June 2011 Ethanol Producer Magazine by BBI International

INSIDE: driVinG down etHAnol Process wAter use JUNE 2011

Ethanol Flags Fly over Indy ALSO

Cellulosic Enzymes Ready for Commercialization Page 62

Authors Advocate Open Fuel Standard Page 68

www.ethanolproducer.com

Examining New Racing Connection as Indianapolis Hosts FEW Page 44

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contents

FEAtUrES 44

JUNE ISSUE 2011 VOL. 17 ISSUE 6

dePArtMents 6

Editor’s Note

see you in indianapolis BY SUSANNE RETKA SCHILL

10 the way I See It listen for the new drumbeat BY MIKE BRYAN

EVENT

WATER

indianapolis will host the 2011 international Fuel ethanol workshop & expo. By holly Jessen

ethanol producers continue to drive water consumption lower. By holly Jessen

FEw Features high-octane Line-up

water: reduce, reuse and recycle

11 Events calendar

upcoming conferences & trade shows

12 View From the hill

ethanol standing Between us and oPec BY BOB DINNEEN

14 Drive

the Affordable Alternative to record Gas Prices BY TOM BUIS

16 grassroots Voice

Promoting our Policy Priorities BY BRIAN JENNINGS

ENZYMES

POLICY

developers say cellulosic enzymes are ready for big debut in commercial plants. By Kris Bevill

Authors advocate open Fuel standard to sap Big oil’s power. By holly Jessen

Ending the Enzyme Enigma

Fuel choice: turn Oil into Salt

cONtrIBUtIONS 78

18 Europe calling

Finally, a Fair Fuel taxation sytem BY ROB VIERHOUT

20 taking Stalk

talking tubers—energy Beets to ethanol BY COLE GUSTAFSON

22 Business Matters WATER

PROMOTION

YEAST

comparing the results from 11 installations reveals zero discharge advantage. By todd Potas

retailers that consumers want higher blends. By Lucy Norton

looking at high-density seed cultivation as strategy to increase yields. By Peter Krasucki

Implementing Integrated zero Liquid Discharge

MAINTENANCE - 90

Dry Ice Blasting Solves Ethanol Plant Maintenance headache cleaning dust from surfaces safely without water. By Kellie grob

Iowa Does Its Part in Encouraging Adoption of E15 irFA leads effort to show

Yeast Management Provides Stable Fermentation Performance

FIREFIGHTING - 92

Fighting an Ethanol tank Fire Presents Unique challenges

research needed to understand behavior shifts in large-scale fires. By henry Persson

Ethanol Producer Magazine: (USPS No. 023-974) June 2011, Vol. 17, Issue 6. Ethanol Producer Magazine is published monthly. Principal Office: 308 Second Ave. N., Suite 304, Grand Forks, ND 58203. Periodicals Postage Paid at Grand Forks, North Dakota and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Ethanol Producer Magazine/Subscriptions, 308 Second Ave. N., Suite 304, Grand Forks, North Dakota 58203.

4 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

on water use and efficiency Advancements BY GEOFF MORGAN

24 Business Briefs 28 commodities report 32 Distilled 95 Marketplace 98 Ad Index

editor’s note

We at Ethanol Producer Magazine and BBI International are in high gear, preparing for the 2011 International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo, June 27-30 at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis. Behind the scenes, we have amazing people who seldom get recognized.

SEE YOU IN INDIANAPOLIS

Susanne Retka Schill, Editor sretkaschill@bbiinternational.com

For industry news.

Speakers at the event get to know Tim Portz and Sue Conroe. Portz manages the development of the solid agenda and tours and Conroe keeps in touch with speakers to gather current photos and bios and ensure that all goes smoothly with well over 100 slide presentations. The logistical guru is Michael Clarke, who coordinates arrangements at the convention center and hotels, making sure the 2,500 expected guests at FEW have a positive experience. Then there’s the account managers at BBI who do a yeoman’s effort working with the many sales representatives in the ethanol industry, helping them get their messages out to the people who matter. At the conference itself, Janice Sue German makes sure exhibitors have what they need so they can focus on the work they come to do. The FEW is a barometer of the ethanol industry, revealing a renewed enthusiasm in the industry after a couple of tough years. It actually began last year, we learned from exhibitors who were well satisfied with the St. Louis event. It is apparent in the great response this year. From all indicators, the 2011 FEW in Indianapolis will be well attended. A new way to follow happenings at FEW emerged spontaneously via Twitter last year. Tweeting isn’t hard, but like anything in computers these days, figuring it out the first time can be a puzzle. Head to Twitter.com and follow the instructions to set up an account. From there, mark the Twitterstreams to follow. Keep on top of ethanol news by following our postings at EthanolMagazine. You can also save search terms, such as a brand name, and keywords pertaining to your business or industry. For example, monitoring the keyword #ethanol will pull up any Tweets posted including the hash tag, #ethanol. Last year, folks started tagging their Tweets from the FEW; this year, we’ll use #FEW2011. Follow the conference, offer your comments as well, and in the meantime follow our regular coverage of the industry at Twitter.com/EthanolMagazine.

Associate Editors Kris Bevill digs into enzymes this month, describing the tremendous progress that’s been made in driving down costs for cellulosic ethanol production, and hinting at the commercialization thrust soon to occur.

6 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

Holly Jessen fills us in on more details about the 2011 FEW in this issue. Ethanol’s water use is also on her radar this month, as she talks to several producers with water efficiency efforts and explores the question—just how does ethanol compare with oil in its water use?

EDITORIAL EDITOR Susanne Retka Schill sretkaschill@bbiinternational.com ASSOCIATE EDITORS Holly Jessen hjessen@bbiinternational.com Kris Bevill kbevill@bbiinternational.com COPY EDITOR Jan Tellmann jtellmann@bbiinternational.com

ART ART DIRECTOR Jaci Satterlund jsatterlund@bbiinternational.com GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Erica Marquis emarquis@bbiinternational.com Lindsey Noble lnoble@bbiinternational.com

PUBLISHING CHAIRMAN Mike Bryan mbryan@bbiinternational.com CEO Joe Bryan jbryan@bbiinternational.com VICE PRESIDENT Tom Bryan tbryan@bbiinternational.com

SALES VICE PRESIDENT, SALES & MARKETING Matthew Spoor mspoor@bbiinternational.com EXECUTIVE ACCOUNT MANAGER Howard Brockhouse hbrockhouse@bbiinternational.com SENIOR ACCOUNT MANAGER Jeremy Hanson jhanson@bbiinternational.com ACCOUNT MANAGERS Chip Shereck cshereck@bbiinternational.com Marty Steen msteen@bbiinternational.com Bob Brown bbrown@bbiinternational.com Andrea Anderson aanderson@bbiinternational.com Dave Austin daustin@bbiinternational.com Nick Jensen njensen@bbiinternational.com CIRCULATION MANAGER Jessica Beaudry jbeaudry@bbiinternational.com SUBSCRIBER ACQUISITION MANAGER Jason Smith jsmith@bbiinternational.com ADVERTISING COORDINATOR Marla DeFoe mdefoe@bbiinternational.com Senior Marketing Manager John Nelson jnelson@bbiinternational.com

EDITORIAL BOARD Mike Jerke Jeremy Wilhelm Commonwealth Agri-Energy LLC Mick Henderson Corn Plus LLLP Keith Kor Golden Grain Energy LLC Walter Wendland Chippewa Valley Ethanol Co. LLLP Cilion Inc.

