(U.S. Department of Energy) The Agile BioFoundry (ABF), a biomanufacturing consortium funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO), is partnering with the National Science Foundation (NSF) to fund new research. This new funding opportunity is
National Laboratory
Back TO HOMEProcess Removes Biofuel Contaminants from Wastewater and Generates Hydrogen to Fuel Its Own Operation
by Karyn Hede (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory/Phys.Org) ... "The currently used methods of treating biocrude requires high-pressure hydrogen, which is usually generated from natural gas," said Juan A. Lopez-Ruiz, a PNNL chemical engineer and project lead. "Our system can generate
February 02, 2022 Read Full Article
Equipment Manufacturers, Fleets Highlight Importance of Biodiesel in Future Program Plans
(National Biodiesel Board/Clean Fuels Alliance Americ) Clean Fuels Recognized as Essential Part of a Low-Carbon Transportation Future -- The National Biodiesel Board this week announced its transition to a new name, Clean Fuels Alliance America, reflecting the organization’s progressive vision and
January 30, 2022 Read Full Article
FPT Industrial Wins the "Researcher of the Year" Award for Its Outstanding Impact on Biodiesel Research
(CNH Industrial) In November, FPT Industrial was honored with the “Researcher of the Year” Award for its outstanding impact on biodiesel research and technical efforts in 2021 at the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) Biodiesel Technical Workshop, held in Kansas City. This prestigious
January 18, 2022 Read Full Article
3 Ways the Catalyst Property Database Can Accelerate Biofuels Research
by Zia Abdullah (U.S. Department of Energy) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) researchers have developed a public, online library of catalyst data. It could be fertile ground for breakthroughs in catalytic technologies needed to turn renewable biomass or waste materials
January 12, 2022 Read Full Article
Which Is More Important To Biofuels – The Soil Or The Crop?
by James Conca (Forbes) ... Plants take carbon from the air, build cells, then release some of the carbon into the soil through roots and root exudates. Some have suggested that growing biofuel crops in marginal soils, which generally have low carbon content,
January 11, 2022 Read Full Article
See How E15-Compatible Your Station Is Right Now
(FlexFuelForward.com/National Renewable Energy Laboratory) You don’t need x-ray vision to see if your fueling infrastructure is compatible with E15. Just use Flex Check to search components by manufacturer, model number, or component category (such as: above ground equipment, above ground tank,
January 11, 2022 Read Full Article
Charting a Course toward Cleaner Shipping
by Christina Nunez (Industry Today) Research suggests that swapping heavy fuel with fuel made from wood waste, waste fats, oils and greases could cut planet-warming emissions. ... Using batteries instead of heavy fuel oil to propel gigantic cargo ships, which annually
January 06, 2022 Read Full Article
JBEI’s Aviation Program: The Digest’s 2022 Multi-Slide Guide to Joint BioEnergy Institute
by Helena Tavares Kennedy (Biofuels Digest) 6 DOE National Labs and 6 Universities are partners with the Joint BioEnergy Institute to help transform the maximum amount of carbon available in bioenergy crops into biofuels and bioproducts. From the importance of jet
January 03, 2022 Read Full Article
Top 10 Digest Stories of 2021
by Helena Tavares Kennedy (Biofuels Digest) ... In fact, in terms of news stories, there was more good news than bad in 2021 and a look at what you, the Digest readers, found most interesting and intriguing in 2021 shows just
December 31, 2021 Read Full Article
New Energy Vision Report Analyzes Non-Petroleum Fuel Options for Waste & Recycling Fleets
(Waste Advantage Magazine) The sustainable energy NGO Energy Vision published a new report on waste and recycling collection truck fleets, entitled The Refuse Revolution. It assesses various alternative fuels and new vehicle technologies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other
December 29, 2021 Read Full Article
NREL Seeks Applications for 2022 Executive Energy Leadership Program DEADLINE: January 14, 2022
by Helena Tavares Kennedy (Biofuels Digest) In Colorado, the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is seeking applicants for its 2022 Executive Energy Leadership Program—otherwise known as Energy Execs. Energy Execs provides industry and community leaders an opportunity to
December 28, 2021 Read Full Article
Higher Performance, Carbon Negative Plastics, Maybe for Less: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to ReSource Chemical
by Helena Tavares Kennedy (Biofuels Digest) Emerging out of stealth and the hallways of Activate along Berkeley Lab’s Cyclotron Road is ReSource Chemical, seen recently on the ABLC stage. What makes this interesting are three factors: 1. Higher Performance, Carbon Negative Plastics.
December 27, 2021 Read Full Article
New Request for Information on Renewable Fuel Scale-Up and Demonstration Released by DOE DEADLINE: January 31, 2022
(U.S. Department of Energy) The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has released a new Request for Information (RFI) on the scale-up and demonstration of renewable fuels. The RFI, titled “Overcoming Barriers to Renewable Fuel Scale-Up and Demonstration,” seeks input from biofuels
December 23, 2021 Read Full Article
INL Researchers Investigate Loblolly Pine Flow Issues
by Lynn Wendt (Idaho National Laboratory) ... Loblolly pine, or more specifically the pine residue from commercial tree harvesting in Southern U.S. forests, has the potential for a major impact on bioenergy infrastructure. Its low cost and widespread abundance have
December 20, 2021 Read Full Article
Ethanol Producers, Advocates Aim for Net-Zero Ethanol by 2050
by Susanne Retka Schill (Great Plains Institute) As US and world leaders engage on climate change and carbon reduction efforts, leaders in the American ethanol industry have announced pledges and efforts to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The country’s largest
December 16, 2021 Read Full Article
Forget Sci-Fi—This NREL Biotechnology Could Actually Help Colonize Mars
(National Renewable Energy Laboratory) In the Push To Settle the Red Planet, One Startup Company Thinks NREL’s Ethylene-Emitting Cyanobacteria Offer Otherworldly Potential -- Do not expect to breathe freely in the oxygen-lean Martian air. At about 95% carbon dioxide (CO2) by
December 13, 2021 Read Full Article
Inclusive Energy Innovation Prize Funding Opportunity
by Annabelle Swift (Clean Energy Business Network) The impacts of climate change have not fallen evenly across the U.S., with low-income populations and populations of color facing disproportionately higher exposure to pollution and risk. These communities have also been full of innovators
December 10, 2021 Read Full Article
