(Environmental Law Network) TSCA New Chemicals Coalition will give the chemical community greater opportunity to engage with EPA on constructive, helpful, and informed improvements to the new chemicals review process -- ... We recognize and applaud EPA’s commitment to release later this
BioChemicals/Renewable Chemicals
Back TO HOMEVertibirds Are GO: DOE OKs Vertimass Drop-In Biofuels Technology, Clears Path to Demo Scale
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In California, Vertimass gained its intermediate technology validation with the US DOE’s Bioenergy Technology Office, which verified performance against negotiated milestones, provided progress on scale-up, and reviewed Vertimass’ estimated cost for their transformative catalytic technology.
August 23, 2017 Read Full Article
Yogurt Maker Fage Sues over Stalled Ethanol Plant
by John Cropley (Daily Gazette) More than $20 million is sought -- Fage has filed a lawsuit seeking more than $20 million from a company that agreed to buy waste whey from its massive yogurt factory in Johnstown. In the complaint
August 22, 2017 Read Full Article
Advances in Carbon Fiber and Graphene Tech: The Higher Purpose in Higher Value Carbon Products
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Today we’d like to highlight advances in the production and use of higher-value forms of carbon as examples of a society slowly moving away from a hunter-gatherer culture in energy and materials and towards a
August 22, 2017 Read Full Article
Value Days at the Landfill: The Digest 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Unlocking Polylactic Acid from Waste Biogas
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Methane in biogas offers a renewable alternative to natural gas as a feedstock and intermediate in bioprocesses. The US DOE is supporting a development effort led by NatureWorks in collaboration with Calysta to develop a commercially
August 21, 2017 Read Full Article
MetGen, Sweetwater Unlocking Lignin – The Roughest, Toughest, Ornieri’st Material that Ever Bushwhack’d a Pioneer in the Valley of Death
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) MetGen, Sweetwater Energy say “there’s gold in them thar side-streams” -- For all of your questions about the advanced bioeconomy there’s just the one answer and that is “lignin”. Why don’t we see more biobased
August 17, 2017 Read Full Article
The Valley of Fog: As Sundrop Moves on from Louisiana, What’s up and What’s Wrong with Loan Guarantee Programs?
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Louisiana, reports surfaced in Alexandria’s TownTalk online paper that Sundrop Fuels has struck an agreement to sell the 1200-acre site where it once planned to build its $450 million, 50 million gallon capacity first commercial plant
August 16, 2017 Read Full Article
Greenfield Global Evaluating Major Expansion of Biofuels Production in Varennes, Quebec
(Cision PR Newswire/Greenfield Global) Greenfield Global Inc., (formerly GreenField Specialty Alcohols Inc.) Canada's largest ethanol producer and a world leader in high-purity specialty alcohols, announced today that it has commenced a feasibility study to significantly expand operations for sustainable biofuel production at
August 15, 2017 Read Full Article
Make Energy Great Again, via BIOmass: The DOE’s MEGA-BIO Project Expands
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... Long ago, the DOE shifted from a “biofuels and nothing else” focus to integrated biorefineries that can compete “across the whole barrel” with petroleum — recognizing that while chemicals make up a small fraction of
August 11, 2017 Read Full Article
The Bioeconomy Investor and the Decline in Information Channels, Company Awareness and Fundamental Research
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) nvesting in the BioEconomy is a complicated endeavor, but can offer significant opportunities for the informed investor. The industry drivers are numerous and presents a puzzle that demands quality information flow, insight and analytics to succeed.
August 10, 2017 Read Full Article
Lignin Can Make Building Materials Less Toxic
(Michigan State University/Ethanol Producer Magazine) A collaborative study by Mojgan Nejad, MSU forestry, proves that lignin, a byproduct of paper and bioethanol production, can completely replace phenol in phenolic adhesive formulation. This research directly impacts housing manufacturing by introducing biobased
August 09, 2017 Read Full Article
Inside the Cellulosic Industry
by Susanne Retka Schill and Ann Bailey (Ethanol Producer Magazine) Ethanol Producer Magazine provides an update on 10 cellulosic ethanol projects around the world striving for continuous, large-scale production. -- Some things have changed in the U.S.’s cellulosic ethanol sector in
August 04, 2017 Read Full Article
This New Teesside Company Needs 50 Tonnes of Birch - EVERY DAY!
by Mike Hughes (Gazette Live) Nova Pangaea Technologies at Wilton will convert trees into sugars to make household items -- ... One of the region’s newest tech companies needs 50 tonnes of it EVERY DAY to process into biofuels, plastics and
August 03, 2017 Read Full Article
EPA Seeks Comment on Nominations to “Augmented” Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals
(Bergeson and Campbell, PC) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a Federal Register noticeon August 3, 2017, providing the names and affiliations of additional candidates currently under consideration for appointment to the Science Advisory Committee on Chemicals (SACC). The notice states
August 03, 2017 Read Full Article
Catalysis on a Hot Tin Roof: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to the ChemCatBio Consortium
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ChemCatBio is a research and development consortium dedicated to identifying and overcoming catalysis challenges for biomass conversion processes. Led by U.S. Department of Energy national laboratories, the consortium works “with industry to rapidly transition R&D
August 03, 2017 Read Full Article
Energy Department Announces Additional MEGA-BIO: Bioproducts to Enable Biofuels Award
(U.S. Department of Energy) The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced today that it will award a fourth project—up to $1.8 million—under the MEGA-BIO: Bioproducts to Enable Biofuels Funding Opportunity. In August 2016, DOE's Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) selected three projects for
August 02, 2017 Read Full Article
The Sweet Smell of Success…and Beets!