Neal Jakel Illinois River Energy LLC Bert Farrish Lifeline Foods LLC Eric Mosebey Lincolnland Agri-Energy LLC Steve Roe Little Sioux Corn Processors LP Bernie Punt Siouxland Energy & Livestock Co-op

Customer Service Please call 1-866-746-8385 or email us at service@bbiinternational.com. Subscriptions to Ethanol Producer Magazine are free of charge to everyone with the exception of a shipping and handling charge of $49.95 for any country outside the United States, Canada and Mexico. To subscribe, visit www.EthanolProducer.com or you can send your mailing address and payment (checks made out to BBI International) to: Ethanol Producer Magazine Subscriptions, 308 Second Ave. N., Suite 304, Grand Forks, ND 58203. You can also fax a subscription form to (701) 746-5367. Back Issues, Reprints and Permissions Select back issues are available for $3.95 each, plus shipping. Article reprints are also available for a fee. For more information, contact us at (701) 746-8385 or service@bbiinternational.com. Advertising Ethanol Producer Magazine provides a specific topic delivered to a highly targeted audience. We are committed to editorial excellence and high-quality print production. To find out more about Ethanol Producer Magazine advertising opportunities, please contact us at (701) 746-8385 or service@bbiinternational.com. Letters to the Editor We welcome letters to the editor. Send to Ethanol Producer Magazine Letters to the Editor, 308 2nd Ave. N., Suite 304, Grand Forks, ND 58203 or e-mail to sretkashill@bbiinternational.com. Please include your name, address and phone number. Letters may be edited for clarity and/or space.

Please recycle this magazine and remove inserts or samples before recycling TM

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 7

The New Ethanol. Refined, retailed, and rolling across America now.

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the Way i see it

listen for the new drumbeat By Mike Bryan

Ethanol provides a growing sense of independence in a world that is constantly being reshaped by war. Protectionism and isolationism are seldom good options in a global economy, but self-preservation and selfreliance are. A large part of the oil-producing region of the world is in utter turmoil, with no real end in sight. And when the current strife does come to an end, if it ever does, what is to follow? To assume that because bin Laden is dead and countries in the Middle East are searching for a new form of governance means that all is well, and the future is bright, could indeed be a miscalculation of gigantic proportion. There has never been a time in the 30 year history of the ethanol industry that has been more important. Important to our national security, important to our energy security, important to our economy, all of which are being threatened. Ethanol, no matter where in the world it is produced, promotes peace. No wars have ever been fought over ethanol. No invasions of other countries or clandestine operations have ever been launched because of ethanol. I suppose that’s why it is so frustrating, baffling, even maddening at times, to see the articles, conjuredup reports and outright lies that are perpetrated about ethanol and renewable energy in general. It’s sad that it has come to this.

10 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

We need to act with an urgent sense of self-reliance by developing our domestic oil and natural gas reserves. At the same time, it’s imperative that we share the stage with domestically produced renewable energy. These are not mutually exclusive objectives. They can act in unison to build a stronger economy, a cleaner environment and a greater degree of self-preservation. Anyone who says otherwise, either has their head in the sand, or has an opposing vested interest. As young people around the world exchange ideas and ideologies on the

Today’s energy sources are all just stepping stones to tomorrow. Stop for a moment and listen. You’ll hear the drumbeat of a new generation, a generation that’s connected on a global scale—a generation that will look at energy, the environment and, we hope war, in a whole new light. We’re like the infamous Hatfields and McCoys fighting for generations until eventually they forgot what they were actually fighting about in the first place. Let’s join the youth of the world and work towards freedom, peace, understanding and a better, cleaner

Internet, Facebook, Twitter and a host of other social networks, the world becomes much smaller. What happens in rural China does not seem so distant to a student in Central Europe or America. Viewing the world from a classroom in Libya can inspire those to act who can clearly see there is a better way. The youth of today represent our future, and luckily they don’t cling to the ideas of past generations. Oil will once again become prehistoric, from whence it came. Ethanol and other renewable forms of energy that we have today will also give way to even newer, cleaner and more energy efficient solutions. Around the world, young people are rejecting the status quo as they always have, and demand that the world change to embrace new ideas.

environment and greater self-reliance. They’ll wait for us to catch up. That’s the way I see it.

Author: Mike Bryan Chairman, BBI International mbryan@bbiinternational.com

events calendar

International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo June 27-30, 2011 Indiana Convention Center | Indianapolis, Indiana The FEW is the largest, longest-running ethanol conference in the world. Focused on production of grain and cellulosic ethanol, operational efficiencies, plant management, energy use and near-term research and development, the FEW will attract 2,500 attendees. (866) 746-8385 | www.fuelethanolworkshop.com

FEW Agenda Offers Information for All

06/27

The International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo will be convening for its 27th year June 27 to 30 at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis. As always, the event, sponsored by Ethanol Producer Magazine and organized by BBI International, has a packed schedule. Attendees can choose from 30 panels in four tracks that will feature industry experts sharing the latest information on innovation in the ethanol industry. The production track will zero in on aspects of the ethanol process, from taking a closer look at contaminant control to keeping yeasts healthy, happy and productive. Other panels will talk about fine tuning the grind and other liquefaction strategies, advanced process control methodologies, water efficiency and process enhancement technologies. The management track is aimed at directors and ethanol industry executives, with one panel addressing mergers and acquisitions, another talking about attracting and retaining quality employees and third panel talking about recruiting board members. There are many dimensions to being a successful ethanol producer. Other panels will address qualifying ethanol to ship into markets with new environmental standards, managing risk and mastering compliance and permitting requirements. Product diversification—an important way to spread risk—is the focus of the conference’s third track. One panel in the coproducts track will explore the work being done on developing high-value coproducts from ethanol sidestreams. Other panels will examine fractionation and corn oil extraction from several angles, as well as maintaining quality in distillers grains. The track devoted to cellulosic ethanol is among the most popular at the FEW—the place where attendees get brought up to date on the latest project developments and technology advancements. One panel will dig into the progress being made to integrate cellulosic production into first-generation corn ethanol plants. Others will address feedstock issues, enzyme developments, process improvements and economics. Education doesn’t only occur in the panel presentations at FEW. The expo floor will be full of industry experts exhibiting their latest products and services and engaging in informative conversations. FEW takes pride in being the world’s largest ethanol conference, attracting people from all over the world to participate in the best ethanol networking opportunity available. To register or for more information about speakers and conference events, sponsorships and exhibiting, visit www.fuelethanolworkshop.com.

