‘Fueling Our Future 100’ Awards 4th Funding Round

Joanna Schroeder

ia-dept-of-ag-and-land-stewardship-logoA fourth round of funding has been released under the “Fueling our Future 100” totaling $368,200. The announcement was made by Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds and Sec. of Agriculture Bill Northey. Six retailers were awarded monies for use to install renewable fuels infrastructure representing 7 sites, 15 new blender pumps and 3 underground storage tanks.

In total, 217 blender pumps and 18 underground storage tanks will be installed at 70 sites by 17 companies to provide consumers with access to higher blends of ethanol through the program.

The funding for the projects is from a $5 million competitive grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Biofuel Infrastructure Partnership (BIP) program Iowa received to support the initiative. All funds must be matched by non-federal funds, including up to $2.5 million from the Iowa Renewable Fuels Infrastructure program. The fueling sites applying for assistance will also be required to provide a minimum of $2.5 million. Pumps and tanks funded through this round of funding for the program are required to be operational by the end of the federal fiscal year on September 30, 2017.

Biodiesel, Ethanol

BioEnergy Bytes

Joanna Schroeder

  • BioEnergyBytesDF1Canada’s first algal biorefinery demonstration project, a collaborative research effort between the National Research Council of Canada’s (NRC) Algal Carbon Conversion (ACC) program, Pond Technologies and Votorantim Cimentos’ St Marys Cement, is revolutionizing how industrial carbon emissions are managed. The project uses a 25,000 L photobioreactor within a pilot scale algal biorefinery to recycle carbon dioxide and other airborne industrial pollutants into algal biomass that can be further converted into sustainable products, including renewable biofuels and biomaterials. The process being deployed by NRC experts and its partners is designed to rapidly recycle carbon dioxide (CO2) and other airborne industrial emissions into biomass through photosynthesis.
  • Cellana, Inc., a leading developer of algae-based products for sustainable nutrition and energy applications, and PIVEG, Inc., a leader in high-specification ingredients for the nutraceutical, pharmaceutical, agricultural, food and beverage, feed, and cosmetics industries, announced that they have signed a letter of intent for the joint development and commercialization of Omega-3 oils and other high-value applications from algae biomass.  Currently, Cellana produces industrial-scale quantities of ReNew™ Algae — high-value algae biomass rich in Omega-3 nutritional oils, proteins, fuel-grade oils, cosmetic-grade oils, acids, and polysaccharides, as well as other valuable micronutrients — at its Kona Demonstration Facility in Hawaii.
  • Cellulosic Sugar Producers Cooperative (CSPC) has initiated an equity campaign to develop a corn stover and wheat straw to dextrose supply chain in southwestern Ontario. CSPC will engage with growers in the region to supply corn stover and wheat straw to a planned dextrose facility previously announced by Comet Biorefining to be located in Sarnia, Ontario. As part of the supply chain, CSPC members will own an equity stake in the facility, which will need 75,000 tonnes of biomass based on 55,000 acres. As part of the equity campaign, CSPC will coordinate field demonstrations of stover aggregation and will hold outreach ‘town hall’ meetings for prospective members.
  • The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) has issued a call to leaders from the biotechnology, bioenergy, chemical, consumer products manufacturing, and agricultural industries as well as academia and financial sectors industries to submit panel session proposals for the 2017 World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology. The conference will be held July 23-26, 2017 at the Palais des congrès de Montréal in Montréal, Canada. For more information on the conference or to submit a proposal, please visit http://www.bio.org/worldcongress.
Bioenergy Bytes

NREL Scientists Discover Bacteria to Biofuels Breakthrough

Joanna Schroeder

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have discovered a metabolic pathway that take up CO2 and is then capable of breaking down and fermenting cellulosic biomass to produce biofuels, hydrogen and hydrocarbons. The specific bacteria is Clostridium thermocellum and is among the most efficient bacteria in directly converting cellulosic materials into hydrogen and hydrocarbons biofuels.