(Treasure Coast Research Park) ... On Wednesday, June 14th, a team of research and industry leaders established through the leadership of St. Lucie County’s Treasure Coast Research Park, gathered at Tropicana’s feed processing facility in Fort Pierce to test the possibility
August 01, 2017 Read Full Article
University of Delaware Researchers Look to Make Tires Made from Plants and Wood
by Scott Goss (The News Journal/Delaware Online) ... Researchers at the Catalysis Center for Energy Innovation say they have discovered a highly efficient way to convert plant matter into a chemical used to make everything from car tires to Lego blocks. “It’s still early
July 31, 2017 Read Full Article
Heard on the Floor at the Bio World Congress: The Top Storylines from Day 2
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... (T)te dialogue around advanced fuels has become about the actions of doers, rather than the aspirations of inventors. 3 Hot Newstories from the World Congress Floor 1. Praj-Gevo Going commercial with sugarcane, molasses isobutanol. ... 2. Queensland
July 26, 2017 Read Full Article
Gevo and Praj Link up to Push ahead with Isobutanol Technology
(Biofuels International) India-based bioethanol company Praj Industries will be working with US-based advanced biofuels company Gevo to use Gevo’s proprietary isobutanol technology to process sugarcane juice and molasses. This follows on the back of Praj's development work, adapting Gevo's technology to
July 25, 2017 Read Full Article
Products, and Open for Contract Manufacturing: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to REG Life Sciences
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In January 2014, REG acquired LS9 for a purchase price of up to $61.5 million. Most of the old LS9 team, including the entire R&D leadership group, joined the newly named REG Life Sciences, LLC. The
July 25, 2017 Read Full Article
Top 10 Storylines: Heard on the Floor at the 2017 BIO World Congress
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Industrial biotech’s biggest and grandest show, the World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology, opened today in Montreal and BIO itself was in the newsframe with a striking report debunking myths around RIN price surges. 10 Hot Newstories
July 25, 2017 Read Full Article
Italy’s ‘First’ Municipal Waste to Methane Plant Inaugurated
(Bioenergy Insight) A new plant for the production of biomethane and carbon dioxide has been inaugurated and started operation in Montello, Italy. The biogas upgrading plant is the ‘first’ in Italy able to produce biomethane and carbon dioxide exclusively from
July 25, 2017 Read Full Article
Sugarlogix Researchers Go from Fuel to Food
by Helena Tavares Kennedy (Biofuels Digest) In California, two cofounders of Sugarlogix went from engineering yeast for cellulose based fuel production and refining biofuel fermentation processes to cultivating prebiotic sugars that could be good for your gut. Their goal is to
July 24, 2017 Read Full Article
Arzeda Pumps It Up with Big Series A Funding
by Helena Tavares Kennedy (Biofuels Digest) In Washington, Arzeda raised $12 million in a Series A round of funding, moving it forward on scaling up of their advanced protein design technology that is used for production of a range of chemicals and
July 24, 2017 Read Full Article
Technology Could Transform Microalgae into Bio-Based Chemicals to Increase Biofeedstock, Reduce Landfill Waste
(Phys.Org/Purdue University) Gen3Bio Inc., a Purdue Foundry-affiliated company, is developing a unique process that could more effectively and affordably transform microalgae into bio-based chemicals to maximize the value of biofeedstock and reduce landfill waste.... Okamoto (Kelvin Okamoto, founder of Gen3Bio) earned his
July 21, 2017 Read Full Article
Bill Aims to Establish Tax Credit for Biobased Chemicals
by Erin Voegele (Biomass Magazine) Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., recently introduced legislation that aims to establish a 15-cent-per-pound production tax credit for renewable chemicals made from biomass. The bill, known as the Renewable Chemicals Act of 2017, or H.R. 3149, was
July 20, 2017 Read Full Article
Cellulosics & the Whole Bio-Barrel: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Renmatix
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Renmatix is a technology licensor that enables the production of petrochemicals from plants. The company’s water-based Plantrose process is the lowest cost method for converting a wide range of non-food biomass into cellulosic sugars, used
July 19, 2017 Read Full Article
High Added Value Renewable Polymers
by Bernard Cooker (Chemical Processing Solutions/Lee Enterprises Consulting/Biofuels Digest) Biomass-based green polymer and monomer projects, as reported in Chemical and Engineering News and Chemical Engineering Progress in Q1, Q2 2017 are surveyed. The focus here is on combinations of low raw
July 19, 2017 Read Full Article
Becoming a Carbon Superhero: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to LanzaTech
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) LanzaTech has developed a fully sustainable integrative gas to fuels and chemicals platform that has no impact on food, water security or high biodiversity land use. LanzaTech’s gas fermentation platform disrupts the current highly centralized global
July 12, 2017 Read Full Article
Shocker in Ames: CEO Change at REG, World’s Biggest Biomass Based Diesel Producer
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Iowa, Renewable Energy Group announced that Dan Oh has resigned as President and Chief Executive Officer and as a member of the Company’s Board of Directors. The resignation was effective July 3, 2017. The
July 07, 2017 Read Full Article
World's First Car to Be Fuelled by Whisky Residue Biofuel Takes Its Inaugural Journey
(Celtic Renewables) Celtic Renewables Ltd, the innovative and award winning start-up company, set the wheels in motion of the first car to be fueled by a whisky residue biofuel. The fuel - biobutanol - is a new advanced and sustainable biofuel,
July 07, 2017 Read Full Article
150+: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Renewable Energy Group
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Renewable Energy Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: REGI) is the US’ biggest producer of biomass-based diesel, and leading provider of cleaner, lower carbon intensity products and services. REG utilizes an integrated procurement, distribution, and logistics network to
July 07, 2017 Read Full Article
The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Verdezyne
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Verdezyne is a privately held industrial biotechnology company that is developing and commercializing novel genetically engineered microorganisms for use as “factories” to manufacture renewable chemicals. Verdezyne’s unique microorganisms permit greener, cleaner and more cost effective
July 04, 2017 Read Full Article
TSCA Framework Rules Offer Manufacturers Regulatory Clarity
(National Law Review) On the one year anniversary of major amendments to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued three new “framework” rules on how it plans to prioritize and evaluate risks from new chemicals or
June 30, 2017 Read Full Article
From Coal-Fired CO2: The Digest’s Multi-Slide Guide to Capturing Flue Gas via Microalgae
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) A recent DOE project with MicroBio Engineering had the primary objective of a detailed techno-economic and life cycle assessment for a coal-fired power plant with two microalgae CO2 utilization and mitigation options. First, biogas production
June 30, 2017 Read Full Article
9 Years Upon The Anvil: The Baptism of Renewable Chemicals and the Purification of Its Strategy
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... By now, Tom Boussie of Rennovia has been 20 years in the forge of the chemicals business, and 9 of those years being pounded on the anvil of renewable chemicals development. “People want to live
June 30, 2017 Read Full Article
Algae DHA: A Fix for Odor, Taste and Cost Is on the Way for the Gross Dose.