International Biorefining Conference & Trade Show September 14-16, 2011 Hilton Americas – Houston | Houston, Texas The International Biorefining Conference & Trade Show brings together agricultural, forestry, waste, and petrochemical professionals to explore the value-added opportunities awaiting them and their organizations within the quickly maturing biorefining industry. (866) 746-8385 | www.biorefiningconference.com

Northeast Biomass Conference & Trade Show October 11-13, 2011 Westin Place Hotel | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania With an exclusive focus on biomass utilization in the Northeast – from Maryland to Maine – the Northeast Biomass Conference & Trade Show will connect current and future producers of biomassderived electricity, industrial heat and power, and advanced biofuels, with waste generators, aggregators, growers, municipal leaders, utilities, technology providers, equipment manufacturers, investors and policymakers. Speaker abstracts are now being accepted online. (866) 746-8385 | www.biomassconference.com/ northeast

Algae Biomass Summit October 25-27, 2011 Hyatt Regency Minneapolis | Minneapolis, Minnesota Organized by the Algae Biomass Organization and coproduced by BBI International, this event brings current and future producers of biobased products and energy together with algae crop growers, municipal leaders, technology providers, equipment manufacturers, project developers, investors and policy makers. It’s a true one-stop shop – the world’s premier educational and networking junction for all algae industries. (866) 746-8385 | www.algaebiomasssummit.org JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 11

vieW From the hill

ethanol standing Between us and oPec By Bob dinneen

Common sense suggests that when you replace 10 percent of a market with a cheaper alternative, it will put downward pressure on prices. That is currently the case with respect to America’s use of ethanol. And now, new research on the impact ethanol has on gasoline prices puts real dollar values on what we all knew to be true. According to two economics professors from Iowa State University and the University of Washington, the use of more than 13 billion gallons of ethanol in 2010 alone, kept gasoline prices 89 cents cheaper than they otherwise would have been. That translates to a savings of more than $800 a year for an average U.S. family. The research also looked at the role of ethanol in helping rein in gas prices from the decade from 2000-’10. The growing production and use of ethanol helped keep gas prices 25 cents per gallon lower on average than they would otherwise have been. Based upon U.S. DOE data on gasoline use, that translates to more than $34 billion in savings at the pump annually during that time period. These savings dwarf the $6 billion in investment in 2010 in the form of the ethanol blenders credit.

12 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

Perhaps most interesting about the study is the hypothetical scenario that analyzes gasoline price reaction should ethanol supplies disappear overnight. According to the professors, gasoline prices would rise anywhere from 41 to 92 percent. Assuming a gas price of $4 per gallon, such a scenario could send prices well above $7 per gallon. Now, we all know that such a scenario is unlikely. America’s ethanol producers have a history of providing a stable, dependable supply of renewable fuel 12 months out of the year. But, it should open the eyes of lawmakers and other industries that would seek to eliminate America’s domestic ethanol industry. As Dermot Hayes, one of the study’s author notes, the expansion in domestic ethanol production “has substituted for an expansion and modernization of U.S. oil refining capacity that would otherwise have been needed. If ethanol production were to come to a sudden halt, perhaps due to a poor corn crop, there would be a dramatic increase in U.S. gasoline prices and the resulting increase in U.S. gasoline imports would also cause world gasoline prices to increase in the short run.” As Congress debates American energy policy in earnest, it must recognize the contributions of domestic ethanol production. Not only does ethanol production

provide the only sustainable, renewable alternative to gasoline today, it is fundamentally altering oil and gasoline markets and helping shield consumers and the U.S. economy from the vagaries of OPEC and the world oil market. It is time for Congress to pass strong energy legislation that properly and responsibly incentivizes the continued growth and evolution of America’s ethanol industry while eliminating wasteful subsidies for last century’s energy technologies.

Author: Bob Dinneen President and CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association (202) 289-3835

Visit us at FEW booth 619

Put BetaTecÂŽ natural hop extracts to work in your fermentation process to replace antibiotics and enhance yeast propagation. IsoStabÂŽ is the natural way to effectively control gram-positive bacteria while eliminating antibiotics and harsh chemicals. Plus, antibiotic-free DDGS adds value to your co-products. VitaHopÂŽ Silver yeast nutrient enhances yeast performance and vitality, inducing faster fermentations and larger yields. Combined with BetaTecÂŽ fermentation expertise and training, these technologies will significantly increase your plantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s efficiency. BetaTecÂŽâ&#x20AC;Śthe natural hop to higher profits. For more information specific to fuel ethanol producers, visit www.bthp.info. 4HJ(Y[O\Y )S]K :\P[L >HZOPUN[VU +* ;! -! www.betatechopproducts.com

drive

the Affordable Alternative to record Gas Prices By tom Buis

Analysts are saying that new record gas prices are likely this summer driving season. That won’t just hurt at the filling station. It’ll hurt throughout the household budgets of all Americans, as high oil prices will mean higher gas and grocery prices—and a threat to the still-recovering economy. At the same time that everyday Americans are feeling the budget squeeze, the big oil companies are raking in enormous profits. Americans are starting to get angry. In the first quarter this year, the top five major oil companies in the United States reported soaring profits as gas and oil prices skyrocketed to their highest peaks in three years. Even BP, which set aside $400 million to cover costs from the Deepwater Horizon spill, reported a 17 percent increase in its profits of $7.1 billion for the quarter. Public anger is spurring some members of Congress to action. We may see legislative support for President Obama’s proposal to end the excessive tax incentives the oil industry has enjoyed for years. Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said, “When BP makes billions in profits, even after the year they just had, you know

14 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

it’s time to cap the gusher of tax breaks that have been subsidizing the biggest oil companies for decades.” Not only are the tax subsidies lopsidedly in support of deeply entrenched oil companies, but so are the market supports. Growth Energy is proposing that we redirect some portion of tax support for energy and use that to invest it in giving motorists greater access to the only commercially viable alternative fuel that we have today: domestic ethanol. Today, the oil industry benefits from permanent subsidies and government regulations that give oil a near monopoly on the fuels market, forcing motorists to use gasoline refined from oil. That is why Growth Energy proposed its Fueling Freedom plan, which would redirect ethanol tax policy in a manner that would help boost the number of flex-fuel vehicles on the road and flex-fuel pumps at filling stations. There are already nearly 300 flexfuel pumps in the United States, and the recently announced USDA Rural Energy for America Program will provide loans and grants to help retailers install thousands more across the country in the next five years. But we must take further steps. With more flex-fuel vehicles on the road and more flex-fuel pumps to provide midlevel ethanol blends, Americans would have a genuine choice in the marketplace. Consumers could make their choice based on price or

performance, reducing the skyrocketing cost of gasoline derived from oil, and keeping more money here in America, instead of sending it overseas. Ethanol is better for the environment than gasoline and it helps our rural communities thrive. Every gallon of imported oil we displace with domestic ethanol strengthens our national security and our economy. Ethanol is the only progress this nation has made in reducing our dependence on foreign oil in more than 40 years. Blending 10 percent ethanol into our fuel reduces gas prices by as much as 35 cents a gallon, displaces millions of barrels of imported oil every year and removes harmful emissions from the air. And we can do more if we open the market to higher blends. This year, Congress has the opportunity to accelerate our nation’s progress toward energy independence by cutting oil subsidies and investing in job-creating, air-cleaning ethanol. By the time you read this article, we hope Congress will have already taken the first step toward achieving these goals. If not, we will continue to work with them to open up the market to give consumers access to clean, affordable, domestically produced fuel. Author: Tom Buis CEO, Growth Energy (202)545-4000 tbuis@growthenergy.org

