Canadian Company Plans Biomass Pellet Plant

John Davis

sustaneA clean-tech company in Canada is looking to build a $13-million commercial plant to turn biomass into pellets. This article from Halifax’s Chronicle Herald says Sustane Technologies Inc. will make the biomass pellets from landfill waste.

The demonstration plant, which would be at Chester’s Kaizer Meadow landfill, is slated to be operational in mid-2016.

Warden Allen Webber said Tuesday that Sustane CEO Peter Vinall approached the municipality about six months ago about helping to commercialize the technology.

“At that point in time, he was really looking to attract our waste to a facility he intended to build in another municipal unit,” Webber said in an interview.

“We met with him on several occasions and convinced him that the most appropriate location would be Chester because we owned a landfill and did control 30,000 tonnes of waste, both of which he needed.”

The plant would take about 40 percent of the waste in the landfill and convert it into the fuel pellets, and the technology is hoped to save municipalities 20 percent in the landfill and disposal costs.

biomass

Louisiana REG Plant Update

Cindy Zimmerman

reg-laDamage to the Renewable Energy Group (REG) Geismar, Louisiana biorefinery from an April 2 fire will take 2-4 months to repair, according to the company.

“While preliminary damage assessments are still ongoing, the damage appears to be contained to a limited area of the production facility,” REG reports in an update this week. “The Company plans to incorporate a one-month maintenance shutdown that was previously scheduled for this summer to bring filtration and other upgrades online during the restoration time period.”

Our highest concern is the continuing recovery of the two employees who were injured last Thursday. We also appreciate the cooperation and understanding of our customers, vendors and service providers during this time.

REG expects to be able to resume loadout operations for Renewable Hydrocarbon Diesel in inventory later this week.

REG, renewable diesel

Researchers Build Biomass for Batteries

John Davis

uhouston1Researchers at the University of Houston have discovered a polymer made from biomass that could end up being a key ingredient in a new organic material battery. This article from the school says the discovery promises a low-cost, environmentally friendly energy source.

The discovery relies upon a “conjugated redox polymer” design with a naphthalene-bithiophene polymer, which has traditionally been used for applications including transistors and solar cells. With the use of lithium ions as dopant, researchers found it offered significant electronic conductivity and remained stable and reversible through thousands of cycles of charging and discharging energy.

The breakthrough, described in the Journal of the American Chemical Society and featured as ACS Editors’ Choice for open access, addresses a decades-long challenge for electron-transport conducting polymers, said Yan Yao, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at the UH Cullen College of Engineering and lead author of the paper.

Researchers have long recognized the promise of functional organic polymers, but until now have not been successful in developing an efficient electron-transport conducting polymer to pair with the established hole-transporting polymers. The lithium-doped naphthalene-bithiophene polymer proved both to exhibit significant electronic conductivity and to be stable through 3,000 cycles of charging and discharging energy, Yao said.

The researchers say the discovery opens the door for cheaper alternatives to traditional inorganic-based energy devices, including lithium batteries, and could make for cheaper electric cars one day.

biomass, Research

Nebraska Ethanol Producer Helps Retailers

Cindy Zimmerman

NEB logoA northeast Nebraska ethanol producer has been working with retailers in that area to provide additional fuel choice for consumers.

According to the Nebraska Ethanol Board, Husker Ag LLC in Plainview has provided grant money and ethanol for several retail locations in northeast Nebraska including Creighton, Crofton, Hartington, Osmond, Pierce at two locations, and Valentine.

“Many Nebraska ethanol producers work directly with retailers to expand availability of American Ethanol blends like E15 and E85,” said Todd Sneller, Nebraska Ethanol Board administrator. “This strategic partnership provides consumers with additional choices at the pump, and makes clear to consumers the value of choosing fuels produced locally from renewable sources.”

husker-ag“We are very excited to see the works of many coming together to expand ethanol usage in Nebraska – the second largest producer of ethanol,” said Seth Harder, Husker Ag general manager. “Partnerships are key to moving the needle on ethanol fuel usage.”

The flex fuel pumps were also paid for in part by the Nebraska Corn Board’s flex fuel infrastructure grant program on behalf of Nebraska’s 23,000 corn producers through their checkoff program.

Ethanol, Ethanol News

CARB Holds LCFS Workshop Update

Cindy Zimmerman

carb-14-2The California Air Resources Board (ARB) held a public workshop on Friday to discuss updates to the recently modified Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy Use in Transportation (CA-GREET 2.0) Model under the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS). Stakeholder input was received at the workshop on the new model which made some changes to the Indirect Land Use Change (ILUC) component.

