(US Department of Agriculture)  Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, and Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus today announced the next step in the creation of a public-private partnership to develop …

(Honeywell)  UOP LLC, a Honeywell company, announced today that it has begun construction in Hawaii of a biofuels demonstration unit that will convert forest residuals, algae and other cellulosic biomass into green transportation fuels.
Backed by a …

by Liz Ahlberg (University of Illinois)   Many energy researchers and environmental advocates are excited about the prospect of gaining more efficient large-scale biofuel production by using large grasses like miscanthus or switchgrass rather than …

(U.S. Naval Air Systems Command)     The Navy’s alternative energy program expanded yesterday when a T-45 training aircraft completed a successful biofuel flight at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md.
The “Salty Dogs” of Air …

by Cindy Zimmerman  (DomesticFuel.com)  Missouri has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as the leader in ethanol blender pumps.
During the Missouri State Fair, an official from USDA’s Rural Development agency paid a visit …

by David Hughes (Post Carbon Institute)  This week the USGS released anew assessment of gas resources in the Marcellus Shale, Appalachian Basin. The report is a reasonable effort by the USGS to sort out some …

by Kris Bevill (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  The U.S. EPA announced Aug. 22 that its electronic tool for reporting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, dubbed e-GRRT, is finally ready for use. The agency is requiring participants of …

by John Daly (OilPrice.com)  …While it remains to be seen how the joint investments between the U.S. government and private sector will work in practice, the announcement nevertheless represents an unprecedented commitment by several federal …

The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture will demonstrate its expertise in biofuels production and processing research with a new, two-day field day event geared for farmers, industry representatives, and the general public. Day one, …

by Duane Shimogawa (Pacific Business News)  …Groundbreaking for Honeywell’s UOP integrated biorefinery is scheduled for next week at Tesoro Corp. ’s refinery in Kapolei.
The project, funded by a $25 million grant from the U.S. Department …

by Kevin M. Smith (the Kearney Courier)  Area drivers with fuel flex cars now have more options at the pump.
Platte-Clay Electric Cooperative announced recently that its new blender pumps at Platte-Clay Fuels in Kearney and …

(St. Louis Today/AP)  The U.S. Department of Energy says construction has started on a $207.5 million project to capture carbon dioxide produced by an ethanol plant in Illinois and store it underground.
The Energy Department said …

by John Maday (Drovers CattleNetwork)  This probably doesn’t surprise you, but growth in ethanol production since the year 2000 contributed to dramatic shifts in U.S. agricultural production, according to a new report from USDA’s Economic Research …

(US Navy/Naval Air Systems Command)   The Navy and Marine Corps team reached another milestone toward achieving the Secretary of the Navy’s energy goals by successfully flying a Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey on biofuel Aug. …

by David Schwartz (Algae Industry Magazine)  Although veteran research scientist at Montana State University, Dr. Keith Cooksey, describes himself modestly as a biochemist that works with microorganisms, his algal biofuel-driven discoveries from the ’80s and …

by Bob Dinneen (Renewable Fuels Association/Ethanol Producer Magazine)  …First, working with Growth Energy, the RFA has submitted health effects testing and worked to fulfill the fuel registration process that must be conducted for any new …

by Jerry Hagstrom (AgWeek)  Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s Republican presidential candidacy and President Obama’s comments on ethanol have thrown the corn-based ethanol industry into turmoil as it struggles to convince Congress to provide assistance to …

by Holly Jessen (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  Not content to let Brazil hog all the glory, three development-stage companies eye sugar-based ethanol feedstocks
…If successful, California Ethanol & Power LLC will be the first ethanol production company …

(The Record)  Farm officials, hoping to get California farmers to plant as much as 25,000 acres of camelina, an oilseed, for a biomass start-up project are offering incentives to growers in San Joaquin County and …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  Can synthetic biology capture and utilize CO2 to such an extent that it not only can make money – but can mitigate the carbon intensity of no-no feedstocks like coal, …