Getting Biobased Investments Going: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Ecostrat & BDO Zone Initiative
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Everyone talks about “moving the needle” on jobs, decarbonization and social justice, but how do you tackle all 3 at once? Check out Ecostrat’s slide guide from ABLC in San Francisco on what BDO Zones
December 10, 2021 Read Full Article
The Economics of Poop for Creating Biofuels
by Asanga Padmaperuma (U.S. Department of Energy) Techno-economic analysis is the first to model PNNL technology across wastewater facilities -- Wastewater—American households produce billions of gallons of it daily, from flushing toilets to cleaning clothes. But wastewater is not just a waste. The
December 09, 2021 Read Full Article
New Technique Improves Conversion of Carbon Dioxide Into Liquid Fuels
(Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory) A copper surface coated with layered thin films helps to create useful chemicals from a polluting greenhouse gas -- Carbon dioxide (CO2), a product of burning fossil fuels and the most prevalent greenhouse gas, has the potential to
December 03, 2021 Read Full Article
Competitive Edge: Nzyme2HC’s Hydrogen Tech
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... There was no existing way to produce Hydrogen that was simultaneously renewable (no CO2 emissions) and price-competitive with fossil (Steam Methane Reforming of Nat Gas). If one wants demand for FCVs (Fuel Cell Vehicles)
December 03, 2021 Read Full Article
PNNL Bioenergy Team Releases Report on Path to Sustainable Aviation Fuel
by Mary Ann Showalter (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory) Bioenergy experts identify critical areas, opportunities for bringing technology to aviation industry -- A report has been published summarizing a workshop designed to accelerate the commercialization of hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) technology for producing
December 02, 2021 Read Full Article
Sustainable Aviation Fuel Pilot Program Receives Additional $350,000 Funding
(U.S. Department of Energy) The Bioenergy Technologies Office has awarded an additional $350,000 in funding to scientists at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to develop a pilot scale system for turning biomass into sustainable aviation fuel. The NREL team has published new
December 01, 2021 Read Full Article
New International Collaboration Aims to Start Large-Scale Production of E-fuels in Sweden
by Tony Harrington (GreenAir Online) A major partnership has been formed by SAS Scandinavian Airlines, Swedish energy company Vattenfall, Shell Aviation and LanzaTech to explore the large-scale production in Sweden of synthetic sustainable aviation fuel, using carbon dioxide recycled from
November 30, 2021 Read Full Article
Agile BioFoundry and ABPDU Join Efforts to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions
(Agile BioFoundry) The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) supports groundbreaking technologies from the DOE national laboratories and industry partners. Two of these partners, the Agile BioFoundry and Advanced Biofuels and Bioproducts Process Development Unit (ABPDU), are joining forces to advance biomanufacturing
November 30, 2021 Read Full Article
Research Pushes Auto Industry Closer to Clean Cars Powered by Direct Ethanol Fuel Cells
by Steve Lundeberg (Oregon State University/TechXplore) Alternative-energy research at Oregon State University is charting a path toward the mass adoption of clean cars powered by direct-ethanol fuel cells. Zhenxing Feng of the OSU College of Engineering helped lead the development of a
November 30, 2021 Read Full Article
ACE Supports Policies to Credit Ag, Biofuels for Net-Zero GHGs
(American Coalition for Ethanol/Ethanol Producer Magazine) During its Nov. 10 meeting, the American Coalition for Ethanol board of directors voted to support new policies that credit farmers and ethanol producers for activities helping ethanol reach net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by
November 23, 2021 Read Full Article
Researchers Engineer Microorganisms to Tackle PET Plastic Pollution
(National Renewable Energy Laboratory) Biological Conversion Makes It Possible To Upcycle Polyester Into Performance-Advantaged Bioproducts -- From overflowing landfills to floating garbage islands in the oceans to microplastics in remote wilderness areas, billions of tons of discarded plastic have created a
November 22, 2021 Read Full Article
1st of Kind Project Near Tri-Cities May Pave Way for Global Greenhouse Solutions
by Steven Ashby (Tri-City Herald) ... Scientists at DOE’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory are among those conducting research related to carbon capture and storage. Building on their first-of-its-kind demonstration project to inject CO2 into the basalt in nearby Wallula, Wash., they are
November 22, 2021 Read Full Article
DiviGas, Neste, Toyota, Ballard, COP26 Pledges, PNNL, NREL, Others Are Hot on Hydrogen
by Helena Tavares Kennedy (Biofuels Digest) It’s been a hot week for hydrogen with DiviGas securing $3.6 million in seed funding for the commercialization of a new next-generation polymeric hydrogen separation membrane that is a filter at a molecular level that
November 22, 2021 Read Full Article
New Website for CCPC Launched!
(U.S. Department of Energy) We have liftoff! The relaunch of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Consortium for Computational Physics and Chemistry (CCPC) website features updated content on this breakthrough research that uses high-performance computing to accelerate development and scale-up of
November 18, 2021 Read Full Article
ACE Supports Policies to Credit Ag, Biofuels for Net-Zero GHGs
(American Coalition for Ethanol/Ethanol Producer Magazine) During its Nov. 10 meeting, the American Coalition for Ethanol board of directors voted to support new policies that credit farmers and ethanol producers for activities helping ethanol reach net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by
November 17, 2021 Read Full Article
New Study Demonstrates Ethanol Blend Compatibility of Vehicles Around the World
(U.S. Grains Council/GrainNet) A new study conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is out now that shows all vehicles in the study countries are highly likely to be compatible with E10. Motorcycles and scooters similarly analyzed in India and Indonesia have full compatibility with
November 12, 2021 Read Full Article
Electrofuels Advance: Vattenfall, SAS, Shell, LanzaTech, US Air Force, Emerging Fuels Technology and Twelve Advance on Power-to-Liquids via Waste CO2
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) It’s a simple idea, using renewable electricity to induce carbon dioxide and hydrogen to form a hydrocarbon. Hydrocarbons, you know, the stuff we burn as liquid fuel and from which we make plastics, fabrics, flavors, fragrances,
November 09, 2021 Read Full Article
GREET the Dawn of a New Day in Sustainable Aviation Fuels