NREL scientists Pin-Ching Maness (left), Katherine J. Chou and Wei Xiong hold test tubes containing the bacterium Clostridium thermocellum. (Photo by Amy Glickson / NREL)

NREL scientists Pin-Ching Maness (left), Katherine J. Chou and Wei Xiong hold test tubes containing the bacterium Clostridium thermocellum. (Photo by Amy Glickson / NREL)

Some scientists have found the addition of a form of CO2, known as bicarbonate, into the medium containing the bacterium actually promotes the growth of C. thermocellum, yet its mechanistic details remained a puzzle. This enhanced growth implied the bacterium had the ability to use CO2 and prompted NREL researchers to investigate the phenomena enhancing the bacterium’s growth.

It took us by surprise that this microbe can recapture some of the CO2 released during growth while they consume sugars derived from cellulosic biomass,” said Katherine J. Chou, a staff scientist with NREL’s Photobiology group and co-author of the new paper “CO2-fixing one-carbon metabolism in a cellulose-degrading bacterium Clostridium thermocellum.” The research is in the new issue of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Using carbon isotopes coupled with mass spectrometry analysis, the researchers were able to track how CO2 enters the cell, identify the enzymes critical to CO2 uptake, and how CO2 incorporates into products thereby discovering a new metabolic route that according to the NREL team, was unknown to the scientific community. Many species of bacteria have the pathway in place for CO2 uptake, but before the new research, the pathway was not associated with the role of carbon dioxide assimilation. The pathway enables the bacterium to use both CO2 and organic carbons during its growth.

NREL researchers and their collaborators determined adding bicarbonate increased the apparent carbon efficiency of C. thermocellum from 65.7 percent to 75.5 percent. The finding underscores the metabolic plasticity of the microbe and raises various possibilities on how the bacterium is able to use both organic carbons and CO2 without breaking the rules of thermodynamics in energy conservation. The discovery, according to the NREL scientists, also provides a paradigm shift in the fundamental understandings of carbon metabolism in a cellulose degrading bacterium.

Going forward, the research will focus on redirecting more cellular electrons in support of increased hydrogen production, a key goal of the research.

advanced biofuels, Cellulosic, Hydrogen, Research

Mick Henderson Takes the Mic on Car Clinic

Joanna Schroeder

32177-mick-henderson-chairman-of-the-300x168Commonwealth Agri-Energy General Manager Mick Henderson is taking the mic during Bobby Likis Car Clinic tomorrow. Henderson, who is also the Chairman of the Board for the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA), joins Likis Saturday, November 5, 2016 at 10:41 am ET. With the 2017 Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) rule nearing the end of interagency review (officially November 30, 2016), Henderson will discuss the RFS and it’s importance as well as the engine performance benefits of having ethanol in the fuel supply.

21413-bobby-likis-car-clinic-300x149Henderson reflects, “As a 35-year veteran of the ethanol industry, I have seen the benefits we have provided to consumers in our communities and around the world, providing the lowest-cost, highest octane source on the planet. I look forward to talking with Bobby and relaying how my ethanol plant and our industry as a whole has contributed to cleaner air, greater energy security and a boost to our local economies.

Likis adds, “Tune in to hear Mick net out the role that ethanol production plays in local, regional and national economics, not to mention national security. Also, top of mind is the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and why it’s critical to the environment, economy, and security of the U.S.”

To hear Henderson’s interview in its entirety, drive to www.WatchBobbyLive.com on Saturday, November 5, 10:41 am ET.

automotive, biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFS

Post Election Forecast to Top @IowaFuel Summit

Cindy Zimmerman

irfa-16-trumpSeveral presidential candidates attended the 2016 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit, including Donald Trump, who may yet be elected the next president of the United States.

No matter who wins, the final outcome will have likely have an impact on the renewable fuels industry, so the 2017 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit will seek to address the future of biofuels and their role in energy and trade policy.

“Given the record corn harvest and an uncertain political climate, farmers and renewable fuels producers are understandably focused on not only preserving but also growing biofuels markets at home and abroad,” said IRFA Managing Director Lucy Norton. “Assessing the current terrain and charting an effective course for the future will be key topics of this year’s Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit.”

