(U.S. Department of Energy)  U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry announced $19.7 million in funding to help businesses move promising energy technologies from DOE’s National Laboratories to the marketplace. This second Department-wide round of funding through …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  …  But pulp and paper markets have taken big hits. Headlines have centered around damaged balance sheets that make it difficult to modernize or expand, mothballed plants, bankruptcies, job losses that …

by Kapil Shyam Lokare (E2IG Solutions/Biofuels Digest)  At 758.8 million tonnes (503.6 million tonnes, milled basis), world paddy production in 2017 would stand 0.8 percent, or 5.8 million tons, above a revised estimate for 2016. The …

by Jong-MinJung, et al.  (Biosource Technology)  Biodiesel synthesis using chicken manure biochar.  Establish a green platform for producing biodiesel using chicken manure biochar. Enhanced yield of biodiesel using chicken manure biochar due to strong catalytic capability. 95.6% of …

Biochar is made by applying heat to biomass in the absence of oxygen. Flame carbonization uses the flame itself to exclude oxygen. Flame carbonization methods can produce high quality biochar from low value biomass waste …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  On 15th January, 2009, Sanga Moses travelled to his village in Uganda, in East Africa, to visit his mother.  It was a day that would change his life.
On his way home, he …

by Lorenz Bauer (Lee Enterprises Consulting, Inc./Biofuels Digest)  After many years of development biomass pyrolysis is finally maturing as a commercial technology. Pyrolysis is not incineration. The goal is to use heat in the absence of …

by John Fialka (E&E News/Climatewire)  … As a major U.S. exporter that has dealings with over 150 countries, Boeing had worked with airlines in the development of more fuel-efficient aircraft and better flying practices. Now it helped …

(Recycling Magazine)  TO-SYN-FUEL is a project funded by Horizon 2020 EU’s new research and innovation programme, with the aim to build-up, operate and demonstrate the production of Synthetic Fuels and Green Hydrogen from waste biomass.
…
Twelve …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  Last December , the U.S. Department of Energy announced it would support the country’s 10th Manufacturing USA Institute with $70 million over five years, subject to federal appropriations. Another $70 million is …

by Jim Lane  (Biofuels Digest)  … The world of feedstocks is watching biochar very carefully these days, and for good reason. Although it might feel quite a long ways upstream from the world of making and …

by Tux Turkel (Portland Press Herald)  ‘The biggest obstacle now is financing,’ says Stephen Fitzpatrick, president of Biofine Technology LLC, which is partnering with UMaine on a pilot plant at the site.  —  The former …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  Not long ago, George Huber and Robert Brown wrote in a special issue of Energy Technology of their desire to “highlight recent advances in pyrolysis technologies and to discuss the …

by Steve Horn  (DeSmog) After years of investigating biochar, which promoters have touted as a potential climate change fix, DeSmog is releasing its findings on the science, claims, and controversy surrounding this approach to sequestering carbon.
Biochar is the product of …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  In Colorado, Cool Planet has closed on $19.3 million in Series A financing and note conversion to commercialize its Cool Terra and Cool Fauna engineered biocarbon products. This latest round …

The soon to be released “Biochar: A Guide to Analytical Methods” provides procedures and guidelines to characterize biochar and the background for proposed analytical techniques.
Lead editor, Dr. Balwant Singh, will highlight some of the most useful information …

(Vega Biofuels)  Vega Biofuels, Inc. (OTCPink:VGPR) announced today that it has signed a five year Agreement to provide the Company’s Biochar to legal cannabis growers in Alaska.  The state of Alaska is the most recent …

(Bioenergy Insight)  US-based science and engineering centre Argonne National Laboratory has developed technology that synergistically uses two waste biomass streams to generate two bioproducts and enhance the process of anaerobic digestion (AD).
According to the organisation, …

(Ethanol Producer Magazine)  ICM Inc. will build a new state-of-the-art biorefinery—dubbed ICM Element—next to its headquarters in Colwich, Kansas. The facility will showcase the company’s cutting-edge technologies.
…
Elements are nature’s building blocks and the world is …

(U.S. Department of Energy)  Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) has developed technology that synergistically uses two waste biomass streams to generate two bioproducts. The technology enhances the process of anaerobic digestion of wastewater sludge by incorporating …

Call for abstract submission: Session 15, Biochar for Soil Biota and Biodiversity
Scope and aim: Over the last 5 years, interests in biochar research and technology development as well as production have been growing across policy …