by Meltem Urgun-Demirtas (U.S. Department of Energy) ... Innovative thinkers at Argonne, led by Michael Wang, developed the Greenhouse gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy use in Technologies (GREET) model in the mid-1990s to evaluate and compare the energy and environmental
November 08, 2021 Read Full Article
From the Lab to Jet Engines: New Software Tools Will Speed up Biojet Fuel Development
by Katy Christiansen (Department of Energy) ...The first tool, Feedstock to Function, addresses one of the biggest hurdles involved in starting biojet fuel research: knowing whether a molecule could be viable as a fuel. “During early stage development, we are often missing
November 08, 2021 Read Full Article
Alcohol-to-Diesel Drop-in Fuels: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to LanzaTech’s Winterized Diesel
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Baby, it’s cold outside, and LanzaTech is working on a flexible Alcohol-to-Diesel process for producing drop-in, renewable diesel fuel blendstocks from biomass-derived ethanol, including cold weather uses. From the tech behind it to the latest
November 08, 2021 Read Full Article
SAS, Vattenfall, Shell and LanzaTech to Explore Synthetic Sustainable Aviation Fuel Production
(Vattenfall/CISION) Vattenfall, SAS, Shell and LanzaTech will together investigate the production of the world's first synthetic sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) using the LanzaJetTM "Alcohol to Jet" technology on a large scale in Sweden. Instead of using virgin fossil material in the production process, the synthetic SAF will be
November 03, 2021 Read Full Article
National Corn Growers Association Announces Winners of the Consider Corn Challenge III Contest
Today, the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) announced the Consider Corn Challenge III winners at the Advanced Biofuels Leadership Conference in San Francisco, California. The six winners were chosen because their technologies can improve a product or process, scale-up and produce biobased materials
October 31, 2021 Read Full Article
With NREL’s Feedstock Research, Algae and Garbage Could Be Ingredients for Zero-Emissions Fuels of the Future
(National Renewable Energy Laboratory) In theory, over 1 billion tons of biomass could be sustainably collected and processed into biofuels by 2030 in the United States, according to U.S. Department of Energy analysis. But turning that theory into practice hinges on improvements
October 31, 2021 Read Full Article
What Pathways Draw Down CO2 the Best?: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to the Bioeconomy’s Carbon Drawdown
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The National Academy of Sciences concluded that bioeconomy pathways are among the largest potential contributors to carbon drawdown, which is essential to avoiding the worst long-term impacts of climate change. The goal of a Lawrence
October 30, 2021 Read Full Article
Heard on the Floor at ABLC 2021 – October 28
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ABLC 2021 continues today with its theme of ““building a bridge to Net Zero” after a flurry of announcements buzzed around the floor yesterday, as the 560 delegates grappled with the immense opportunities and supply chain
October 30, 2021 Read Full Article
Deere Invests in Ethanol Diesel Engine: ClearFlame Secures $17 Million to Commercialize Ethanol Diesel Engine Tech
by Todd Neeley (DTN Progressive Farmer) Count John Deere among the companies investing in a startup company developing a heavy-duty truck engine able to run on straight ethanol. ClearFlame Engine Technologies announced Thursday it had secured another $17 million in funding
October 29, 2021 Read Full Article
NREL, Electric Hydrogen Partner on Renewable Hydrogen Technology
by Ariana Fine (NGT News) The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and clean hydrogen company Electric Hydrogen have signed an agreement to develop high-performance electrolyzer components, helping to scale clean hydrogen and invent new opportunities for decarbonization. The three-year, $3.6 million collaboration will diagnose
October 29, 2021 Read Full Article
Geospatial Analytical Framework for Biofuels’ Water Sustainability: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Bioenergy Water Management
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) How can we produce bioenergy in a manner that increases water use efficiency, lowers regional water stress, and mitigates nutrient and sediment loss? That’s the question Argonne National Lab researchers are working on with their
October 28, 2021 Read Full Article
First of a Kind Bagasse to Ethanol Project in India.
(LanzaTech) LanzaTech to work with Spray Engineering Devices Limited on Sustainable Ethanol Project -- Spray Engineering Devices Limited (SED), a multidisciplinary engineering company dedicated to sustainable development, is partnering with LanzaTech in a first of a kind bagasse to ethanol project
October 27, 2021 Read Full Article
Pell-Mell at NREL : Two Bio Breakthroughs at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... So, here’s what our intrepid team led by Jeffrey Blackburn and Wei Xiong did. Knowing that plants have two systems inside them for photosynthesis, and that the second doesn’t play well with others, the genetically engineered cyanobacteria to shut
October 26, 2021 Read Full Article
SoCalGas’ Biomethanation Reactor System to be Used in Maine Dairy Digester
(SoCalGas) The reactor is part of a $5 million project funded by the Department of Energy -- SoCalGas’ biomethanation reactor system will be used to help produce renewable energy as part of a power-to-gas demonstration. This system will be installed at
October 19, 2021 Read Full Article
Better Fuels & Better Vehicles: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Co-Optimization of Fuels & Engines
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) This just released slide guide looks at the Co-optimization of Fuels & Engines initiative’s accomplishments, what might come next for internal combustion engine research in a rapidly changing world, factoring in increased vehicle electrification and
October 19, 2021 Read Full Article
Algae: As Different from Each Other as They Are from You and Me
by Amanda Barry (Los Alamos National Laboratory) ... When we talk about algae, we’re really talking about a diverse group of organisms that thrive in a plethora of environments, from seawater to freshwater, from pulp mill ponds to hot springs.
October 18, 2021 Read Full Article
Argonne National Laboratory Releases 2021 GREET Update
by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) Argonne National Laboratory’s Systems Assessment Center on Oct. 11 announced the 2021 release of the suite of GREET models, an analytical tool that stimulates the energy use and emissions output of vehicle and fuel combinations. Major
October 13, 2021 Read Full Article
Plug-in Cars Are the Future. The Grid Isn’t Ready.
