Scientists with the Massachusettes Institute of Technology have engineered yeast that can improve the speed and efficiency of ethanol production.
By manipulating the yeast genome, the researchers have engineered a new strain of yeast that can tolerate elevated levels of both ethanol and glucose, while producing ethanol faster than un-engineered yeast.
The new strain produced 50 percent more ethanol during a 21-hour period than normal yeast.
The work is reported in the Dec. 8 issue of Science.
Corn’s role in cellulosic ethanol appears solid.
According to a story in Illinois Farm Bureau’s FarmWeek, the push to promote “cellulosic” biomass ethanol development generated some early sparring between corn growers and proponents of new “energy crops.”
But experts at a recent Cellulosic Ethanol Summit in Washington, D.C., cited public-private efforts to generate cellulosic fuel from existing corn residues, potentially in tandem with existing starch-based ethanol production.
Charles Abbas, Archer Daniels Midland Co. director of yeast and renewables research, sees “captive” fibers from corn and soybean processing as predominant short-term cellulosic feedstocks, with additional “mid-term opportunities” for crop straws, stovers, stalks, and tops.
Broin Companies, the nation’s largest dry mill ethanol producer, plans to build a corn-based cellulose-to-ethanol plant in Iowa by 2009. Voyager Ethanol in Emmetsburg, Iowa, will be converted from a 50-million-gallon-per-year conventional ethanol facility into a 125-million-gallon “bio-refinery” that will produce fuel from fiber and stover.
Corn-based cellulosic potential should grow with efforts to boost per-acre grain yields to meet future energy, feed, and export demand, said Rod Bothast, scientist with Ed wards ville’s National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Center.
Read full story here.
Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) told a recent ethanol summit in his state that with new ethanol plants coming on line at a rapid pace, the use of ethanol needs to grow or we could soon end up producing a surplus of ethanol.
According to a story in the Farm & Ranch Guide by reporter Dale Hildebrant, Dorgan said, “Our future is not in a 90-10 blend. If it’s only a 10 percent ethanol blend we are going to produce more than we need and we are going to run into a problem here. We need to address how do you put a higher blend into these vehicles that Detroit has made and is going to make, so we can consume a substantial amount of additional renewable fuels and displace that which we need to bring in from foreign sources of oil.”
Dorgan also noted that more consumer education is needed showing that using ethanol won’t harm a vehicle’s engine.
But the auto industry has two concerns they need to address: the first is developing engines that burn higher blends of ethanol more efficiently; and then to address the liability issue for those not owning flex-fuel vehicles, but still desire to burn ethanol blends greater than 10 percent. That liability problem is what is preventing some service stations from offering higher blends, but Dorgan said rewriting liability waiver legislation would be difficult to do.
Diverse mixtures of native prairie plant species have emerged as a leader in the quest to identify the best source of biomass for producing sustainable, bio-based fuel to replace petroleum.
A new study led by David Tilman, an ecologist at the University of Minnesota, shows that mixtures of native perennial grasses and other flowering plants provide more usable energy per acre than corn grain ethanol or soybean biodiesel and are far better for the environment. The research was supported by the National Science Foundation and the University of Minnesota Initiative for Renewable Energy and the Environment.
“Biofuels made from high-diversity mixtures of prairie plants can reduce global warming by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Even when grown on infertile soils, they can provide a substantial portion of global energy needs, and leave fertile land for food production,” Tilman said.
The findings are published in the Dec. 8, 2006, issue of the journal Science.
Iowa’s newly-elected Secretary of Agriculture says the ethanol industry can help the state regain its dominance in beef production.
According to a story from the Brownfield Network, Bill Northey told members of the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association meeting Thursday that widespread availability of ethanol co-products like dry distillers’ grains could make Iowa the number one beef producing state again like it was just over 30 years ago.
“From an Iowa perspective, we have great opportunities to bring cattle feeding and the cattle industry back to this state in greater numbers,” said Northey. “And part of that is absolutely because of ethanol and renewable energy.”
