Crude Oil Rise Fuels Biodiesel Feedstocks Rise

John Davis

The recent rise in crude oil prices are fueling a rise in some of the feedstocks for biodiesel. Bloomberg reportssoybeans that palm oil and soybean oil prices rose this week as petroleum prices also climbed:

“One of the reasons that is pushing demand for palm oil is biodiesel,” said Sim Han Qiang, an analyst at Phillip Futures Pte. in Singapore. “When crude oil prices go up, there’ll be high demand for biodiesel.”

Increased blending requirements in the Americas and Indonesia’s foray into biodiesel as a major producer will create demand for biofuel feedstock, Yusof said.

Soybean oil for delivery in December climbed 0.6 percent to 45.57 cents a pound on the Chicago Board of Trade. Soybeans for delivery in November rose 0.2 percent to $12.7675 a bushel.

The article adds that food demands are also helping fuel the rise for vegetable oils.

Biodiesel, feedstocks

Using Drones to Scout Fields

Talia Goes

Our latest ZimmPoll asked the question, “What use would you have for an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle?”

Our poll results:

· Crop analysis 25%
· Improve nutrient & crop protection efficiency 18%
· Just for fun! 18%
· Maximize yields 15%
· More efficient water use 7%
· Monitor livestock 8%
· Other 8%

So what do you think from the looks of the results? Are UAVs the next big technology “trend” for farmers who need to scout fields?

Our new ZimmPoll is now live and asks the question, ” How many ag-related apps do you have?” According to a recent Successful Farming survey, 28% of farmers polled “normally use apps to obtain information on agricultural products and/or services.” Are you one of the 28% and if so, how many different apps to you use? Let us know what you think.

ZimmPoll is sponsored by New Holland Agriculture.

ZimmPoll

EPA Can Fix RFS Problems

Cindy Zimmerman

hearing-martinThere may be some issues with the Renewable Fuel Standard that need to be addressed, but they could be done at the administrative level, rather than repealing the entire law or having Congress make changes. That according to a Senior Scientist with the Union of Concerned Scientists Clean Vehicles Program.

Dr. Jeremy Martin testified at a House Energy subcommittee hearing this week that they believe the RFS is an important policy tool and should remain in place and no legislative changes should be made to it. “Fortunately the RFS was designed with a great deal of flexibility,” Dr. Martin said. “We’re not moving forward as fast as we hoped to be in 2007 but the RFS is still pointing us in the right direction.”

Martin noted that the real goal of the RFS is to move beyond corn-based ethanol into advanced and cellulosic biofuels, but that can only be achieved if the law remains in place. “The RFS is based on smart goals, not just more biofuels but better biofuels,” he said, noting that repeal or legislative changes “would lock in place the status quo of 90% gasoline and 10% corn ethanol and chill investment in cellulosic biofuels just as the first commercial facilities are starting up.”

Dr. Martin and other witnesses, including Bob Dinneen with the Renewable Fuels Association and Mike McAdams of the Advanced Biofuels Association, pointed out that several commercial advanced biofuels facilities are starting up or under construction now.

Listen to Martin’s testimony here: Dr. Jeremy Martin, UCS

Audio, biofuels, Cellulosic, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government, RFS

Algae Biomass Summit: A Must Attend

Joanna Schroeder

The Algae Biomass Organization (ABO) will be hosting its 7th annual Algae Biomass Summit this fall, September 30-October 3, 2013 in Orlando, Florida. To get an overview of ABO logokey speakers and topics, I turned to ABO Executive Director Mary Rosenthal. To date, Rosenthal said that have nearly 100 speakers confirmed along with a huge poster presentation and more than 60 exhibitors.