Registration is now open for the 2017 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit, which will be held at the Prairie Meadows Conference Center in Altoona on January 31, 2017. For more information, visit IowaRFA.org/summit.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, Iowa RFA, politics

RFA Safety Seminars Move to Alabama

Joanna Schroeder

alabama-safety-seminars-rfaAlabama is the next location for the ethanol safety seminars hosted by the Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) along with support from an Assistance for Local Emergency Response Training (ALERT) grant. Attendees of this free seminar will learn about proper training techniques that emergency responders and hazmat personnel need to effectively respond to an ethanol-related emergency. Certificates of Completion will be handed out to all attendees at the end of the safety seminars.

Two classes on November 8, 2016 will take place in Prattville, Alabama at the Prattville Fire Department. Two additional classes will take place November 10, 2016 in Decatur, Alabama at the Decatur Fire and Rescue Training Center. Both locations will hold classes from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm ET and 5:30 to 10:00 pm ET. Lunch and dinner will be provided.

The ethanol safety seminars will provide first responders with excellent training and information that can be applied in an environmental emergency,” said Matt Russell, section chief of training for the Alabama Fire College and Personnel Standards Commission. “Preparation is key to any emergency situation and this training will be essential.

The seminars are free to attend and open to the public. To register, visit www.rfa.traincaster.com.

Education, Ethanol, Ethanol News, RFS, safety

Researchers Turning Waste Into Wealth

Joanna Schroeder

EPFL chemists have discovered that adding formaldehyde to lignin could turn waste, such as he molecules found in wood, into wealth. Biomass may hold a key to meeting future energy needs – it’s sugars can be turned into biofuels and other bioproducts. But until now a barrier to efficient production has been the plant’s lignin. Scientists have now turned the lignin into a source of biofuel by adding the common chemical formaldehyde. When this is done, up to 80 percent of the lignin is converted into molecules that can then be turned into biofuel and plastics. The patent-pending method, which can be scaled up to industrial levels, is published in Science.

This image shows lignin extraction with (left) and without formaldehyde (right). Photo credit: Alain Herzog/EPFL

This image shows lignin extraction with (left) and without formaldehyde (right). Photo credit: Alain Herzog/EPFL

According to EPFL chemists, lignin makes up nearly one third of plant biomass and its molecular structure gives it an energy density 30 percent greater than that of the sugars that are traditionally processed into biofuel. Where lignin becomes a challenge is when trying to extract and transform. Thus, say the researchers, lignin usually rapidly gets destroyed during its extraction and most researchers have failed to efficiently break it apart for upgrade into fuels or chemicals.

Now, an international team of researchers led by Jeremy Luterbacher at EPFL have found that formaldehyde stabilizes lignin and prevents it from degrading, leading to high yields of building blocks that can be used to make substitutes for petrochemicals. These yields were 3-7 times higher than those obtained from lignin without formaldehyde.

Depending on the wood used we get between 50 and 80%,” said Jeremy Luterbacher, who became known in 2014 for developing a method for extracting sugars from plants safely and cheaply (also published in Science). “The chemistry is relatively straightforward; the real challenge is actually finding investors for a pilot facility to demonstrate this.” The market, he said, is difficult for sustainable energy largely because of inconsistent political support and widely varying energy prices. Investors for such innovative platforms are hard to come by in an uncertain market, especially considering the competition of well-established fossil fuels.

The technology looks really good,” Luterbacher continued. “If the global political establishment sent a consistent message about moving away from fossil fuels, then investors would take notice. But I think Switzerland is a great place to get started. The Swiss have been unwavering supporters of clean energy and could help demonstrate new technologies, and so I’m quite optimistic about the future.

advanced biofuels, biomass, bioplastics, bioproducts, Research

Meet New #Biodiesel Board CEO

Cindy Zimmerman

Prior to being named CEO of the National Biodiesel Board this week, Donnell Rehagen had been the organization’s number two man for 12 years, the behind-the-scenes guy who got stuff done. In all the years we have covered the National Biodiesel Conference, which Rehagen coordinated as chief operating officer, we have only interviewed him a couple of times. Now that he is the new CEO, we expect this will be the first of many interviews with Rehagen going forward.

donnell-nbb-16-3Rehagen’s last 12 years as COO have well-prepared him for his new role, replacing Joe Jobe who resigned in May. “It’s given me the opportunity to learn about all the aspects of the National Biodiesel Board…initiatives like the technical research we do on fuel quality, the marketing and advertising we do to promote our product,” said Rehagen.

