IFT’s Biodiesel Booster Just in Time for Higher Blends

John Davis

A St. Louis-based company has recently finished testing of a product that not only will boost the performance of biodiesel … just in time as more people look at using higher blends of the green fuel … but some it is being made from renewable feedstocks.

International Fuel Technology’s Director of Science and Technology, Sergio Trindade, explains IFT’s DiesoLiFT 10, designed to reduce harmful emissions and maintenance costs when mixed with diesel fuel and biodiesel fuel blends, and DiesoLiFT BD-3, formulated to give biodiesel superior oxidation stability and deposit control benefits, optimizes the compression combustion that takes place in the engine.

“Which means the surface exposed to combustion is much larger than the ordinary injection system without our additive.”

He goes on to explain that this optimization becomes more important as the industry moves to higher blends of biodiesel, such as B20.

“When you get to those higher biodiesel concentrations, you lose some of the mileage. The use of our product helps makeup for that loss in mileage.”

If you’re wondering if you would be replacing the cost of the biodiesel with the cost of IFT’s additives, Trindade says while the additives produce a 4.5 percent increase in mileage, you’ll spend only that first 1 percent to use the additive. That means it still returns about four-to-one on the investment.

Trindade adds they are making a portion of IFT’s DiesoLiFT 10 and DiesoLiFT BD-3 from some of the same renewable feedstocks used for biodiesel and hopes to increase those feedstocks in the future.

You can hear more of my conversation with Sergio Trindade in the player below.
Sergio Trindade, IFT interview

Audio, Biodiesel

ND and MN Celebrates Freedom with E85

North Dakota flexible fuel drivers are celebrating the freedom to use a domestically produced fuel in their vehicle. As a goal to educate, the Clean Air Choice Team, which includes the American Lung Association in North Dakota, is encouraging motorists to use mid and high level ethanol blends over the 4th of July weekend.

“Even though North Dakota is an oil-producing state, and many people benefit directly and indirectly from the revenue and jobs created by the petroleum industry, it is still very important that we look for other types of fuels that are more renewable, better for our environment and better for our health,” said Robert Moffitt, a spokesperson for the American Lung Association in North Dakota. “We calculate that if a single flex fuel vehicle is fueled with E85 instead of gasoline for a year, it prevents 4 tons of emissions from entering our air.”

The Meeker County Corn Growers, Minnesota Corn Growers Assn., US Dept. of Clean Cities, American Lung Assn. of MN and the MN Clean Air Choice team is also promoting the use of E85 next week. E85 will sell for 85 cents off per gallon on Thursday, July 8 from 2 until 5 p.m. at the Consumer’s Coop Cenex at 1025 East Frontage Rd. in Litchfield, MN.

For more information on events in MN and ND, go to www.CleanAirChoice.org.

E85, Ethanol, Ethanol News, News

Choice at the Pump Will Lead to Energy Independence

Joanna Schroeder

As the July 4th weekend kicks off, the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) is reminding everyone that energy independence can be achieved through choice at the pump.

To reinforce this message, ACE has confirmed that Anne Korin, author of “Turning Oil Into Salt: Independence Through Fuel Choice,” chair of the Set America Free Coalition and nationally sought after expert, will provide a keynote address on consumer choice at the pump, August 4th, during their national conference August 3-5 in Kansas City.

“We are so pleased that Anne Korin will be joining us for our national ethanol conference next month to share her expertise on how America can achieve energy independence,” said Brian Jennings, Executive Vice President of ACE.  “A key tactic outlined in her book is to break oil’s monopoly at the pump, thus breaking its status as a strategic commodity. Fuel choice is the answer, which is why we are fighting hard for the consumer’s right to access flexible fuel vehicles and blender pumps.”

According to ACE, the type of choice at the pump that would benefit consumers are blender pumps. These pumps offer consumers the choice to fill up with E10 or E85 or various mid-level blends such as E30 or E40. However, to use mid-level or higher blends of ethanol today, a consumer must own a flexible fuel vehicle (FFV) and there is currently pending legislation that would require all vehicles sold in the U.S. to be FFVs.

