Isobutanol to the Rescue

by Chris Hanson (Biomass Magazine) The U.S. Coast Guard is testing isobutanol gasoline blends in its marine engines.
Since its founding in 1790 as the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service, the U.S. Coast Guard has had a history of implementing new technology within its fleet. ... Continuing its pursuit of maritime innovation and reinforcing its motto of Semper Paratus (Always Ready), the USCG is conducting a year-long engine test using renewable, isobutanol-blended gasoline through a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with Gevo Inc., Honda Motor Co. Ltd. and Mercury Marine.
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In 2011, the USCG began an alternative fuel study, motivated by the government’s desire to minimize its carbon footprint, says Michael Coleman, project manager for the U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development Center. From that initial study, the USCG researched different alternative fuels for their affordability, availability, safety and potential carbon footprint reduction. The USCG selected four fuels: natural gas, ethanol blends, biobutanol and biomass liquid fuels. “Out of those four fuels, we did a desktop evaluation including many technical factors including maturity, performance, physical safety and logistics,” Coleman says. “Out of those, we decided to proceed with biobutanol as our test fuel.”
For the engine tests, the USCG is sourcing the isobutanol-blended fuel from Gevo’s plant in Luverne, Minn. The USCG selected a blend of 16.1 percent isobutanol and gasoline because of its potential benefits in an aquatic environment.
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In addition to material and benchmark testing, Honda also put the isobutanol blend through an endurance test prior to giving the USCG the approval of trying the fuel in its own boats, he explains. During Honda’s test, the engines operate at full throttle for eight hours a day over several months and then are taken apart and inspected.
The next round of fuel tests are in progress at the U.S. Coast Guard Training Center in Yorktown, Va. “The training center is basically an area where Coast Guard members can learn how to operate the different boat platforms, be it anywhere from standard boat handling procedures to the mechanics of those craft,” says Lt. Kevin Sorrell. The center is a convenient location for testing due to its availability compared to other operational units, he adds.
At the Yorktown training center, the fuel is being tested on a 38-foot special-purpose craft using Mercury outboard engines as well as a 25-foot response boat (RBS) that uses Honda outboard engines. READ MORE