(Algae Industry Magazine)  NASA scientist – the inventor, heart, and soul of the OMEGA system (Offshore Membrane Enclosures for Growing Algae) – Dr. Jonathan Trent received his PhD in biological oceanography at Scripps Institution of …

by Ross Dolan (The Daily Republic)  The nation’s agricultural economy is sound but many rural communities are not reaping the benefits, said Dallas Tonsager, undersecretary for rural development with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The …

by Don Comis (US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service)  U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) researchers have developed an inexpensive way to grade the ethanol potential of perennial grasses at the biorefinery’s loading dock.
That future …

(CNN Money)  Among the many incentives pushing the military to use less oil, reducing the number of casualties it takes to protect vulnerable fuel convoys is one of the most important.
1 in 8 soldiers killed …

by Kris Bevill (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  The USDA’s Aug. 17 announcement of 900 Rural Energy for America Program grants included just 21 awards for blender pumps. USDA officials promise, however, that more funding is on …

by Cindy (Corn Commentary)  President Obama’s Midwest bus tour this week really put a spotlight on agriculture and biofuels. The POTUS visited three of the nation’s top four ethanol producing states,accounting for more than 42 …

(Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)  The ailing United States’ economy would receive a much needed boost with the commercial development of a domestic source of transportation fuel – especially if that fuel were to be clean, …

(INEOS Bio/PR NewsWire)  Florida project is first large-scale advanced biorefinery facility in U.S. to close financing in latest round of USDA backed financing

INEOS Bio announced that its joint venture project closed private financing on a $75m loan …

(Abengoa/PR NewsWire)   Abengoa today announced that its subsidiary, Abengoa Bioenergy, has been selected by the US Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office to receive an offer of a conditional commitment for a $133.9 million federal loan …

by Joanne Ivancic (Advanced Biofuels USA) Background: With the understanding that if auto makers selling in the US intend to meet new 54.5 mpg CAFÉ standards, it is likely that they will build lighter weight, …

by Mark Reagan (Dodge City Globe)  Dodge City High School biology teacher Shannon Ralph said she’ll never look at algae like she used to.
Ralph spent six weeks this summer in Lawrence attending the Research Experience …

by Don Davis (Duluth News Tribune)  Minnesota’s senior congressman said that the plan administration officials announced this week probably will not work and threatens Minnesota’s 21 ethanol plants.
“I think that is a big a problem,” …

(Clean Technology and Sustainable Industries Organization/PR Newswire)    The Clean Technology and Sustainable Industries Organization (CTSI) recognizes the 2011 Top 10 Defense Energy Technology Solutions. From over 220 global applicants spanning the energy spectrum, the organizations with the …

(The Pew Charitable Trusts)  This week, former Navy secretary and U.S. senator John W. Warner (R-Va.) is traveling with Vice Adm. Dennis V. McGinn (Ret.), vice chairman of the CNA Military Advisory Board, as part …

(National Algae Association)  National Algae Association Executive Director Barry Cohen has issued the following statement in response to the specific exclusion of algae from the Billion Ton Update issued by the Department of Energy: “Other …

by Robert E. Kozak (Advanced Biofuels USA)  As a tie-in to President Obama’s current bus tour promoting his job creation plans, the White House has issued a press release promoting a three-year $510 million dollar …

(The White House)  USDA, Department of Energy and Navy Partner to Advance Biofuels to Fuel Military and Commercial Transportation, Displace Need for Foreign Oil, and Strengthen Rural America
President Obama today (August 16, 2011) announced that …

by Paul McLeary (Aviation Week)  The Army says that it wants to drop about $7.1 billion over the next decade on renewable-energy technologies, in order to try and shave some zeros off of the annual $15 …

by Kris Bevill (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  For years, in coffee shops and grain elevators across the upper Midwest, independent thinkers have voiced their opinions on the benefits of midlevel ethanol blends. Tales of fueling the …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  Survivor, biofuels style? NABC trims its project roster to two (or maybe three), as it nixes two projects and puts two on the “maybe” watch. Here’s what happened, why, and …