Grassroots voice

Promoting our Policy Priorities By Brian Jennings

The American Coalition for Ethanol is grateful for the opportunity to communicate with readers of Ethanol Producer Magazine through our new monthly column, Grassroots Voice. For nearly 25 years, ACE’s mission has been to make American ethanol the consumer fuel of choice. We’ve stood shoulder to shoulder with you to grow the industry and provide opportunities for farmers and ethanol producers to supply our nation with a domestic, reliable, and clean source of fuel. Our members expect ACE to be team players and forge consensus within the industry and we believe our ability to bring people together is what sets us apart. As a grassroots organization we provide a home for ethanol producers to join forces with farmers, researchers, investors, rural electric cooperatives and businesses that supply the ethanol industry. With the help of this grassroots family, earlier this year ACE organized the largest-ever ethanol advocacy effort to occur in the nation’s Capitol. Over the course of two days, ACE members from 15 states met with more than 160 Members of Congress representing 44 states, including

16 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

meetings with about half of the 100 freshmen members of Congress. ACE organizes an annual Washington fly-in because no one is more qualified to promote our policy priorities than grassroots advocates. As a professional lobbyist, I put my experience and expertise to work every day to promote ethanol before policymakers. But an ethanol plant board member like Dave Sovereign of Golden Grain Energy or CEO like Mike Jerke of Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company can do an even more effective job because folks like Dave and Mike can put a human face on the benefits and importance of ethanol. Our fly-in was hardly an exercise in preaching to the choir, rather, most of our meetings were with lawmakers who voted against allowing EPA to proceed with implementation of E15 or allowing USDA to help assist with blender pump installation. A team of ACE members even met with Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) regarding his bill to immediately repeal the ethanol tax credit. We were under no illusion that we’d change Coburn’s mind. However, ACE’s approach with him and other legislators who don’t support ethanol has been that we ought to talk to them because if we don’t take the time to explain why our industry and ethanol is important, who will? Our industry cannot afford to allow our opponents to define us, we need to be proactive and talk to opponents as well as supporters of ethanol. The timing of our fly-in could not have been better. While ACE members urged the lawmakers to support legislation providing consumer fuel choice through blender pumps and FFVs,

President Obama gave a major speech recently outlining his vision for a new energy policy, which included a reference to corn ethanol’s ability to reduce foreign oil imports and the need for blender pumps and FFVs as well. And the week following the fly-in, after our members urged senators to support S. 187, bipartisan legislation that provides for more FFVs and blender pumps, the Senate Energy Committee held a hearing on the bill, a real accomplishment in that this was the first time the committee devoted a hearing to ethanol infrastructure. Finally, ACE members were able to lobby in support of reform, not repeal, of VEETC during the fly-in and fight back against Coburn’s amendment to repeal the tax credit immediately. We effectively made the point with Congress that while Big Oil is clinging to their status-quo subsidies and reaping profits (and in some instances, avoiding paying taxes), ethanol is working to reform and even sacrifice our tax incentive in exchange for a level playing field. This is the first step in what will be a challenging process of building relationships, educating new legislators, and reshaping ethanol policy this year, but an important step that we could not have taken without grassroots ACE members. We are grateful for the opportunity to create powerful bonds with grassroots advocates and to stand and fight with them in support of ethanol.

Author: Brian Jennings, Executive Vice President, American Coalition for Ethanol 605-334-3381 bjennings@ethanol.org

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Finally, a Fair Fuel taxation system By robert Vierhout

A good way for governments to achieve their policy goals is to deploy tax instruments. Nothing

new, but often highly disputed, whether it is about giving away or getting money. A recent proposal of the European Commission to modernize EU energy taxation policies confirms that taxation matters generate controversy. The idea to ‘upgrade’ the Energy Taxation Directive was on paper at the end of 2008, following the adoption of the European climate and energy package. It made perfect sense to deploy tax measures that would help achieve the energy and climate targets set for 2020. Taxation policy within the EU is sensitive, however. Decisions on tax matters require unanimity among the 27 states and, with the June ‘09 EU elections approaching, the proposal went into the freezer. In mid 2010, the idea nearly emerged again, but the climate was still not right. Faced with the financial crisis, the EC did not want to push its luck and be accused of interfering in government revenues. The proposal stayed in the freezer. Finally, April 2011, it was defrosting time. What the commission now is proposing makes a lot of sense and is actually partly built upon the experience of some EU countries. Future energy taxes should be based on two components—CO2 emissions and energy density. Both have major implications for ethanol.

18 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

A fuel made from biomass does not emit CO2 as compared to fossil fuel, and thus biofuels will be exempted. A precondition, however, is that the biofuel complies with sustainability criteria enshrined in the Renewable Energy Directive. For all forms of fossil fuel (gasoline, diesel, kerosene, propane and natural gas) a minimal tax will apply of €20 ($22.75) per ton of CO2 emitted. Energy density taxation will likely also benefit ethanol. By taxing the actual energy that a product generates, measured in gigajoules (GJ), ethanol will be taxed much lower compared to fossil fuel, due to its lower energy density. The harmonized energy density tax is set at €9.6 per GJ for all motor fuels. Unfortunately, it will take until at least 2018 (and possibly another five years) before the taxation difference between gasoline and diesel will be gone. The minimum tax on propane and natural gas is now as low as €1.5 per GJ and for diesel €8.2 per GJ. This objective to harmonize the energy density tax is crucially important for ethanol because it will mean a boost for driving gasoline-powered cars. In almost all EU countries, diesel taxes are lower, sometimes much lower, than gasoline taxes—a strong driver for an ever-growing diesel fleet. Even though the EU is short on its diesel needs (about 20 percent is imported), most EU governments have not harmonized the two. Only the UK has an equal tax between the two fuels. The provision to increase the diesel tax to equal gasoline taxes could well be the element that brings the entire proposal into jeopardy, however. The day before the bill was proposed, the German car industry was up in arms and made it very clear

that it was poised to torpedo the proposal. German car manufacturers claim that a higher tax on diesel will push consumers away from driving very fuel-efficient diesel cars. It is clear that companies like BMW, Mercedes and Volkswagen fear that the golden diesel technology goose will be butchered. Such a position was to be expected. Somewhat unexpectedly German Chancellor Angela Merkel echoed the concerns of the car industry and said that Germany would not support the proposal. Oil companies have not yet, publicly, interfered in the debate, but insiders say this sector supports the proposal because it will bring the transport fuel market more in balance. The UK government also reacted negatively—not so much because it would not agree to the content of the proposal; it would very well fit the UK policy on energy taxation. No, the mere fact that Brussels is interfering in tax issues is too much for the UK government. It is obvious that this is not a going to be an easy ride, but regulators don’t have that much time. The bill needs to enter into force by 2013—a very short period for such a sensitive topic and very ambitious, especially if one knows that it took 10 years to adopt the energy taxation law currently in force.

