Nebraska Biodiesel Plant On Schedule for Opening

John Davis

The retrofitting of a Nebraska biodiesel plant is right on schedule. This article from the Lincoln Journal Star says Duonix Beatrice, bought by Flint Hills Resources and Benefuel Inc. in 2011, has never been in service since it was constructed in 2007.

“There are quite a few contractors on site at 70-100 daily with a total head count increasing to 200-250 around May or July,” [Michael Harris, Flint Hills Resources venture manager for the project] said. “We are still targeting to start up the second half of 2015 and intend to produce 50 million gallons of biodiesel.”

For two years, the company has been retrofitting the plant to be feedstock-flexible and to use ENSEL technology.

The ENSEL process is supposed to streamline production, eliminate waste and by-products, and expand product capabilities to produce a biodiesel with enhanced cold-weather properties.

It also allows the use of cheaper feed stocks high in free fatty acids, such as distillers corn oil from ethanol refining, waste vegetable oils, animal fats and unrefined oils.

The plant will employ about 50 workers when it goes into operation.

Biodiesel

EIA: Ethanol Production, Stocks Down

John Davis

Weekly ethanol production numbers, as well as stocks are down. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports ethanol production averaged 921,000 barrels per day (b/d), about 38.68 million gallons daily. That is down 9,000 b/d from the week before. The four-week average for ethanol production stood at 928,000 b/d for an annualized rate of 14.23 billion gallons. Stocks of ethanol were down 2.6 percent from a week earlier at 20.8 million barrels.
ethanolsupply24apr1

The Renewable Fuels Association added that ethanol production is accounting for a good amount of corn usage in the country.

Ethanol producers were using 13.965 million bushels of corn to produce ethanol and 102,786 metric tons of livestock feed, 91,635 metric tons of which were distillers grains. The rest is comprised of corn gluten feed and corn gluten meal. Additionally, ethanol producers were providing 5.42 million pounds of corn distillers oil daily.

Agribusiness, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government, RFA

Students Present Wood to Biofuels Design

Joanna Schroeder

Students at Washington State University have developed facility site designs for a potential liquid depot to process wood from slash piles in the Pacific Northwest. The liquid sugar can be used to produce chemical products including biofuels. Designs and findings were presented in a webinar. The students work together on real-world projects while attending the Integrated Design Experience (IDX) course that includes undergraduate and Screen Shot 2015-04-28 at 3.40.17 PMgraduate students from a variety of majors at WSU and the University of Idaho.

The students are working with the Northwest Advanced Renewables Alliance (NARA), a WSU-led organization determining the feasibility and sustainability of using forest residuals to produce biojet fuel and other products. The Presenters described the process of turning forest residuals into liquid sugar, transportation logistics and how wastewater will be treated. A techno-economic analysis for the conversion process was also included.

The location for the sugar depot was identified as highly optimal based on a ranking of Northwest U.S. facility sites completed by IDX last semester.

“These students perform critical data gathering and analyses for the NARA project and for stakeholders,” said Karl Olsen, one of three IDX instructors and part of NARA’s education team. “Their work will be incorporated into a final supply chain analysis for the Idaho-Washington-Oregon-Montana region in 2016.”

advanced biofuels, biochemicals, biomass, Research

Platts Pre-Report Survey of Sugarcane Crush

Joanna Schroeder

In preparation for the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association (UNICA)’s bi-monthly harvest data, Platts survey has announced that sugarcane crush volumes in the Key Center-South region of Brazil in the first half of April are expected to total 13.10 million mt with a focus on ethanol production. The wider range of analysts’ advance expectations for cane crush spanned from 10.2 million mt to 18.3 million mt.

UNICA sugar-ethanol plantAnalysts expect sugar mills to have focused on ethanol production, with ethanol representing 68.57 percent of the cane crush in the April 1- 15 period, with sugar at 31.43 percent. Cane yield measured by Total Recoverable Sugar (or ATR in Portuguese) was estimated by Platts sugar analysis and forecasting unit Kingsman* at 105.5 kg/mt.

Analysts anticipate the following: sugar production of 399,000 mt, total ethanol output of 637,000 liters, including 450,000 liters of hydrous and 187,000 liter of anhydrous ethanol. The strong focus on hydrous ethanol production is attributed to higher electricity prices from cogeneration, as well as more competitive prices at the pumps, which boosted demand.

Since the February reinstatement of Brazil’s Cide tax on gasoline, hydrous ethanol consumption has boomed, increasing its share of total automotive fuel demand in Brazil to 29 percent, the highest since February 2011, according to data from the Brazilian Petroleum Agency.