One-page abstracts should be submitted as soon as possible and no later than the deadlines. The abstract should include both the significance of the research as well as results that will be discussed to allow …

When organic materials (woody or agricultural materials, organic residues, food waste, sewage sludge, digestate) are thermally decomposed in the absence of oxygen, one of the resulting products is biochar, a solid compound rich in carbon …

This webinar reviews a biochar classification system aimed at optimizing the sustainable use of biochar in agriculture. This classification system builds upon biochar product definition and testing guidelines developed by IBI and the European Biochar …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  A mere “The Year in Rewind” as we sail into 2017? Not the good ship Digest! Instead, we dust off our crystal ball and offer our predictions for the year ahead.
As the …

(Iowa State University)  Iowa State University will bring its expertise in biorenewable technologies and pilot plant operations to the country’s 10th Manufacturing USA Institute.
The recently announced advanced manufacturing institute is dedicated to improving the productivity …

(Everglades Foundation)  The Everglades Foundation (The Foundation) today officially kicked off its four-year, $10-million George Barley Water Prize at the “Tapping Innovation: Breakthrough Thinking, Action & Awards” event at the Miami Science Barge, unveiling the …

by Anna Simet (Biomass Magazine)  Production and sale of biochar at biomass-using plants can result in significant financial gains, but the industry is still working at building its myriad of potential markets.  —  … While there …

by Hugh McLaughlin (Lee Enterprises Consulting/Biofuels Digest)  Biochar is an emerging market; growing rapidly, still in its infancy, but with gigaton market potential when we, as in humanity, start addressing the climate crisis. Activated carbons are …

(PR & D – Public Relations for Research & Education/Biomass Magazine)  The use of biochar in agriculture improves soil fertility, especially in tropical regions, and mitigates greenhouse gas emissions. A project funded by the Austrian …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  You may recall that The Bloomberg investigative team of Ben Elgin & Peter Waldman in 2013 published an expose on Chevron claiming that the company had developed — then buried …

by Lorenz Bauer and Gerald Kutney (Lee Enterprises Consulting/Biofuels Digest)  …  In this report, we are focused on bioenergy and biofuels (and not bioproducts) that are moving from the lab to initial commercial demonstrations and …

by Gerald Kutney  (Lee Consulting/Biofuels Digest)  … From the time of the caveman until the early Industrial Revolution, biofuels – namely wood and the advanced biofuel of the day, charcoal – reigned supreme.  Both fossil fuels and …

(Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuels Initiative) We are proud to announce the 10th Anniversary of the initiation of the Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuels Initiative (CAAFI) as of May 24, 2016, and more importantly, to reflect on the …

(Cool Planet)  Cool Planet is proud to announce a new distribution agreement with the J.R. Simplot Company, one of the largest privately held agricultural companies in the nation. Simplot will serve as a distributor for Cool Terra …

Over the last several years, researchers have helped open up many promising avenues for biochar market development in North America. Likewise, many entrepreneurs and small business owners have made investments to develop commercial markets. With …

by Louisa Burwood-Taylor (AgFunder News)  Cool Planet, the biocarbon and biofuel producer, has raised $9 million in extra funding to commercialize its soil amendment product CoolTerra, which just earned a USDA Certified Biobased Product Label.
…
But …

by Hari Pulakkat (Times of India/The Economic Times)  …  Among the most advanced of the lot is Royal Dutch Shell, whose R&D centre in Bengaluru is now trying to scale up a process – called …

by Ghasideh Pourhashem (Forbes)  …  Originally, along with energy security targets and diversifying U.S. fuel mix, the RFS was designed to lower the lifecycle GHG emissions and combustion-related smog from fossil fuel use. In recent …

by Dave Eames, Ethan N. Elkind (Sacramento Bee/Kansas City Star)  New federal rules issued last week will boost biofuel production nationwide; Biofuel comes from a variety of agricultural crops, algae, forest residue; California has not taken full advantage …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) … 17 — count them, 17 — different pyrolytic technology centers in the UK  …
Tyre Pyrolysis: 2G BioPOWER
2G BioPOWER is developing a UK pyrolysis project to convert used tyres into partially renewable …

by Len Calderone (Robotics Tomorrow/Altenergymag.com)  Introduction of biofuels is proceeding so quickly, that the environmental risks of biofuel production are being disregarded. Without careful and thorough assessment and regulation, the promise of biofuels may well …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  Tobacco’s been re-thought, re-engineered and re-invented as a platform for sustainable, low-carbon fuels, and green chemicals – who’s doing what, where and how?  … If tobacco’s reputation has fallen into disrepute …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  … We sell and develop renewable fuel and electric plants. Our focus at this point is renewable ultra low sulfur diesel derived from cellulosic material including plastics. … Our focus is to …

by Robert Mills (Iowa State University)  Researchers from Iowa State University and the Bioeconomy Institute have been awarded nearly $2 million to study production of biochar for use as a soil amendment that stores carbon …

