donate now
Truly Sustainable Renewable Future
March 17, 2009 – 10:42 am | One Comment

Advanced Biofuels are high-energy liquid transportation fuels derived from: low nutrient input/high per acre yield crops; agricultural or forestry waste; or other sustainable biomass feedstocks including algae.  The key word is “sustainable.”
A technical definition that …

Read the full story »
Federal Agency

Regulations, agency actions, funding and public comment opportunities

Federal Legislation

Political news and views from Capitol Hill.

Opinion Advanced Biofuels USA

R & D Focus

Research and development from feedstocks to process and distribution

States

Legislation, regulation, innovative ideas and programs

Home » Archive by Category

Articles in R & D Focus

A New Start: NREL Aquatic Species Program
September 3, 2010 – 1:23 pm | No Comment

by Lisa Gibson (Biomass Magazine) Ten years after NREL’s Aquatic Species Program was shut down, a similar initiative began and now is thriving in its algae research, which includes the evaluation of CO2 recycling.
Between 1978 and 1996, …

USDA and DOE Partnership Seeks to Develop Better Plants for Bioenergy
September 3, 2010 – 10:51 am | No Comment

(US Department of Energy)  Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced research awards under a joint DOE-USDA program aimed at improving and accelerating genetic breeding programs to create plants better suited for …

Algae Bioenergy Solutions Plans Scale-Up in Georgia
September 3, 2010 – 10:07 am | No Comment

(Algae Industry Magazine)  Algae Bioenergy Solutions (ABS), of Augusta, Georgia, has announced preliminary plans to develop a three to five million gallons per year algae oil plant, expandable to forty million gallons a year, to produce …

News: Fiberight Making Ethanol from Paper Mill Waste; Household Garbage May Be Next
September 2, 2010 – 6:59 pm | No Comment

by Dean Close (Vinton Today)  …In layman’s terms, what Fiberight does is take waste from a paper mill in Cedar Rapids, and uses rare bacteria – Stewart Paul refers to that bacteria as “the bugs” …

C-17 Using Combination of Bio- and Synthetic Fuels in Flight Tests
September 2, 2010 – 6:43 pm | No Comment

(Green Car Congress)  A C-17 Globemaster III based at Edwards Air Force Base is conducting flight tests to see how it performs with different combinations of biofuels.
The aircraft was powered by 50% JP-8, 25% hydro-treated …

Boardroom Mayhem at D1 Oils as CEO Steps Down
September 2, 2010 – 6:37 pm | No Comment

by Joelle Dent (Biofuels Digest)  …“If  there were a medal for valor in biofuels it would certainly go to the board of D1 Oils, which has now had to repel its third take-over attempt by …

Honeywell UOP Technology Selected to Support Conversion of Biomass to Fuel at California Renewable Energy Facility
September 2, 2010 – 6:04 pm | No Comment

(PRNewsWire)  UOP refining technologies will be used to produce renewable fuels from biomass
UOP LLC, a Honeywell company, announced September 1, 2010, that its technology was selected for use in Rentech, Inc.’s Rialto Renewable Energy Center for the …

Mascoma’s Magic World for Magic Bugs
September 2, 2010 – 5:46 pm | No Comment

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  …This is the Rome Labs site, which does quite a bit of intelligence-related R&D. The super-secret nature of cellulosic development is not entirely different – though hugh-hush cadres of generals …

Mascoma: Inside the SunOpta Acquisition
September 2, 2010 – 5:25 pm | No Comment

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  In New Hampshire, Mascoma reported yesterday that it had acquired SunOpta BioProcess, a division of SunOpta Inc. (STKL)  This combination brings together the fiber preparation and pretreatment technologies of SBI …

Sustainable Development Technology Canada Announces Latest Call for Clean Technology Funding Applications
September 1, 2010 – 1:50 pm | No Comment

(SDTC)  Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) today announced its 18th round of funding for Canadian clean technology demonstration projects. Canadian entrepreneurs and technology developers with new technologies and a compelling business case are encouraged to …

Sorting Algal Strains for High Lipid Content Using NIR
September 1, 2010 – 11:01 am | No Comment

(Algae Industry Magazine)  A recent post in Forbes by Chris Rhodes currently buzzing talks about a new method for identifying high lipid content strains of algae based on Near Infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. The near infrared wavelength …

New Process for Production of Biodiesel Directly From Wet Algal Biomass Could Reduce Energy and Financial Costs
September 1, 2010 – 10:58 am | No Comment

(Green Car Congress/FavStocks)  Researchers at the University of Michigan have developed and demonstrated the feasibility of a two-step hydrolysis-solvolysis process to produce biodiesel directly from wet algal biomass. Their process eliminates the need for biomass …

Georgia’s First Wood-to-Ethanol Plant Opens
August 31, 2010 – 8:58 am | No Comment

by Dave Williams (Atlanta Business Chronicle)  The nation’s first commercial plant producing ethanol from wood wastes is open for business in the timber country of southeastern Georgia.