Brazil, Ethanol, Renewable Energy, UNICA

BioEnergy Bytes

Joanna Schroeder

  • http://energy.agwired.com/category/bioenergy-bytes/Solenis LLC celebrated the grand opening of its new World Headquarters on April 27, 2015. Located at 3 Beaver Valley Road in Wilmington, Delaware, the headquarters will currently accommodate approximately 120 employees supporting a variety of corporate functions for the specialty chemicals company, which was previously known as Ashland Water Technologies. Space for additional expansion has been allocated.
  • Novozymes announced its first quarter results for 2015. Sales in the first quarter of 2015 grew by 8% organically and by 18% in DKK compared with Q1 2014. EBIT grew by 6%, and the EBIT margin was 27.4%. Adjusting for the one-time impact from The BioAg Alliance in Q1 2014, EBIT grew by ~20%, and the EBIT margin expanded by ~1 percentage point compared with Q1 2014. The EBIT margin expansion was mainly due to currencies. Net profit grew by 2%, and free cash flow before acquisitions came in at DKK 610 million.
  • Dynamic Energy Solutions has announced a Solar Project Acquisition Program for the purchase of commercial scale solar facilities that are planned to achieve commercial operation by the end of 2016. Dynamic has available institutional investor funds in excess of $125 million for this initiative. The goal of the program is to afford solar project developers greater access to funding and development resources to build commercial solar projects. The primary focus of the Solar Project Acquisition Program is commercial scale solar projects, 500 kW to 3 MW in capacity, located in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic Regions. Other geographies will be considered on a special basis.
  • Kingspan Group plc of Ireland today announced the U.S. launch of its globally-recognized solar energy solutions provider, Kingspan Energy. The company offers end-to-end solar photovoltaic (PV) installations to the commercial and public sectors, including feasibility, design, installation, and financing.­
Bioenergy Bytes

PERC to Highlight Propane at ACT Expo

Joanna Schroeder

The Alternative Clean Transportation (ACT) Expo is around the corner, May 4-7, 2015 in Dallas, Texas and the Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) will be showcasing propane autogas. PERC’s investments in advancing propane autogas for medium-duty technologies will be on display at the show in booth 407. Featured will be a Roush CleanTech Ford F-650, a BSI diesel substitution unit, and refueling dispensers by Superior Energy and CleanFuel USA.

ACTExpo 2015 logo“With the growing number of EPA- and CARB-certified, propane-autogas-powered vehicles available, propane autogas has become a proven solution that offers an increasing number of fleets, a lower total cost of ownership, a clean emissions profile, and affordable and scalable infrastructure options,” said Roy Willis, PERC’s president and CEO.

At the show, attendees can also learn about propane autogas’ growth in the school bus industry. Texas Commissioner of Energy Michael Williams heads the Texas Education Agency, which oversees the state’s pre-kindergarten through high school education for more than 5 million students enrolled in both traditional public schools and charter schools.

“Williams has spent years in public service, and is a notable figure dedicated to creating a healthier environment for school children. It says a lot that he supports propane autogas as a reliable solution to reducing emissions,” Willis added. “Propane autogas not only diminishes air pollution, but school districts making the switch from increasingly complex diesel buses also report seeing significantly lower operating costs due to less maintenance, fuel additives, and parts replacement.”

Alternative energy, Alternative Vehicles, PERC, Propane

Solenis’ Antibiotic-Free Fermentation Aids for Ethanol

John Davis

Solenis-Fuel-Ethanol-Workshop1Specialty chemical company Solenis will soon introduce a new line of antibiotic-free fermentation aids and a new scale inhibitor for ethanol. This company news release says the debut happens during the 2015 International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo (FEW) to be held June 1-4 at the Minneapolis Convention Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

On Tuesday, June 2 at 1:20 p.m. Allen Ziegler, global biorefining marketing director for Solenis, will provide an overview of the new fermentation aids on the Innovation Stage on the Expo floor at the FEW. In addition, Robert Yule, platform launch manager for Solenis, will deliver a presentation on the new scale inhibitor during the FEW Production and Operations seminars on Tuesday, June 2, 3:30-5:00 p.m. in room 200 DEFG.

Antibiotic-free Fermentation Aids: The Solenis™ family of fermentation aids provides better yeast propagation while simultaneously reducing bacterial growth without the use of antibiotics in both high pH and standard pH fermentation processes. The company’s offering of patented and patent-pending antibiotic-free fermentation aids can help fuel ethanol producers improve efficiency and address regulatory and consumer concerns about antibiotics in the food chain.

Scale Inhibitor to Improve Evaporator Efficiency: Solenis’ Polystabil™ AS4535 scale inhibitor is specifically designed to help fuel ethanol producers reduce scale, improve heat transfer and reduce downtime in their evaporators. This patent-pending blended product starts working at a dosage level below traditional polyacrylate chemistries and allows higher dosages, up to 20 ppm, while still meeting regulatory requirements ‒ making it significantly more effective than conventional technologies.

During FEW, Solenis will also talk about new cooling water treatments, FDA-approved corn oil extraction aids for both disk-stack and tricanter systems, and a proprietary control system that allows for around-the-clock surveillance and control of process and water treatment programs.

Ethanol, Ethanol News, FEW

Canadian Canola Growers Want More Biodiesel

John Davis

ward-tomaCanola growers in Canada want politicians to prove they are truly dedicated to addressing climate change – by voting for biodiesel. This article from the Alberta Farmer Express says Ward Toma, the general manager of Alberta Canola Producers Commission, wants them to start by hiking Alberta’s biodiesel mandate.

