Newsletter Archive

• Anaerobic Digestion
• Chemical By-Products and Co-Products
• Densified Fuels
• Ethanol
• Feedstock Engineering
• Gasification and Co-firing
• Pyrolysis

• The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) presented test results from the first large-scale switchgrass co-firing test in partnership with Chariton Valley RC&D and Alliant Energy in Chillicothe, Iowa. Over 1,200 tons of switchgrass were burned over a two-month period at rates up to 17 tons/hour. The test was able to offset 2% of the coal flow at the plant while reducing SO₂ emissions.
  
• Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) presented results of its research in switchgrass crop management. Through economic models, ORNL found that production costs could be decreased by 17%. This reduction would lead to a 17%-40% increase in the switchgrass acres that could be economically competitive with existing agricultural uses.
  
  
• ORNL evaluated operations and costs related to biomass densification. ORNL focused their research on cubing and found that the key to reducing the production costs of these cubes was to incorporate material with low-moisture content, thereby reducing drying costs. Another way to reduce costs was to work with shredded material rather than with packaged bales.
  
  
• The Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL), along with Amalgamated Research, Inc., researched acid or enzyme hydrolysis processes to convert biomass feedstock to their base monomeric sugar building blocks. The lab is working to reduce the capital costs of the purification and chromatographic separation units used in the hydrolysis processes by 50%-70%.
  
  
• A high-profile project in the area of Biofuels is the Green Energy Program with the National Park Service. Biodiesel was first tested in trucks at Yellowstone National Park. Yellowstone National Park officials converted their entire fleet of trucks to run on a B20 blend. Other parks are following Yellowstone's lead. Biofuels are being used in Volcanoes National Park in Hawaii, Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky, as well as the Everglades in Florida. Yellowstone Park officials are also looking into reducing the effects of snowmobile emissions. To accomplish this, a "Clean Snowmobile Challenge" was initiated, which urged college students to design and build a clean, quiet snowmobile. Over 20 schools entered the contest and, as a result, Yellowstone converted its fleet of snowmobiles to run on an E10 blend of gasoline. Currently research is being conducted with a Yellowstone tour bus that would run off of B100 Biodiesel.
  
  
• In a recent success in New England, Mount Wachusett Community College in Massachusetts converted from an all-electric to a biomass heating system. The college switched to a wood-chip fired combustion system, and with it, was able to offset 8.8 million kWh of electricity purchases per year.
  

A new program developed by the U.S. Department of Energy, Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) was also discussed at the conference. The Biomass and Alternative Methane Fuels (BAMF) program is designed to increase use of biomass in federal facilities. The Super Energy Savings Performance Contract (Super ESPC) encourages federal agencies worldwide to take on energy generation and savings projects that have one or more biomass technologies - energy from wood wastes, crops, animal wastes, and landfill gas waste - as a core component.

The conference also included a citizen's night, during which all residents of Boise were invited to visit exhibits and poster presentations to learn more about the energy security and environmental benefits of biomass technologies.

For additional information on the conference, or to purchase a copy of the proceedings, visit www.bioenergy2002.org. The conference was hosted by the Pacific Regional Biomass Energy Program and sponsored by the University of Idaho, J.R. Simplot, Inc., National Park Service, Pacific Biodiesel, New Uses Council, BBI International, BioCycle - The JG Press, Inc. and the U.S. Department of Energy, Bioenergy Program.

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Colorado is home to seven biomass key electric generating plants (biogas), which have a collective installed capacity of about 6 MW.¹ It is also home to NREL - the National Renewable Energy Laboratory - a supporter of R&D in the biomass field.

Useful applications for biomass resources within the state could increase with a recent grant from the U.S. Forest Service. The "Biomass Energy Project," is designed to help the Colorado Governor's Office of Energy Management and Conservation (OEMC) determine possible uses for wood debris resulting from natural forest processes. Collecting this debris could drastically reduce fire risk. In addition, the project creates an opportunity to use these forest residues for the production of power.² OEMC also has been testing the use of methane gas from hog waste as possible means of electricity production at a Colorado hog farm - Colorado Pork, LLC.³ The farm produces 40 percent of its own electricity from hog waste, saving almost $7,000 per month.⁴ Businesses like Barlow Projects, Inc. - a small, Colorado-based energy services company - are making progress in the waste-to-energy industry. Barlow Projects is leading the way in Colorado by using modern technologies that allow it to convert waste into usable electricity and power, operating with a combustion system that can accommodate anywhere from 100 to 1,000 tons per day of municipal solid waste (MSW).⁵

The state is fast becoming a leader in the fuel-ethanol industry. Colorado is able to produce about 1.5 million gallons of fuel-ethanol each year,⁶ and The National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition recognized the Denver area (the Front Range) as one of three "Model Cities" where E85 fuel will be introduced on a large scale. This "Model Cities" program, supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, is intended to use E85 to improve Colorado's fuel industry. Currently, the state is home to seven E85 refueling stations.⁷

Biomass Hydrogen Conversion Breaks 100 Hour Operational Run
Researchers producing hydrogen from peanut shells successfully ran a demonstration using 50kg per hour of biomass while outputting vast amounts of fertilizer. This product offers a chance for the fertilizer and farm industry to become a significant carbon sink while increasing farm income and crop yields. Using this technique, farmers could be using the most successful and economically profitable method of sequestering the excess atmospheric carbon generated. Scientific Carbons, Inc. and NREL, which hold the patent for the technology, plan to continue their development work and are looking for industry partners and other teams to help in a coordinated research and development strategy. www.spacedaily.com

Gov. Davis Signs Renewable Energy Bill
Governor Gray Davis signed a law requiring the state's utilities to purchase 20 percent of their electricity from wind, solar and other renewable sources by 2017. The law is expected to nearly double the amount of "green power" California uses over the next 15 years. www.siliconvalley.com

Drag-Racing Car Sets Record Using Biodiesel
Driver Mark Smith raced down a 660-foot racetrack at 211 miles per hour in Wild Thang - a dragster fueled by biodiesel made from soybeans. The track announcer, Paul Brown, was impressed by Wild Thang's performance, "The fuel is super efficient, super clean. There's no residue on the track at all after the car runs." Wild Thang is scheduled to make 27 appearances this year and plans to use biodiesel for each of them. www.springfieldnews-leader.com

Badger State Hosts Open House
An estimated crowd of 200 people celebrated the upcoming opening of the Badger State Ethanol LLC plant in Monroe, Wisconsin. The plant is slated to open sometime in either late September or early October and will employ 32 people and produce 40 million gallons of ethanol per year and 130,000 tons of both wet and dry animal feed annually. http://www.zwire.com

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Data Sources:
OxyFuel News: Ethanol (U.S. Avg: Terminal); MTBE (Houston, TX: spot); Gasoline (Gulf Coast: spot, regular grade)
USDA-National Agricultural Statistics Service, "Agricultural Prices," "Grain Stocks"

Data Sources:
U.S. DOE-Energy Information Administration, "Petroleum Supply Monthly"
USDA-National Agricultural Statistics Service, "Agricultural Prices," "Grain Stocks"

*Please note: Units used for fuel data have been revised to correct an error in previous editions.

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