“Our nation’s fuel system is built around petroleum, and if there’s any hope of achieving energy independence, we must start building some flexibility into the fuel system,” Jennings said. “Flexible fuel vehicles and blender pumps will open up the fuel system to competition and allow the consumer to choose, instead of living under the decades-old mandate for 90 percent petroleum in every gallon of gasoline.”

Discounted registration is available for attendees through July 23. Click here for online registration. To learn more about other topics and speakers at this year’s event, click here.

ACE, conferences, Ethanol, Ethanol News

RFA Renews Ethanol Sponsorship of Motorcycle Rally

Cindy Zimmerman

For the second year, the Legendary Buffalo Chip will be “Fueled With Pride” as the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) continues their support as an honored sponsor to promote ethanol during the 70th Annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. The popular bikers event will take place August 6-14th in Sturgis, South Dakota.

RFA Sturgis Fueled with Pride 2010The RFA will continue their partnership with the Legendary Buffalo Chip campgrounds by promoting the use of ethanol fuel through promotional materials, banners and merchandise, featuring the “Fueled with Pride” logo, to volunteers, staff and motorcycle enthusiasts from all over the country. The Legendary Buffalo Chip staff and vehicles will show their support by sporting “Ethanol: Fueled With Pride” decals as they travel throughout the grounds.

“This high-octane event is the perfect environment to let consumers know about the benefits of cleaner-burning, domestic ethanol fuel,” says Buffalo Chip Campground Sponsorship Director, Lon Nordbye. “The Chip chooses ethanol and we are proud to host the Renewable Fuels Association at the largest music festival for motorcycling in the world.”

On August 9th, RFA will sponsor the Third Annual Legends Ride, a charity event where over 500 riders including celebrities and world-class bike builders will join together for a 50-mile ride from historic Deadwood, SD to the Legendary Buffalo Chip. In addition, the ethanol sponsorship will be featured at Michael Lichter’s Tenth Annual Motorcycles as Art Exhibit, an internationally renowned exhibition that will showcase the works of the most influential master builders and artists in motorcycling.

“It is important for these riders to know that ethanol-blended fuels are a safe and effective alternative to petroleum that they can use in their motorcycle engines, along with every other vehicle they have at home,” said RFA Director of Market Development Robert White. “American heritage and the American love for riding runs deep here, it only makes sense to use an American fuel.”

Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFA

Green Process for Fuel Additive Could Help Ethanol Production

Cindy Zimmerman

An Iowa State University researcher has developed a new green, bio-based process for producing the fuel additive isobutene that could help ethanol production.

ISU biochemistry professor Thomas Bobik invented a process for manufacturing the much-used fuel additive and industrial chemical that is currently made from petroleum by identifying a new, natural enzyme that produces the fuel organically. Isobutene is a gas used to produce chemicals and also in the manufacturing of fuel additives, adhesives, plastics and synthetic rubber. It can be chemically converted to isooctane, which is a fuel that could be used to replace gasoline additive methyl tert-butyl ether (MBTE), which can be environmentally harmful. Isooctane is used in gasoline to stop engine knocking and other problems. Currently, isooctane is produced from petroleum products.

Bobik, along with doctoral student David Gogerty (both pictured), believe that once more research is completed, there could be huge benefits to the biofuels industry since currently one of the biggest expenses in producing ethanol now is the cost of separating the ethanol from the water where it’s made. “Isobutene is a gas, so we can imagine that it will be easy to remove the isobutene from the vessel in which it was made, and that should be a very cheap and efficient way to purify the biofuel,” said Bobik.

One of the drawbacks, Bobik warns, is the process currently takes too long because the activity of the enzyme is low. “It’s too low for commercial application. So we’re trying to use directed enzyme evolution to improve the activity of the enzyme so it can become commercially viable,” Bobik said. Directed enzyme evolution is the effort to engineer enzymes to perform certain functions. In this case, it is trying to find a way to get the enzyme to produce isobutene more quickly than in nature.