The industry has experienced some significant highs and lows over the past decade but Rehagen says the state of the biodiesel industry right now is strong. “We believe we could have been way stronger now than we are if we had some consistent policy support,” he said. “Our members struggle to make the proper investments for plant expansions when they’re uncertain about some of the initiatives that support biodiesel – specifically the biodiesel tax credit and the RFS.”

Rehagen is hopeful the EPA’s 2018 RFS volume requirements, due to be announced by the end of the month, will increase biodiesel’s share to 2.5 billion gallons from the current 2.0 billion. “In 2016 we’re going to have production in excess of 2.4 billion gallons,” said Rehagen. “Our concern is they are setting volumes far below what production is.”

Also at the end of this month, NBB members will be heading to Capitol Hill to press Congress for a long-term extension of the biodiesel tax incentive and convert it from a blender’s credit to a producer’s credit.

And Rehagen says they are looking forward to the 2017 National Biodiesel Conference coming up January 16-19 in San Diego. Learn more in this interview: Interview with Donnell Rehagen, NBB CEO

Audio, Biodiesel, National Biodiesel Conference, NBB

Election Days Away – Who Has Your Vote?

Jamie Johansen

zp-nh1Our latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “Which candidate is better for agricultural exports?”

Both major party candidates have said they oppose the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) which most studies show would help to open up markets and increase agricultural exports. The Obama administration has been strongly in favor of TPP and urging Congress to ratify the trade agreement as soon as possible, but that will not likely be before the end of the year, leaving it in the hands of the next president and a new Congress. And in this poll it looks like Trump squeaked ahead.

Here are the poll results:

  • Donald Trump – 52%
  • Hillary Clinton – 32%
  • Gary Johnson – 6%
  • Jill Stein – 1%
  • None of the above – 9%

Our new ZimmPoll is live and asks the question, Final decision time – who are you voting for?

I wish I could promise this would be the final presidential election poll since the election is less than a week away. But we will continue to discuss how our new commander in chief will impact agriculture. So, let’s hear your final decision. Who are you voting for?

ZimmPoll

REG Delivers First Life Sciences Commercial Product

Joanna Schroeder

REG has expanded its offerings into the bioproducts market. Its REG Life Sciences Division has delivered a specialty fatty acid, its first commercial product, to Aroma Chemical Services (ACS) International. REG has been working closely with ACS, a specialty manufacturer and supplier of flavor and fragrance ingredients, to develop and bring to market fragrance and flavor derivatives based on the REG Life Sciences’ proprietary technology. ACS will use the specialty chemical for the production of a high performance musk ingredient for sale into the $620 million global musk ingredient market.

“We are proud to have achieved this key milestone and are confident that the musk will enjoy commercial success, creating growing demand for our multi-functional fatty acid,” said Eric M. Bowen, head of REG Life Sciences and Vice President, Corporate Business Development & Legal Affairs. “We have identified over 500 candidate compounds from our platform, several of which we believe could lead to attractive follow-on opportunities in the global musk market.

According to REG Life Sciences, fatty acids are one of three product areas the company has been focused on along with esters and alcohols. Work on this product began last year after REG and ACS identified the specialty fatty acid as particularly well suited for the production of a high performance musk.


ACS leaders welcomed delivery of the renewable chemical. “We are very excited to see our joint efforts come to fruition through a powerful combination of industrial biotechnology and unique processing solutions,” said Koenraad Vanhessche, Vice President, Innovation and Business Development at ACS. “Moreover, this integrated fatty acid synthetic biology platform is the first of its kind in the field of flavor and fragrance and enables quick and cost-effective access to a plethora of targets previously beyond anyone’s scope.

Dan Hirlea, CEO of ACS International, added, “Our partnership has deliberately targeted key ingredients in the flavor and fragrance industry. When combined with the other components of the ACS International business model, namely sustainability, reliability, creativity and respect, it will allow us to drive this project to its successful conclusion.

biochemicals, REG, Video