As the expected environmental benefits of biofuel made from food crops such as corn, rapeseed and wheat have not materialized, the race is on to find a competitive second generation of biofuels whose raw material is wood, grasses and non-edible parts of plants, which do not compete with food crops and forest coverage.
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ethanol
Brazil, the world leader in sugar cane ethanol production and consumption, has announced that its national Development Bank (BNDES) and the Brazilian Innovation Agency (FINEP) have signed a Technical Cooperation Agreement, pledging R$1 billion between 2011 and 2014 for a Joint Plan to Support Industrial Technological Innovation in the sugar-based Energy and
Senators Tom Coburn (R-OK) and Benjamin L. Cardin (D-Md) have joined forces to sponsor a bill that ends the refundable Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit (VEETC). This tax credit subsidizes the blending of corn-based ethanol into gasoline. The legislation, if enacted immediately, would save taxpayers nearly $4 billion during the remainder of 2011,
A team at the BioEnergy Science Center (BESC) announced that it succeeded to produce isobutanol directly from cellulose. It is the first time anyone does that.
The process presents several advantages, including saving time and money. Besides, isobutanol is a higher-grade of alcohol than ethanol.
In a previous post, I wrote about a patent infringement suit between Danish biopharm rivals Novozymes and Danisco, which are both active in developing enzymes used in production of biofuels.
In the suit, Novozymes has accused Danisco of infringing U.S. Patent No. 7,713,723 (’723 Patent) by selling alpha amylase enzymes
The food versus fuel debate is back on the agenda with the launch of a map designed by anti-poverty organization ActionAid and the Environmental Working Group (EWG). The map shows which countries are at highest risk of a food crisis due to food price rises.
The organization says volatile food markets
Butanol may be used as a fuel in an internal combustion engine. Because its longer hydrocarbon chain causes it to be fairly non-polar, it is more similar to gasoline than it is to ethanol. Butanol has been demonstrated to work in vehicles designed for use with gasoline without modification. University of California,
Biomass generation plants primarily burn waste wood, but as their role in clean energy is expanding, more wood will be needed. Where will it come from?
Xcel energy has developed a demonstration project to test which tree species, soils and climates will be most conducive to “biomass plantations” – trees
Butamax Advanced Biofuels (Butamax) is a Delaware-based joint venture between BP and DuPont formed in 2009 to develop biobutanol.
Biobutanol is an advanced biofuel which has some important advantages over ethanol, including an energy content closer to that of gasoline and the capacity to
Florida Biorefinery Targets First Waste-to-Fuel Process on Commercial Scale
written by Yale Environment 360
A UK-based company this week broke ground on a $130 million plant in Vero Beach, Fla. that company officials say will be the first to produce advanced biofuels from waste on a commercial scale.
While other researchers are working on processes to convert waste into fuel, Ineos Bio’s plan would garner revenue from three
LanzaTech, a clean energy company that had its roots in a small New Zealand laboratory five years ago, is on the top of the biofuels world after winning a prestigious international “Technology of the Year Award”.
Dr Jennifer Holmgren, chief executive of LanzaTech, says last week’s Biofuels Digest Award tops off a fantastic year for the
São Paulo, one of the world’s largest cities, is to become the first city in Brazil to have an ethanol-fueled bus fleet as part of the country’s carbon-reduction goal.
The bigger plan is to convert the whole country’s fleet to renewable energy by 2018. The agreement signed today anticipates that by May 2010 50 ethanol vehicles will be circulating in the city.
(Reuters) – Sugar cane ethanol pioneer Brazil, which touts the efficiency and environmental qualities of its biofuel, could soon begin making it from less-efficient corn to soak up excess grains in remote areas.
The combined industry and governmental
One of the biggest challenges for biofuels is to find ways to break down cellulosic biomass and convert it into ethanol. These are the cell walls of plants, which contain sugars that can become fuel without competing with food crops. The trouble is getting the right enzyme to do the job.
Research is being carried out into this