(US Environmental Protection Agency)  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency August 5, 2011, is releasing its draft Scientific Integrity Policy for public comment. The draft policy reflects the Obama Administration’s commitment to the ethical standards and …

by Cindy Zimmerman (DomesticFuel.com)  The Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory is looking for the best biofuels crops to grow in the northeast Illinois Indian Creek Watershed.
During a recent field tour of the watershed sponsored by …

by Jonathan Williams (Algae Industry Magazine)   Dr. Richard Sayre keeps his plate full as both the Director of the Enterprise Rent-A-Car Institute for Renewable Fuels at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, and as …

by Kris Bevill (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  With help from the USDA Biomass Crop Assistance Program, Abengoa is on its way to establishing a significantly sized switchgrass plantation in parts of Kansas and Oklahoma surrounding the …

(US Department of Energy)  …More than 600 speakers, moderators, sponsors, exhibitors, and attendees were able to listen to discussions about the ongoing challenges and achievements in the bioenergy industry. Biomass 2011 addressed key issues in important …

(US Department of Energy)  Competitions Will Encourage Entrepreneurship in Clean Energy Nationwide
As part of the Obama Administration’s effort to support and empower the next generation of American clean energy entrepreneurs, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu …

by Kris Bevill (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  The Renewable Fuels Association announced Aug. 1 that it will provide free EPA-approved E15 labels to gasoline marketers as part of its campaign to assist in making higher blends …

(The Oak Ridger)  A team of researchers at the Department of Energy’s BioEnergy Science Center, which is led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory, have reportedly pinpointed the exact, single gene that controls ethanol production capacity …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the USDA and DOE have awarded 10 grants totaling $12.2 million to spur research into improving the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of growing biofuel and bioenergy …

(Diesel Technology Forum)  Diesel engines – which power more than 95 percent of America’s commercial trucks and 85 percent of its buses – will play a central role of the United States’ new effort to …

(Senator Tom Udall) U.S. Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) today announced his plans to introduce bipartisan legislation in the U.S. Senate that would help level the playing field for advanced biofuels like algae by reforming the …

(Renewable Fuels Association)   The ongoing effort to alter gasoline to minimize its impact on the environment and reduce U.S. dependence on foreign crude oil has refocused attention on fuel quality issues. The increased use of ethanol, …

by David Biello (Scientific American)  Making biofuels from waste makes dollars–and sense
…Turning garbage into fuel is potentially an answer to two pressing problems—diminishing the world’s dependence on fossil fuels and an alternative to burying trash in landfills. …

by Tiffany Stecker (ClimateWire/Scientific American)  A study looks into giving farmers permission to harvest cellulosic feedstocks on land set aside for wetlands and wildlife conservation
Growing cellulosic feedstocks on federally subsidized conservation land could balance the biofuels emissions …

(US Department of Energy)  U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced more than $175 million over the next three to five years to accelerate the development and deployment of advanced vehicle technologies. The funding will …

by Lisa Gibson (Biomass Power and Thermal)  A follow-up report to the U.S. DOE’s 2005 “Biomass as Feedstock for a Bioenergy and Bioproducts Industry: The Technical Feasibility of a Billion-Ton Annual Supply,” commonly referred to …

by Justin B. Phillips (Contra Costa Times)  Deep within the Joint BioEnergy Institute, eight researchers are hard at work trying to find solutions to the growing global energy crisis.
The team diligently researches renewable, carbon-neutral alternatives …

(Brookhaven National Laboratory)  Computational studies aim to increase use of plant oils as renewable resource
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory have developed a computational model for analyzing the metabolic processes …

(EurekAlert!)  U.S. production of ethanol for fuel has been rising quickly, topping 13 billion gallons in 2010. With the usual rail, truck and barge transport methods under potential strain, existing gas pipelines might be an …