Author: Robert Vierhout Secretary-general, ePURE Vierhout@epure.org

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talking tubers—energy Beets to ethanol By cole Gustafson

I am temporarily changing the name of this column from Taking Stalk to Talking Tubers to focus on a unique public/private partnership involving Green Vision Group, Heartland Renewable Energy and North Dakota State University to create a new energy beet-to-biofuel industry in the Northern Plains. Why beets? The Northern Plains is the nation’s lowest-cost producer of sugar due to a favorable growing climate and cold winters that extend feedstock storage and processing. The energy beet industry is well established in Europe, where biofuel yields per acre are twice those of corn, reducing impacts on food production. Thus, the technology risk of producing a new advanced biofuel from energy beets is low compared with cellulosic processes. Energy beets are an ideal rotational crop in arid, small grain/oilseed rotations due to the plant’s deep tap root that seeks water and nutrients left behind by other crops. The crop requires less nitrogen fertilizer, a key contributor to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Our partnership has worked the past three years to develop the industry by: 1) Completing an economic feasibility study for the region; 2) Conducting yield trials at five locations across North Dakota; 3) Commercially testing a patented process that uses a coproduct to provide 70 percent of the biofuel plant’s thermal need; 4) Conducting grower education to secure feedstock supply agreements;

20 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

5) Initiating juice storage research that would enable year-round processing and plant utilization; and 6) Documenting “field to wheels” life-cycle GHG reductions compared with gasoline to qualify as an advanced biofuel. Thus far, results of all six projects have exceeded initial expectations. Central North Dakota research yield trials have averaged 28 tons per acre dryland and 38 tons per acre irrigated. Betaseed and Syngenta, beet seed genetic companies, have been key project partners. The commercial burn test indicated the coproduct could be burned at higher moisture levels than expected to provide process heat. Breakeven analyses show energy beet biofuel competes favorably with gasoline, without any subsidy. Initial life-cycle analyses find energy beet biofuel may even qualify as cellulosic biofuel with over 60 percent reduction in GHG emissions. These research findings are important steps to lower project risks at each production stage. Historical energy beet yield histories are needed to secure federal crop insurance for feedstock producers to mitigate production risks and compete with other commodity enterprises. Use of a coproduct to provide plant thermal needs minimizes energy supply risk. Extended storage alleviates fall and spring weather risk, which lowers the amount of crop that can be processed. While risk management has been a priority, the real goal of the partnership has been to foster rural development. Several plants are being considered, with each plant to be 20 MMgy, sourcing feedstock from 30,000 acres within a 20-mile radius. A short radius improves transportation costs and emissions, which

are again key to the life-cycle analysis. Each plant will employ 35 people from surrounding communities. Unlike granular sugar processing plants, the energy beet biofuel plants would operate year around and rely on novel juice storage processes now being researched. Since the plant provides the majority of its own thermal needs and energy beets are high in water, local infrastructure needs for water and natural gas are reduced. The N.D. energy project is currently seeking an existing biofuel plant in the region to partner with. While all of the technologies used to produce energy beet biofuel have been commercially tested somewhere worldwide, they have not been utilized together. Co-locating the first commercial energy beet plant with an existing biofuel plant would enable shared services for railroad transportation, utilities, product marketing, lab work, etc. One risk the project must yet overcome is securing a reliable feedstock supply. Agricultural profitability in the region has been at record highs for the past several years. Available labor poses a greater threat, however. Farm focus groups suggest that the region’s low unemployment rate (currently around 3 percent) presents challenges in finding additional labor for fall field operations. Energy beet production is labor intensive, as the bulky crop requires transportation from fields to local piling stations. More information on the project’s status can be found at www.BeetsAllBiofuels.com. Author: Cole Gustafson Professor and Biofuels Economist, North Dakota State University (701) 231-7096 cole.gustafson@ndsu.edu

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on water use and efficiency Advancements By Geoff Morgan

No doubt about it, corn ethanol consumes large quantities of water in its production. Some studies conclude that, in the same period of time that ethanol production doubled, the related water use tripled. This has garnered some attention in the public eye, along with the food vs. fuel and other arguments that cast aspersions on corn ethanol. Water occupies two distinct sources of use in the production of ethanolâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;that used for irrigating and growing the corn, and that used to boil, distill and ferment the biofuel. People argue that as corn production has increased in areas of the country that require more irrigation, more water is needed to produce a gallon of ethanol. True, but it is unclear what the allocation of corn use in those areas isâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;fuel or food. So what are the facts surrounding water use generally and, in particular, what effect does water technology and regulation have in the corn ethanol industry and what can be done to improve the efficiency of the water used? The truth is that the production of ethanol has not had a significant impact on water resources in the United States. U.S. Geological Survey data suggest that the industry uses less than 100 million gallons of water daily which equates to two one hundredths of one percent of total water use in the U.S. We sometimes hear the argument that it takes up to 4,000 gallons of water to grow a bushel of corn, 22 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

but seldom hear that the overwhelming majority of that amount comes from rain water. Also, ethanol producers are constantly increasing the efficiency of the use of water. The Renewable Fuels Association reports that in 1994, it took more than six gallons of water to produce one gallon of ethanol and now many plants can produce a gallon of ethanol using only three gallons. What technologies are making this possible? More efficient use of recycling, advancements in the areas of water separation technology (utilizing sophisticated membranes to separate water and ethanol in biofuels production) are meaningful examples. R3 Fusion just announced this month the availability of a new commercial system for recovering ethanol from waste scrubber water. The system is designed to process 50 gallons per minute of scrubber waste generated from a 50 MMgy ethanol plant. Private industry continues to produce new developments that should continue to increase efficiencies. Many other technologies are also being pursued. Producing broths with higher ethanol concentrations can reduce the energy needed for distillation. Alternative technologies to distillation, such as pervaporation (a membrane separation process), also have the potential to significantly reduce water usage. Another option for reducing water demand is to utilize a different

heat transfer medium, using forced-air fans for cooling instead of water where appropriate. This could potentially result in much lower evaporative and blowdown losses. Other conservation technology has resulted in significant reduction in water use for cooling towers. As cellulosic ethanol technologies develop and achieve commercial scale, efficiencies should continue to increase, as most feedstock sources for cellulosic ethanol need far less water for their growth. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory is analyzing water use issues in cellulosic ethanol production as well as water use in the production of biofuel feedstocks. All of these positive developments also compare favorably to water used in the production of petroleumbased fuels. NREL estimates it currently requires about 2 to 2.5 gallons of water per gallon of gasoline. So what does this tell us? First, private industry and innovation have resulted in a steady increase in the efficiency of the use of water in biofuels production. Second, the use of water in the biofuels industry is minimal compared to water use generally in the United States. It is incumbent on the industry to continue to pursue advancements, but it is also worth noting what has been accomplished already.