(Smithfield Foods/Globe NewsWire)  Smithfield Foods’ Hog Production Division, Murphy-Brown, LLC, and Tyton BioEnergy Systems announced today a research partnership to develop new applications for Tyton’s dedicated, non-smoking tobacco crop and the resulting soil amendment, filtration, …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  Curious about this advanced pyrolysis-based manufacturer of renewable fuels and soil amendment, but need something quick? Our 8-Slide Guide can help.
1. What is Cool Planet? The company self-describes as “poised …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  It’s been around for a generation or so — fast pyrolysis, that is. Though in the original low-tech incarnation — known as “cooking fire” — pyrolysis has been around since …

(Digital Journal/Lee Enterprises Consulting, Inc.)  Lee Enterprises Consulting Adds World Leader in Pilot Plant Design and Fabrication to Team of Experts — Lee Enterprises Consulting, the world’s largest alternative and renewable fuels consulting group, is pleased …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  … we are interested in using our 2,000+ annual tons of wood waste in the off-season to create a product that we can sell for a profit. We have 27 acres …

by Erich Parpart (The Nation)  The Energy Ministry has been assigned by the government to help off-load around 5.89 million tonnes of deteriorated rice held in stockpiles with the plan at the first stage to convert …

by Sarah Shemkus (The Guardian)  Colorado-based startup Cool Planet says it has created a fuel that mixes seamlessly with gasoline and actually removes carbon from the atmosphere
The entrepreneurs and innovators at Colorado-based Cool Planet are betting …

by Ghasideh Pourhashem (Forbes)  During the past decade, production of biofuels has gained momentum largely due to policies and mandates aimed at addressing energy security and climate change. … But if the right kinds of policies are …

by Ronald Brakels (CleanTechnica)  A $10 million dollar pilot biomass plant will be constructed in the Western Australian Capital of Perth. … The specific type of plants will be mallee crops. This somewhat broad category includes …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  … Nutrition products are edible, functional fibre, and diabetic safe sugars. Remnant becomes activated biochar, ultimately for super-capacitors.
…
Improved private investor participation is the big roadblock. Established, profitable industries that don’t need …

(Vega Biofuels/Stock News Now/MarketWired)  Biochar Market to Be Valued at $572 Million by 2020.  VEGA BIOFUELS, INC. (OTC PINK: VGPR) announced today that a recent market research analysis named Vega as a “key player” in …

(Accesswire/Solanbridge Group)  Solanbridge Group Inc (OTC: SLNX) is pleased to announce that it has signed a Reseller Agreement with Georgia-based Vega BioFuels, Inc (OTC: VGPR) where Solanbridge has the opportunity to market Vega’s Biochar product …

Biomass is a battery where carbon dioxide and water are synthesized into cellulose by the sun. Energy, chemicals and charcoal can be obtained by controlling how this material is decomposed. Biochar, one product resulting from …

by Jennifer Larino (NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune)    Louisiana added 225 jobs in the biofuels industry during the third quarter, ranking alongside states such as Texas and Connecticut for clean energy job growth, according to the latest …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  … I would put the teeth back in RFS2, that actually had renewable fuel mandates with penalties, or converting RFS2 into a national LCFS program.
…
Taking a step back and giving myself …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) USDA issues $91M loan guarantee conditional commit to Cool Planet.  Obama Administration back building of the company’s first commercial plant in Louisiana, as it opens its first commercial-scale Cool Terra …