by Will Englund (Washington Post) ... Seventy-four times last year, the wind across Upstate New York dropped so low that for stretches of eight hours or more barely any electricity was produced. Nearly half the year, the main transmission line
October 13, 2021 Read Full Article
NREL, Electric Hydrogen Partner on Renewable Hydrogen Technology
by Ariana Fine (NGT News) The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and clean hydrogen company Electric Hydrogen have signed an agreement to develop high-performance electrolyzer components, helping to scale clean hydrogen and invent new opportunities for decarbonization. The three-year, $3.6 million collaboration will diagnose
October 12, 2021 Read Full Article
US Secretary of Energy Granholm and US Senator Ossoff Visit LanzaTech Innovation Hub in Georgia and Site of the World’s First LanzaJet Sustainable Fuels Plantl
(LanzaTech) Visit highlights the potential of rural America to create domestic supplies of sustainable fuels and chemicals. -- LanzaTech and LanzaJet welcomed Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm and Senator Jon Ossoff to the Freedom Pines Biorefinery in Soperton, Georgia. [caption id="attachment_149372"
October 12, 2021 Read Full Article
NREL Process for Renewable Butyric Acid Good for Environment, Cheaper Biofuels
(National Renewable Energy Laboratory) Scientists at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) developed a fully integrated process to produce a promising precursor for diesel and jet fuel from lignocellulosic biomass, and for less expense than the selling price of the same
October 12, 2021 Read Full Article
LanzaTech to Trial SAF Production from Waste Carbon Dioxide
(Biofuels International) LanzaTech is partnering with the Energy Department’s Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) to build and operate a pre-pilot facility to produce sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). This will be made from biogenic waste carbon dioxide (CO2) such as is emitted from corn refining,
October 08, 2021 Read Full Article
DOE Announces Nearly $8 Million for National Laboratory H2@Scale Projects to Help Reach Hydrogen Shot Goals
(U.S. Department of Energy) Tthe U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced nearly $8 million for nine cooperative projects that will complement existing H2@Scale efforts and support DOE’s Hydrogen Shot goal to drive down the cost of clean hydrogen by 80% within the decade. The
October 07, 2021 Read Full Article
Blended Ethanol Has a 43.4 g/MJ Carbon Intensity Rating or Lower When Accounting for Aromatics Reduction
(Biofuels Central) Two studies conducted by Transport Energy Strategies (TES) and THiggins Energy Consulting show that gasoline blended with ethanol lowers carbon intensity (CI) even more than what is modeled and what is shown in recent studies. A key finding in both
October 06, 2021 Read Full Article
Biofuels Offer a Cost-Effective Way to Lower Shipping Emissions
by Christina Nunez (Argonne National Laboratory) Swapping heavy fuel oil with fuel made from wood waste, waste fats, oils and greases could drastically cut planet-warming emissions from the shipping industry by 40 to 93%. -- Marine shipping traffic has grown steadily
October 04, 2021 Read Full Article
Building Trust in Sustainable Biomass: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Biomass Communications
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) If you missed Oak Ridge National Lab’s Keith Kline’s introductory remarks at ABLC Digital, now’s your chance to check out his slide guide covering how to build public confidence and trust in the role of
October 01, 2021 Read Full Article
The Biden Administration to Ensure a Sustainable Future for Aviation: SkyNRG Americas and LanzaTech Secure DOE Funding to Produce SAF in the US
(LanzaTech) The U.S. Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office announced more than $64 million in funding for 22 projects focused on developing technologies and processes that produce low-cost, low-carbon biofuels. SkyNRG Americas in partnership with LanzaTech was awarded $1 million in funding for Project
September 23, 2021 Read Full Article
Potential to Produce 5B Gallons of Sustainable Aviation Fuel from CO2
(LanzaTech) LanzaTech and Argonne National Lab Awarded funding for Aviation Project in Georgia. -- The White House set a goal of replacing all jet fuel with sustainable alternatives by 2050, saying it could cut emissions from flying by 20 percent by
September 23, 2021 Read Full Article
Novel Biofilm Enhanced Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactors: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Methane Production
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) There are literally tons of food waste per year but biofilm can help increase hydrolysis and methanogenesis reaction rates and help solve anaerobic digestion challenges. Take a look at Argonne National Lab’s latest on how they
September 23, 2021 Read Full Article
Argonne Teams up with GEVO to Apply Lab’s GREET Model to Company’s Net-Zero Project
(Department of Energy/Argonne National Laboratory/EurekAlert!) Argonne’s Greenhouse gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy use in Technologies Model (GREET), using data provided by Gevo, is expected to yield results about its carbon footprint within a few months. The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne
September 21, 2021 Read Full Article
Biomass from Forest Restoration: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to PNNL Project
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Wildfires around the globe have been increasing but what about controlled fires? The U.S. Department of Energy and Pacific Northwest National Lab is looking at prioritizing how and where to target forest restoration (timber harvest
September 20, 2021 Read Full Article
Fighting Viruses with Algae
by Rebekah Orton (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory/Phys.Org) ... Biologist Scott Edmundson, who has studied photosynthetic algal cultivation for bioproduct generation for more than 15 years, suggests that if algae-derived antivirals show promise in clinical trials, their extraction could help make biofuels
September 16, 2021 Read Full Article
Getting 35B SAF gallons by 2050: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to NREL’s SAF Approach
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The Digest reported a few days ago on the Biden administration’s goal of reaching 3 billion gallons of sustainable aviation fuel by 2030 and net zero emissions by 2050 but how do we get there?
September 15, 2021 Read Full Article
Making Methane from CO2: Carbon Capture Grows More Affordable
by Brendan Bane (Pacific Norwest National Laboratory) Methane made from CO2 and renewable hydrogen offers a new path toward cheaper carbon capture -- In their ongoing effort to make carbon capture more affordable, researchers at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National
September 13, 2021 Read Full Article
DOE Announces Nearly $65 Million for Biofuels Research to Reduce Airplane and Ship Emissions
(U.S. Department of Energy) Projects align with administration's new goal of decarbonizing the aviation sector by 2050 - - As part of a White House roundtable to launch the Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) Grand Challenge to decarbonize the aviation sector by 2050, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced $64.7 million in funding for projects
September 10, 2021 Read Full Article
Fact Sheet: Biden Administration Advances the Future of Sustainable Fuels in American Aviation
(White House) New Actions Aim to Produce Three Billion Gallons of Sustainable Fuel, Reduce Aviation Emissions by 20% by 2030, and Grow Good-Paying, Union Jobs -- Today (September 9, 2021), President Biden is taking steps to coordinate leadership and innovation across
September 10, 2021 Read Full Article
United, Honeywell Invest in New Clean Tech Venture from Alder Fuels, Powering Biggest Sustainable Fuel Agreement in Aviation History
(United Airlines/PR Newswire) United agrees to purchase 1.5 billion gallons of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) over 20 years - which is one and a half times the size of the rest of the world's airlines' publicly announced SAF commitments combined Honeywell first