(AirportBusiness.com) Today (August 9, 2011)  U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) toured the cutting-edge laboratories at Targeted Growth in Seattle and announced the launch of Washington state’s first large-scale program for the growth of camelina sativa, …

by Graham Warwick (Aviation Week)  The U.S. aviation industry is pressing Congress to extend funding for goverment programs providing support to start up commercial-scale production of renewable biofuels.
…Work on the 2012 Farm Bill is getting …

by Ben Edwards  (Bloomberg)  …The Plymouth, Michigan-based company is raising $500,000 to complete demonstration plants and will seek the remaining funds in the next six to nine months, Chief Science Officer Geoff Horst said in …

by Luke Geiver (Biorefining Magazine)  After nearly five years of research and development, the work of Pacific Renewable Fuels and Chemicals, and Red Lion Bio-Energy, has turned into a new biorefining company: SynTerra Energy Inc. …

(UPI.com)  Scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology warn that ethanol, and especially the bacteria sometimes found in it, can worsen fatigue crack growth rates by 25 times the rate in air alone.
Researchers …

by Keith R. Mussman (The Daily Journal/Kankakee County Farm Bureau)  …Argonne National Laboratory has shown that corn ethanol delivers a positive energy balance of 8.8 megajoules per liter. Simply put, corn ethanol produces more energy …

by Kris Bevill (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  In June, the U.S EPA issued its proposal to reduce the coming year’s cellulosic biofuels volume target for the renewable fuel standard (RFS). The RFS goals set by Congress …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  Financing of clean energy got you down?   The Green Bank clears a key Senate hurdle, and Bank of America chairman Chad Holliday helps explain why that’s important
Last month, amidst the …

by Gen. Wesley K. Clark (Ret.) (The Hill)  …And yet, in his op-ed published July 26 in The Hill, Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) ignores the physical, economic and national security costs of our nation’s continued …

(EurekAlert!)  Researchers potentially find a renewable path to fuel additives, rubber and solvents
Researchers in the Pacific Northwest have developed a new catalyst material that could replace chemicals currently derived from petroleum and be the basis …

by Peter Key (Philadelphia Business Journal)  …At least that’s the case for some professors and students in the College of Engineering at Glassboro, N.J.-based Rowan University, which recently won a $750,000 grant from the U.S. Department …

by Robert Kozak (Advanced Biofuels USA)  Passage of the “Debt Extension” legislation by the US Congress will cause reductions in the fiscal year 2012 budget that is scheduled to take effect on October 1 of …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  …A conversation with Terrabon COO Simon Upfill-Brown
…BD: Fuels or chemicals, for the first project?
SU-B: We are still very much focused on fuel, we feel that fuel is the way to …

by Darren Goode & Darren Samuelsohn   (Politico)  Popular energy and environmental programs should prepare for a decade of spending cuts under the debt deal reached late Sunday between the White House and congressional leaders.
Less clear, …

(Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center)  For thousands of years, bakers and brewers have relied on yeast to convert sugar into alcohol and carbon dioxide. Yet, University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers eager to harness this talent for …

by Danny Bocci, Forrest Jehlik, Jim McFarland (Circle Track Magazine)  Circle Track Editor’s Note: What if there were technologies and approaches to running a race car that significantly increased performance, were relatively inexpensive, lowered operational …

by Joanne Ivancic (Advanced Biofuels USA)  Researchers from Argonne National Laboratory, the American Speed Association and Hot Rods Performance Group began seeking sponsors for a stock car racing series focused on renewable fuels.
“Our goal is …

by Emily Behlmann (Wichita Business Journal)   …According to an application submitted to the U.S. Department of Energy, the state of Kansas wants to use $5 million of federal stimulus dollars on a project to install …

by Holly Jessen (Ethanol Producer Magazine)  Hankinson Renewable Energy LLC, a 120 MMgy ethanol plant in Hankinson, N.D., is in the process of starting up an anaerobic digester to produce 54 MMBtu of biogas a …

by Matthew Lynley (Green Beat)  Enerkem, a company that specializes in converting unusable waste into ethanol and other chemicals, announced today that it has raised $30 million in an extension of its most recent funding round.
Enerkem …