RFA-logo-13Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) Vice President Geoff Cooper said that while they are pleased that CARB made some updates to the CA-GREET model that were recommended by stakeholders, certain elements remain problematic, such as the model’s handling of emissions related to denaturant. “Our larger concern, however, continues to be CARB’s gross overestimation of indirect land use change (ILUC) emissions,” said Cooper. “While CARB is proposing to lower ILUC emissions somewhat, the Agency’s newest estimates are still far above the estimates coming from the rest of the scientific community. Further, CARB continues to rely on speculative and hypothetical scenarios to derive ILUC penalties, rather than using real-world land use data to inform the program. Empirical data from the past 10 years clearly show that farmers have responded to higher crop prices by using existing cropland more efficiently, not by converting non-agricultural lands to cropland. We will continue to encourage CARB to consider the most recent data and best available science on ILUC.”

unica1On the other hand, the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association (UNICA) is pleased with the ILUC changes but has other concerns. “CARB’s revision of indirect land-use change (ILUC) modeling resulted in reduced penalties for Brazilian sugarcane ethanol and the lowest overall number in the LCFS, confirming it as the lowest-carbon biofuel available at commercial scale today,” said UNICA’s North American Representative Leticia Phillips.

However, Phillips says the environmental benefits of sugarcane ethanol in the LCFS would be even more significant if CARB included the emissions benefits of electricity co-generation in sugarcane mills using leftover plant material. “We are disappointed CARB has chosen to apply a U.S.-style average electricity mix to Brazil rather than crediting sugarcane biofuel producers for this marginal displacement of fossil energy.”

CARB will be considering re-adoption of the California LCFS at its July 2015 hearing,

Brazil, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Indirect Land Use, Low Carbon Fuel Standard, RFA, UNICA

RFA Reports February Ethanol Export Record

Cindy Zimmerman

The Renewable Fuels Association reports that U.S. ethanol exports reached a new record in February, based on an analysis of the latest government data.

RFANewlogoAccording to RFA Research Analyst Ann Lewis, U.S. exports of denatured and undenatured ethanol in February totaled 85.2 million gallons, up 24% from January, the highest February export volume on record. Year-to-date exports at 153.9 million gallons are in line with exports during the same period last year.

The biggest customer for U.S. ethanol remains Brazil, which received about one quarter (28%) of total U.S. ethanol exports in February, followed by India (20%), Canada (17%), and the United Arab Emirates (12%). The Philippines, South Korea, the Netherlands and Peru were other key destinations in February.

In addition, exports of the ethanol co-product distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) rose 13% to the highest monthly level in 5 months, as the Chinese market continues to recover. “However, exports to China remain at about half the level enjoyed prior to the market collapse,” said Lewis.

Distillers Grains, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Exports, RFA

Tenaska Buys Iowa Biodiesel Plant

John Davis

tenaska_logoNebraska-based renewable energy company Tenaska has bought an Iowa biodiesel refinery. This article from the Omaha World Herald says the company acquired the Clinton County Bio Energy refinery in Clinton, Iowa, from a local group of investors, although Tenaska officials are being tight-lipped about the deal.

Terms weren’t disclosed. The centerpiece of the deal is the biodiesel plant on the Mississippi River with an annual capacity of 10 million gallons…

The acquisition marks Tenaska’s third renewables investment this year, after the February purchase of a stake in a California-based installer of residential rooftop solar panels and the purchase last month of a stake in a New Jersey company that specializes in commercial solar projects.

Tenaska had nearly $10 billion in sales in 2013, earning a spot on the Forbes magazine list of the biggest private firms.

Biodiesel

Fire Shuts REG Louisiana Refinery

Cindy Zimmerman

reg-logoA Geismer, Louisiana renewable hydrocarbon diesel (RHD) refinery owned by Iowa-based Renewable Energy Group (REG) is closed after a fire on April 2 which injured two people, according to the company.

REG reports that the fire was contained within a few hours and the two injured employees were in fair condition. “An assessment and investigation into the cause of the fire and the damage to the facility is ongoing,” said a company statement. “The biorefinery will remain shut down until such assessment is complete and repairs can be made.”

REG just held a ribbon cutting in November for the facility which produces RHD using a process which converts a wide range of feedstocks, such as animal fat, inedible corn oil, used cooking oil and vegetable oils, into renewable fuel.

Biodiesel, REG, Renewable Energy

President Obama Announces Solar Efforts

Cindy Zimmerman

obama-solarIn Utah on Friday, President Obama announced new growth efforts for the solar industry and support for veterans.

At Hill Air Force Base, Obama announced several actions, including a “Solar Ready Vets Program” to be launched by the Department of Energy in partnership with the Department of Defense (DOD), at 10 military bases across the country, including at Hill Air Force Base in Utah, which has already taken leadership by installing solar panels onsite.

The Solar Ready Vets program will train transitioning military service personnel to enter the solar workforce by joining with SunShot’s Solar Instructor Training Network and leveraging the DOD’s Skillbridge transition authority authorized by Congress in 2012.

In addition, the Department of Veterans Affairs is committing to working with DOE and State Approving Agencies to achieve approval for GI Bill funding for DOE’s Solar Ready Vets initiative. And the Department of Labor (DOL), will work with DOD to ensure that transitioning service members are made aware of solar workforce training programs available to them in their last months of military service.

Read more from the White House.

Government, Solar

Blessed Good Friday to All

Jamie Johansen

st-john-crossIn observance of Good Friday ZimmComm New Media offices are closed today. The team wishes everyone a very happy Easter and Easter season. We’ll be back in action on Monday.

“Christ of Saint John of the Cross” is a painting by Salvador Dalí made in 1951 based on a drawing by the 16th-century Spanish friar John of the Cross.

ZimmComm