Bobik says progress is being made rapidly and perhaps, within 10 years, motorists may be using a bio-based, environmentally friendly ingredient in their gas tanks every time they fill up.

biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Research, University

Bioenergy and Ethanol Market News from USDA

Cindy Zimmerman

USDAProducers, consumers and distributors of bioenergy products can access crucial data through the Bioenergy Market News Reports published by the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service.

The Ethanol reports include data for six regions – Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Nebraska, South Dakota and the Eastern Corn Belt. Each report publishes daily corn bids, daily distiller grain prices and a weekly ethanol price. The Weekly Ethanol Summary combines all ethanol reports into a summary report. Futures prices for CME corn and ethanol, as well as NYMEX natural gas and reformulated gasoline can be found on this report. Graphs depicting prices for Iowa ethanol price, Iowa distiller grain price and the price ratio in Iowa between distiller grain and corn are shown.

The National Weekly Ag Energy Roundup includes prices for commodities that can be used to make energy, such as soybean oil, corn oil, tallow and greases. The prices of ethanol and biodiesel are also reported. Additionally, CME and NYMEX futures prices are reported for ethanol, soybean oil, crude oil, reformulated gasoline and natural gas. Graphs are included to show price relationships for several commodities.

There are three reports that report Ethanol Corn and Products Processing Values (Iowa, Nebraska and Illinois). These reports compare the price that ethanol plants pay for corn in their state to the value the ethanol plant receives from the outputs of ethanol and distiller grains.

To access the reports, visit marketnews.usda.gov.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, USDA

Biofuels Videos from Obama Administration

Cindy Zimmerman

The Obama administration and USDA have released a couple of videos highlighting the importance of biofuels to the nation and what the government is doing to get us down the road to advanced renewable fuels.

In a short YouTube video, USDA highlights current production and consumption capacities as well as projections to meet the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2) which calls for the use of 36 billion gallons of biofuels by 2022.

The administration has also produced a DVD containing presentations from the Biofuels Interagency Working Group. It includes presentations from representatives of USDA, EPA and DOE, as well as discussion and commentary by key industry leaders from Advanced Biofuels Companies introduced and moderated by Brent Ericksson, Executive Vice President of the Industrial and Environmental Section of the Biotechnology Industry Organization and Michael McAdams, Executive Director, Advanced Biofuels Association. The 99 minute DVD includes five presentations and over 68 slides and it is not cheap. A single copy is $345.00 and a site license is $1,380.00.

Order here.

biofuels, Ethanol News, Government, USDA, Video

RFS2 Start Impetus Behind MO Biodiesel Plant Start

John Davis

Today’s implementation of the new Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS2) was the impetus behind getting one Midwest biodiesel open by July 1st.

RenewableEnergyWorld.com reports the new owners of ME Bio Energy of Lilbourne, Missouri wanted to have the doors open of their 5 million-gallon-a-year refinery for today’s historic date:

General Manager, Jerry McDowell, said the group has “been working night and day” to get ready for the July 1st implementation of RFS2. “We have a fully staffed crew trained and ready to meet the Bio Diesel Production needs”, said McDowell. “Over the past sixty days we have worked diligently with Lee Enterprises of North Little Rock, the consulting group that helped us buy the plant” McDowell said, “and we brought back the plant’s original design and fabrication group, AP Innovations of Stuttgart, Arkansas. The combination of a dedicated staff, in conjunction with both Lee Enterprises and AP Innovations assisting us, has positioned ME Bio Energy to be ready to meet the demands of RFS2 earlier than we had hoped”. McDowell noted that the plant had obtained all its federal and state certifications, successfully run all its test samples, and was now ready to take orders. “I am certain that the refiners and producers, and other parties are beginning to fully understand the impact and obligations they now have under the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 provisions that became effective July 1, 2010.” said McDowell.

Wayne Lee, owner of biodiesel consulting firm, Lee Enterprises, agrees. “When everyone realizes that 1.1 billion gallons of biodiesel or equivalent RINs must be purchased in 2010, and that the majority of biodiesel producers are currently not producing, I think there is going to be a ‘mad rush’ to find biodiesel” said Lee. “After all, 2010 is already half over and the companies that do not comply with their obligation can face daily fines of $37,000 per violation”, he said.

