Ethanol Gets Iowa Football Fans Pumped Up

Joanna Schroeder

Did you know that 60 cents of each gallon of E85 purchased stays in the state of Iowa? I didn’t know that until I participated in the Iowa Corn Fed Game Day pump rally at Riverside, Iowa to get people “pumped up” for the upcoming Iowa State versus Iowa football game. Another way to look at this is for each gallon of E85 you purchase, 85 cents stays in America; whereas if you purchase E10, only 10 cents stays in America while 90 cents heads out of our borders.

Here are two more interesting facts. Did you know that Iowa is ranked #9 in the country; yet non-ranked Iowa State has the most difficult schedule this year?

And one more…Did you know that Iowa is the leading producer of corn and ethanol in the country? Iowa boasts 40 ethanol plants that produce more than 3 billion gallons of ethanol each year saving consumers money at the pump with each mile they drive.

So where did I learn these nifty facts? From an actual corn farmer, Dick Gallagher, who was on hand to educate consumers about ethanol blended fuels as well as educate consumers about all the products that have corn in them..shirts, biodegradable plastics, carpet, tires, and more. They all use corn as one of their ingredients and whether you realize it or not, our lives would not, and could not, be the same without our corn farmers.

Speaking of our corn farmers, they are growing enough corn to meet all of our needs for food, feed and fuel, both here in America as well as overseas and they are doing it each year using less land.

But let’s hope that Iowa State doesn’t score less than Iowa but scores more than Iowa, but I digress.

Kum & Go was a sponsor of today’s pump rallies and they have been a long-time ethanol supporter. Matt Chase, with Kum & Go told me that 31 of their stores in Iowa sell E85, more than any other retailer, and all of their stations sell E10 blended fuels.

The Iowa Corn Fed Game Day promotion is sponsored by Iowa Corn Growers Association and continues all week long leading up to game day on Saturday. The game begins at 2:30 pm CST but come early. Iowa Corn will have a booth set up at Krause Family Plaza at 10:00 am where they will hosting some fun games as well as the chance to win $5,000 in free food and $2,500 in free ethanol-blended fuel. You can also sign up online at www.iacornfed.com.

And one last cool fact to leave you with….Herky the Hawk is a HUGE fan of ethanol.

corn, E85, Education, Ethanol, Promotion

Getting Grease Out of Sewer, Into Biodiesel

John Davis

Columbia, South Carolina is the latest municipality that is getting waste grease out of its sewer system and into its vehicles in the form of biodiesel.

The Columbia Free Times says the city has set up a system to collect residents’ used cooking oil and use it in a trash truck:

When restaurants need to get rid of used cooking oil, they can usually donate or sell it to companies that convert it into fuel. Columbia’s backyard chefs, on the other hand, have had to throw away their oil — the Thanksgiving turkey-frying oil; the used oil from family fish frys; the gallons and gallons of oil it takes to perfect a fried chicken recipe or the world’s best raw fries.

Now, the City of Columbia wants residents to bring their used cooking oil to a new drop-off site at the city’s Public Works facility on Colonial Drive. Dubbed Southern Fried Fuels, the program is part of an arrangement with the local company Midlands Biofuels.

Brandon Spence, co-owner and CEO of Midlands Biofuels, says his company is paying for the oil collection itself; the city is only providing space for the collection tanks and then buying the biofuel.

“The containers are an investment,” Spence says.

The city will use a B20 blend of this waste grease biodiesel for the garbage truck and could use it in other equipment. Columbia’s fleet of other diesel vehicles is already running on B5.

In addition, the city says it spends $1.5 million a year dealing with grease, mostly from residents and not restaurants, in its sewer lines. Officials hope this will cut those costs down significantly.

Biodiesel

Iowa Corn Fed Game Day Highlights Food and Fuel

Joanna Schroeder

Did you know that Iowa is leading the way in both corn production and ethanol production but corn is not only used for ethanol? It is also an ingredient in more than 4,000 products including toothpaste, pizza, tires, drywall, bubblegum and more. The Iowa Corn Growers realized that many people don’t know this so they have developed a consumer promotion to educate Iowans about corn. It’s called the Iowa Corn Fed Game Day promotion and entails a sponsorship of the Iowa State vs. Iowa football, wrestling and basketball games.

I spoke with Mindy Williamson, the Iowa Corn Growers Director of Communications, to learn more about the benefits of their Iowa Corn Fed Game Day sponsorship. “We like to call it the Super Bowl of Iowa because Iowa and Iowa State is our biggest rivalry here,” said Williamson.

“The Iowa Corn Growers in Iowa wanted to get together and talk about things other than ethanol,” continued Williamson. “We love ethanol as corn growers but we know there are also 4,000 other products made from corn. We want Iowans to know what those are and how those affect their life.”

Williamson said that one benefit of the sponsorship is that it gives them a venue to educate people about how many products use corn. Another benefit is that they want to bridge the gap between food and fuel and this is a way to do that. “There’s not a competition there. There is plenty of corn. We are excellent at growing corn for both markets,” explained Williamson.