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Omega-3s are a great thing, but here’s the bottom line: the current applications stink. Not as in, they-don’t-work. We mean, literally. ... Into this market and into the problem arrive from Saskatoon, the Mounties: Algarithm Ingredients has spun-out from POS
June 29, 2017 Read Full Article
N-butanol and Beyond: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Green Biologics
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Green Biologics is focused on the production of renewable n-butanol and other C4 chemicals from various renewable feedstocks, including sugar (cane, molasses, beets), starch (corn) and cellulosic biomass (corn residues, sugar cane bagasse, forest materials
June 28, 2017 Read Full Article
Tasty Energy Treats You Can Make From Brownies
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Terpenes may be the most unloved class of energy molecule of all time, if you compare R&D spending to potential. Even ARPA-E, the home of high-risk, high-reward government research into energy, hasn’t delved into terpenes since
June 28, 2017 Read Full Article
In Search of Lowest Cost Hydrocarbons: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Global Bioenergies
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Global Bioenergies is a pioneer in the development of one-step fermentation processes for the direct and cost-efficient transformation of renewable resources into light olefin hydrocarbons, the key building blocks of the petrochemical industry. Since inception,
June 27, 2017 Read Full Article
S2G BioChem Announces Build of Advanced BioRefinery in Sarnia, Ontario
(S2G BioChem/Marketwired) Funding Support Provided by Bioindustrial Innovation Canada; Production of Xylitol to Begin in 2018 -- S2G BioChem (S2G), a developer of natural biotechnology conversion processes, announced today that it has started work on the company's first standalone biorefinery demonstration
June 26, 2017 Read Full Article
Things to Do with Lignin: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Upgrading Biorefinery Waste to Chemicals and Hydrogen
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) At the 2017 DOE Project Peer Review, John Staser of Ohio University gave this illuminating overview on a continuous electrochemical process to convert biorefinery waste lignin to substituted aromatic compounds for resins and resin binders. The
June 26, 2017 Read Full Article
And No Extra Hydrogen: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to One-Step, High-Yield, Drop-In Biofuels
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Vertimass’ John Hannon gave this illuminating overview of one-step, high-yield production of drop-in fuels without added hydrogen, at the 2017 DOE Project Peer Review sessions. READ MORE
June 22, 2017 Read Full Article
Amyris Partners with Queensland on Biofutures Acceleration Program in Next Step Toward Planned Development of Biorefinery
(Globe Newswire/Amyris) -- Amyris, Inc. (Nasdaq:AMRS), the industrial bioscience company, and the Government of Queensland, Australia today announced the next step their plans to develop a leading industrial biotechnology hub in Southeast Asia. Plans call for developing a new production
June 20, 2017 Read Full Article
Cellulosic Sugar Producers Co-op Offers Farmers a Sweet Deal
by Travis Poland (Lambton Shield) Farmers can earn more money without doing more work -- A new technology will allow local farmers to get more cash out of their cash crops without any extra work. Comet Biorefining has developed a technology
June 20, 2017 Read Full Article
Don’t Spill That Ethanol! Those Cellulosic Fuels Are Worth $4.33 a Gallon.
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The value of cellulosic fuels has reached $4.33 per gallon in the California market. That’s real-world, today, including the energy and the low-carbon attributes, and not based on speculation. The value has risen 59 cents,
June 14, 2017 Read Full Article
Fuels from Thin Air: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Soletair Technology
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The Soletair process, developed by VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and Lappeenranta University of Technology, is using carbon dioxide and solar power to produce renewable fuels and chemicals and has reached an end-to-end small
June 13, 2017 Read Full Article
Fuels from Thin Air: Drop-In Liquid Fuels from Sky CO2, Water and Solar Power
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... In the latest news, the Soletair process, developed by VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and Lappeenranta University of Technology, is using carbon dioxide and solar power to produce renewable fuels and chemicals and has
June 13, 2017 Read Full Article
Phyco2 Refocuses Algae R&D on Agriculture, Nutrition
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In California, Phyco2 said that is shifting its focus to meet the growing market demand for algae production. Six primary high-value markets with strong growth both in the United States and globally have been identified as
June 12, 2017 Read Full Article
Performance, Price, Sustainability: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Genomatica
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Genomatica is a widely-recognized technology leader for the chemical industry, delivering new manufacturing processes that enable its partners to produce the world’s most widely-used chemicals from alternative feedstocks, with better economics and greater sustainability than petroleum-based
June 12, 2017 Read Full Article
Rockin’ PEFormance: €25M for Synvina-Led Consortium for Biobased Materials
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In the Netherlands, a BBI subsidy of €25 million has been granted to “PEFerence,” a consortium consisting of 11 companies including Synvina, Avantium, BASF, Tereos Participations (France), Alpla Werke Alwin Lehner GmbH & Co Kg
June 12, 2017 Read Full Article
Biomass Pyrolysis Comes of Age
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 oxygen to convert the biomass
June 09, 2017 Read Full Article
Alliance Bioenergy Licenses Process to Earth's Renewable Energy
(Alliance BioEnergy Plus Inc.) Alliance BioEnergy Plus Inc. recently announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, AMG Energy Group, has entered into a sublicensing agreement with Earth's Renewable Energy LLC of Newport Beach, California. The sublicense agreement permits Earth's Renewable Energy to use the
June 07, 2017 Read Full Article
Neste Deepens Its Knowhow on the Circular Economy - Waste Plastics Now in Focus
