Auto Steer/GPS Attributed to #Plant15 Progress

Jamie Johansen

New Holland ZimmPollOur latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “What technology is most responsible for rapid planting progress?”

#Plant15 is in full swing and many attribute the rapid progress to auto steering and GPS capabilities. Others commented saying larger equipment, lots of hard work and long hours come into play. I know all are true. Where would we be without technology?

Here are the poll results:

  • Automatic section control (ASC) – 5%
  • Variable-rate seeding – 6%
  • Precision seed metering – 21%
  • Auto steer/GPS – 31%
  • Faster planters – 16%
  • Other – 21%

Our new ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question, What is your favorite type of craft beer?

The Alltech’s Rebelation is right around the corner and no Alltech event is complete without craft beer. This year Alltech will kick off the educational festivities with the 2nd Annual Craft Brews & Food Fest slated for Saturday, May 16. In honor of that, we want to know what craft beer tops your list. Do your taste buds lean towards an IPA, wheat, stout or do you love them all?

ZimmPoll

Blossman Gas Ups Vehicles Running on Propane

John Davis

ROUSH Propane Bobtail1One of the country’s biggest propane dealers is practicing what it preaches. Blossman Gas is increasing the number of vehicles in its fleet that run on propane with the purchase of three new autogas bobtails, purchased from ROUSCH CleanTech.

“Propane autogas provides numerous benefits for our nation’s fleet vehicles,” notes Stuart Weidie, President and CEO of Blossman Gas and President of Alliance AutoGas. “Blossman Gas has made the commitment to run our own fleet on autogas and therefore has the ability to share real data and experiences, which enhances our ability to convince prospective customers that it is a cost effective, clean and domestic fuel that is available right here, right now” adds Weidie.

Currently, ninety-five percent of the Blossman fleet running on gaseous fuels has been converted to propane autogas within the last two years, netting a cost savings to the company of over $976,000. Additionally, their fleet has reduced greenhouse gas emissions by over 96 tons since converting to autogas.

Added to the fleet of work and service vehicles are the three new F-650 Ford ROUSH CleanTech bobtails. The Ford F-650 ROUSH CleanTech units have a 6.8L V-10 engine that will be dedicated to use propane autogas. These units will be deployed this month with a 2600 gallon barrel for the sole purpose of delivering propane gas to Blossman’s residential and commercial accounts.

Propane

Expansion Complete on BDI Biodiesel Plant

John Davis

BDIGermany-based BDI – BioEnergy International AG has completed the expansion of a biodiesel plant in Spain. This company news release says the refinery will turn oils and animal fats with very high FFA-content into the green fuel.

ecoMotion Biodiesel S.A. (a company of the international SARIA Group) commissioned BDI with the installation of a “High-FFA esterification” unit in its plant in Barcelona. This technological in-house development from BDI allows BioDiesel producers to use the most challenging oils and fats available on the market – without a limit on free fatty acids (FFA) – whilst retaining the highest BioDiesel quality. BDI therefore sets again a technological milestone in the future market of the BioDiesel production based on oils and animal fats.

“Biodiesel producers are currently facing major challenges as a result of uncertainties with regard to the future European biofuel policy. However, the use of waste and residual materials is safeguarded due to the positive environmental aspects. With the BDI RetroFit-program, we can already integrate the necessary, well-developed solutions in plants for the requirements of tomorrow. We also managed at ecoMotion Spain to prove again our lead regarding technologies for the BioDiesel production from the most challenging animal by-products available on the market”, says Dr. Edgar Ahn – Member of the Board (CSO).

BDI had already been commissioned with the construction of a multi-feedstock biodiesel plant in Barcelona in 2002. This new capability to accept more raw materials is expected to increase the efficiency and flexibility of the refinery.