Iowa Corn Growers have launched a promotion to bridge that gap along with the Iowa Corn Fed Game Day. They are giving away $5,000 in groceries and $2,500 in ethanol. You can sign up multiple times online at www.iacornfed.com or at the upcoming football game or even during some of the pump rallies leading up to the game which are being held September 7, in and around Iowa City, Iowa.

Flex-fuel vehicle drivers can fill up their tank with E85 for .85 cents and any driver can sign up to win food and fuel. Herky the Hawk will also be there to get everyone jazzed up for the game. If you miss the pump rallies, then come on over to the Krause Family Plaza Friday, September 11 starting at 10:00 am. CT.

Can’t wait to see you there!

You can learn more about the Iowa Corn Fed Game Day events by listening to my interview with Mindy here. Iowa Corn Fed Game Day

Audio, corn, Education, Ethanol, food and fuel, Promotion

Ethanol Co-Product Hitting “Feed Wall”

Cindy Zimmerman

We hear a lot about the blend wall for ethanol in the United States market, but there’s also a wall that the ethanol co-product Dried Distillers Grains (DDGS) in hitting with the livestock industry.

RFA Dinneen“We’ve already run into a feed wall,” says Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President and CEO Bob Dinneen. “While domestic markets for DDGS continue to expand, quite frankly we’ve grown that market pretty rapidly over the last several years and the opportunity for continued expansion domestically are fewer and farther between.”

So expanding export markets for DDGS is important for the U.S. ethanol industry, and that opportunity is substantial. “We are exporting more and more DDGS these days,” Dinneen says. “But more needs to be done to get suppliers and buyers together.”

usgcAnd that is why RFA is working with the U.S. Grains Council on the 2010 Export Exchange in Chicago next month and why Dinneen believes it is a must-attend event for ethanol producers. “Because DDG marketing is so important to the bottom line of an ethanol producer. About 40 percent of your feedstock costs can be recovered in the marketing of DDG,” Dinneen said.

The Export Exchange is being held October 6-8 at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place Hotel in Chicago, Ill. More information and registration is available on-line here.

Listen to Bob Dinneen’s interview about DDGS and the Export Exchange here: Bob Dinneen Interview

Audio, Distillers Grains, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA, USGC

Michigan Researchers Turn Wet Algae into Biodiesel

John Davis

Researchers have found a feasible way to turn wet algal biomass directly into biodiesel.

Biodiesel Magazine reports that University of Michigan scientists have published a paper on a two-step hydrolysis-solvolysis process that eliminates costly biomass drying, organic solvent extraction and catalysts:

In the first step, wet algal biomass contained 80 percent moisture and was reacted with subcritical water to hydrolyze intracellular lipids, conglomerate cells into an easily filterable solid that retained the lipids and produced a sterile, nutrient-rich aqueous phase. In the second step, the wet, fatty acid-rich solids underwent supercritical transesterification with ethanol to produce fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEEs). The team used Chlorella vulgaris algae, which contained 53.3 percent lipid content.

According to Phillip Savage, lead researcher on the project, the team gathered the wet algae grown from the lab and centrifuged it to transform the algal biomass into a paste-like substance. “At large scale that probably wouldn’t be applicable for an economical process,” he noted. “We got something that was probably around 10 to 20 percent solids to the balance of water.”

The research yielded promising results, Savage added, but the project is anticipated to be refined and optimized in order for to demonstrate greater economic and environmental feasibility of the process on a larger scale.

The researchers say more work will need to be done to improve the yields and cut down on inputs.

algae, Biodiesel

Denver to Host Alt Fuel Trade Alliance Workshop

John Davis

Make your plans now to attend the free Alternative Fuel Trade Alliance Workshop, Thursday, Sept. 9, at the Crowne Plaza in Denver, Colo.

Sponsored by our friends at the Renewable Fuels Association, the National Biodiesel Board, the Clean Vehicle Education Foundation and the Propane Education & Research Council, this one-day event promises to be a must-attend event for a wide range of alternative fuel users, producers and marketers:

This training seminar will cover alternative fuel quality, infrastructure, available vehicles, safety, and environmental impact of propane, ethanol, biodiesel, and compressed natural gas. Attendees will include fleet managers, petroleum marketers, policy makers, fuel station owners, and media.

To register and for more information, check the alliance’s website, www.altfuelsalliance.org, or contact Julie Puckett at julie@thesales.net or 703-675-0520.

Biodiesel, conferences, Propane, RFA

Help Gulf Coast Move Beyond Oil

Cindy Zimmerman

A Florida company is trying to win a $250,000 grant from Pepsi to bring alternative fuels to the Gulf Coast region.

beyond oilPura-Vida-Ventures is an independent company based in Sarasota that has a proposal in to Pepsi for a share in $1.3 million they are offering to fund ideas that “refresh the Gulf.” Their concept is to convert a closed gas station into a community resource center, offer biodiesel and ethanol blends, then add electric, hydrogen, or CNG/LPG and offset energy consumption by using solar panels and wind.

