Tobacco, Alcohol And … Seaweed? Three Innovative Methods For Producing Biofuels

Agriculture/Food Processing Residues nonfield crop, Algae/Other Aquatic Organisms/Seaweed, BioChemicals/Renewable Chemicals, BioRefineries/Renewable Fuel Production, Business News/Analysis, Energy, Federal Agency/Executive Branch, Feedstock, Field/Orchard/Plantation Crops/Residues, Mexico, Not Agriculture, Process, R & D Focus, Scotland

June 14, 2012

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by Max Frankel (ThinkProgress) …But in the world of science, researchers around the world are working on some very innovative ways to produce gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel from more sustainable feedstocks.

Here’s a look at three cool recent developments in biofuels:

Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em: Scientists at the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab in California are working on converting tobacco plants into fuel powerhouses.

…Bottoms up: The Scotch Wiskey Association of Scotland is currently constructing a nearly $100 million combined heat and power plant capable of generating up to 7.2 megawatts of electricity from nothing but whiskey byproducts.

The process uses “pot ale” and “draff,” two waste products created during the production and distillation process, to create biobutanol, a fuel with the potential to produce 30% more energythan ethanol.

…According to researcher Sarah Davis, “Biomass from Agave can be harvested as a co-product of tequila production without additional land demands. Also, abandoned Agave plantations in Mexico and Africa that previously supported the natural fiber market could be reclaimed as bioenergy cropland.”

…Pass the wasabi: Seaweed is a great source of natural sugars that can be utilized when fermented. Until recently however, scientists had no way to ferment alginate, the sugar that makes up half the energy potential of seaweed. Now, an altered form of E. Coli has been developed to tap into this resource. READ MORE (includes video) and MORE (Renewable Energy World)

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