More than a year and a half behind its original …

Arizona Set to Become Center for Algae-Based, Biofuel Industry
August 31, 2010 – 7:32 am | No Comment

by William Hermann(The Arizona Republic)   Clean, green energy source could replace fossil fuels.
…With its ideal climate and abundance of available land, Arizona is poised to become a major center of a multibillion-dollar, algae-based, biofuel industry.

Scientists …

SwiftFuel to Power World Record Attempt
August 31, 2010 – 7:31 am | No Comment

Richard “Smokey” Young will use an unleaded, high-octane biofuel developed by a Purdue Research Park-based company during his attempt to establish a new 100-kilometer closed course speed record on Sept. 11.
Young will power his No. …

Zero Discharge Sweet Sorghum Ethanol Process Development
August 31, 2010 – 7:30 am | No Comment

(PRNewsWire)  AdvanceBio LLC, a Cincinnati-based advanced biofuel technology company, today announced the development of its next generation, sugar-based fuel ethanol process.
The process is capable of utilizing sugars derived from sugar cane, sweet sorghum, sugar beet and …

Indianapolis-Based Xylogenics Licenses Yeast Strain to Ethanol Producer
August 30, 2010 – 2:36 pm | No Comment

(Indianapolis Business Journal)  Indianapolis-based bioengineering firm Xylogenics Inc. has licensed its proprietary yeast strain to a Milwaukee firm that is a supplier to the fuel-ethanol industry. It is the first such licensing agreement for Xylogenics.
Lallemand …

Researchers Discover New Mechanism Behind Cellular Energy Conversion
August 30, 2010 – 1:18 pm | No Comment

(NewsWise) Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have enhanced our understanding of the mechanism by which cells achieve energy conversion, the process in which food is converted into the energy required by cells. This …

Algae.Tec Off and Running
August 27, 2010 – 8:50 am | No Comment

by Greg Peel  (ninemsn)  …Algae.Tec is also in the process of an IPO. However at A$7.5m, Algae.Tec’s issue is hardly one that can be described as exploitative or prematurely opportunistic, and the company’s legally protected …

Energy Grasses Take Center Stage at Ceres Field Day
August 26, 2010 – 1:05 pm | No Comment

(PRNewsWire)  Energy industry executives joined investors and policymakers near Houston, Texas earlier today to take a firsthand look at energy grasses and research developments that are expected to push bioenergy to the forefront of renewable power …

Chromosome Designer Moves Into Biofuels
August 26, 2010 – 1:00 pm | No Comment

by Michael Kanellos (GreenTechMedia)  Chromatin says sorghum is the ideal crop.
The company, which designs chromosomes and tools for genetically modifying agricultural crops, has launched an effort to get into biofuels on its own. It has come …

Case Study: Mascoma: Seeking a Market Toehold
August 26, 2010 – 12:38 pm | No Comment

by Nidhi Subbaraman  (MIT Technology Review)  …The company announced plans to build one of the first commercial-scale cellulosic-ethanol plants, in Kinross, MI; it would be able to produce 80 million gallons per year.
But as of the …

Termite Enzymes Could Be Boon to Cellulosic Ethanol: Research
August 26, 2010 – 10:48 am | No Comment

by Stu Hutson (Physorg.com)  Termite spit may soon help fill our gas tanks. University of Florida researchers have isolated two enzymes termites use to break up lignin, a tough plant material that is major problem …

Bunge Invests in Solazyme: Ties between Brazilian Sugarcane, US Advanced Biofuels Deepen
August 26, 2010 – 10:21 am | No Comment

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  …“The simplicity is astounding. Here’s the big idea.  Take an existing, stranded ethanol factory or conglomerate. Buy it for a substantial discount. Start with cheap sugar. Drop in a new …

Woodford Equipment Brings Biomass Business To Emmetsburg
August 25, 2010 – 4:26 pm | No Comment

by Jane Whitmore (Emmetsburg Reporter Democrat)  …The fact that the business is not officially open hasn’t stopped customers from dropping in. Eric is already working with farmers interested in cob harvesting.
“We have been following biomass …