We will create an Alternative (to petroleum) Oasis. It becomes a “community center” by offering information and access to a product mix that is unavailable in the marketplace. It will become the local resource for green/eco products and services. It will utilize solar panels to decrease energy consumption, harvest rainwater to diminish its use onsite, and be surrounded by lush native landscaping. The market will engage its customers by offering services such as local volunteer information, educational presentations, and encourage local buying habits.

You can vote for the Pura-Vida plan here and find out more on their Facebook page.

Biodiesel, Energy, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Solar

Federal Ag & Energy Depts. Team Up for Bioenergy

John Davis

The U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Energy have teamed up to hand out some research awards to designed to improve and accelerate genetics in plants for bioenergy production.

This USDA release says the announcement from Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Energy Secretary Steven Chu will make $8.9 million available:

“Cost-effective, sustainable biofuels are crucial to building a clean energy economy,” said Secretary Chu. “By harnessing the power of science and technology, this joint effort between DOE and USDA will help accelerate research in the critical area of plant feedstocks, spurring the creation of the domestic bio-industry while creating jobs and reducing our dependence on foreign oil.”

“Developing a domestic source of renewable energy will create jobs and wealth in rural America, combat global warming, replace our dependence on foreign oil, and build a stronger foundation for the 21st century economy,” Secretary Vilsack said. “This scientific investment will lay the foundation for a source of fuel made from renewable sources.”

The research grants will be awarded under a joint DOE-USDA program focused on fundamental investigations of biomass genomics, with the aim of harnessing lignocellulosic materials–i.e., nonfood plant fiber–for biofuels production. Emphasis is on perennials, including trees and other nonfood plants that can be used as dedicated biofuel crops. Since such crops tend to require less intensive production practices and can grow on somewhat poorer quality land than food crops, they will be a critical element in a strategy of sustainable biofuels production that avoids competition with crops grown for food. Combining DOE’s leadership in genome-scale technologies with USDA’s long experience in crop improvement will help accelerate development of such specialized crops and improve their effectiveness as feedstocks for biofuels production.

The Energy Department will be handing out $6.9 million for seven projects across the country and USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture will give $2 million for two projects in Illinois and Texas.

bioenergy, biofuels, Government, USDA

Canada Mandates Biofuels

By the end of the year, Canadians will be using more ethanol in their fuel. According to The Epoch Times, regulations were finaized by the government yesterday requiring that all gasoline must contain 5% biofuels starting December 15.

“Regulating renewable fuel content in gasoline is just one of several steps the Government is taking to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector, which account for about a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions,” said Environment Minister Jim Prentice in a statement.

This regulation is part of a strategy by the government to lower greenhouse gas emissions by 17 percent from 2005 levels by 2020.

“Support for renewable fuels is support for farmers, rural communities and our economy,” said Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz in a statement. “This is a vital step in generating new market opportunities for our farmers and maximizing Canada’s high quality resources to produce food and fuel for the world.”

biofuels, Environment, Ethanol, Ethanol News, News

REG Biodiesel Featured at Farm Progress & Beer Tour

John Davis

Chuck and Joanna have been giving you some great coverage of Farm Progress Show from Boone, Iowa here on Domestic Fuel and over at AgWired.com. It only seems fitting that the country’s premier farm show is being powered by Iowa-based biodiesel producer Renewable Energy Group (REG). And in the same tradition of having a cold beer after a long day at Farm Progress (I understand that maybe one or two have been consumed during the time in Boone, Iowa), REG is playing a major role in a beer tour throughout the Midwest.

New Belgium Brewing of Ft. Collins, Colo. recently called on biodiesel producer Renewable Energy Group of Ames, Iowa to provide sustainable, clean-burning B100 to power the Midwest portion of the brewing company’s renowned thirteen-city, national bicycle festival.

The Tour de Fat—named for the brewery’s signature Fat Tire beer—spreads the good word about the positive societal offerings of bicycle use as well as showcases the outstanding green practices of New Belgium.

“We try to minimize the environmental impact of our events at every turn and that’s why our transport trucks ran on pure biodiesel,” said New Belgium’s Matt Kowal. “Our philanthropic bike festival, Tour de Fat, celebrates bicycling as a viable form of alternative transport.”

Decker Truck Lines, LLC of Fort Dodge, Iowa served as the event hauler for the Midwest portion of the Tour de Fat’s and burned B100.

“New Belgium has made a commitment to using biodiesel made from sustainable sources like waste oils, fats and greases in order to help reduce our corporate carbon footprint by at least 25 percent. We are pleased that we can continue that commitment by burning Iowa-produced biodiesel produced from another industry’s waste stream,” stated tour impresario Matt Kowal, who works at the brewery year ‘round producing the festival and emceeing its 13 stops (this year) around the country.

Now that’s something you can truly raise a cold one to.

Biodiesel