Biodiesel, International

Dyadic Gives Details of Biomass-to-Ethanol Program

John Davis

dyadicBiotech company Dyadic International, Inc., has announced details of its program to build a large-scale biomass-to-ethanol plant. This company news release says in the 2G BIOPIC, a new advanced biofuels project funded by a $1.13 million grant from the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 program, Dyadic will work in collaboration with Compagnie Industrielle de Matière Végétale (“CIMV”) and five other industry partners.

Dyadic’s Chief Operating Officer, Danai Brooks, stated, “We are pleased to continue working closely with CIMV, and believe that Dyadic’s C1 enzymes will play a critical role in the 2G BIOPIC project success. The aim of 2G BIOPIC is to demonstrate the performance, reliability and sustainability of producing bioethanol from agriculture waste and wood. The demonstration plant built in the 2G BIOPIC program will process one ton of biomass per hour, or about 50 times the size of the CIMV pilot plant upon which the project is based. Successful funding of the 2G BIOPIC program further highlights the strength of Dyadic’s C1 Expression System in the field of advanced biofuels.”

Emmanuel Dutournier, CIMV’s Chief Financial Officer, Member of the Board of Directors and 2G BIOPIC Program Coordinator, continued, “2G BIOPIC is the second EU funded program where we are collaborating with Dyadic Netherlands. The first program Biomimetic, which deals with depolymerization of our BioligninTM, opens up many opportunities and we look forward to furthering our work together with the Dyadic team. We believe that the Dyadic and CIMV technologies are highly complementary, as Dyadic’s C1 enzymes work particularly well with the purer plant material produced from CIMV’s biomass pretreatment technology.”

The grant will be paid out over three years, with the first approximately $500,000 paid up front.

biomass, Ethanol, Ethanol News

Book Review: The Power Surge

Joanna Schroeder

As I write about energy each day, I often wonder what the trade-offs or consequences will be if a technology takes off, or even if it fails. How will it, if at all, alter America’s energy landscape? From my point of view, we are a country in fear of change and in fear of taking The Power Surgeaction. We are a country that spends more time worrying about what celebrities wore to an award show and when the next iPhone will be hit the streets, then worrying about the underlying causes of recessions (many economists blame oil prices) and what the consequences are of the decisions made, or more often than not, not made, by our elected officials.

So I was very excited when I read, “The Power Surge: Energy, Opportunity, and the Battle for America’s Future,” by Michael Levi who is the Senior Fellow for Energy and Environment and Director, Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Council on Foreign Relations. I have never read a book that does a better job of presenting various energy scenarios and the intended and unintended consequences of them and written and presented in a way based on research, economics and trends and not based on emotions.

There is no argument that there is a battle afoot over America’s, and quite frankly, the world’s energy future.

Our entire life is dependent on energy. We as a society can not function in our current “lifestyle” without energy. Period.

And despite what you personally believe, there are economic, security and environmental consequences and/or benefits to all decisions made and not made as eloquently demonstrated by Levi (and this includes those who believe climate change is a hoax). Levi begins the book with a three very probative and questions and one that he uses against all scenarios he presents in the book. In other words, how does the technology, legislation, or action fare against these three pillars?

  1. Does each energy source that has recently thrived offer important opportunities to improve the U.S. economy, strengthen national security or mitigate climate change while not causing intolerable damages on any of those fronts?
  2. Is is possible to seize those opportunities simultaneously- or would pursuing some of them severely undermine others?
  3. And can the United States take advantage of these opportunities without fundamentally altering the role of government in America?

The book begins with an in-depth discussion of all things oil and touches upon renewable energy sources such as biofuels. He also covers electricity and the role of natural gas in our current and energy future as well as technologies like wind and solar. He also points out that all sides of the issue overstate some of their claims and it was refreshing to see someone who doesn’t only call out claims on the side he/she is against. He writes,Read More

book reviews, Clean Energy, Climate Change, Electricity, Energy, Opinion

Hawaii to Become 100% Renewable by 2045

Joanna Schroeder

Hawaii is the first state in the U.S. to pass legislation that will require 100 percent of all energy to sourced from renewable energy by 2045. Lawmakers voted 74-2 in favor of House Bill 623 requiring all electricity to be generated from clean sources such as wind, solar, and geothermal.

gI_59670_100 percent trend chart May15 sz800The measure, if enacted by Governor David Ige, would make Hawaii the first state in the nation with such a 100 percent renewable energy standard. Blue Planet Foundation, whose mission is to clear the path for 100% renewable energy, praised the move.

