biofuel

U.S. unlikely to hit advanced biofuel goal, study says

The United States will likely fail to reach its long-term mandate for making advanced ethanol from trees, grasses, and crop waste unless producers innovate significantly, a scientific advisory group said yesterday.

The National Research Council's comments are the latest sign that backers of alternative fuels must wait longer for "next-generation" ethanol. Touted as the motor fuel of the future, it has struggled with high production costs and other setbacks.

"Absent major technological innovation or policy changes, the...mandated consumption of 16 billion gallons of ethanol-equivalent cellulosic biofuels is unlikely to be met in 2022," a … Read more

Biofuel breakthrough made from microbes

"Two microbes, a bacteria, and a yeast" may sound like a recipe for a bad science joke, but it's actually the formula that's led researchers from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the Department of Energy to produce a new source for biodiesel.

Working together under the umbrella of the DOE's Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI), a team of researchers have successfully engineered bisabolane into a biosynthetic alternative for making diesel.

There's a good reason the scientists involved in the project stand like a proud group of superheroes in their most recent lab photo (see above). … Read more

In 'supercritical hydrolysis,' a new process for biofuels

PHILADELPHIA--Here in a warehouse comprised of little else besides plywood, steel beams, and concrete, bioindustrial startup Renmatix announced a new process that it says allows it to produce cellulosic sugars--from which some types of biofuel are derived--more cheaply than ever.

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers investor John Doerr, and others were in attendance here at Renmatix's unfinished headquarters in the Philadelphia suburb of King of Prussia as the company revealed its new process, developed at its facility in Kennesaw, Ga.

Renmatix says its industrial-scale process breaks down cellulose through something called "supercritical hydrolysis," … Read more

Rising biomass demand could drive land grabs

Rising global demand for cleaner energy from biomass could drive more land acquisition in poorer nations where food security and land rights are weak, an International Institute for Environment and Development report said today.

"If left unchecked, the growing pressure on land access could undermine livelihoods and food security in some of the world's poorest countries," the London-based nonprofit research group said, calling for more public scrutiny into global biomass expansion plans.

Biomass energy makes up 77 percent of world renewable energy, and trees and woody plants account for 87 percent of that biomass, the report said. … Read more

Recycled newspapers could fuel your car, say scientists

Don't give up on the newspaper industry just yet--it could soon be powering your car. Researchers at Tulane University have discovered a strain of bacteria that can turn paper into butanol, a biofuel substitue for gasoline.

The bacteria, dubbed "TU-103," was found when the folks in David Mullin's lab in Tulane's Department of Cell and Molecular Biology were weeding through the contents of some animal droppings one day. It turned out to be some lucky scat--TU-103 is believed to be the first bacterial strain from nature that produces butanol directly from cellulose, an organic matter found in everything from paper to Caesar salads.

"Cellulose is found in all green plants, and is the most abundant organic material on earth, and converting it into butanol is the dream of many," said Harshad Velankar, a postdoctoral fellow in Mullin's lab, in a statement last week. "In the United States alone, at least 323 million tons of cellulosic materials that could be used to produce butanol are thrown out each year." … Read more

Feds deploy Navy to jump-start biofuels

The federal government is using the weight of the military to counter years of disappointment with biofuels and commercialize drop-in replacements for diesel and jet fuel.

Three government agencies--the Departments of the Navy, Agriculture, and Energy--today announced a memorandum of understanding to spend $510 million over three years to scale up the industry for advanced biofuels.

The agencies will put out a request for proposals to build commercial-scale biorefineries, called "pioneer plants," able to make diesel and jet fuel from non-food sources at prices competitive with fossil fuels. The biorefineries will aim to be built in different locations … Read more

Tequila mooted as eco-friendly biofuel

We've always been told that driving and alcohol don't mix, but there's now a distinct possibility we could all be driving around tanked up on tequila, according to the usually very sober Guardian.

Researchers at the University of Oxford have suggested that agave, the hardy plant from which the bitter liquor is distilled, is an ideal source from which to create the petrol substitute ethanol, as it has a far lower environmental and social impact than conventional ethanol-making crops.

This comes as no surprise to Crave. We've been aware of tequila's benefits for years, but writing a white paper on the subject the morning after an extensive bout of experimentation has usually taken a back seat to figuring out why our brains feel as if they've been used as a fat person's trampoline.

Read more of "Tequila mooted as eco-friendly biofuel for cars, salt and lemon optional" at Crave UK. … Read more

Cellulosic-ethanol industry struggles to take off

The great promise of a car fuel made from cheap, clean-burning prairie grass or wood chips--and not from expensive corn that feeds the world--is more mirage than reality.

Despite years of research, testing, and some hype, the next-generation ethanol industry is far from the commercial success envisioned by President George W. Bush in 2006, when he pledged so-called cellulosic biofuels would be "practical and competitive" by 2012.

Instead the only real alternative to traditional gasoline is ethanol made from corn, a fuel environmentalists say is not green at all because of the energy-intensive nature of modern farming.

Critics … Read more

Climate impact threatens biodiesel future in EU

Europe's biodiesel industry could be wiped out by EU plans to tackle the unwanted side effects of biofuel production, after studies showed few climate benefits, four papers obtained by Reuters show.

Europe's world-leading $13 billion biodiesel industry, which has boomed in the wake of a decision by Brussels policymakers in 2003 to promote it, is now on the verge of being legislated out of existence after the studies revealed biodiesel's indirect impact cancels out most of its benefits.

"This study would pave the way for the demise of the European biodiesel sector," Philippe Tillous-Borde, chief of French oilseed giant Sofiproteol, which owns Europe's largest biodiesel producer, told Reuters.

The EU has been arguing for two years over the extent of indirect damage to the environment caused by it setting a target of increasing biofuel use to 10 percent of all road fuels by 2020, from less than three percent today.

Its own analysis shows the target may lead to an indirect one-off release of around 1,000 megatonnes of carbon dioxide--more than twice the annual emissions of Germany.

The emerging picture that the EU has got its policy wrong has proved unpalatable, and the European Commission has refused a Reuters freedom of information request for the latest studies, arguing the public interest of disclosure is insufficient.

However, those documents have now been leaked.… Read more