The University of Tennessee’s  Southeastern Partnership for Integrated Biomass Supply Systems has published learning materials for students and professionals in their Learning Materials web pages.
Using Biochar as a soil amendmentThe UT conversion team has created an …

by Jennifer Larino (NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune )  Cool Planet Energy Systems, a Colorado energy startup that aims to turn woodchips and other organic waste into gasoline as well as a crop-boosting soil enhancer, says it has …

by Jim Lane  (Biofuels Digest)  … With great sessions at conferences, delegates are usually keen to get a hold of the powerpoint decks. But how do you get a hold of the great Q&A that follows …

by Joanna Schroeder (DomesticFuel.com)  Several University of Minnesota students are giving the ethanol industry a preview of their cutting-edge research in biofuels, biochemicals and bioproducts during the 27th Annual Ethanol Conference in Minneapolis. One such student is …

by Olatomiwa Bifarin* (Advanced Biofuels USA) The June edition of the Northeast bioenergy webinar series by Northeast Woody/Warm-season Biomass Consortium (NEWBio) featured Kwesi Boateng – Lead Scientist at the United States Department of Energy, Agricultural …

by Matthew Burns (WRAL)   A Virginia company plans to reopen an ethanol refinery in Hoke County, using tobacco as its primary feedstock, officials said Monday.  The former Clean Burn Fuels biorefinery in Raeford has been …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Advanced biofuels – are plans turning into reality? Are development plans realistic? When these 10 projects open for business (or not) in 2014, you’ll know for sure.
…Well, the picture is incomplete.
Plants …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  … One of the latest entries is a study out of the UK’s University of Southampton, with assist from researchers in Scotland and Italy, that delves into the pros and cons …

The International Biochar Initiative is leading the international biochar community in the open, transparent and inclusive process of updating the IBI Biochar Standards V2.0 (a.k.a. the Standardized Product Definition and Product Testing Guidelines for Biochar That Is Used in …

(Cool Planet/Biomass Magazine)  Cool Planet Energy Systems, a technology company producing green fuels and biochar products, has broken ground on the company’s first commercial facility in Alexandria, La., dubbed Project Genesis. Permits have been received …

(University of Northern British Columbia)  Biochar, a renewable charcoal-like product derived from burning organic matter in a high-temperature oxygen-limited kiln, could be a substitute for the coal and some of the natural gas burned in …

by Danilo Gusmão de Quadros* (Advanced Biofuels USA)  The substitution of fossil fuels by advanced biofuels per se has a huge impact on the environment through the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, consequently mitigating global …

by Danilo Gusmao de Quadros (Advanced Biofuels USA)*  Biochar is a black matter produced by pyrolysis of biomass (burned without or with a little amount of oxygen), which can be used as a soil amendment. …

by Jade Boyd (Rice University)  Synthetic biologists at Rice probe biochar’s impact on microbial signaling
In the first study of its kind, Rice University scientists have used synthetic biology to study how a popular soil amendment …

by Noel P. Gurwick, Lisa A. Moore, Charlene Kelly, Patricia Elias (PLOSone)   Claims about the environmental benefits of charring biomass and applying the resulting “biochar” to soil are impressive. If true, they could influence land management worldwide. Alleged benefits …

by Erin Voegele (Biomass Magazine)  Cool Planet Energy Systems has announced the launch of its trademarked Cool Terra biochar for commercial agricultural trials. The company’s high-performance biochar soil amendments are designed for specific applications.
Rick Wilson, …

(World Bank)  The purpose of this report is to improve the knowledge base for facilitating investments in land management technologies that sequester soil organic carbon. While there are many studies on soil carbon sequestration, there …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  In Colorado, Cool Planet Energy Systems and Acritaz Greentech announced that they have signed an agreement to explore the building of multiple commercial facilities in Malaysia.
The plan is to begin …

by Rich Piellisch (Fleets and Fuels)  Vehicle in Ventura ‘Brings Us One Step Closer to Commercializing’
Camarillo, Calif.-based Cool Planet is talking up the successful trial of its biomass-derived synthetic gasoline with the Ventura County Parks …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  The complete Cool Planet story. What is it? Why transformational? What are the next steps?  New venture will convert wood waste to gasoline.
In Louisiana, Cool Planet Energy Systems CEO Howard …

by Tim Radford  (The Daily Climate)  Charcoal and other forms of black carbon do not, as previously thought, stay where they are buried. They migrate to the oceans and recirculate the carbon they contain.
Climate scientists …

by Tom Marshall (Planet Earth Online)  Adding charcoal to land used to grow bioenergy crops can greatly increase their overall benefit in helping cut our greenhouse-gas emissions, scientists have shown.
Applying so-called ‘biochar’ before planting energy …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  Today in part II, we look at a new set of technologies coming along that are redefining our ideas about scale and cost.
… A barrier to long term deployment? The …

(FIS.com)  A team at the University of Kansas has demonstrated the feasibility of an integrated wastewater algae-to-biocrude process using hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) that can sustainably cultivate algal biomass for biofuel production. A paper on their …