Northey said investments in Iowa’s value added agriculture industries, including ethanol and biodiesel plants, were creating an entirely new economic climate in rural Iowa. “We’ve had in the last three years $4.4 billion invested in Iowa in ag processing,” Northey said. “These are businesses that will have jobs that’ll process our products that are creating a brand new dynamic in some of these small towns that haven’t seen a new ag job in many, many years and we’re not done yet.”
Read the whole story and listen to Northey’s comments from the Brownfield Network.
Monsanto Company employees are now riding shuttles operating on 20 percent biodiesel.
According to a company release, the three on-campus shuttles that provide employee transportation around the Monsanto campus in St. Louis are now operating on B20 biodiesel fuel. 
The new, smaller shuttles will result in a three mile-per-gallon efficiency increase and a 20 percent savings in fuel costs. The cleaner burning biodiesel will provide a 20 percent reduction of unburned hydrocarbon emissions, and a 12 percent reduction in both particulate matter and carbon monoxide emissions.
The picture, provided by Monsanto, shows members of the American Soybean Association who joined Monsanto representatives for the inaguaration of the biodiesel shuttle service.
The value of US crop production this year will probably be about $7 billion more than last year, which is good news for farmers and taxpayers.
Crop prices are higher this year due in part to increased demand for corn and soybeans to make ethanol and biodiesel.
USDA Chief Economist Keith Collins says that means the government will be paying out less to farmers.
“As market prices have strengthened in the second half of 2006 for crops, we’ve seen all of the price-based payments that are made to farmers go down,” said Collins. “In 2005, direct government payments to farmers were $24 billion. This year, 2006, we are estimating that they will be about $16.5 billion, an $8 billion decline in one year.”
Much of that is due to lower marketing loan benefits, which are price based.
Research being done at Washington University in St. Louis could result in more efficient ethanol production.
The research by adjunct professor of biology in Arts & Sciences Erik E. Nielsen, Ph.D. was published in a recent edition of The Journal of Cell Biology, according to a news release.
Nielsen’s research is the first to identity some of the membrane trafficking steps in the deposition of cell wall components — a lightly researched area. His study is important because cotton, wood and other plant fibers that are vital to everyday life rely on the plant cell wall, which gives wood the strength needed for construction and furniture, among other uses, and cotton fibers the elasticity for use in cloth. The research could lead to crops with stalks that can be used to produce biofuels more efficiently and with less waste.
In the latest Long Term Energy Outlook report issued by the Energy Information Administration, higher fossil fuel prices and public policy will generate a further shift toward alternative energy in the coming years.
According to an AP story, U.S. ethanol use is expected to grow to 11.2 billion gallons in 2012 from 4 billion gallons in 2005. By 2030, ethanol use could reach 14.6 billion gallons, or about 8 percent of the nation’s total gasoline consumption.
The projection for 2012 exceeds the 7.5 billion requirement of the Renewable Fuel Standard enacted as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, EIA noted.
The administration forecasts a 7 percent surge in the use of alternative sources for distillate fuels by 2030, mostly on greater consumption of biodiesel. Increased biodiesel usage is another component of the Energy Policy Act. Biodiesel use is expected to reach $400 million gallons by 2030, while the use of distillate from coal-to-liquid is projected to reach 5.7 billion gallons.
Read more from AP.
An energy industry analyst believes the government is underestimating the ethanol demand outlook.
The Energy Information Administration’s annual energy outlook, issued Tuesday, projected that ethanol demand will more than double from today’s level to 11.2 billion gallons in 2012.
According to an Associated Press report, Chris Shaw of the global financial firm UBS says that may be too low because, if all announced plants are built, U.S. ethanol capacity could reach 12 billion gallons as soon as 2008. He believes “this would translate to a similar level of demand for 2009, as we see supply opening up new sources of demand.”
Read more.