“As the first state to move toward 100% renewable energy, Hawaii is raising the bar for the rest of the country,” said Rep. Chris Lee, the Chairman of the House Energy and Environmental Protection Committee and introducer of HB 623. “Local renewable projects are already cheaper than liquid natural gas and oil, and our progress toward meeting our renewable energy standards has already saved local residents hundreds of millions on their electric bills. Moving to 100% renewable energy will do more to reduce energy prices for local residents in the long term than almost anything else we could do.”

Senator Gabbard, Chair of the Senate Energy and Environment Committee and a champion of the measure in the Senate, shares the sentiment. “With this bill, we’ll now be the most populated set of islands in the world with an independent grid to establish a 100% renewable electricity goal,” said Sen. Gabbard. “Through this process of transformation Hawaii can be the model that other states and even nations follow. And we’ll achieve the biggest energy turnaround in the country, going from 90% dependence on fossil fuels to 100% clean energy.”

House Bill 623 also increases the interim requirement to 30 percent renewable by 2020. Last year, Hawaii generated about 22 percent of its electricity from renewable resources.Read More

Clean Energy, Electricity, Geothermal, Solar, Wind

Corn Ethanol Yields Improve

Cindy Zimmerman

corn-ethanol-3A new brief from the U.S. Energy Information (EIA) illustrates just how dramatically corn ethanol efficiency has increased in a very short time.

Today in Energy notes that last year fuel ethanol production in the United States reached an all-time high of 14.3 billion gallons of ethanol fuel. “The growth in U.S. fuel ethanol production has outpaced growth in corn consumed as feedstock—as the industry has grown, it has become more efficient, using fewer bushels of corn to produce a gallon of ethanol.”

If ethanol plant yields per bushel of corn in 2014 had remained at 1997 levels (when ethanol made up just 1% of the total U.S. motor gasoline supply), the ethanol industry would have needed to grind an additional 343 million bushels, or 7% more corn, to produce the same volume of fuel. To supply this incremental quantity of corn without withdrawing bushels from other uses would have required 2.2 million additional acres of corn to be cultivated, an area roughly equivalent to half the land area of New Jersey.

The article credits the yield increases to several factors including increased plant scale which has allowed producers to incorporate better process technology, such as finer grinding of corn to increase starch conversion and improved temperature control of fermentation to optimize yeast productivity. Additionally, the development of better enzymes and yeast strains has led to improved output per bushel of corn.