September 09, 2021 Read Full Article
Biofuels Offer a Cost-Effective Way to Lower Shipping Emissions
(Argonne National Laboratory/Tech Xplore) Marine shipping traffic has grown steadily over the past decade—and so have the associated greenhouse gas emissions. Carbon emissions from ships grew almost 10% between 2012 and 2018, and the industry is a large consumer of
September 06, 2021 Read Full Article
Breakthrough Methods Help Integrate Renewable Hydrogen with Waste Carbon Dioxide to Produce Clean Fuels, Chemicals, and More
(National Renewable Energy Laboratory) ... NREL is validating utility-scale hydrogen-production processes that could provide tomorrow’s clean fuels and chemical feedstocks to produce low-carbon, high-value products. New IP To Simplify Renewable Hydrogen Reactions Renewable hydrogen could fit into future low-carbon energy systems like
September 06, 2021 Read Full Article
Hurry up, Scale up: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to the U.S. DOE Agile BioFoundry
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Enabling biorefineries to achieve 50% reductions in time to bioprocess scale-up, as compared to the current average of 10 years, is what the U.S. Department of Energy aims to do by establishing a distributed Agile
September 03, 2021 Read Full Article
Advancing Algae for Better Biofuels: CSU Share in $3.5 Million Project
(Colorado State University) Colorado State University scientists are partners in a three-year grant of up to $3.5 million from the Department of Energy, aimed at improving how algae-based biofuels and bioproducts are made. The Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office has announced its support
September 02, 2021 Read Full Article
UMD Researcher Awarded $6 Million from the U.S. Department of Energy to Create Value-Added Biofuels and Bioplastics from Food Waste
by Samantha Watters (University of Maryland) Stephanie Lansing will serve as principal investigator, establishing a consortium of scientists and industry partners with the goal of creating renewable resources -- Stephanie Lansing, professor in the Department of Environmental Science and Technology at
September 01, 2021 Read Full Article
Increasing Sugar Availability for Oil Synthesis: Findings Could Lead to Higher Potential for Biofuel Crops
(Brookhaven National Laboratory) A team from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) has bred a plant that produces more oil by manipulating the availability of sugar for oil synthesis. The team, led by BNL’s John Shanklin, achieved these results in using
September 01, 2021 Read Full Article
ABPDU Celebrates a Decade of Bio-Innovation
(U.S. Department of Energy) Ten years ago, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory announced the opening of a brand new, 15,000-square-foot facility full of stainless steel state-of-the-art bioprocessing equipment – what we now know as the Advanced Biofuels and Bioproducts Process Development Unit, or
August 26, 2021 Read Full Article
How ABPDU Is Training the Next Generation of Bioprocess Engineers --- September 16, 2021 --- ONLINE APPLICATION DEADLINE: January 14, 2022
Join the U.S. Department of Energy Bioenergy Technologies Office on September 16, 2021, at 3 p.m. ET, for a webinar on how Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) is partnering with the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley) to train the
August 25, 2021 Read Full Article
Anchors Aweigh: Examining Biofuels for Maritime Shipping
by Tim Theiss (Oak Ridge National Laboratory) A multi-laboratory team of scientists led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is studying the feasibility of using energy-dense biofuels such as biocrude and bio-oil to meet new emissions regulations for cargo ships. Cargo vessels
August 25, 2021 Read Full Article
Let's Prioritize American Renewable Fuels over Foreign Oil and Minerals
by Geoff Cooper (Renewable Fuels Association/The Hill) ... But what’s not easy to see is why the White House recently chose to respond to higher pump prices by pushing OPEC+ countries to increase oil production. It was a baffling move that raised
August 23, 2021 Read Full Article
A Cue from Kitty Hawk: What the Wright Brothers Teach Us about Decarbonizing Flight
by Adam Bratis (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) ... I recount that moment at Kitty Hawk because I believe we stand at another pivot in the rich history of aviation. To avoid the worst effects of climate change, we must rapidly
August 20, 2021 Read Full Article
New Proposed Federal Greenhouse Gas, Vehicle Efficiency Standards: A Missed Opportunity to Address Climate Change Now DEADLINE for Public Comment: September 27, 2021
(Solutions from the Land) Earlier this month, the EPA published in the Federal Register a rule proposing its Revised 2023 and Later Model Year Light-Duty Vehicle Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards. Seeking public comment through Sept. 27 (a public hearing is set for next Wednesday, Aug. 25),
August 20, 2021 Read Full Article
Faster and Cheaper Ethanol-to-Jet-fuel on the Horizon
(Pacific Northwest National Laboratory/Phys.Org) A patented process for converting alcohol sourced from renewable or industrial waste gasses into jet or diesel fuel is being scaled up at the U.S. Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory with the help of partners
August 19, 2021 Read Full Article
Plants into Planes: ORNL Team Thinks Ethanol Is Future of Commercial Jet Travel
by Ben Cathey (WVLT) ... “You know, we’ve been doing that for a long time. East Tennessee’s famous for its production of alcohol,” Dr. Jerry Tuskan laughed as he told us about an old version of fuel, made new again.
August 11, 2021 Read Full Article
Carbon Dioxide Removal with Roger Aines
(Climate Now) How do we reach global net-zero emissions by 2050, when there is almost no chance of completely ending our dependence on fossil fuels by that time? The solution will require Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) – a host of natural
August 10, 2021 Read Full Article
RFA Founder Calls for Correction of EPA Transportation Office’s “Shocking Miscarriage of Environmental Justice”
(Dakota Ag Energy) Speaking to the 14th Annual Bioenergy Conference hosted by Brazilian government and industry stakeholders, the founder of the U.S. Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) charged U.S. EPA Office of Transportation and Air Quality (OTAQ) bureaucrats with a “shocking
August 10, 2021 Read Full Article
Unlock the Power to Predict: NREL Model Benefits Biomass-to-Fuel Reactor Design
by Zia Abdullah (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) researchers can accurately predict reaction rates and optimal conditions for making biofuels. Their secret? Complex math to sketch the intricate chemistry and physics that drive catalytic fast pyrolysis. Catalytic
August 09, 2021 Read Full Article
Scientists Show a Single Catalyst Can Perform the First Step of Turning CO2 into Fuel in Two Very Different Ways
by Glennda Chui (SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory) Their work aims to bridge two approaches to driving the reaction – one powered by heat, the other by electricity – with the goal of discovering more efficient and sustainable ways to convert
August 09, 2021 Read Full Article
Biogenic Carbon Fuels, Co-Processing Strategies: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Coprocessing Bio-oils in Refineries
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Leveraging existing refining infrastructure leverages billions US$ in CAPEX and 5 million bpd of crude refining. NREL, PNNL, and LANL is tackling how to accelerate adoption of co-processing biomass-derived feedstocks with petroleum streams in operating
August 09, 2021 Read Full Article
RFA to Biden: Renewable Fuels Provide a Clean, Low-Carbon Fuel Option Available Today
(Renewable Fuels Association) President Biden today announced a plan to greatly expand the production of clean cars and trucks, including a goal for electric vehicles to comprise 50% of new vehicle sales by 2030. The following is a statement from Renewable Fuels Association
August 05, 2021 Read Full Article
Better Bioblendstocks for Cleaner Diesel Vehicles
by Trevor Smith (U.S. Department of Energy) ... But new fuel blendstocks from biomass and waste resources, combined with advanced engine designs, are bringing us ever closer to a vision of clean transportation. Achieving this vision is critical for meeting