(Neste) Neste deepens its knowhow on the circular economy - waste plastics now in focus -- Neste, the world's leading biofuel producer in the circular economy, is putting a large amount of resources into research on waste and residue raw
June 07, 2017 Read Full Article
Advanced Downstream Recovery: Converting Fermentation Broth into Products
by Mark Warner (Warner Advisors LLC/Biofuels Digest) Advanced biotechnology has historically focused on fermentation as the key technology for development, with synthetic biology and proprietary organisms the key intellectual property. As any biotechnology moves toward commercialization, recovery and purification of the
June 07, 2017 Read Full Article
The Sexy 7: The Bio Markets and Apps in PET, PX, PEF, PLA, PHA, PBS, and PE
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) 200,200 downloads for the DOE’s classic report on value-added chemicals — but some hot molecules are missing! -- “Top Value Added Chemicals from Biomass” a 2004 survey, completed by staff led by Gene Petersen and Todd
June 07, 2017 Read Full Article
Biogas – What, Why, When and How? The Digest’s Multi-Slide Guide to RNG and Its Markets
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) As we wrote in our Digest Top 10 Predictions for 2017: Whether it is Intrexon, Calysta or potentially Synata Bio, companies have been switching to methane as a source of cleaner yet cheaper carbon, compared to
June 06, 2017 Read Full Article
Virent Moves Biofuels Closer to Market as New CEO Takes Over
by Judy Newman (Wisconsin State Journal) If Madison-based Virent‘s biofuels are going to fill the tanks of cars and airplanes, it will be up to Stacey Orlandi to drive the company there. Orlandi, 45, took over as chief executive of Virent,
June 05, 2017 Read Full Article
A Decade of Bioenergy Research
by Patrick C. Miller (Ethanol Producer Magazine) The Department of Energy’s three bioenergy research centers have no intention of resting on their accomplishments. -- In the 10 years since the U.S. DOE established three bioenergy research centers with the goal
June 02, 2017 Read Full Article
Renewable Jet Fuel’s Progress: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Gevo’s ATJ
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Alcohol-to-jet. Several are working on it – Byogy, for example, and Vertimass, Virent and LanzaTech. But Gevo has been working through the rigorous ASTM process for six years, which includes extensive engine testing and data analysis
June 02, 2017 Read Full Article
Transforming Eco-Product Performance and Accessibility: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to DuPont and Biomaterials
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) DuPont has developed a multi-part strategy to deliver new technologies to the growing biofuels and chemicals markets market. The strategy includes: (1) improving existing ethanol production through differentiated agriculture seed products and crop protection solutions as
June 01, 2017 Read Full Article
Carbon Dioxide from Flue Gas v. Concentrated By-Product Chemical Sources; and the Impact of Distribution Costs on Economic Feasibility
by Sam A. Rushing (Advanced Cryogenics, Ltd./Biofuels Digest) ... Concentrated by-product sources such as ethanol v. Lean flue gas fermentation is a critical part of the merchant co2 supply network in north america, particularly in the united states. The lion’s share of
June 01, 2017 Read Full Article
Natural Alternatives to Rubber: The Digest’s Multi-Slide Guide to Novel, US-Based Rubber-Producing Crops
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The US can support rubber/energy crops the size of corn or soybean with hundreds of thousands of new jobs, says Katrina Cornish of the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center, and the need is pressing,
May 31, 2017 Read Full Article
Anellotech Confidential: Pilot Running, New Mystery Investor as Catpyro Begins to Scale
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... Anellotech’s Bio-TCat process is designed to produce cost-competitive renewable aromatic (BTX) chemicals (benzene, toluene and xylenes) from non-food biomass for use in making plastics such as polyester, nylon, polycarbonate, polystyrene, or for renewable transportation
May 31, 2017 Read Full Article
Triple Play Boosting Value of Renewable Fuel Could Tip Market in Favor of Biomass
by Silke Schmidt (University of Wisconsin-Madison News) Technologies for converting non-edible biomass into chemicals and fuels traditionally made from petroleum exist aplenty. But when it comes to attracting commercial interest, these technologies compete financially with a petroleum-based production pipeline that
May 30, 2017 Read Full Article
Roll-Out of Smaller-Scale GTL: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Velocys
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Velocys enables modular gas-to-liquids and biomass-to-liquids plants to convert unconventional, remote and problem gas and waste biomass into valuable, drop-in liquid fuels. After 15 years and some $300 million in investment, Velocys technology is headed for
May 30, 2017 Read Full Article
10 Industrial Biotechnology Wave Trends to Watch
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) There are news items, then there are trends, and finally there are wave trends — trends of critical importance and that carry the likelihood of having long-lasting impact. Like the fast ripples that presage a fearsome tsunami,
May 26, 2017 Read Full Article
GreenField Specialty Alcohols, Inc. Announces Name Change to Greenfield Global, Inc.
(PR Newswire/The Business Journals/GreenField Global) New Name Reflects Strength of Product Lines, Global Reach, and Scale -- GreenField Specialty Alcohols, Inc., Canada's largest ethanol producer and a world leader in high-purity specialty alcohols, announced today it has changed its name
May 25, 2017 Read Full Article
"The Belt and Road Initiative" Improved Trade between China and Cambodia; North Asia Resources Holdings Limited (00061) Takes Advantage of the Opportunity
(ACN Newswire) At 24 March 2017, the Big Data Report of Trade Cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative 2017 released. According to the figures, It was reported that the total trade volume between China and the along countries in
May 25, 2017 Read Full Article
Advancing the Bioeconomy: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to the USDA and Feedstock R&D
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Former Agricultural Secretary Tom Vilsack put it best: “The bioeconomy is a catalyst for economic development in rural America, creating new jobs and providing new markets for farmers and ranchers. Investing in the businesses and technologies
May 25, 2017 Read Full Article
U.S. Researchers Find Better Way to Split Hydrogen from Water
