl’s Corporation, and Whole Foods Market, who uses 100 percent wind energy and has been named Global Wind Energy Champion.

Electricity, Energy, Research, Video, Wind

New Ethanol Yeast Product Released

Joanna Schroeder

A new yeast product for the ethanol industry was introduced this week by Lallemand Ethanol Technology. While the patent-pending product as of yet has no name, it is being commercialized through the partnership between Lallemand and Xylogenics, Inc. The new yeast is engineered to demonstrate characteristics that significantly change sugar uptake kinetics. The result is increased yields of up to 4 percent, increased capacity, reduced fermentation time and reduced ingredient costs. The yeast is being marketed as a replacement for existing yeast in first generation ethanol biorefineries.

“Our success is defined by our customer’s success, whether it be efficiencies attained, increased volume output or greater profitability,” said Bill Nankervis, Lallemand Ethanol Technology General Manager. “Because of the introduction of this technology, we expect our customers to realize real benefits that help them remain in the black in today’s challenging market environment.”

Ethanol, Ethanol News