August 04, 2021 Read Full Article
CE+P to Partner with the U.S. Joint BioEnergy Institute on Advanced Biofuels Research
(California Energy + Power/Business Wire) California Ethanol + Power (CE+P) announced today (August 3, 3021) that it is partnering with the Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI), a Bioenergy Research Center of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop scalable next-generation renewable
August 04, 2021 Read Full Article
Waste to Energy: Biofuel from Kelp Harvesting and Fish
by Kelsey Adkisson (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory/Newswise) Possibility of cheaper, greener fuel for remote, coastal Alaska communities -- Kelp is plentiful in remote, coastal Alaska. Fuel is not. And it’s expensive. Many isolated communities rely on diesel generators for energy because they
August 03, 2021 Read Full Article
A Higher-Yield Fuel Catalyst
(Oak Ridge National Laboratory/Phys.Org) Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers have developed a new catalyst for converting ethanol into C3+ olefins—the chemical building blocks for renewable jet fuel and diesel—that pushes the amount produced to a record-high 88%, a more than 10%
August 03, 2021 Read Full Article
Biomass Availability with Matthew Langholtz
(Climate Now/Oak Ridge National Laboratory) Bioenergy is a renewable energy for its carbon neutrality – plants absorb CO2 during photosynthesis and emit the same amount when combusted for energy. But to significantly reduce our reliance on fossil fuels, substantial amounts
August 02, 2021 Read Full Article
Fungus That Tastes Just Right: PNNL Researchers Study Plant Material in Soils that Offers Clues for Making Sustainable Bioproducts
by Allan Brettman (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory) Discerning leaf-cutter ants know what food they like to eat. They turn up their scent-detecting antennae at some plant material in soils in favor of others that fungus has degraded just the way they
August 02, 2021 Read Full Article
Better Biocatalysts for Biogas: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Biogas Biocatalysis
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Biological gas-to-liquid conversion offers a means to valorize biogas, improve bioprocess sustainability, and reduce risk of waste and biomass processing. How big is the biogas market? What are the newest biocatalysts and gas fermentation tech
July 30, 2021 Read Full Article
Converting Renewable Electricity into Stable Molecules Could Provide Long-Term Energy Storage
by Beth Mundy (Tech Xplore/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory) For renewable energy and energy storage technologies, variation is the name of the game. The intensity of the natural resources that provide renewable energy varies from day to day, as well as season to
July 29, 2021 Read Full Article
Data that Makes a Difference: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Biofuels Information Center
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Data – we all need it. And the Biofuels Information Center provides essential bioenergy data, information, and tools to educate stakeholders on all aspects of biofuels. Where do they get the data from? How does
July 29, 2021 Read Full Article
What to Do with Food Waste? Well, That Depends. NREL Researchers Examine Disposal Methods as More Landfills Prepare to Shut Down
(National Renewable Energy Laboratory) The expected decline in the number of landfills across the United States coupled with bans on disposing large amounts of organic waste in landfills that have been enacted in multiple states has prompted researchers at the U.S.
July 28, 2021 Read Full Article
RFA Pledge to President: Ethanol to Achieve Net Zero Emissions by 2050 or Sooner
(Renewable Fuels Association) In a letter sent today to President Joe Biden, Renewable Fuels Association members from across the country memorialized their commitment to ensuring ethanol achieves a net-zero carbon footprint, on average, by 2050 or sooner. Ethanol is already cutting greenhouse gas
July 28, 2021 Read Full Article
Crapo, Whitehouse, Reed, Panetta Introduce Legislation to Encourage Innovation in the Clean Energy Sector
(Office of Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho)) According to a report by the International Energy Agency, approximately 40 percent of cumulative CO2 emissions reductions needed to meet sustainability targets rely on technologies not yet commercially deployed on a mass-market scale. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho),
July 27, 2021 Read Full Article
Recycling Plastic Has Been an Uphill Challenge. Could Chemical Recycling Change That?
(PBS NewsHour) Plastic pollution is a global threat on our lands and seas. Since World War II, we have created over 9 billion cubic tons of it, yet its recycling remains extremely limited. As part of our "Breakthroughs" series, Miles
July 26, 2021 Read Full Article
One-of-a-Kind Course Aims to Build the Bioeconomy Workforce
by Emily Scott (Advanced Biofuels and Bioproducts Process Development Unit) ... He (Jason Ryder, an adjunct professor in UC Berkeley’s College of Chemistry) knows we have the tools to solve these problems: biotechnology and bioprocessing — using the power of
July 21, 2021 Read Full Article
LLNL and Collaborators Improve Electrochemical Reactor Performance through 3D Printing
(Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory) Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists and their collaborators are leveraging the power of 3D printing to improve the performance of electrochemical reactors used to convert carbon dioxide (CO2) to useful energy sources, chemicals and material feedstocks. Working under
July 21, 2021 Read Full Article
Analysis Shows Enzyme-Based Plastics Recycling Is More Energy Efficient, Better for Environment
(National Renewable Energy Laboratory) BOTTLE Consortium Effort Develops Model That Finds Sizeable Energy and Carbon-Saving Benefits for Recycling PET, a Common Plastic Used in Bottles, Clothing, Carpet -- Researchers in the BOTTLE Consortium, including from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s)
July 16, 2021 Read Full Article
We Can Love Electric Cars, but Let’s Not Spurn Biofuels
by Dan Morgan (The Globalist) Right now, electric cars have the momentum and the “inevitability” narrative on their side. Is the idea of pursuing two paths forward a waste of money? ... The Biden administration’s ambitious infrastructure proposal sets aside $174
July 16, 2021 Read Full Article
Using Cycloalkanes for Jet Fuel: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Ethanol-Derived Jet Blending Components
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) LanzaTech, Purdue and PNNL are working together to develop a commercially viable process to convert an ethanol-derived olefin intermediate into a jet-range hydrocarbon with 60 wt.% yield to cycloalkanes and demonstrate its commercial utility as
July 14, 2021 Read Full Article
Life Cycle Analysis: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Advanced Algal Systems
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Evaluating sustainable scale up of algae production systems, algal biofuels, and algal bioproducts is no easy task, but scientists at Argonne National Lab are looking into this by looking at the life cycle analysis of
July 13, 2021 Read Full Article
From Biomass to Bug Zapper: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Bio-Insecticides
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Creating a sustainable, inexpensive bioinsecticide that leverages the inherent chemical functionality from thermochemical biomass conversion that can improve biofuel economics is one of National Renewable Energy Lab’s goals. Take a look at bioinsecticide production using
July 12, 2021 Read Full Article
Will Biorefineries Meet Air Quality Regulations?: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Biofuels Air Emissions
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Can biofuels production meet federal air quality regulations? At what cost? What are the emissions across the biofuels supply chain? What are the economic and human health impacts? Are there mitigation opportunities and approaches that work?