(CleanTech Canada) In a discovery that could help jump-start the hydrogen economy, a team of physicists at the University of Houston have found a catalyst that can divide water using low-cost materials -- Hydrogen gas may be an entirely clean-burning
May 25, 2017 Read Full Article
Rate of EPA Chemical Regulation Ramps Up Since Toxics Law Update
by Pat Rizzuto (Bloomberg Bureau of National Affairs, Inc.) The Environmental Protection Agency has been regulating more new chemicals since the Toxic Substances Control Act was overhauled than it did before, according to a snapshot of its work over the
May 24, 2017 Read Full Article
Gevo’s Isobutanol Cleared for Use in On-Road Vehicles in Arizona
(Gevo/Globe Newswire) Bill HB2368 Permits Isobutanol to be Used as a Fuel Additive for On-Road Vehicles -- Gevo, Inc. (NASDAQ:GEVO), announced today that a bill recently signed by Arizona Governor Doug Ducey will let gas stations sell isobutanol-blended gasoline for on-road
May 23, 2017 Read Full Article
How Gold Can Recycle Biofuel Waste into Useful Additive
(Phys.Org/Tomsk Polytechnic University) Gold nanoparticles serve as catalysts for obtaining valuable chemical products based on glycerol. Scientists from Tomsk Polytechnic University and their international colleagues are developing gold catalysts to recycle one of the main byproducts of biofuel production. The
May 23, 2017 Read Full Article
Protein, Pathway Design: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Arzeda
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Arzeda’s proprietary technology combines targeted computational enzyme design and protein optimization with state-of-the-art metabolic bioengineering to create entirely novel designer cell factories capable of industry-scale chemical production. CEO Alex Zanghellini gave this illuminating overview of Arzeda’s breakthrough technology at ABLC 2017 in
May 23, 2017 Read Full Article
Scale-up, Efficiency, Available Markets: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to BioAmber
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) BioAmber reported an unsurprisingly lackluster sales figure and a Q1 loss of $10.5M compared to a loss of $8.1M for Q1 2016 – unsurprising given the delays at major customer PTT. We covered the fortunatelys and
May 22, 2017 Read Full Article
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. and ABA Books Release New TSCA: A Guide to the Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act and Its Implementation
(Bergeson & Campbell) Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) is pleased to announce the publication of New TSCA: A Guide to the Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act and Its Implementation, released today by the American Bar Association (ABA). This new book is
May 19, 2017 Read Full Article
Mountains of Waste Could Lead to New U.S. Manufacturing, Jobs
by Kathleen Phillips (AgriLife Today) Waste material from the paper and pulp industry soon could be made into anything from tennis rackets to cars. “We have overcome one of the industry’s most challenging issues by discovering how to make good quality carbon
May 18, 2017 Read Full Article
Missoula’s Masters of Metamorphosis: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Blue Marble Biomaterials
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) When it comes to Blue Marble’s coordinates in the bioeconomy star-field, think advanced flavorings made from seemingly impossible materials. Most recently we reported that Missoula’s Masters of Metamorphosis this past summer released a highly sought after U.S.
May 18, 2017 Read Full Article
Turning Sewage Sludge into Fuels and Hydrogen
(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 SME, industrial, and scientific partners,
May 17, 2017 Read Full Article
Rapid Advancement: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to the Nation’s 10th Manufacturing USA Institute – RAPID
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 expected from RAPID’s partners, including
May 17, 2017 Read Full Article
The Digest’s 2017 Muti-Slide Guide to Bioprivileged Molecules and Creating Value from Biomass
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Bioprivileged molecules – that was the subject of this illuminating presentation given at ABLC 2017 by Iowa State professor Brett Shanks head of the Center for Biorenewable Chemicals – looking at petroleum’s platform molecules and the
May 15, 2017 Read Full Article
Argonne National Laboratory and National Renewable Energy Laboratory Receive Funding to Support the Blending of Gevo’s Isobutanol with Gasoline
(Gevo) Funding Being Provided Through Department of Energy’s Small Business Voucher Program -- Gevo, Inc. (NASDAQ:GEVO) announced today that it was selected to collaborate with researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) as part of DOE’s Small Business Vouchers (SBV)
May 12, 2017 Read Full Article
Aemetis Wins $6 million Biodiesel Supply Contract with India Government Oil Companies
(Aemetis) Aemetis, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMTX) announced today (May 10, 2017) that its Universal Biofuels subsidiary has won its first contract to supply biodiesel to the India government-owned Oil Marketing Companies (“OMC”) in a public tender process. The total diesel market
May 12, 2017 Read Full Article
Advanced Biofuels Canada Adds Six Members as Canadian LCFS Approaches
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Canada, Advanced Biofuels Canada revealed a signficant expansion of its membership. New members include: Cellufuel Inc. is currently operating a demonstration-scale facility producing clean synthetic diesel from lowvalue forestry residues. Ensyn Corporation has a 30-year history of
May 12, 2017 Read Full Article
The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide to ICM Technology
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ICM is a company on the leading edge of an exciting industry—one dedicated to realizing every benefit of biofuels technology. Our equipment and processes are already used in the majority of U.S. ethanol plants, and
May 12, 2017 Read Full Article
BioAmber and the Charm of Making
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... If you’re not chasing biosuccinic or at least salivating over it, check your pulse. DSM, PTT, Mitsui, Roquette, Corbion, Vinmar and BASF are just a few of the major players around the world chasing
May 12, 2017 Read Full Article
Renewable Diesel A-Go-Go: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Neste
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Neste is a refining and marketing company, with a production focus on premium-quality, lower-emission traffic fuels. The company produces a comprehensive range of major petroleum products and is the world’s leading supplier of renewable diesel.