“In their election platforms, almost all political parties talk about climate change and greenhouse gas reduction,” said Ward Toma. “Biodiesel is a low-carbon fuel, compared with some of the other ones, so it does help with greenhouse gas and carbon emissions.”

And Toma is quite specific about what government should do: Hike the percentage of biodiesel blended with regular diesel to five per cent (up from the current two per cent) by 2020; set tougher greenhouse gas reduction and biomass production targets; and extend the bioenergy producer credit program (set to expire in March 2016).

Those changes would be a win-win for both the province and growers, he said.

“One of the things biodiesels can do is create another demand stream for the crop sector, but we can also help with greenhouse gas target reductions and have a sustainable biomass,” said Toma.

Toma says that they’ll have to see where the politicians truly stand on biodiesel… after the elections are over.

Ag group, Agribusiness, Biodiesel, International

Renewables Exceed 75% Of New Gen Capacity

Joanna Schroeder

Renewable energy sources including wind, solar, geothermal and hydropower provided over 75 percent of the 1,1229 MW of new electrical generating capacity that went online in first quarter of 2015. The results were published in the recent “Energy Infrastructure Update” report from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) Office of Energy Projects. The remaining 302 MW added was from natural gas. FERC reported no new capacity from biomass sources for the quarter nor any from coal, oil, or nuclear power.

© Kennytong | Dreamstime.com - Solar Panels And Wind Turbine Power Photo

© Kennytong | Dreamstime.com – Solar Panels And Wind Turbine Power Photo

During Q1 2015, eight new “units” of wind came online with a combined capacity of 647 MW — accounting for 52.64 percent of all new generating capacity. Solar provided 30 units (214 MW), geothermal steam provided one unit (45 MW), and hyrdropower provided one unit (21 MW). Five units of natural gas provided the new capacity from that sector.

According to the SUN DAY Campaign, the numbers for the first three months of 2015 are similar to those for the same period in 2014 when renewable energy sources (biomass, geothermal, hydropower, solar, wind) provided 1,422 MW of new capacity and natural gas 159 MW while coal and nuclear provided none and oil just 1 MW. Renewable energy sources accounted for half of all new generating capacity last year.

Renewable energy sources now account for 16.92 percent of total installed operating generating capacity in the U.S.: water – 8.53 percent, wind – 5.65 percent, biomass – 1.38 percent, solar – 1.03 percent, and geothermal steam – 0.33 percent. Renewable energy capacity is now greater than that of nuclear (9.11%) and oil (3.92%) combined. Moreover, as noted, total installed operating generating capacity from solar has now reached and surpassed the one-percent threshold.

“The trend lines for the past several years have been consistent and unmistakable,” said Ken Bossong, executive director of the SUN DAY Campaign. “Each month, renewable energy sources – particularly wind and solar – increase their share of the nation’s generating capacity while those of coal, oil, and nuclear decline.”

biomass, Geothermal, Hydro, Renewable Energy, Solar, Wind

DOE Selects FORGE Geothermal Projects

Joanna Schroeder

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced five projects for the first part of the multiphase Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE) effort, totaling $2 million. The lab is focused on unlocking the potential for enhanced geothermal systems (EGS) that could lead to more than 100 gigawatts of renewable, clean energy.

EGS are engineered geothermal reservoirs, created beneath the surface of the earth, where there is hot rock but limited pathways through which fluid can flow. During EGS development, underground fluid pathways are safely created and their size and connectivity increased. These enhanced pathways allow fluid to circulate throughout the hot rock and carry heat to the surface to generate electricity.

DOE FORGE programThe five selected teams represent proposed projects in California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, and Utah. In Phase 1, the teams will spend the next year completing mission-critical technical and logistical tasks that demonstrate site viability and show the team’s capability of meeting FORGE objectives and developing plans for Phase 2. Phase 1 tasks will include conceptual geologic modeling and the creation of comprehensive plans for data dissemination, intellectual property, environmental, health and safety information, communications and outreach, stakeholder engagement, R&D implementation, and environmental management.

“Through these kinds of critical investments in renewable energy, the Department is helping develop cost-effective technologies for engineering geothermal systems that supply affordable, zero-carbon energy to millions of American homes and businesses,” said Under Secretary for Science and Energy Lynn Orr. “Enhanced geothermal systems could represent the next frontier of renewable energy and hold the potential to diversify the nation’s energy portfolio while reducing greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere.”

The FORGE initiative consists of three phases. The first two phases will provide a total of up to $31 million over two years for selected teams and will focus on selecting both a site and an operations team, as well as preparing and fully characterizing the site. Up to three teams selected next year will to move into Phase 2 will work to fully instrument, characterize, and permit candidate sites for full-scale operations at FORGE in the third and final phase. Subject to the availability of appropriations, Phase 3 is anticipated to fund the full implementation of FORGE at a single site, managed by one operations team.

Electricity, Geothermal, Renewable Energy