July 08, 2021 Read Full Article
DOE Announces Technical Assistance for Local Governments on Waste-to-Energy
(U.S. Department of Energy) The U.S. Department of Energy Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) and National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are pleased to announce the Phase 1 selections for the Waste-to-Energy Technical Assistance for Local Governments Program. This technical assistance program was created to mobilize national
July 07, 2021 Read Full Article
Playing the Long Game: ExxonMobil Gambles on Algae Biofuel
by Carly Nairn (Mongabay) - Algae biofuel initially looked promising, but a few key problems have thwarted major research efforts, including development of a strain of algae able to produce plentiful cheap fuel, and scaling up to meet global energy
July 07, 2021 Read Full Article
Weather-Resistant Crops: the Bioenergy Fuel of the Future
(Bio Market Insights) ... Finding a way to increase crop yields without encroaching on either food crops or natural habitats is a novel challenge, but it is one that may soon have a solution. Researchers from Queensland University of Technology’s Centre
July 07, 2021 Read Full Article
Modeling for Biorefineries: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Red Rock Biofuels De-Risking Feedstock
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)Optimizing and de-risking the deployment of biomass gasification processes by implementing physics-based simulations of feed handling and transportation unit operations was NREL’s goal as they did modeling and simulations to support Red Rock Biofuels during design
July 07, 2021 Read Full Article
How Viable Is Bio-Oil for Marine Transport?: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Biofuels for Marine Engines
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Determining the technical feasibility of using biofuels, especially bio-oils, for marine engine use, understanding the efficacy of biofuels in marine transport, looking at the impact on fuel handling systems and impact of bio-oils blended with
July 06, 2021 Read Full Article
LCA Model for Biofuels: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to GREET
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The Greenhouse gases, Regulated Emissions, and Energy use in Technologies Model – aka GREET – can be used to address impacts and conduct life cycle analyses of biofuels and bioproducts. Check out Argonne National Laboratory’s
July 02, 2021 Read Full Article
DOE Helps Commercialize Promising Energy Technologies
by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) The U.S. Department of Energy on June 24 announced it will award $30 million to 68 projects that aim to accelerate the commercialization of promising energy technologies, including those related to biofuels, bioenergy and bioproducts. The
July 02, 2021 Read Full Article
Los Alamos National Laboratory and Oberon Fuels Receive Department of Energy Funding to Produce Renewable Hydrogen from Renewable DME (rDME)
(Oberon Fuels) Project will develop novel pathway to reducing carbon content of global hydrogen supply; Converting renewable DME into hydrogen will solve vexing issues related to hydrogen production, transport and storage and open up new feedstocks for cost-effective renewable hydrogen
June 30, 2021 Read Full Article
DOE Researchers Examine Biofuels for Maritime Shipping
(U.S. Department of Energy/Biomass Magazine) A multi-laboratory team of scientists led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory is studying the feasibility of using energy-dense biofuels such as biocrude and bio-oil to meet new emissions regulations for cargo ships. Cargo vessels ferrying commodities around
June 30, 2021 Read Full Article
Biomass, Lipid Yield Improvements: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Leveraging Algae for Fuels
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Did you know that adding plant substrate to some algae strains (not all!) can result in improved biomass and/or lipid production? That’s what Amanda Barry from Sandia National Labs reported in this slide guide on
June 28, 2021 Read Full Article
DOE Announces Over $65 Million in Public and Private Funding to Commercialize Promising Energy Technologies
(U.S. Department of Energy) 2021 Technology Commercialization Fund Awards Connect Private-Sector Partners to DOE National Labs, Bolstering U.S. Competitiveness While Combating the Climate Crisis -- The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced over $30 million in federal funding, matched by
June 25, 2021 Read Full Article
Hydrothermal Processing: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Algal Based Biofuels
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Dan Anderson from Pacific Northwest National Lab shared this illuminating slide guide at BETO’s Peer Review this year with the latest on PNNL’s work on building algae hydrothermal liquification (HTL) pathway to fuels, with the
June 22, 2021 Read Full Article
Is It Starch or Cellulose? NREL Offers Answers that Could Unlock Incentives for Making Cellulosic Ethanol
by Zia Abdullah (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) Cellulosic ethanol—produced from fibrous cellulose, which gives plants strength and rigidity—offers a range of attractive benefits. When used as a vehicle fuel, it can support deep reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, with a carbon footprint
June 21, 2021 Read Full Article
Greenhouse Gas Data Deep Dive Reaches New Level of ‘Reasonable and True’
by Lauren Quinn (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign) ... For corn ethanol, most greenhouse gas emissions can be mapped to the fuel’s production, transportation, and combustion, but a large portion of the greenhouse gas calculation can be traced right back to the
June 18, 2021 Read Full Article
Using CO2 & Renewable Electricity to Improve Biorefineries: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to CO2 Utilization
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) NREL is working on decarbonization of fuels and chemicals production by looking at the integration of CO2 utilization into two existing conceptual biorefinery designs, the brutal reality of CO2 reduction, market trends, decreasing the cost
June 18, 2021 Read Full Article
Avoiding the Coming Apocalypse: NREL’s Vision for Strategic Piloting and Enabling the Deployment of Bioenergy Technologies
by David J. Robichaud, Robert M. Baldwin, and Thomas D. Foust (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) ... Developing technologies are moving well beyond the traditional gasification/pyrolysis and biochemical pathways to include electrons to molecules, catalytic upgrading, electrolytic carbon capture and utilization,
June 17, 2021 Read Full Article
At Scale Feedstock Blending Optimization: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Waste-To-Energy
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) What if we could build a biorefinery in every state and divert all 76 million dry T/y of organic wastes into transportation biofuels…forever? That’s what Pacific Northwest National Lab hopes will happen someday as they
June 14, 2021 Read Full Article
Single Gene Boosts Climate Resilience, Yield and Carbon Capture in Crops
(Oak Ridge National Laboratory) Scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have discovered a single gene that simultaneously boosts plant growth and tolerance for stresses such as drought and salt, all while tackling the root cause of climate change by enabling plants
June 11, 2021 Read Full Article
Waste-To-Energy Biofuels: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Biofuels Production Potential