(Environmental Protection Agency)  EPA is issuing a final rule to mitigate the potential for misfueling of vehicles, engines and equipment not covered by the Agency’s partial waivers for gasoline containing greater than 10 volume percent …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today the creation of four additional Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP) project areas in six states to expand the availability of non-food crops to be …

(The White House)  President Obama today announced the next phase in the Administration’s program to increase fuel efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas pollution for all new cars and trucks sold in the United States. These …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  In Washington, US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, US Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, and US Assistant Secretary of the Navy Jackalyne Pfannenstiel provided a rousing opening to the DOE’s …

(NewsWise/South Dakota State University)   Humans may move one step closer to colonizing space thanks to a new research project that NASA is funding at South Dakota State University, the South Dakota School of Mines and …

(Terrabon, Inc.)  Terrabon, Inc., a Houston-based bioenergy company, announced today that it has been awarded a $9.6 million, 18-month contract by Logos Technologies to design a more economical and renewable jet fuel (BioJet TM ) production solution for the Defense …

Roger Rainville is ahead of the curve when it comes to reducing costs on his farm near Alburgh, Vermont.
…Rainville first got interested in oilseed production when University of Vermont Extension approached him about growing  canola …

by Robert E. Kozak (Advanced Biofuels USA)   Many programs authorized by the 2008 Farm Bill will expire in 2012 unless they are included in a new Farm Bill. Among those programs that would expire …

by Erin Ailworth (The Boston Globe)  …“One of the big challenges with the federal budget is whether ARPA-E is going to be funded,’’ said Peter Rothstein, president of New England Clean Energy Council, a trade group …

by Bob Dinneen (Renewable Fuels Association/Ethanol Producer Magazine)  Back in October, I wrote on the RFA blog, “The E-Xchange,” about the steps that would be necessary to make E15 the standard fuel available in the …

by Kevin Cooper (Natchez Democrat)  A federal judge ruled Thursday that would-be biofuels wizard John Rivera’s claims were not worth the hill of beans he claimed could be magically turned into fuel.
U.S. District Judge David …

(Environmental and Energy Study Institute)  On July 19, 2011, the Environmental Law and Policy Center (ELPC) and Environmental and Energy Study Institute(EESI) held a briefing on the energy title of the Farm Bill, with a special focus …

(News24)  The US Air Force is ready to switch to biofuels to help power its warplanes but the price of alternative fuels remains too high, military officials said.
Anxious to reduce its reliance on oil, the …

The Department of Defense is rapidly emerging as the leading force in the United States for the development and use of renewable energy technologies. Energy efficiency has emerged as mission essential to the Army, Navy, …

by Master Sgt. Amaani Lyle  (U.S. Air Force)  Senior leaders from the Department of Defense, federal agencies, Air Force and Army discussed the strategic importance and way ahead for energy solutions during the Army-Air Force …

by Christine Metz (Sunflower Horizons)  The Kansas Energy Office is pulling funding on a state program that has lent hundreds of Kansans thousands of dollars to make energy efficiency upgrades in their homes.
Pending final approval …

by Phil Ciciora (University of Illinois)  Regulatory hurdles abound for the successful commercialization of emerging liquid biofuels, which hold the promise of enhancing U.S. energy security, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and serving as a driver …

(American Soybean Association/Southeast Farm Press)   Newly published research from the University of Idaho and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows that for every unit of fossil energy needed to produce biodiesel, the return is …

(Advanced Biofuels Association)  The Advanced Biofuels Association (ABFA) today sent the following letter to U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), Chairman Energy and Natural Resources Committee, and U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Ranking Member, opposing any efforts …

by Virendra Pandit (ETCGreen.com)  The global giant recently joined a tripartite agreement with the US Department of Energy (DOE) and the Central Salt and Marine Chemicals Research Institute (CSMCRI), Bhavnagar, in a $950,000 project in …

(US Department of Energy)  Reports Find Continued Growth in Manufacturing and Deployment of Clean Energy
the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released three 2010 market reports which detail the market conditions and trends for wind energy, …