corn, Ethanol, Ethanol News

BioEnergy Bytes

Joanna Schroeder

  • http://energy.agwired.com/category/bioenergy-bytes/The National Geothermal Summit is around the corner, taking place June 3-4, 2015 in Reno, Nevada. On tap – key players in the geothermal industry will discuss the outlook for geothermal power in the Silver State and beyond under the theme: “Geothermal Policies as Stimulus for Economic Growth and Environmental Quality”. The annual event is put on by the Geothermal Energy Association (GEA) and attendees will hear from Councilwoman Naomi Duerr, Reno City Council; Paul Thomsen, director, Nevada Governor’s Office of Energy; and, John Ruhs, acting state director, Bureau of Land Management Nevada State Office; among many other influential members of the sector.
  • PSI Repair Services, Inc., a subsidiary of Phillips Service Industries and leading independent service provider (ISP) to the wind energy industry, announced today that it recently shipped its 20,000th repaired wind turbine part to a prominent wind energy company. Since 2009, PSI has provided economical repairs, as well as industry-leading engineering services that include product upgrades, for the largest wind farms in the United States.
  • Golden Age Resources, Inc. has announced construction plans and financing on Cogeneration Pilot Project. Thomas Wolff, Vice President of Golden Age Resources Mexico S de R.L. noted, “The 100Kw Biomass to Energy Plan will build as a scalable WTE (Waste to Energy) Plant with a 2 Mw/hour output by using organic municipal and/or sisal waste with planned implementation of the new fuel cell technology provided from our Strategic Alliance Partner GEI Global Energy Corp.” As soon as the plant reaches initial planned capacity of 2mW/Hr the total energy produced will be 17.52 gW/Yr. The energy generated from the WTE plant will be sold to the Commission Federal de Electricidad with a signed 20 year PPA.
  • Tri Global Energy, the utility-scale renewable energy company with wind farm projects located in Texas and New Mexico, leads Texas as the developer on nearly one quarter of all wind energy projects currently under construction in the state, according to the Q1 2015 Market Report from the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). The U.S. wind energy industry is in the middle of a near record expansion, with over 13,600 MW of capacity in construction at 100 sites in 23 states, according to AWEA’s Q1 2015 Market Report.
Bioenergy Bytes

Know the Down Low on RPS Legislation

Joanna Schroeder

csu-new-energyThere is a lot of activity happening throughout the United States with respect to Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) legislation for the year. To keep people informed, the Center for the New Energy Economy (CNEE) has published a Summary of State Renewable Portfolio Standard Legislation in 2015 brief. To date, 87 distinct bills have been introduced in 32 states although only two bills have actually been enacted.

The brief categorizes the bills into three categories:

  • Rollback: includes outright repeals, reductions to targets delays in target dates, exceptions for utilities and bills to extend eligibility for non-renewable fuels or existing large capacity hydroelectric resources;
  • Increase: would create a larger market by expanding renewable generation targets, creating new carve-outs or requiring compliance by additional utility-types; and
  • Modification: addresses the mechanics of how an RPS program is implemented.

Here is the topline for 2015:

  • To date, RPS legislation has been introduced in 32 states. Of the 87 bills, only two have been enacted. A bill in West Virginia repealed the state’s standard and legislation in New Mexico enacted a modification to include a new definition for thermal energy and include Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) to be issued to rural electric cooperatives for generating thermal energy from geothermal resources.
  • The percentage shares by category of legislation have shifted over the last three years. RPS increase legislation was more common in 2015 as a percentage of all introduced legislation, than in 2013 and 2014.
  • Legislation to increase or rollback an RPS does not appear to be correlated with state policy target dates.
  • The most common policy type continues to be modifications to existing RPS policies with revisions to resource eligibility clauses have making up the majority of these bills for the past three years.

Many states’ legislative sessions are still underway and the Center for the New Energy Economy keeps real-time track of changes. Click here to download the brief.

Clean Energy, Electricity, energy efficiency, Geothermal, Hydro

US Ethanol Getting Exported to More Markets

John Davis

A few years ago, almost all of U.S. ethanol went to Brazil, Canada and the European Union. But this article from the National Corn Growers Association says new information from the U.S. Grains Council shows just how wide the market has grown.
Ethanol-Exports
Exports to the United Arab Emirates, the Philippines and India experienced the strongest growth in 2014. While the UAE is largely importing U.S. ethanol to blend with its gasoline that is later re-exported, and India is importing for industrial purpose, the Philippines has a blend mandate in place. Domestic production in the Philippines has been unable to meet its 10 percent blend mandate making imports necessary.

Currently, the United States has a 55 percent market share in the Philippines and the Council is hopeful there is room to capture more. To help nurture this market, the Council and its partners, Renewable Fuels Association, Growth Energy and USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service, have planned a busy summer with missions heading to the Philippines and other growing markets like China, Indonesia, India and Japan.

Ag group, Ethanol, Ethanol News, International, NCGA, USGC