One of the key sessions, according to Rosenthal, is, “The Algae Fuel Solution – Updates from Algenol Biofuels, Sapphire Energy and Federal Express”. The session will be moderated by Tim Portz, Executive Editor, Biomass Magazine and panelists include Paul Woods, CEO, Algenol Biofuels;  Cynthia “CJ” Warner, CEO & Chairman, Sapphire Energy Inc; and Joel Murdock, Managing Director, Federal Express.

MR Edited HeadshotBecause of the changing nature of the industry, Rosenthal said they will be following this session with a presentation focused on “beyond fuels” or a session discussing feed, nutrition, specialty chemicals and products. This session will be moderated by Jim Lane, Editor and Publisher of Biofuels Digest, and panelists include Tim Burns, President, BioProcess Algae; Dan Simon, President & CEO, Heliae; Mike Van Drunen, CEO & Founder, Algix LLC; and Greg Bafalis, CEO, Aurora Algae.

I asked, politics aside, why the algae industry is such a great industry. “You have to look at algae and what it provides. It’s efficient at producing oil, you have superior yields, you don’t use valuable agricultural land, and we don’t take away from food crops,” Rosenthal explained, who also noted that the industry doesn’t take away from fresh water resources. “And we have the potential to recycle carbon from industrial power plants and re-mediate waste water.”

In addition to the sessions, there will also be some pre and post-conference tours. Rosenthal said she is especially excited about the visit to Algenol’s commercial development campus that includes 70,000 square feet of world-class molecular biology, culture collection, physiology, aquaculture, analytical chemistry and engineering laboratories.

All of these topics and more will be discussed during the Summit. To learn more about the Algae Biomass Summit and to register online, click here.

Listen to my interview with ABO Executive Director Mary Rosenthal here:Algae Biomass Summit: A Must Attend

advanced biofuels, algae, Audio

SolarStrong To Aid Oahu-Stationed Military

Joanna Schroeder

SolarCity has announced plans to add 12.8 megawatts of new solar generation capacity to provide solar power to an estimated 7,500 military homes at Lend Lease-managed Island Palm Communities throughout the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Military communities include Fort Shafter, Schofield Barracks, Wheeler Army Airfield, Aliamanu Military SolarCity SolarStrong Project in NMReservation, Helemano Military Reservation and Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawai’i. The projects are the latest to be announced under SolarCity’s SolarStrong initiative, a five-year plan to build more than $1 billion in solar projects to provide power to up to 120,000 military homes in the United States.

“Hawai’i is dependent upon petroleum for approximately 75 percent of its energy needs, making the military’s further adoption of solar a win for national security as well as the environment,” said Aaron Gillmore, SolarCity’s vice president of solar development.

In addition to SolarStrong, SolarCity is pursuing a veteran hiring initiative as part of its Workforce Development program. The company currently employs more than 100 veterans in various positions, including IT, sales, managerial, administration, design and installation. SolarCity has partnered with several veteran programs across the country, including Veteran Affairs national offices, JPMorgan Chase & Co’s ‘100,000 Jobs Mission,’ Swords to Plowshares, The California National Guard, The California Conservation Corps and Veterans Green Jobs. SolarCity was recently recognized by the Employment Development Department (EDD) and the California Employer Advisory Council (CEAC) for “outstanding service in the employment of veterans” for the year 2013 and also received the “Outstanding Industry Partner Award” from Veterans Green Jobs.

Electricity, Energy, military, Solar

Gevo Supplies Coast Guard with Isobutanol

Joanna Schroeder

Gevo, Inc. has begun supplying the U.S. Coast Guard R&D Center with initial quantities of finished 16.1% renewable isobutanol-blended gasoline for engine testing. The U.S. Coast Guard R&D Center is using the Gevo-blended fuel as part of a 12-month, long-term gevooperational study on marine engines that began during June. The testing is being performed under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) between the U.S. Coast Guard, Honda, and Mercury and will focus on two of the Coast Guard’s platform boats — 38-foot Special Purpose Craft -Training Boat & 25-foot Response Boat – Small.