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Check out this NREL slide guide covering their latest work on waste-to-energy resources, municipal solid waste (MSW) streams available for bioenergy conversions, and the latest data and analyses on WTE projects. From food waste management
June 10, 2021 Read Full Article
Visit the Advanced Biofuels and Bioproducts Process Development Unit (ABPDU) in 3D Tour
The Advanced Biofuels and Bioproducts Process Development Unit (ABPDU) is a bioprocess scale-up facility at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory that enables early-stage advanced biofuels and bioproducts to successfully scale from the lab to commercial relevance. A new 3D virtual walkthrough of
June 09, 2021 Read Full Article
Novel Composite Catalyst Holds Promise for Cost-Effective Ethanol-to-Jet-Fuel Conversion
(Oak Ridge National Laboratory) ... The well-established, cost-competitive ethanol market provides an opportunity to shift the composition of jet fuel and other fuel products away from petroleum. The Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Bioenergy Technologies
June 07, 2021 Read Full Article
On-Site Hydrogen Production Technology Accelerates to Market
by Susan Bauer (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory) California hydrogen fueling stations could soon benefit from lower cost approach -- A new technology that generates hydrogen from conventional natural gas, or renewable natural gas made from biomass, could be the next big
June 07, 2021 Read Full Article
WANTED: Unpublished and Underused Bioenergy Technology Data
(U.S. Department of Energy) Do you know of existing bioenergy technology data that aren’t Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, or Reusable (FAIR)? Could these data help accelerate the bioeconomy? The Accelerating Bioenergy Technology Advancement Through FAIR Data Delivery project is working to identify, acquire, and develop data and
June 01, 2021 Read Full Article
Jeanne McCaherty's Testimony to MN House Conference Committee on the Future Fuels Act
(Minnesota Bio-Fuels Association) ... Jeanne McCaherty, CEO of Guardian Energy and board member of MN Bio-Fuels, testified in support of the Future Fuels Act to the Minnesota House Conference Committee. Here's her testimony in full: ... Specifically, we have discussed strategies that can harness
May 27, 2021 Read Full Article
Miscanthus Energy Crop Improvements: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Next-Gen Miscanthus
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Perennial grass miscanthus as an energy crop has advanced into high biomass yielding varieties and NC State University is working with Novozymes, Iogen and Oak Ridge National Lab on evaluating new miscanthus varieties and improving
May 24, 2021 Read Full Article
What Has Productivity 4X as Dense as Corn?: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Advanced Algal Systems
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Why algae? With biofuel yield 8-13 times larger than corn, well, why not! We took key slides from the 100+ slide deck from this year’s U.S. DOE BETO presentation on the latest goings ons with
May 20, 2021 Read Full Article
Velocys Provides Update on US, UK Biorefinery Rrojects
by Erin Voegele (Biomass Magazine) Velocys provided an update on its proposed commercial-scale U.K. and U.S. biorefinery projects in its 2020 financial report, released on May 17. The company also discussed an agreement that could allow its technology to be deployed
May 19, 2021 Read Full Article
Directed Funding Opportunity for Biomass Compositional Analysis DEADLINE: June 18, 2021
(U.S. Department of Energy) The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) is offering directed funding assistance for industry and universities interested in leveraging NREL's unique biomass compositional analysis capabilities. Eligibility All U.S. companies and universities are eligible to apply
May 19, 2021 Read Full Article
Getting the Most from Sustainable Aviation Fuel
by Lloyd Ritter (Green Capitol LLC/Biofuels Digest) The aviation industry is currently responsible for less than 3% of total global carbon emissions, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). But with air travel expected to increase by more than 60 percent
May 19, 2021 Read Full Article
Environmental Concerns Propel Research Into Marine Biofuels
(CaymanMamaNews/Globe Newswire/National Renewable Energy Laboratory) A global effort to reduce sulfur and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from ships has researchers from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and other Department of Energy facilities investigating the potential use of marine biofuels. “Biofuels
May 17, 2021 Read Full Article
U.S. Department of Energy Invests $35 Million to Dramatically Reduce Carbon Footprint of Biofuel Production
(U.S. Department of Energy) The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today (May 14, 2021) announced $35 million in funding that will help slash carbon emissions and scale up the volume and efficiency of renewable biofuel. The 15 awarded research projects are
May 17, 2021 Read Full Article
Next-Gen Logistics and Blending: The Digest’s 2021 Multi-Slide Guide to Biomass Feedstock Logistics Systems
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) This U.S. Department of Energy BETO project’s biomass blend concept will allow biorefineries to utilize a much larger proportion of the land within their procurement radius, thereby enabling larger scale, more economically feasible facilities to
May 17, 2021 Read Full Article
Department of Energy Selects Four Projects to Move Co-Optimized Biofuels and Combustion Engines Closer to Market
(U.S. Department of Energy) Today, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced the selection of four projects totaling $1 million to conduct cutting-edge applied research and development concerning the interaction between promising biofuels and combustion engines. The projects will leverage a
May 10, 2021 Read Full Article
The Co-Optima FY20 Year in Review Spotlights Recent Engine and Fuel Innovations.
(U.S. Department of Energy) A report released this week highlights the most significant breakthroughs of the last year in the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Co-Optimization of Fuels & Engines (Co-Optima) initiative, with details on findings that could translate into significant greenhouse gas
May 10, 2021 Read Full Article
American Coalition for Ethanol Commends Scientists For Evidence Ethanol Must Be Part Of The Climate Solution
(American Coalition for Ethanol/GrainNet) American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) welcomed more scientifically credible evidence provided by Department of Energy Argonne National Lab scientists that explicitly states, “Corn ethanol plays an important role in enhancing energy security and the rural economy while contributing to
May 10, 2021 Read Full Article
Research & Communications for Building Trust in Sustainably-Sourced Biomass
by Keith L. Kline (Oak Ridge National Laboratory) Many challenges remain to build public confidence in the role of biomass in sustainable, climate-smart, circular economies. How can we best – •Effectively communicate research to broad audiences? •Build trust in science and understanding
May 07, 2021 Read Full Article
ORNL Scientists Mark EE Week with Climate Talks to Local Students
(Oak Ridge National Laboratory) Esther Parish is one of eight scientists from the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory talking to students in nine schools across East Tennessee as part of National Environmental Education Week, or EE Week. On April 13, she