Author: Geoff Morgan Partner, Michael Best & Friedrich LLP (414) 225-2752 grmorgan@michaelbest.com

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business briefs People, Partnerships & Deals

Sanat Shetty has joined Victory Energy Operations LLC, an industrial boiler company, as its vice president of end market product development. He will coorHeat Transfer Expert dinate the end market Sanat Shetty has led the development of department’s initiaenhanced tube designs tives with engineering to achieve greater heat transfer efficiencies. and thermal design resources to lead the development and introduction of new products and engineered solutions for new and existing customers. David Thomas is the new chief lobbyist and Letica Phillips is the North American representative for UNICA (The Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association). Based at UNICA’s Washington office, they replace Joel Velasco, who left UNICA in January to become senior vice president for external relations at California biotech company Amyris. Thomas is a UNICA Lobbyist With almost two former deputy direcdecades of experience tor of legislative affairs in the Washington public policy arena, for Vice President Al David Thomas is Gore and director of UNICA’s new chief lobbyist. congressional relations at the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. More recently, he served as chief of staff for U.S. Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren. As a senior strategist with Washington law firm Mehlman, Vogel, Castanetti, Thomas was directly involved with UNICA’s 2010 campaign against U.S. tariffs on imported ethanol. In her continuing role overseeing institutional and government affairs for North America since 2008, Phillips will now lead UNICA’s efforts as its representative for North America on a variety of fronts. 24 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

Morris, Minn.,-based Superior Industries, manufacturer of conveyor systems and components, introduced an extension to its line of Chevron wing pulleys. The company is now building and distributing a style that meets specifications of the rated Conveyor Equipment Manufacturers Association. CEMA applications are often light duty, portable conveyors that make infrequent starts and stops. With their patented v-shape construction, Chevron wing pulleys are designed to deflect material and prevent it from lodging better than standard wing pulleys. Less opportunity for trapped fugitive material between pulley wings means longer lasting wing pulleys and less belt damage.

Montreal-based Circuit Design Corp. introduced its BPAL software for biomass feedstock procurement management. Developed for the pulp and paper industry, BPAL functions allow advanced automation and integration of administrative and operational functions of a bulk feedstock procurement process, such as purchase planning, contract creation and control, truck reception and scaling, sample extraction and random laboratory testing, unloading site control, payments to parties under contracts. Rockwell Automation has developed a free, online tool that gives a manufacturer a complete analysis of its current water, air, gas, electric and steam (WAGES) management performance, allowing comparison with industry peers and across other sectors. Available at www.rockwellenergyevaluator. com, the 20-minute online assessment gen-

erates a baseline report. The results facilitate identifying and implementing strategic changes, and setting improvement goals. Users also can continuously access their report and update information to track their progress. In other news, Rockwell announced the release of FactoryTalk Historian Machine Edition version 2.2, which includes additional functionality to help users quickly and easily optimize machine-level data collection. The company also announced its Centerline motor control centers can now be integrated with EtherNet/IP, facilitating more detailed production data collection. This allows plant engineers to predict potential problems and help prevent equipment downtime. Ralph Christie, president and CEO of Merrick & Company, has been named the 2011-’12 chair of the national energy and environment committee of the American Council of Engineering Companies. The committee’s purpose is to develop industrywide consensus positions and national leadership on a wide Committee Chair & Co.’s range of issues im- Merrick Ralph Christie portant to engineering assumed leadership the engineering firms in the United of council’s energy and States, 5,000 of which environment committee belong to ACEC. The April 1. committee also undertakes a proactive legislative and regulatory advocacy program, develops public and private market informational programs of interest to membership, and communicates with ACEC members on vital environmental and energy issues that will affect their businesses. Poet LLC recently announced new general managers at three plants, appointed to supervise professional, technical and support staff at the ethanol plants, responsible for en-

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suring efficient production and that all rules and regulations are met. Ken Osmonson is the new general manager at Poet Biorefining–Ashton (Iowa). Before joining Poet, he spent more than 26 years in manufacturing and operations management positions in the flexible packaging industry and the U.S. Army. Gary Eischied is the new general manager at Poet Biorefining–Gowrie (Iowa). Before comVeteran Engineer A native of Lansboro, ing to Poet, he worked Minn., Ken Osmonson for more than 35 years is the new general manager at Poet at Bridgestone FireBiorefining-Ashton. stone in several production management positions, including distribution manager. Eischied has also completed a 35-year tour in the Iowa National Guard and Army Reserve, reaching a rank General of the Guard of brigadier general. Gary Eischied brings Chris Oehler is the years of National Guard experience to his new new general manager position as manager at Poet Biorefining– at Poet BiorefiningGowrie. Lake Crystal (Minn.) Before joining Poet, he worked for more than 10 years with Del Monte Foods in Sleepy Eye, Minn. and Mendota, Ill. in a number of roles including field supervisor, assistant plant Community Man Chris Oehler had been manager and area active in the Sleepy manager, overseeing Eye community before becoming general business and plant manager at the nearby operations, marketing Lake Crystal ethanol plant. and personnel.

Mark LeBel has joined Jansen Combustion and Boiler Technologies Inc., working out of the Atlanta area as a senior consultant. LeBel has had a long career Boiler Expertise with Combustion LeBel has experience Engineering/ABB/ in biomass and wasteAlstom Power Inc., to-energy boilers. most recently in the position of manager of boiler engineering services. He has broad experience in design and operation of power, waste-to-energy and chemical recovery boilers as well biomass-fired circulating and bubbling fluidized bed boilers. The global Buhler Technology Group grew markedly in its anniversary year, 2010. Order intake increased 21 percent, sales revenue 11 percent, and operating profits grew at a higher-than-proportional rate to 10.6 percent of total sales. The company says this success is attributable to the identification of market trends such as improved food safety and higher energy efficiency. Both the advanced materials and grain processing divisions of the Switzerland-based firm achieved significant sales growth, with the greatest strength in the Americas, Asia and Africa, while Europe and Eastern Europe markets contracted. Flint Hills Resources has opened a new regional office in Ames, Iowa, which will focus on supporting the company’s four newly acquired ethanol facilities in Iowa through corn purchasing and selling throughout the state. As many as 20 new jobs will be created to handle operations, human resources and purchasing. Flint Hills Resources, an independent subsidiary of Koch Industries Inc. and producer of transportation fuels in the Midwest, acquired four Iowa ethanol plants since 2010 in Shell Rock, Menlo, Fairbank,

and Iowa Falls. In addition, the company distributes refined fuels throughout the Iowa and owns a fuel terminal in Bettendorf and operates asphalt plants in Algona, Davenport and Dubuque. Jiao Jiao has joined Fluid-Quip Inc. as a process engineer to further develop Fluid-Quip’s coproduct separation technologies for dry-grind ethanol plants and corn wetmills. Prior to joining Fluid-Quip, she conducted research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison focusing on alcohol aerobic oxidation catalysts Process Engineer Jiao will work on and fuel cell catalysts. Jiao Fluid-Quip’s maximized In addition to work- stillage coproducts wet fractionation ing on coproducts and systems. and wet fractionation systems, she will work with the UW Department of Animal Sciences to conduct and evaluate feed studies on new coproducts. Lechlers Inc. is offering a new lowflow, axial, hollow-cone spray. When very low flow rates and extremely small droplets are required for an application, the hydraulic nozzle performs. Applications include disinfection, humidification, and coating with water, oil, or other fluids in very low amounts. This nozzle comes with a cylindrical strainer that helps avoid clogging of the small orifice and in two grades of stainless steel. JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 25

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Heritage in Steel John Curley has a long heritage in the stainless steel plate industry, his family founded Eastern Stainless Steel.

Up Through the Ranks Sean Fenerty started working at Sandmeyer Steel as an officer messenger at age 18.

Western Sales Mary Osborne brings sales experience servicing the industries comprising Sandmeyer Steel’s West Coast customer base.

