Ethanol Production Still Up

Cindy Zimmerman

Ethanol production was still up in January compared to the previous year, and down only slightly from the previous month.

According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), American ethanol facilities produced 630,000 barrels per day (b/d) in January, up 120,000 b/d from January 2008, but down 50,000 from December of 2008.

RFAEthanol demand, as calculated by the Renewable Fuels Association, also saw a year over year increase of 123,000 b/d from January 2008. Ethanol demand also outpaced production once again in January. Total production of ethanol in January was almost 821 million gallons, while use was 837.6 million gallons.

For the first time, the EIA also included import data. For January, ethanol imports totaled 15.6 million gallons, while exports were zero.

Ethanol, RFA

Colorado Celebrates Earth Day

aglandEarth Day 2009 is April 22, but Agland Cenex fueling stations in Greeley, Colorado will celebrate the day a bit early with their community on April 17. The sites at 1607 2nd Ave. and at 2449 35th Avenue will sell E85 for 85 cents per gallon from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m.

co-cornThe first Earth Day was celebrated on April 22, 1970 with about 20 million people across America. Now Earth Day is celebrated annually around the globe. Through the combined efforts of the U.S. government, grassroots organizations, and environmentally caring citizens, what started as a day of national environmental recognition has evolved into a world-wide campaign to protect our global environment.

The Greeley, Colorado Earth Day event is sponsored by Agland, Weld County Garage and Northern Colorado Clean Cities. The E85 stations in Greeley are two of 81 in the state.

corn, E85, Environment, Ethanol, News

E20 Study Finds No Performance Problems

Cindy Zimmerman

A new study has found no performance problems with doubling the amount of ethanol allowed in motor fuel.

MN Ag DeptAccording to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, research conducted by the Minnesota Center for Automotive Research at Minnesota State University found that increasing the amount of ethanol blended into gasoline from 10 percent to 20 percent “causes no significant change in performance of automotive fuel systems.”

The study looked at eight models of fuel pumps, running three identical versions of each model for 4,000 hours using one of three different fuels, gasoline, E10 and E20. Gasoline and E10 were used in the study as a reference to identify what effects two accepted fuels would have on the pumps and sending units. The 24 pumps were selected to represent a variety of manufacturers, model years, common vehicles and designs. In addition, the study examined the effect of E20 on nine different makes and models of sending units.

The study found that the pumps showed significantly less wear when tested with E20 than with gasoline. The study concluded that overall, E20 did not have any greater negative effects than gasoline or E10 on the fuel pumps tested. It also showed there were no substantial differences in the performance of the sending units tested in the three different fuels.

Read the study here.

blends, Ethanol, Research

DF Cast: Farm Foundation’s Global Conversation

John Davis

df-logo1The latest edition of Domestic Fuel Cast listens in on some of the conversation at this week’s Farm Foundation “Transition to a Bioeconomy: Global Trade and Policy Issues” conference.

ff-transitiontobioThis is the fourth in a series of conferences looking at the transition to a bioeconomy the Farm Foundation has sponsored. This week’s event brought people from around the world to Washington, DC, where they were able to combine their divergent viewpoints to come up with workable solutions that everyone can live with. Unlike some other conferences where everyone already agrees before they meet, these Farm Foundation meetings put together people with vastly different perspectives. The conversations are lively, they’re maybe a bit pointed, but they work… and they are something we need to have more of in this country: frank, honest discussions where everyone doesn’t have to agree.

Folks like Purdue’s Wally Tyner or the European Commission’s Laurent Javaudin come with ideas that each might believe is best but walk away with more ideas than what they would have had with just yes-men around them. We picked up on part of the conversation regarding how the U.S. and Europe have different approaches to renewable energy mandates: the U.S. choosing to set a number of gallons of biodiesel and ethanol produced, while Europe wants to base its renewable energy goals on a percentage of all energy produced… regardless of the source. And while the Americans and Europeans had plenty to talk about with the recent tariffs being slapped on U.S. biodiesel coming to Europe, our friends like Joel Velasco with the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association reminds us that there are some pretty steep protectionist tariffs America has put on the import of his country’s ethanol. Finally, David Zilberman with the University of California-Berkeley reminds us to keep our eyes on the prize: becoming free from the yoke of OPEC oil.

It’s a unique conversation, and you can hear some of it on this week’s Domestic Fuel Cast here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/domesticfuel/DFCast-4-03-09.mp3]

You can also subscribe to the DomesticFuel Cast here.

Audio, Biodiesel, Cellulosic, Domestic Fuel Cast, E85, EPIC, Ethanol, Farm Foundation, Indy Racing, News

E85 Challenge Deadline April 3

Cindy Zimmerman

RFA e85College students work best under pressure – so here’s your deadline to enter and win a MacBook Air laptop in the E85 Challenge – 11:59 pm EST April 3rd.

All you have to do is answer the question, “What does renewable mean to you?” Put your answer in the form of a video or photo, and submit it to the E85 Flex Fuel Challenge team.

Once submissions are closed – again, at noon eastern on April 3 – the next step is an on-line voting period with prizes for the voters! So, even if you miss the deadline for submissions, be sure to go and vote for your favorites for a chance to win one of eight weekly drawings for a Passport hard drive.

The contest is sponsored by the Renewable Fuels Association to get college students engaged in the debate surrounding issues that impact their future: the economy, energy and the environment. Contest details are available here.

E85, RFA

CEO Robert Friedland Wins Service Award

Joanna Schroeder

rob-friedland4Robert Friedland, President and CEO of Proton Energy Systems, will  be honored today with a coveted service award from the National Hydrogen Association (NHA) during its annual national conference being held in Columbia, SC. The 2009 Award for Meritorious Service is presented annually to three individuals who exhibit exceptional leadership and contributions that further the development of the hydrogen industry. Proton Energy Systems designs and manufactures proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrochemical systems to convert water to hydrogen.

