Biofuels

Fuel tech start-up Cobalt Biofuels launched a California plant on Tuesday that will produce biobutanol from forestry byproducts.

Biobutanol, butanol made from biomass as opposed to fossil fuels, already has approval for use in fuel blends for vehicles under U.S. Environmental Protection Agency guidelines.

Cobalt and others have claimed that biobutanol has an advantage over ethanol, which has been known to have corrosion issues in some older fuel systems and pipelines and is conventionally used in fuel blends and in newer cars with ethanol-ready engines. Biobutanol can be used as a standalone fuel even in conventional gasoline car engines, … Read more

Biodiesel technology is low on the list of priorities for auto industry research, according to a global survey of 200 senior auto executives conducted by KPMG that was released Thursday.

When asked to rate which were the most important alternative fuel technologies to the auto industry over the next five years, hybrid systems were ranked first followed by battery electric power, fuel cell electric power, and biodiesel, respectively.

Fuel efficiency was ranked as the feature auto executives believed makes the biggest impact on customers' purchasing decisions, while "environmental friendliness" was second followed by safety innovation in third.

A … Read more

WASHINTON--Two U.S. senators pledged on Tuesday to take up legislation early next year to extend the biodiesel tax credit as it looks likely action will not be taken on it this year.

An industry group complained that if a bill was passed by Congress early next year to extend the credit, it would not be enough to stop plants from closing after the credit expires on December 31.

Sen. Max Baucus, a Democrat from Montana who is chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and the panel's top Republican, Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa, said they would take up … Read more

The Department of Energy is making $100 million in government stimulus money available to researchers with ideas for radically different energy technologies.

The DOE on Monday announced the second portion of the ARPA-E program and said that "concept papers" for three research areas--fuels, capturing carbon dioxide from coal plants, and long-range electric vehicle batteries--are due by the middle of next January. Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Commerce Secretary Gary Locke unveiled the green-tech research program in conjunction with the start of international climate treaty talks in Copenhagen, which got under way Monday.

The research areas reflect the priorities … Read more

When it comes to the U.S. biofuels strategy, it's no longer just about ethanol.

The Department of Energy and Department of Agriculture announced on Friday that $564 million in stimulus act funding would be used toward constructing biorefineries to make liquid fuels from plants. Out of the 19 projects receiving funding, nearly half focus on the development of "drop-in" replacements for gasoline, diesel, or jet fuel. The rest focus on technologies for making ethanol or chemicals from sources other than corn. (Click this PDF for a full list of recipient projects).

In one example, San Diego-based … Read more

Start-up ZeaChem has begun construction of a plant to convert wood chips into ethanol and specialty chemicals, a small step forward for the long-awaited cellulosic ethanol industry.

The Lakewood, Colo.-based company said that the plant will be in Oregon and produce about 250,000 gallons of ethanol a year. That's far less than it originally projected but still at a size that will allow the company to scale up to a commercial-size facility in 2011, said ZeaChem CEO James Imbler on Friday.

A few years ago, lots of venture capital money flowed to companies with processes to make … Read more

PetroAlgae has signed a memorandum of understanding to license its proprietary technology for producing and harvesting algae for fuel to Indian Oil, the company announced this week.

The Melbourne, Fla.-based company has developed bioreactors and harvesting methods for converting algae grown in open-pond freshwater farms into biodiesel.

The first phase of its partnership with Indian Oil will involve building a test facility to see whether PetroAlgae's production method is scalable. Once that has proven to be successful, Indian Oil plans to build a commercial production facility that could produce 200,000 tpa (tonnes per annum) of biodiesel. That … Read more

Trash collection giant Waste Management and the Linde Group petroleum engineering firm have partnered to create a plant that makes liquefied natural gas (LNG) from landfill gas, both companies announced this week.

Linde designed and operates the plant which is located close to Waste Management's Altamont Landfill near Livermore, Calif.

"The opening of the world's largest landfill-gas-to-LNG plant right here in California is a milestone and a testament to our commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Now that the technology has been proven, we look forward to seeing its adoption spread so more vehicles can run on … Read more

Green Earth Technologies (GET) announced Wednesday that its environmentally friendly motor oil for cars will soon be available on shelves across the U.S.

The manufacturer of the biodegradable, carbon neutral motor oil made in part from the animal fat of beef slaughter byproducts has been waiting on certification from the American Petroleum Institute before selling its G-Oil to the public.

G-Oil has received API starburst certification, a symbol put on a product's packaging to signify it meets specific standards and is recommended for use by leading vehicle manufacturers. GET's car oil was additionally granted the API service … Read more