ME Bio Energy officials wanted to have the refinery ready to go as soon after purchase as possible.

Biodiesel

Biodiesel RIN Prices Spike as RFS2 Starts

John Davis

The price producers or importers of renewable fuel are having to pay for biodiesel RINs … Renewable Identification Numbers … have been going up as we approached today’s kickoff of the new Renewable Fuels Standard … better known as RFS2.

The 38-numeral identifiers are the basic currency for the RFS program for credits, trading, and use by obligated parties and renewable fuel exporters to demonstrate compliance, as well as track the volumes of renewable fuels, and Biodiesel Magazine says producers were taking heart at the news that bids were jumping up to 50 cents for biodiesel RINs,

Wayne Presby, a managing partner with White Mountain Biodiesel LLC in Haverhill, N.H., said the high biodiesel RIN credit prices were reassuring for him in these times without the $1 per gallon federal tax credit. White Mountain Biodiesel, a 5.5 MMgy biodiesel plant, has been under construction for approximately a year and a half, and Presby told Biodiesel Magazine on July 1 that construction is finally complete and the plant is undergoing commissioning along with IRS and U.S. EPA registrations. The plant’s fuel, which is made from waste greases, is meeting ASTM quality specifications.

Clean Fuels Clearinghouse and RINSTAR founder Clayton McMartin said with type B biodiesel RINs, it is economics 101 with price driving the supply and demand balance.“RFS2 has set the demand—the lack of the tax credit has reduced supply,” McMartin said. “The RIN credit price will continue to increase until the obligated parties have acquired sufficient RINs to meet this year’s mandate. Void of the tax credit, if the RIN price gets high enough then more production will come back online.”

McMartin went on to warn about volatility in the biodiesel market could cause violent swings in RIN prices.

Biodiesel, Government

Ethanol Groups Applaud Consumer Choice Bills

Cindy Zimmerman

Increasing consumer fuel choice and solving the “chicken and the egg” challenge to energy independence are the goals of two bills introduced this week in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Herseth SandlinOn Wednesday, Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-SD) introduced the Consumer Vehicle Choice Act of 2010 (H.R. 5633) and the Consumer Fuels Choice Act of 2010 (H.R.5632). The first would mandate that auto manufacturers provide consumers with greater choice of flex fueled vehicles (FFVs). Under this legislation, 50 percent of cars and light duty trucks in model years 2011 and 2012 must be FFVs, and that percentage rises to 90 percent in model year 2013 and years after. The second bill would promote ethanol use through grants for the installation of blender pumps. The bills are co-sponsored by Rep. Adrian Smith (R-NE).

“Americans need more choices at the pump, and those choices can begin with the cars and trucks they drive. By requiring that auto manufacturers produce vehicles that give Americans greater choice of fuels, we will help reduce costs for consumers and bring the nation closer to energy independence,” said Herseth Sandlin.

Ethanol groups applauded the introduced of the bills as the right formula for lessening our dependence on fossil fuels.

“To finally break the hold that petroleum has at the pump, we must start introducing flexibility into the nation’s fuel system,” said Brian Jennings, Executive Vice President of the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE). “The smartest action we can take to move toward energy independence is to introduce flexibility into the fuel
system, and this can be done best through a combination of blender pumps and flexible fuel vehicles.”

“Expanding America’s use of ethanol requires pumps to dispense the fuel and vehicles to use it,” said Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President and CEO Bob Dinneen. “Congresswoman Herseth Sandlin has introduced common sense legislation that addresses both needs. America’s ethanol producers can supply the fuel. What is needed is Congressional and Obama Administration support to bring it to consumers. This legislation goes a long way toward achieving that goal.”

Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis added, “Each additional Flex Fuel Vehicle model gives consumers the option of filling up with domestic, homegrown renewable fuel and enhances our national security, all while creating U.S. jobs that can’t be outsourced.”

ACE, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government, Growth Energy, RFA