In a company press statement released early today, NHA President Jeffrey A. Serfass was quoted as saying, “Mr. Friedland’s remarkable record of achievement over the years cannot come at a more critical moment, as energy security and green energy are major issues confronting our nation. I cannot think of a more worthy recipient for this award.”

Friedland, co-founded Proton Energy in 1996, is also being commended for his role and mentorship in providing smaller emerging hydrogen technology companies with examples of solid financial and marketing business models.

“I am honored to accept this National Hydrogen Association award on behalf of Proton Energy Systems,” said Friedland.  “Proton’s mission has always been to develop hydrogen technology in creative and practical ways that can benefit our customers and advance green energy possibilities and potential throughout the globe.”

Miscellaneous

INEOS Bio Developing Cellulosic

Chuck Zimmerman

Farm Foundation Mark DietzenCommercializing Gasification/Fermentation Technology was the topic of comments made by Mark Dietzen, INEOS Bio, at the Farm Foundation Transition To A Bio Economy Conference.

He says that they have a practical technology that they’re in the process of implementing to be online by 2011 to produce cellulosic ethanol. He thinks that it will help bridge the gap between what’s possible with crop based ethanol and allow the substitution of a larger percentage of gasoline with a bio based fuel.

You can listen to my interview with Mark here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/farm-foundation/ff-global-09-dietzen.mp3]

You can download the interview with this link (mp3).

You can find photos from the conference here:
Transition To A Bio Economy Conference: Global & Trade Issues Photo Album

Audio, Cellulosic, Farm Foundation

Biofuels From Biotech Developing

Chuck Zimmerman

Farm Foundation Paul WillemsI spoke with Paul Willems, BP Energy Biosciences Institute, one of our speakers at the Farm Foundation Transition To A Bio Economy Conference. I had met him previously at an earlier conference in the series.

Paul says the BP Energy Biosciences Institute was created as a place to apply modern biology to energy problems. He told us that from their perspective, the turbulant times we’re in right now are temporary and that the fundamental trends for the future are unchanged. Those being the supply of oil and gas and the growth and demand for energy products. He says that their CEO likes to say that, “the future has been delayed, it hasn’t been canceled.”

I think he made a good point in my interview with him that we shouldn’t panic. He says there are numerous technology efforts going on in the alternative fuels industry and that it would be a mistake to see that work evaporate because we live in a world of crisis. He urges a steady course toward the future. He also talks about the benefits of biotechnology in developing more efficient alternative fuel production but points out that the industry is still just in its infancy.

You can listen to my interview with Paul here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/farm-foundation/ff-global-09-willems.mp3]

You can download the interview with this link (mp3).

You can find photos from the conference here:
Transition To A Bio Economy Conference: Global & Trade Issues Photo Album

Audio, Biotech, Farm Foundation

Doubts About Meeting Cellulosic Ethanol Goals

Cindy Zimmerman

Experts are expressing doubts the U.S. will meet targets for cellulosic ethanol production required under the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, but the need remains to make it happen as soon as possible.

The legislation calls for the production of 4.3 billion gallons by 2015, but during a House Agriculture Subcommittee hearing this week, Dr. Howard Gruenspecht with the Energy Information Administration said, “It seems unlikely to us that you would get to those kind of levels by 2015, 2016.”

Gruenspecht says there are cellulosic ethanol plants opening up. “They will learn things from the initial plants and it will take some time for the standard to be developed,” he said. “It’s more complex than a corn ethanol plant.” He also noted that the industry needs additional funding for continued development.

Cellulosic ethanol company representatives were in Washington DC this week for the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO)‘s annual fly-in and one of their top issues in meeting with members of Congress and the administration was getting additional federal investment for advance biofuels. However, during a telephone press conference on Tuesday, BIO executive vice president Brent Erickson also admitted that the ambitious goals of the EISA for cellulosic ethanol will probably not be reached. “I think given the current economic turndown, the progress toward commercialization has slowed, and it is probably unlikely,” said Erickson in response to a reporter’s direct question as to whether the 2010 target for 100 million gallons of cellulosic ethanol will be met.

Still, the companies who are trying to make it happen remain optimistic about the future. “Given the long-term fundamentals for liquid fuels, the need is there,” said John Howe with Verenium. “This is not a discretionary activity. We have no choice but to pursue biofuels from cellulosics. We just need to do it the right way.”

Representatives from eight different advanced biofuels companies – Verenium, Aurora Biofuels, Abengoa Bioenergy, Gevo, DuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol, Amyris, Mendel Biotechnology, Coskata, and Novozymes – all participated in this week’s fly-in and press conference.

Cellulosic, Energy, Ethanol, Government

Ethanol Plant Looking to Use Wastewater

corn-plusCorn Plus, an ethanol plant producing 49 million gallons annually in Winnebago, Minnesota, is looking at using wastewater instead of fresh water for its production process. The plant uses up to 350,000 gallons of fresh water daily and sees an opportunity knowing that the city discharges a minimum of the same amount of wastewater into the Blue Earth River daily.

“It’s a wonderful reuse of water that otherwise would just be discharged in the river,” said Mary Fralish, a deputy director of Public Works in Mankato. “And that kind of use is catching fire across the country.”

Corn Plus’ General Manager Keith Kor asked lawmakers for assistace and Senator Julie Rosen and Representative Bob Gunther sponsored legislation that will help finance pipe to transport the wastewater to the plant. The bill seeks between $250,000 and $300,000.

“They want to eliminate some of the controversy about using water in ethanol plants,” Gunther said.

Corn Plus began production in 1993. It’s new fluidized bed is one of its kind in the world.

Environment, Ethanol