Sandmeyer Steel Co. recently made a number of personnel announcements. John Curley was appointed to the newly created position of vice president, international sales and global marketing. With the company since 1985, his latest position was general manager, sales and marketing. Shawn Fenerty has the new position of vice president national sales. He will be responsible for both the inside and field sales teams in the United States. Beginning with Sandmeyer as an officer messenger at age 18, Fenerty was most recently a regional sales manager. Mary Osborne has joined Sandmeyer Steel as district sales manager in the West, bringing 22 years of sales experience, mostly with HVA LLC and MDC Vacuum Products.

BinMaster Level Controls of Lincoln, Neb., introduced BinView, an innovative inventory management system that offers realtime bin level monitoring for solid materials over the Internet or via a company LAN or VPN. The components include BinMaster’s SmartBob sensors mounted on the bins, a wireless or wired data communications network, a gateway to provide connectivity to a 26 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

personal computer or IP network, and data collection software that can be viewed securely by any authorized individual. Asahi/America Inc. introduced the PE100 ball valve to its industrial piping products line as an innovative solution for gas, sewer and water applications to replace metal ball valves. The PE100 ball valve is 50 percent lighter than comparable metal valves and offers corrosion-resistant internal and external parts. Available in 1-to 2-inch sizes, the valve uses a two-step planetary gear system to ensure smooth opening and closing, eliminating water hammer. It is suitable for below-ground service, and valves larger than 2 inches are available with an integrated gear box.

Krohne Inc., a manufacturer and distributor of measuring instruments for process industries, has created a new vodcast describing leak detection systems. In it, Joe Incontri, director of marketing, describes different leak detection systems and details the factors engineers should take into consideration when selecting one. Martin Engineering has introduced a new generation of modular conveyor guards, enabling workers to do their jobs with reduced risk and greater efficiency. The new EVO Conveyor Guards are self-supporting and feature a rugged modular design. Stan-

dardized panels in a range of sizes, combined with wedge clamps for quick installation, provide the flexibility to fit virtually any conveyer design, and comply with safety standards. The Neponset, Ill., company also holds a Foundations Workshop series to teach bulkmaterials handling personnel how to operate and maintain clean, safe belt conveyors. The Indian River BioEnergy Center ethanol plant under construction near Vero Beach, Fla., will utilize a solids separation system developed by SmartFlow Technologies, that results in a high concentrate of cells and proteins as well as 100 percent pure ethanol and water. Rather than using a centrifuge, which uses gravity for cell concentration, the SmartFlow system uses a physical barrier in the membrane. This is the first contract to work on a commercial-scale project, but the Apex, N.C., company’s technology is being used in research and trials within corn ethanol and a number of cellulosic ethanol plants, and some cellulosic biochemical and cellulosic butanol plants. Ineos Bio and its joint venture partner, New Planet Energy, are constructing an 8 MMgy cellulosic ethanol plant with plans to start producing ethanol in mid-2012. The U.S. DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory and industrial processing firm Nalco Co. struck a licensing agreement for a novel electrodeionization technology that can be integrated into biorefineries to convert biomass into fuels and chemicals. According to Seth Snyder, Argonne biochemical engineer whose group led the development of the technology, the patented separation technique allows for the deionizing, or the continuous removal, of charged products like organic acids aqueous streams

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and eliminates the requirement to continuously add neutralizing agents like lime. This, Snyder said, is a dramatic improvement over conventional bioprocessing technologies that typically require significant capital expenditure on energy-intensive steps to recover bioproducts, while generating large volumes of waste streams. “In our process, we’re actually separating the organic acid as it’s synthesized in the fermentation and it’s separated as the acid moves across the membranes.”

partnered with Protec Fuel to offer E85 through the group’s turnkey E85 infrastructure program. “We at Indore Oil Company are energized on the prospect of working with Protec to bring E85 to this Chevron,” said Mihir Patel, general manager. “Our relationship with Protec and our customers continues to grow as we bring more alternative fueling options throughout the Atlanta market together.”

Mettler Toledo introduced a new product suitable for the ethanol industry. The new iRO (intelligent remote operation) data logger records real-time measurements from inline process analytical sensors. Designed for

temporary installation, the unit is fully compatible with Mettler Toledo’s range of intelligent sensor management digital sensors, and covers measurement of pH, oxygen and conductivity from up to two sensors, simultaneously. Alberta-based Highmark Renewables Research received its sixth patent, this one for its trademarked Integrated bioRefinery technology. The system integrates an anaerobic digester with other bio-production systems for ethanol, biodiesel or algae, plus other possibilities. CEO Evan Chrapko said the anaerobic digester and biogas plant at his family’s feedlot was recently expanded in anticipation of linking it to a proposed 40 MMly (10 MMgy) wheat-to-ethanol plant.

Indore Oil Co. has joined forces with Protec Fuel in opening their 14th E85 fueling location in the Atlanta area. Indore Oil

Matt Horton, CEO of Propel Fuels, was honored with the Biofuels Leadership award at the Third Annual Sustainable Biofuels Awards in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Horton was recognized for providing thousands of drivers with convenient access to low-carbon, domestic fuels through Propel’s growing network of renewable fuel stations. California-based Propel’s business model is to build and maintain retail fueling islands for E85 and biodiesel, cited at filling stations with sufficient space. It also developed a CleanDrive system that allows drivers to track the amount of carbon emissions reduced, and imported oil displaced, through their purchases of renewable fuels. In early May, Propel’s website reported the cumulative total of CO2 reductions for CleanDrive users was 16.7 million pounds and 1.18 million gallons of imported oil displaced.

A new photosynthetic bacteria-based process for biobutanol production now belongs to Phytonix. The North Carolina company developed the process with the help of the Angrstrom Laboratories at Uppsala University in Sweden, and recently received global licensing rights. The bacterium used to create the biobutanol only requires CO2, sunlight and water, according to Bruce Dannenberg, founder and CEO of Phytonix. The cyanobacteria are genetically programmed to self-destruct/die in the natural environment. If for example, Dannenberg explained, these bacteria are exposed to nitrogen in the natural atmosphere, a gene inside of them collapses the cell membrane, and the organism dies. Mascoma Corp. named Stephen Kennedy its executive vice president of research and development. An industry veteran in research and development and commercial produc- Accelerating Commercialization tion experience, he Stephen Kennedy will help move the is charged with and company towards developing translating Mascoma’s commercialization. research and strategy Prior to joining Mas- development into action and coma, Kennedy was execution. most recently executive director at the Novartis/MIT Center for Continuous Manufacturing. For many years, he was involved with Genzyme Corp.’s biologics operations.