(BusinessWire) Radio Lifeline, a non-profit based in the US, announces the launch of the Black Earth Project, a new initiative designed to help farmers mitigate the growing effects of climate change. Radio Lifeline’s partner in this project is re:char, a …

The symposium will be organized into the following tracks:

Feedstocks and Technology, chaired by Hugh McLaughlin
Benefits of Biochar, chaired by Kathleen Draper
Scales, Sales, and Marketing, chaired by Amanda Ravenhill
Policy and Community Engagement, chaired by Erich Knight

We are currently reviewing abstracts for these tracks. We …

by  Bruce Dorminey (Renewable Energy World)  …Armed with a $200,000 U.S.D.A. two-year research grant, Fernando Resende will start work on a fast pyrolysis mobile reactor next year that could revolutionize how foresters and the timber industry …

Building upon the progress made in previous USBI conferences, the 2013 NorthAmerican Biochar Symposium will be held in exactly one year from today–
October 13-16 at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst
Great care is being taken …

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)  What are Google, BP, Conoco, and GE investing? Is 3,000 gallons per acre of renewable gasoline possible?
In the past few weeks, news has begun to circulate around the industry – …

(Cool Planet BioFuels/MarketWatch)  Cool Planet BioFuels announced today it has received approval from the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to begin fleet-testing its negative carbon gasoline. Cool Planet BioFuel’s technology converts low-grade biomass — such …

by Robert Crowe (Renewable Energy World)  …Research shows biochar improves soil fertility, decreases water pollution and even mitigates heavy metals. The charcoal-like substance has enthusiastic support from researchers and the sustainability movement, but it has been …

by Phil Brasher (Des Moines Register)  Researchers at Iowa State University have won a $25 million federal grant to figure out ways to make it economical for farmers in the region to grow switchgrass and …

by Lance Nixon (Renewable Energy World)  Those pyrolysis plants would pass that crude “bio-oil” on to refineries elsewhere to be made into drop-in fuels and industrial chemicals; they would capture and use for their own …

by Joan Melcher (BioCycle)  Closed loop system utilizes gasification, algae ponds and anaerobic digestion to convert wood waste to a variety of products, including biofuel, biogas and a soil amendment.
Michael Smith is supervising the first …

(Iowa State University)  Laura Jarboe pointed to a collection of test tubes in her Iowa State University laboratory.
Some of the tubes looked like they were holding very weak coffee. That meant microorganisms – in this …

by Dong Li, William C. Hockaday, Caroline A. Masiello and Pedro J.J. Alvarez (Science Direct)  Biochar has a great potential for enhancing soil fertility and carbon sequestration while enabling beneficial waste disposition. Because of the potential for widespread application, it …

(Stevens Institute of Technology)  Every year, the world consumes 15 Terrawatts of power. Since the amount of annual harvestable solar energy has been estimated at 50 Terrawatts, students at Stevens Institute of Technology are working …

(University of Hawaii)  A two-pronged University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa project to advance the use of biofuels in the Islands has won a $1 million sustainability research competition.
The two-year project, led by Michael J. Cooney …

(U.S. Department of Agriculture)  Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced research grants awarded to spur production of bioenergy and biobased products that will lead to the development of sustainable regional systems and help create jobs. …

(peHUB)  CoolPlanetBiofuels Gets Series B Funding from Google Ventures
Imagine a world where fuel doesn’t have to be pumped, dug out or extracted from the ground, and can be locally sourced. CoolPlanetBiofuels, located in Camarillo, Calif., …

by Candace Lombardi  (Green Tech)  GE subsidiary GE Energy Financial Services and North Bridge Venture Partners will invest $8 million in a company developing a biofuel production process coupled with the production of biochar.

Cool Planet Biofuels …

by  By Dominic Woolf, James E. Amonette, et al.  (Nature Communications)  Production of biochar (the carbon (C)-rich solid formed by pyrolysis of biomass) and its storage in soils have been suggested as a means of abating …

by Campbell Wood (Business Lexington)   Horse farm managers across the Bluegrass have their eyes on Keeneland’s proposed bio-fuel project. … The problem being what to do daily with tons upon tons of muck, a mixture …

by Bill Hewitt  (Grist)  Imagine a system that can:

(potentially) store billions of tons of carbon in soil for centuries;
dramatically reduce agricultural waste, forest debris and some municipal solid waste, thus eliminating the production of greenhouse …