Syracuse University Research Team Uses Nanobiotechnology-Manipulated Light Particles to Accelerate Algae Growth
August 25, 2010 – 3:15 pm | No Comment

by Ariel DuChene  (Syracuse University)  Scientists and engineers seek to meet three goals in the production of biofuels from non-edible sources such as microalgae: efficiency, economical production and ecological sustainability. Syracuse University’s Radhakrishna Sureshkumar, professor …

WABCG 2010: Sugar Beet Could Have Substantial Role in EU Biofuels
August 25, 2010 – 1:49 pm | No Comment

by Richard Allison (Farmers Weekly Interactive)  Nearly 15,000ha of sugar beet being grown this season in Germany is destined for biogas production, equivalent to about one-tenth of the total area in the UK given over to …

Wyo. Plant Turns Sugar Cane Waste Into Biofuel
August 25, 2010 – 1:32 pm | No Comment

by Bob Moen (AP)  Wyoming is a long way from places where sugar cane is grown, but a test plant in the northeast part of the state will soon be turning sugar cane waste into …

Beet as a New Energy Crop
August 25, 2010 – 12:55 pm | No Comment

(The Bioenergy Site)  For the past two years, North Dakota State University Biofuels Economist, Cole Gufstafson, has been working in partnership with Green Vision Group and Heartland Renewable Energy (HRE) to create an energy beet for …

New Energy Economics: 2010 Energy Beet Field Days
August 25, 2010 – 10:54 am | No Comment

by Cole Gustafson (North Dakota State University Extension Service)  Farmers observing the trials were quite excited to see a new crop being developed
Last week, I participated in North Dakota’s first energy beet field days. Energy …

Ceres Opens Brazil Subsidiary To Develop Sweet Sorghum Crop Business
August 25, 2010 – 10:30 am | No Comment

(Green Car Congress/FavStocks)  Ceres, Inc. earlier this month established a subsidiary in Brasil focused on developing sweet sorghum as a feedstock for the ethanol industry. The company’s goal is to be the first supplier of …

Chlorophyll in Ancient Bacteria: Biofuel Source?
August 25, 2010 – 10:23 am | No Comment

(Australian Broadcasting Corporation)  Scientists have discovered a new type of chlorophyll in ancient Australian bacteria that could lead to new sources of bio-energy.

Over the past 60 years, scientists have known of four types of chlorophyll used …

Water: Is There Enough for Biofuels at Scale?
August 25, 2010 – 8:54 am | No Comment

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  …In a note at CO2science.org, a trio of authors contend: “There simply is not enough freshwater on the face of the earth to make the production of biofuels a viable …

Biodiesel Industries Selected for Proposed Grant by the California Energy Commission
August 25, 2010 – 7:40 am | No Comment

(PRNewsWire)  Biodiesel Industries announced today the company’s selection by the California Energy Commission for a project grant to support the state’s Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program. This Biofuel Production Plants grant provides funding …

Finland Moves to Build the World’s First ‘Green’ Highway
August 24, 2010 – 10:58 am | No Comment

(Jamaica Observer)  Finland wants to build the world’s first “green highway”, with service stations offering charging points for electric cars and pumps filled with local biofuels, the project manager said Thursday.
“The aim is to create the …

Petrobras America and KL Energy Sign Joint Development Agreement to Optimize Technology for Cellulosic Ethanol Production From Sugarcane Bagasse
August 24, 2010 – 9:05 am | No Comment

(Biofuels Journal)  KL Energy Corporation is pleased to announce that Petrobras, through Petrobras America, has entered into a Joint Development Agreement with KL Energy Corporation (“KLE”), to jointly optimize KLE’s proprietary cellulosic ethanol process technology for …

The Culturing Revolution: LanzaTech Extends to Chemicals as Year of SynthBio Gains Pace
August 24, 2010 – 8:47 am | No Comment

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  LanzaTech announced that it has produced 2,3-Butanediol (2,3-BD), a key building block used to make polymers, plastics and hydrocarbon fuels, using the company’s waste steel gas fermentation technology.
LanzaTech is a …

Life Technologies and SG Biofuels Complete Sequence of Jatropha Genome
August 24, 2010 – 8:37 am | No Comment

(SG Biofuels)  Life Technologies Corporation (NASDAQ: LIFE), a provider of innovative life science solutions and SG Biofuels, Inc., a bioenergy crop company, announced they have completed sequencing the Jatropha curcas genome to 100x coverage, using the …