May 11, 2017 Read Full Article
Gevo Discusses Future Plans for Luverne Plant
by Erin Voegele (Biomass Magazine) ... During an investor call, the company described plans to convert its Luverne, Minnesota, biorefinery to exclusively produce isobutanol and hydrocarbon products. ... Gevo produced approximately 100,000 gallons of isobutanol at its Luverne facility during the first
May 10, 2017 Read Full Article
Why Sustainable Chemicals? The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Capricorn Venture Partner’s Sustainable Chemistry Fund
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Changing expectations, changing demographics in a fragile world. Those are just some of the drivers for sustainable chemistry. Performance or sustainability? Consumers demand both. Those drivers are behind a surge in sustainable chemical venture investing,
May 10, 2017 Read Full Article
Global Bioenergies, Clariant and INEOS Receive Major EU Funding to Demonstrate the Production of Isobutene Derivatives from Straw
(Global Bioenergies) European financing package amounting to €9.8 million, of which €4.4 million for Global Bioenergies; Industry consortium led by Global Bioenergies and bringing together Clariant, INEOS, IPSB, TechnipFMC and Linz University; Aim: converting agricultural residues (wheat straw) into isobutene derivatives
May 09, 2017 Read Full Article
Praj Celebrates Inauguration of Second-Generation Ethanol Plant
by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) On May 7, Praj Industries Ltd. unveiled a demonstration-scale biorefinery capable of producing 1 MMly of cellulosic ethanol. The facility, located near Pune, India, is expected demonstrate the production of additional renewable fuels and
May 09, 2017 Read Full Article
Strategic Intent: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to DSM in the Advanced Bioeconomy
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Royal DSM is a global science-based company active in health, nutrition and materials. By connecting its unique competences in Life Sciences and Materials Sciences, DSM is driving economic prosperity, environmental progress and social advances to
May 09, 2017 Read Full Article
The Digest's Complete March Madness Webinars Available Online
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The Digest's Complete March Madness webinars - 700+ slides available for your on-demand review. -- The Digest's March Madness series - 20 webinars covering the hottest topics as selected by Digest readers - featuring dozens
May 05, 2017 Read Full Article
Praj Commences 2G Smart Bio-Refinery
(Business Standard/Press Trust of India) Praj Industries, the global process solutions company, today said it has commenced its first integrated second generation technology (2G) smart bio-refinery to produce ethanol from agri-waste in Gujarat. The 2G demo plant produces ethanol by processing
May 05, 2017 Read Full Article
Biogas to Fuels and Chemicals: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Methanotroph R&D
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Can we enable the sustainable, nationwide production of biofuels that are compatible with transportation infrastructure, displace a share of petroleum‐derived fuels to reduce U.S. dependence on oil, and encourage the creation of a new domestic
May 04, 2017 Read Full Article
BioAmber Honored with Biorenewable Deployment Consortium’s Outstanding Achievement Award
(Biorenewable Deployment Consortium) The Biorenewable Deployment Consortium (BDC) honored BioAmber with the organization’s Spring 2017 Outstanding Achievement Award for their leadership and commercial progress in the biorenewable industry, successfully deploying the largest renewable succinic acid plant in the world. BioAmber has announced the
May 04, 2017 Read Full Article
The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Biobased Plastics
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The Digest had a well-received webinar on biobased plastics, featuring Drop-in Fuels 2020 author and in-demand industry consultant Will Thurmond and NEXANT principal Ron Cascone, on hand to detail the very latest in a wide
May 04, 2017 Read Full Article
CHASSY – New EU Yeast Biotech Project
(CHASSY) ... Yeast is already the powerhouse behind many food flavourings, the anti-aging compound Resveratrol, the malaria drug Artemisinin, the grapefruit extract Nootkatone, insulin, bioethanol, bioplastics, and there is potential for many more industrial applications. To better exploit the potential of yeast
May 03, 2017 Read Full Article
The Commission's Proposal on the Revision of the Renewable Energies Directive (RED II): Impacts on Bio-Based Materials and CO 2 Use
(Bio-Based News (Google Translation)) The nova Institute has analyzed the Commission's new RED II proposal and presented the most important results in one paper. CO 2 -based fuels are on the up, but the uneven treatment of the bio-based materials remains.
May 03, 2017 Read Full Article
The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Industrial 5C and 6C sugars
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The Digest had a well-received webinar on C5 and C6 sugars, featuring in-demand industry consultant David Dodds and Fluid Quip exec Jeffrey Robert — looking at transformative approaches to making sugars and the chemistry that we can
May 03, 2017 Read Full Article
NEWBio Commercial Collaborators: Building a Sustainable Energy Future in the Northeast United States
(Extension.org) The Northeast region of the United States (from the Ohio River to the New England coast) has the natural, social, and technological resources needed to help create a sustainable, rural renaissance by using biomass to create biofuels, biopower, and
May 02, 2017 Read Full Article
Great Leaf Forward: The Top 10 Trends Driving the Canadian Advanced Bioeconomy
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Although the bigger players — China, the US, Brazil and the EU take most of the headlines in the advanced bioeconomy, Canada is definitely “boxing above its weight class” these days, as the saying goes. In
May 02, 2017 Read Full Article
Amyris Announces Key Advancements Under DARPA Multi-Year Technology Investment Agreement — Enables Development of Industrial-Scale Fermentation Process For Virtually Any Biological Molecule
(Amyris) Amyris, Inc. (Nasdaq:AMRS), the industrial bioscience company, today announced that it has successfully expanded its world-class expertise in strain engineering and optimization to 26 key metabolic precursors across multiple organisms, as part of its Technology Investment Agreement (TIA) with
May 02, 2017 Read Full Article
The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Thermochemical Technology Horizons
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The Digest had a well-receive webinar on thermochemical technology horizons, featuring former DOE Biomass Program manager and in-demand industry consultant Paul Bryan on hand to detail the very latest in a wide array of non-biological
May 01, 2017 Read Full Article
Consortiapalooza: TWB Points a Way towards the New Industrial Biotech Consortium
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... The evidence is mounting up, and another set of it arrives via the reports from the preindustrial demonstration consortium in France known as Toulouse White Biotechnology. At TWB, they’ve been rightly touting their growth and success
April 27, 2017 Read Full Article
Advance to Go! The Digest’s Multi-Slide Guide to Q1 2017 Cap Raises in Industrial Biotechnology
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Florida, Biofuels Digest reports that the industrial biotechnology sector raised $1.103B in new capital in the first quarter of 2017, excluding debt and sovereign investments as well as M&A activity (but including expansion investment).
April 26, 2017 Read Full Article
Industrial Biotech’s Billion Dollar Quarter: Ventures Raise $1.1B in Q1 from Seed to Commercial-Scale
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Florida, Biofuels Digest reports that the industrial biotechnology sector raised $1.128B in new capital in the first quarter of 2017, excluding debt and sovereign investments as well as M&A activity (but including expansion investment).