“Gevo’s proprietary isobutanol-blended gasoline is truly a drop-in fuel, deliberately designed to be fully compliant with marine fuel specifications, including fit-for-purpose properties,” said Patrick Gruber, Gevo’s chief executive officer. “Isobutanol’s low-water solvency and non-corrosive characteristics will offer consumers a high-performance, renewable biofuel ideally suited for a wide variety of marine engine applications.”

The U.S. Coast Guard completed a 3 month round of testing in Florida earlier this year under the CRADA with Honda engines running on fuel supplied by Gevo which contained 16.1% renewable isobutanol. Engines were run at full throttle for an 8 hour day for several months and then broken down and inspected. Testing of Gevo’s fuel will take place at the U.S. Coast Guard Training Center in Yorktown, Va.

Mike Coleman, Project Manager at the USCG R&D Center said, “We are pleased so far with our testing of isobutanol as a potential alternative to ethanol as a blend stock in gasoline for marine applications.” Isobutanol is a biofuel that compared to ethanol, has higher energy density, lower RVP, and does not present phase separation issues seen with ethanol. All testing so far has been positive, and when the Yorktown tests are completed next year, we expect to have the information available to allow a decision on whether 16.1% Isobutanol fuel blends will be certified for use in the Coast Guard gasoline engine fleet.”

Gruber added, “As we accelerate our full-scale commercial production efforts at the world’s first renewable isobutanol plant in Luverne, Minn., we are extremely excited to be working with a partner like the U.S. Coast Guard to evaluate and develop a product line of high-performance, isobutanol-based fuel blends for the marine engine market.”

advanced biofuels, biobutanol, military

UK Biodiesel Pioneer Sold

John Davis

Argentplant1One of the pioneers in biodiesel production in the UK has been sold. The BBC reports Argent Energy, a company that turns used cooking oil and animal fats into the green fuel, was bought by London-based John Swire & Sons, a green investment company.

The firm will stay in private ownership and will continue to run independently.

Its senior management, including chairman Andy Hunter, managing director Jim Walker and financial director Jim Boyd are to remain with the company.

Barnaby Swire, of John Swire, said his company was committed to “exploring and investing in innovative and viable green industries”.

He added: “We are delighted to be acquiring Argent Energy, a company which we believe can grow and prosper not only within the UK but also overseas, in particular in Asian markets with which Swire Group companies are familiar.

Argent has been around since since 2001 with a 50 million liter (about 12 million gallons) a year plant in Newarthill near Motherwell in Scotland.

Biodiesel, International

Capturing Energy from Ocean Currents

Joanna Schroeder

Raul Delga Delgadillo, a soon to be senior this fall at Bourns College of Engineering at the University of California, Riverside, has learned he will receive a $15,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA. The award is a result of his entry in the national sustainable design competition for his idea to capture energy from ocean currents.

Delgadillo will now build a small-scale turbine and buoy system and test it in a flow tank to determine the best way to maximize energy extraction. He expects the system will provide as much energy as an average wind turbine. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) believes wave and tidal energy, combined with other water-powered sources, could provide up to 15 percent of the country’s electricity by 2030.

“The ocean remains an untapped frontier as a renewable energy source,” Delgadillo said. “I’m hoping to change that.”

The idea for the EPA P3: People, Prosperity and the Planet Student Design Competition mobile-solar-003-603x400for Sustainability entry came out of project for the Sustainable Product Design course. Delgadillo’s project proposes several innovative designs: the buoy, which will allow the device to move around until an optimum location is found, and the telescoping feature on the turbine, which allows it to vary in height and remain stationary if waves are present. Current proposals to harness energy from ocean currents require the turbine be anchored to the ocean floor using cables or rigid supports. This adds a significant cost, disrupts the environment because the ocean floor needs to excavated and limits the mobility of the turbine.

