Advanced BioFuels USA

Global Ethanol Summit Panel Focuses on the Economics of Octane

by Matt Thompson (Ethanol Producer Magazine) Day two of the inaugural Global Ethanol Summit began with a discussion about the economic benefits of blending ethanol in gasoline.

Renewable Fuels Association president and CEO Geoff Cooper began the panel with a discussion about what octane is and how its used by refiners in the U.S. “Really, prior to about 2002, ethanol was used as a volume extender, not an octane booster in the U.S.,” Cooper said, adding that’s also how it’s used in several countries around the globe right now. However, he said, that changed in the U.S. in the early 2000s as regulations expanded ethanol’s use, which resulted in a 10 percent blend by 2010. “Ethanol has rapidly emerged as a significant source of octane in U.S. gasoline,” he said.

The benefits of that increased use of ethanol include a reduction in aromatics and olefins in the U.S. gasoline supply. MTBE has also been virtually phased out, Cooper said.

He also spoke about the economic benefit U.S. refiners have seen by using ethanol. Outlining a hypothetical value calculation, Cooper said, “Each point of octane has been worth about 4 cents to the refiner.” He added, “I think this really underscores that ethanol has a tremendous value with its octane.”

Dave Hirshfeld, co-founder and president of MathPro Inc., a consulting firm that specializes in the analysis of the petroleum industry and transportation fuels, further discussed the economics of ethanol’s octane. He told his audience that “octane requirements around the world are creeping up.” The reason, he said is two-fold. “In developed countries it’s happening because there is a continuing tightening of environmental standards,” he said. Those standards have caused automakers to produce vehicles with higher compression ratios. Those engines, he said, operate best on higher octane fuel.

“In the developing countries the issue is a little bit different,” Hirshfeld said. The driver in those countries are economic conditions. Income and GDP growth in those regions results in vehicle fleet changes, for which higher octane is required, he said.

He also spoke to the economic benefit U.S. refiners have realized by blending ethanol. He said “by using ethanol as an octane enhancer, refiners have reduced the octane of refinery-produced gasoline by about 3 AKI numbers. That’s a big deal for refiners.”

Another advantage ethanol offers to refiners is that it helps to offset the effects of removing sulfur from fuel. There have been regulations prompting refiners to remove sulfur from their fuel, but the process to do that also destroys octane, he said. But, by blending ethanol and using it as a cheap source of octane, “a lot of the economic penalty has been minimized by the use of ethanol,” he said. READ MORE

Reminder: The US Government Wants Your Climate Change Mitigation Ideas

House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis Request for Information DEADLINE: November 22, 2019 and Science and Technology Policy Office Request for Information on the Bioeconomy DEADLINE: October 22, 2019 Send your ideas today.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK — National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine

“Industry, NHTSA, EPA, and other relevant agencies should promote the use of biodiesel and renewable diesel in MHDV engines...,” advises the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine in a new study, Reducing Fuel Consumption and Greenhouse Gas Emissions of Medium- and Heavy-Duty Vehicles, Phase Two. READ MORE

OP-ED: Achieving Carbon Emission Reductions with Biofuels

by Pat Gruber (GEVO/American Energy Society) It’s a gaping hole in most conversations about fuel: what do we do about liquid transportation

October 21, 2019 Read Full Article

Going Head-to-Head-to-Head on Ethanol with Chris Edwards

by Marc J. Rauch (The Auto Channel) … Several weeks ago I had the opportunity to write to Chris (Edewards)

October 21, 2019 Read Full Article

Tyre Recycler Signs Deal to Turn Their Carbon into High Value Graphite

(Green Distillation Technologies) Tyre recycler Green Distillation Technologies, has signed a deal with New Zealand’s CarbonScape to enhance the value of the

October 21, 2019 Read Full Article

Phase Genomics Lands DOE Grant as Pest-Detecting Tech for Algae Wins Support

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Washington state, Phase Genomics will receive $325,000 as part of the $73 million Department of

October 21, 2019 Read Full Article

Sustainable Technology Acquires DuPont’s G2 Ethanol Technology

(Sustainabile Technology Corp/Ethanol Producer Magazine) Sustainable Technology Corp., a subsidiary of Petron Scientech Inc., has completed the acquisition from DuPont, the

October 21, 2019 Read Full Article

Turn! Turn! Turn!: The Digest’s 2019 Multi-Slide Guide to Neste and Its Transformation

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) To everything there is a season, goes the old Pete Seeger lyric, and the Book

October 21, 2019 Read Full Article

50 Million Bucks Says Landfill Is a Viable Energy Source: Suncor Doubles Down on Enerkem

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Canada, news arrived late last week Enerkem closed a $50 million equity investment from Suncor. What

October 21, 2019 Read Full Article

USDA Deputy Secretary Speaks at Global Ethanol Summit

by Matt Thompson (Ethanol Producer Magazine) Stephen Censky, deputy secretary of the USDA, delivered a keynote address during the second