April 26, 2017 Read Full Article
The 4C-able Future: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Butanol and Other 4C Molecules
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In our March Madness webinar series, a popular entry has been the session on “butanol and other 4C molecules: prospects and progress”. We looked at a number of companies in depth here, including slides from
April 26, 2017 Read Full Article
Commercializing Biobased Chemicals: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Reverdia
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Reverdia is a joint venture between Royal DSM, the global Life Sciences and Materials Sciences company, and Roquette Frères, the global starch and starch-derivatives company. Reverdia is dedicated to be the global leader in the
April 25, 2017 Read Full Article
The King of Biofuels: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Pyrolysis’ Progress and Prospects, Pt 2
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 critical research needs of this
April 25, 2017 Read Full Article
Opportunities to Transition Ethanol Facilities to Biochemical Refineries
by Daniel A. Lane and Joel A. Stone (Lee Enterprises Consulting/Biofuels Digest) ... As the market for gasoline grew, a shortage soon developed for the lighter fractions of crude oil. This shortage led to the development of the catalytic cracker, which breaks
April 24, 2017 Read Full Article
Ethanol’s Opportunity in the Chemical Market
by Luke Geiver (Ethanol Producer Magazine) A Nebraska-focused tech startup and a Latin American chemical supplier highlight two options for using ethanol as the building block for intermediate chemicals. -- The future of ethanol for intermediate chemical production can be
April 24, 2017 Read Full Article
Global Bioenergies' First Success in Scaling up the Isobutene Process in the Leuna Demo Plant
(Global Bioenergies) Global Bioenergies today announces that it has succeeded in producing Isobutene by fermentation at the scale of the Leuna Demo plant (a 5,000 litre fermenter), with run length and performances exceeding those performed on the pilot plant in
April 24, 2017 Read Full Article
Virent Aspirant: A New CEO, and Revving towards Commercialization
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) From Wisconsin we have huge news from Virent, which has appointed one of Shell New Energies’ gurus, Stacey Orlandi, as Virent CEO, succeeding Lee Edwards who is headed into retirement after a distinguished 8-year run. Most recently,
April 21, 2017 Read Full Article
Hard Lessons From the Great Algae Biofuel Bubble
by Eric Wesoff (GreenTechMedia) Entrepreneurs can have tunnel vision. VC herd mentality doesn’t produce results. Physics and thermodynamics are fairly important in energy applications. -- ... Today, the few surviving algae companies have had no choice but to adopt new
April 21, 2017 Read Full Article
Vertimass to Present at U.S. Department of Energy's Annual Bioenergy Technology Office (BETO) Conference
(Vertimass, LLC) One of four advanced biofuels and bioproducts technology companies invited to present -- Vertimass LLC is proud to announce that it is one of four companies selected to present at the "Pitch for a Green Future" session at
April 20, 2017 Read Full Article
Here Comes BioChina: Amyris, Others Bypass the 4 Myths of Business in the Middle Kingdom
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) From California arrives the very interesting news that Amyris has entered into an agreement with Blue California whereby its affiliates will provide access to its fermentation manufacturing in China and provide the necessary capital to
April 19, 2017 Read Full Article
Biobased Plastics: What’s New, Who’s Top Cat? The Digests 2017 Multi-Slide Guide
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Recently, Nexant principal Ron Cascone joined us for a March Madness webinar on the horizons for Biobased Plastics. Here below are his illuminating slides presented on the day. READ MORE
April 14, 2017 Read Full Article
Lignocellulosic Biomass Deconstruction
Bernard Cooker (Chemical Processing Solutions/Lee Enterprises Consulting/Biofuels Digest) Cheap, plentiful lignocellulosic biomass (LCB), consisting of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, is deconstructed to release useful chemical intermediates in the bioeconomy. These include glucose from cellulose, glucose and other sugars from hemicellulose,
April 13, 2017 Read Full Article
Algal Residue — An Alternative Carbon Resource
(Algae Industry Magazine) Many microalgae strains have received attention in biomass production due to their high biomass productivity per unit time and per unit area. Algae produce oil as well as carbohydrates, occurring mainly in the form of starch. Oil
April 13, 2017 Read Full Article
New Route to FDCA: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to MetGen’s Chemo-Enzymatic Process
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) This week, news arrived from MetGen that they have developed a novel chemo-enzymatic process that leads to oxidized forms of 5-HMF. They report that “this form of sugar is known to have above 90% conversion
April 12, 2017 Read Full Article
US-Based Researchers Develop System for Converting Waste Methane to Microbial Biomass
by Liz Gyekye (Bioenergy Insight) A new paper by researchers at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) describes a process that captures methane from natural gas and biogas and that uses photosynthesis to convert it into biomass feedstock. The new paper is called ‘A
April 11, 2017 Read Full Article
Sustainable Polyurethanes and the Bio Economy
by Lorenz Bauer (Lee Enterprises Consulting/Biofuels Digest) ... The use of biomass to produce value added chemicals for polymer synthesis is a major focus of the effort to replace fossil carbon. The theory is that these products can lead the way
April 11, 2017 Read Full Article
Chemistry, Not Biology: The Digest’s Multi-Slide Guide to C5 and C6 Sugars
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Four axioms start this presentation by David Dodds, on C5 and C6 sugar opportunities, at a breezy pace: If you are making a molecule from another molecule, you are a chemist, doing chemistry. Synthetic biology is merely
April 11, 2017 Read Full Article
Renewable Plastic Precursor Could Grow Cellulosic Biofuel Industry
by Krista Eastman (University of Wisconsin-Madison) A team of chemical and biological engineers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison has found a way to produce from biomass a valuable compound used in plastic production that they estimate could lower the cost
April 11, 2017 Read Full Article
The EU’s Sweet 16: 16 of the Most Fascinating Projects under Development and in Deployment in Europe
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Europe is often thought of as a dead-end for biofuels, owing to a thorny debate over fuel mandates, and agricultural protection. But it’s a reputation entirely undeserved; some of the most fascinating projects are there. In
April 11, 2017 Read Full Article
The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Advanced Fermentation 3.0 – The Must Knows
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Now on the one hand you have the theory of alternative fuels, chemicals and materials, then there is the actual making of them — often aiming for exotically high rates, titers and yields in order
April 07, 2017 Read Full Article
Alliance Bio-Products, Inc. Comments on Emerging Bioethanol Market Opportunity as It Commercializes Its Cellulose to Sugar Technology Process
(Alliance Bio-Products) The company's patented CTS process presents a viable option for growing biofuel production efforts with its ability to produce cellulosic ethanol at a lower cost and without harmful environmental impact -- Alliance Bio-Products, Inc. (Bio-Products), a subsidiary of