Delgadillo expects several challenges, including varying flow rates from ocean currents due to seasonal fluctuations; the fact that depth and contours of ocean floors can affect ocean currents; and avoiding harming marine life.

In the coming months, Delgadillo will perform experiments in a flow tank in the lab of Marco Princevac, an associate professor of mechanical engineering. He will then use the data he gathers to write a proposal for a second round of funding, for $90,000, from the EPA. He will find out in spring 2014 whether he receives that money, which would allow him to take the design to a real world application.

Renewable Energy, Research, water, Wind

Biodiesel Board CEO Tells Congress RFS is Working

John Davis

rfs-hearing-jobeAs lawmakers debated the value of the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS), the CEO of the National Biodiesel Board made the case on CSPAN that his group’s green fuel is delivering on those RFS promises.

“First, under the RFS, the advanced biofuel and biomass-based diesel categories programs are working. And second, with the help of the RFS, biodiesel is reducing consumer prices at the pump,” Jobe told a House Energy subcommittee hearing, adding biodiesel is the first and only EPA-approved advanced biofuel produced on a commercial scale and the first to hit a billion gallons of production annually. The industry has also exceeded the biomass-based diesel category every year the program has been in existence, while producing more than 50,000 jobs, diversifying and improving the domestic fuel supply, and reducing pollution. Gadsden, Alabama’s recent conversion of its fleet to a 20 percent biodiesel blend (B20) is saving that city $100,000 a year, and the U.S. Navy is saving 13 cents a gallon by using B20. “This is a tremendous success story.”

Jobe went on to point out that biodiesel is actually improving the overall quality of the country’s diesel supply, without reducing performance. And he said many waste products, such as waste fats and oils, are staying out landfills and adding value to agricultural products – increasing the value of cattle by $10 a head, hogs by $1.25 and $.30 for poultry.

Jobe also addressed the issue of fraudulent Renewable Identification Numbers, RINs, pointing out that the biodiesel industry went after the issue aggressively.

“In 2010 and 2011, the biodiesel industry experienced a few cases of criminals generating and trading fraudulent RINs. Our industry took very aggressive measures working closely with EPA and the petroleum industry to address the fraud head on,” deploying a private-sector developed, robust RIN integrity program. Two of the three RIN frauders are now in jail with the third case pending.

He concluded that the RFS was the right policy when it was signed in 2005 and renewed an 2007, and it remains a sound policy today. Jobe said his industry will work with anyone to make the RFS an unqualified success.

Listen to Joe’s remarks here: Joe Jobe, CEO of NBB, remarks before House Energy subcommittee

And you can see more of that hearing archived on CSPAN’s website.

Audio, Biodiesel, Government, Legislation, NBB

Lawmakers Seek Compromise on RFS

Cindy Zimmerman

Some lawmakers during a House Energy subcommittee hearing on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) attempted to work toward getting some compromise between the two sides of the debate.

hearing-shimkusOne side, represented by the oil industry, wants to see the RFS completely repealed. The other side, represented by the biofuels industry, would prefer no change to the law. Congressman John Shimkus (R-IL) expressed his frustration with both sides digging in their heels on the issue. “We could have had this hearing in January and I would have gotten the same freaking answers out of you all,” said Shimkus. “We got your sides, we know what they are, that’s not really being constructive because we’ve got some issues we need to address.”

The congressman then asked the first panel, consisting of two oil industry representatives and two biofuels representatives and one scientist, if they would be willing to compromise somewhere between repeal and status quo on the RFS. As Jack Gerard, president of the American Petroleum Institute, started going into why he thought the law should be repealed, Shimkus cut him off. “We’re back to the same thing now,” he said. The rest of the panel agreed they would work with Congress, with certain caveats, leading Shimkus to conclude “If you keep these positions, no one’s going to be happy and nothing’s going to get done.”

Listen to the exchange here: RFS Hearing - Rep. Shimkus

advanced biofuels, Audio, biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Government, RFA, RFS