The Future of Biodiesel in Europe September 27-28 Brussels, Belgium
August 24, 2010 – 8:06 am | No Comment
The Future of Biodiesel in Europe September 27-28 Brussels, Belgium

Whether you are a biodiesel producer, feedstock supplier, technology provider or regulator, you need to participate in this unique forum.  Make your voice heard in an open dialogue roundtable which will feature participants from industry, regulators, …

A European Perspective on Algal Biofuel Scaleup
August 24, 2010 – 7:57 am | No Comment

(Algae Industry Magazine)  An article by Rene H. Wijffels and Maria J. Barbosa, of Wageningen University in the Netherlands, published in the current edition of Science Journal, details the challenges and opportunities of algal biofuel …

2nd Palm Oil Summit: Sustainable Yields, The Way Forward December 9-10 Bali, Indonesia
August 24, 2010 – 7:32 am | No Comment
2nd Palm Oil Summit: Sustainable Yields, The Way Forward    December 9-10   Bali, Indonesia

Palm oil is proven as the most efficient crop and the world’s most traded agricultural commodity with its uses ranging from food, industrial, personal care products to energy. It now contributes over US$ 10 billion …

16th Directions in Engine-Efficiency and Emissions Research (DEER) September 27-30 Detroit, MI
August 23, 2010 – 12:59 pm | No Comment
16th Directions in Engine-Efficiency and Emissions Research (DEER) September 27-30 Detroit, MI

For more than a decade, the DEER Conference has been the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) primary mechanism for the public exchange of state-of-the-art advanced combustion engine research and development (R&D).
DEER brings together professionals in …

The Green Behind Green Crude
August 23, 2010 – 12:25 pm | No Comment

By Jennifer McEntee  (The Voice of San Diego)   Investors are a tough crowd to cultivate. Yet in the pond that is the biotechnology market, one product seems to be rising to the top like the green …

Kettering University to Debut Biofuel Pickup Truck Tied to Swedish Biogas Plant in Flint
August 23, 2010 – 12:08 pm | No Comment

by Beata Mostafavi (Flint Journal)  The white Chevy Silverado in Kettering University’s parking lot could be a symbol of a future Flint — one where cars, trucks and buses run on biofuel produced in the city.
It …

Genera Energy and Alcoa Partner to Grow Switchgrass in Blount County; Planting has significant environmental benefit
August 23, 2010 – 10:51 am | No Comment

(Genera Energy) Land owned by Alcoa Inc, Tennessee Operations, is now being used to grow a popular perennial grass known for producing cellulosic ethanol.
Approximately 238 acres of switchgrass have been planted on property that Alcoa …

Joule Unlimited: ‘Fuel from Thin Air’ Comes Closer, Clearer
August 23, 2010 – 10:33 am | No Comment

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  In Massachusetts, the secretive Joule Unlimited (then known as Joule Biotechnologies) emerged late last year from “stealth mode” with the startling announcement that their technology could produce up to 15,000 gallons …

Third and Fourth Generation Biofuels: Technologies, Markets and Economics Through 2015
August 23, 2010 – 10:12 am | No Comment

(GTM Research)  …In this report, we focus on “third-generation” algae biofuels and “fourth-generation” biofuels that are either created using petroleum-like hydroprocessing, advanced bio-chemistry, or revolutionary processes like Joule’s “solar-to-fuel” method that defies any other category …

Robert Vitale Reinvents the Paddlewheel
August 23, 2010 – 10:05 am | No Comment

by Tamra Fakhoorian  (Algae Industry Magazine)  Reinventing the wheel is usually frowned upon, but in the case of the Waterwheel Factory’s development of high-tech paddlewheels for open pond raceways, it is paying off nicely in terms …

Researchers: Diverse Feedstocks Key to Sustainable, Successful Biofuels Industry
August 20, 2010 – 5:17 pm | No Comment

(Ag Professional)  …Concerns about net energy and greenhouse gas emissions, in addition to its effect on food and feed pricing are driving researchers at the Energy Biosciences Institute at the University of Illinois and at …

Company to Demonstrate Ethanol Extraction in Woodbine
August 20, 2010 – 4:58 pm | No Comment

by Ben Leach  (Press of Atlantic City)  A multimillion-dollar ethanol plant is planned for a former landfill site, but members of the community can get a sneak peak of the technology in action next week.
Garden State …