April 05, 2017 Read Full Article
BP and DuPont’s Bio-Isobutanol Joint Venture, Butamax, Acquires Ethanol Facility in Kansas
(Biofuels International) Butamax Advanced Biofuels, a 50/50 joint venture between BP and DuPont, has announced the acquisition of Nesika Energy and its ethanol facility in Scandia, Kansas. Butamax will now start engineering work to add bio-isobutanol capacity to the facility. ... The
April 03, 2017 Read Full Article
Validated, Integrated: The Digest’s 2016 Multi-Slide Guide to Clariant’s Sunliquid Process
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Clariant’s sunliquid technology for the conversion of lignocellulosic biomass into sugars, followed by fermentation to cellulosic ethanol, is flexible to be used to convert different feedstocks on a regional basis, for example corn stover in
April 03, 2017 Read Full Article
New Tool Launched to Monitor Bio-Based Materials in the Chemical Industry
(AkzoNobel) A new online tool which can track the use of bio-based raw materials in products has been launched as a pilot by project partners AkzoNobel, Advanced Biochemical (Thailand) Co., Ltd. (ABT) and EY. It will be the first tool
March 31, 2017 Read Full Article
Bioeconomy under the Radar
by Chris Clayton (DTN The Progressive Farmer) Leaders Tout Potential Growth, Challenges for Renewable Refinery Products -- ... Whether it is spoons, Coke bottles or carpets made out of corn, livestock enzymes for pharmaceuticals, or John Deere tractors using soy oil
March 30, 2017 Read Full Article
New Biomass Conversion Idea Could Help Ag Industry
by Patrick Cavanaugh (California Ag Today) A new biomass process will convert woody ag waste, including almond hulls and shells, into ethanol, which has a demand and makes the conversion possible. Eric McAfee is Chairman, CEO and co-founder of Aemetis Inc., a
March 30, 2017 Read Full Article
Developing Bio-Manufacturing in Gippsland
by Philip Hopkins (Gippsland Times) Australian Paper, working with the CSIRO, a European technology leader and Federation University, is forging ahead with plans to create a bio-manufacturing hub in the Latrobe Valley that could generate several thousand jobs. The venture, which
March 29, 2017 Read Full Article
Readi for 100% Drop-In Fuel: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to ARA’s ReadiJet, ReadiDiesel
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Last September, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus rode aboard one of the EA-18G Growler fighter jets testing 100% biofuel flights this month to demonstrate his commitment to getting biofuel mainstream within the Navy. Currently all Navy ships
March 28, 2017 Read Full Article
Tech for the Cheap Oil Era: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Mercurius and REACH Technology
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Mercurius says it “has the technology and processes that will, for the first time, make the production of cellulosic biofuels profitable while meeting the needs of the diesel and jet fuel markets and satisfying government
March 28, 2017 Read Full Article
The Race for Bionylon Heats up: Rennovia Enters Piloting Stage of Its Key Bio-Based HDO Platform
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In California, Rennovia has now successfully commissioned, and is operating, all core pilot plant operations for its sugars to 1,6-hexanediol (1,6-HDO) process. When we say something as obscure as 1.6-hexanediol, think “nylon” Rennovia’s 1,6-HDO is a platform
March 28, 2017 Read Full Article
Industrial Sugars from Waste: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Comet Biorefining
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Earlier this month, we reported that Comet Biorefining had successfully closed an investment round to fund its proposed cellulosic sugar production facility using stover and wheat straw as feedstock. PM Equity Parnership, the corporate venture and private
March 27, 2017 Read Full Article
Waste-Stream, Slip-Stream, Main-Stream: The Born Global Slip-Stream Challenge Gets Underway
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) There are six oddly-named streams in the bioeconomy, and it reminds one of the nomenclature of subatomic quarks. There is upstream, midstream, downstream, main-stream, waste-stream, and slip-stream. But of all the streams, perhaps there is
March 27, 2017 Read Full Article
Advanced Biorefining Leadership: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Renewable Energy Group
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Renewable Energy Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: REGI) is a leading provider of cleaner, lower carbon intensity products and services. We are an international producer of biomass-based diesel, a developer of renewable chemicals and are North America’s
March 24, 2017 Read Full Article
BioChar’s Buzzing and Cool Planet’s $20M Cap Raise Is Feeding It
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 of funding was led by
March 24, 2017 Read Full Article
Nutrition and Energy from Methane: The Digest’s 2017 Muti-Slide Guide to Calysta
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In December, we reported that Cargill and Calysta will co-create the world’s largest gas fermentation facility in Memphis, Tennessee to produce Calysta’s FeedKind protein, a family of sustainable, traceable nutritional ingredients for fish, livestock and pets. Start-up
March 23, 2017 Read Full Article
Advancing Advanced: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Aemetis
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Aemetis owns and operates 110 million gallons per year of ethanol and biodiesel facilities in the US and India, and is upgrading the plants using patented technology to produce lower carbon, higher value advanced biofuels
March 14, 2017 Read Full Article
National Academies Report Finds Future Biotechnology Products May Overwhelm Agencies
(Bergeson & Campbell) On March 9, 2017, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (National Academies) published a report entitled Preparing for Future Products of Biotechnology, prepared by the Committee on Future Biotechnology Products and Opportunities to Enhance Capabilities
March 14, 2017 Read Full Article
Advanced Bioeconomy Conference: Some Scale-Up Successes, but Still a Shadow of Conventional Biofuels
by Pavel Molchanov (Raymond James/Biofuels Digest) These are excerpts from a complete review of ABLC by Raymond James Senior VP Pavel Molchanov, which you can read here. While the tone (on the whole) is no longer worsening, it is far from being as optimistic
March 13, 2017 Read Full Article
21 Techs to Watch in 2017 and Other Hot Trends: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to the State of the Advanced Bioeconomy
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) At ABLC 2017 in Washington, the Digest presented its annual State of the Advanced Bioeconomy presentation, including a look at 21 technologies and companies to watch in 2017. “Opening with our annual industry survey on business confidence, we then
March 07, 2017 Read Full Article
Knocking on the Golden Door: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Amyris
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In California, Amyris reported Q4 revenues of $32.2 million, 227% up from Q4 2015. The increase was driven by a 119% increase in product sales, primarily in the company’s personal care segment, as well as by significantly
March 07, 2017 Read Full Article
Amyris and the Great Rate Debate
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... Either there’s a tremendous amount of down-time at the plant. Or, the plant is struggling with rate. We highlighted production rate in this article on hard times and bright prospects at POET-DSM, and we’ll highlight it
March 07, 2017 Read Full Article
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