Share your industry briefs To be included in Business Briefs, send information (including photos and logos if available) to: Business Briefs, Ethanol Producer Magazine, 308 Second Ave. N., Suite 304, Grand Forks ND 58203. You may also fax information to (701) 7468385, or e-mail it to sretkaschill@bbiinternational.com. Please include your name and telephone number in all correspondence.

cOMMODItIES natural Gas report

All eyes are on storage May 2--The number of rigs drilling for natural gas has dropped by 6 percent since last year, and by 39 percent since april 2008. The percentage of rigs drilling unconventional (shale or tight gas) wells, which produce significantly more natural gas than a conventional well, has increased from 26 percent to 57 percent of total activity since 2008. While the total has dropped, the number of rigs drilling unconventional wells continues to increase, which has so far offset the overall decline in drilling activity. Year-over-year, monthly production is up by 6 percent. At what point does lower drilling activity offset the increased number of higher-producing wells? When (and if) we pass that point, natural gas production will decline and prices will increase. Actual natural gas production information tends to lag by several months, and is

BY cASEY whELAN

subject to revision. As such, using Energy Information Inventory Difference from Five-Year Average (Bcf ) Administration production 80 numbers does not provide 70 68 60 “real time” information. A B 50 proxy used to estimate the C 40 F 30 supply/demand balance is 23 20 the weekly storage injec10 10 10 0 tion/withdrawal report, also -10 -20 published by the EIA. The -11 25-Mar-11 1-Apr-11 8-Apr-11 15-Apr-11 22-Apr-11 storage report provides a glimpse of production changes, after normalizing or if the weak numbers just reflect volatility as for weather conditions. over the past several we move from the withdrawal season to the weeks, inventory changes have been weaker injection season. The accompany chart shows than expected, leading some to assert that nat- the change in inventory volumes relative to ural gas production may finally have peaked. the five-year average over the past five weeks. Storage reports for the next several weeks will As you can see, we have moved from a “net be monitored very closely to determine if positive” to a “net negative” relative to the there is trend pointing to a production drop, five-year average. all eyes are on storage.

corn report

Market inversion adds interest for market watchers May 2—Corn planting lags compared to last year, keeping the market buoyant, although that influence should wane in may. After planting, the focus will shift to demand rationing amidst a perceived tight cash corn

situation. How will flat prices affect demand in the feed, export and ethanol sectors? Evaluating the spreads will be crucial for the end-user during August and September. The inversion in the current market will make the cash markets interestCORN: Stocks/Use vs National Avg. Cash Prices ing during this time $5.75 2011/12 est. frame. $5.50 2010/11 $5.25 The April USDA $5.00 $4.75 report offered no $4.50 change in carryout de$4.25 $4.00 spite the March quar$3.75 terly stocks report be$3.50 $3.25 ing bullish for corn. $3.00 Feed demand decreased $2.75 $2.50 by 50 million bushels $2.25 while ethanol increased $2.00 $1.75 by a like number, re$1.50 sulting in a corn car4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 14% 16% 18% 20% 22% 24% 26% ryout of 675 million

28 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

BY JASON SAgEBIEL

bushels—a 5 percent carryout-to-use ratio. Globally, corn carryout was reduced by 0.71 million metric tons (mmt) from the previous estimate to 122.43 mmt. This is 23.3 mmt less than year ago and 26.6 mmt less than 2008’09. In April, nearby corn futures breached the high for that contract in June of 2008. There is no room for error as corn needs to rejuvenate the ending inventory. A 5 percent carryout-to-use ratio is not comfortable and building back to 10 percent would dampen volatility. The graph illustrates the national average cash corn price versus the corn stocksto-use ratio since 1990. It reveals the ratio’s impact on cash value. The price for 2011-’12 is an estimate. The 1995-’96 campaign is the data point below trend with $3.25 cash and 5 percent carryout to use.

report

Regional Ethanol Prices Front Month Futures (AC) $2.649 REGION

SPOT

RACK

West Coast

$2.715

$2.880

Midwest

$2.580

$2.950

East Coast

$2.670

$2.800 SOURCE: DTN

DDGS Report

Regional Gasoline Prices

Exports lag, but healthy meat sector demands DDGS BY SEAN BRODERICK April 29—As April goes out like a lion, DDGS prices go out with a whimper. Prices as a percentage of corn slipped from winter highs, which is not unusual, but the trade levels we are seeing domestically have scared bulk export business away. Last year, there were trades happening regularly by now for spring and summer bulk export. Today, that would be big news. Turkey, China and South Korea have only bought a fraction of last year’s orders, each for different internal reasons—GMO/political, political/philosophical, and hoof-and-mouth herd reduction. Containers to Asia are about $25 per metric ton cheaper than bulk vessels on a delivered basis, so it may be awhile before we see more large-scale

bulk export. Mexico has been a pretty steady buyer, but plants balance the transit time of the cars that they lease with the prices they receive. The river is flooded for now, so sales for barge movement will be loaded beginning in late May. Domestically, cattle, dairy and hog production, all being profitable, creates healthy local markets. Even poultry feeders lose less when they incorporate DDGS, offsetting corn and soymeal. Looking ahead, the manner in which plants deal with their margin structure is going to affect DDGS supply. With the meat sector having decent profit margins, and whatever happens in spring planting, the DDGS that get produced will stay in demand.

Front Month Futures Price (RBOB) $3.4648 REGION

SPOT

RACK

West Coast

$3.493

$3.384

Midwest

$3.553

$3.195

East Coast

$3.295

$3.143 SOURCE: DTN

DDGS Prices ($/ton) location

JUN 2011

May 2011

Minnesota

195

210

Jun 2010 105

Chicago

203

218

125

Buffalo, N.Y.

220

130

Central Calif.

244

250

155

Central Fla.

240

224

148 SOURCE: CHS Inc.

Corn Futures Prices Date

(July Futures, $/bushel)

High

Low

May 3, 2011

7.43

7.21 1/4

7.23 3/4

April 3, 2011

7.71 1/2

7.40 3/4

7.67 1/2

May 3, 2010

3.78 1/2

3.68 3/4

3.68 3/4 SOURCE: FCStone

Cash Sorghum Prices ($/bushel) LOCATION

Ethanol Report

Gasoline prices rally on lower stocks BY RICK KMENT

May 2—Gasoline inventory levels fell through April. An expected increase in summer driving and talk about the improving economy may draw money back into the market over the coming months. The national average gasoline price nearing $4 may sharply curb consumer spending ahead. For now, gasoline inventories are tighter than both last year and the five-year average, which has helped to push RBOB gasoline futures nearly 20 cents over last month, as strong buying support is developing from commercial and noncommercial (speculative) trades. Current prices are in striking distance of all-time market gasoline highs set in 2008, with the current close just 4 cents lower. If gasoline prices do move to record levels in 2011, will overall demand start

to shut down, or will buyers continue to feed the beast? Ethanol prices have softened over the past month, despite corn’s volatility. Record corn prices have not limited ethanol producers, although traders remain cautious given the recent wide price shifts. Margins are expected to remain extremely tight. Ethanol futures are trading 10 cents below last month with corn still the main focus of most price direction. The ethanol-to-RBOB price spread remains at, or near, record highs, with ethanol futures holding an 82 cent discount to RBOB futures at the end of April. The price spread is expected to continue to remain wide as long as strong buying support is seen through the energy market.

apr 27, 2011

APR 1, 2011

APR 26, 2010

Superior, Neb.

6.77

6.45

3.14

Beatrice, Neb.

6.72

6.56

3.02

Sublette, Kan.

6.62

6.47

2.77

Salina, Kan.

6.60

6.57

3.27

Triangle, Texas

6.97

6.81

3.11

Gulf, Texas

7.30

7.31

3.66

SOURCE: Sorghum Synergies

Natural Gas Prices LOCATION

($/MMBtu)

MAy 1, 2011

APR 1, 2011

MAY 1, 2010

NYMEX

4.57

4.24

4.27

NNG Ventura

4.34

3.36

4.12

CA Citygate

4.34

4.46

4.53

SOURCE: U.S. Energy Services Inc.

U.S. Ethanol Production

(1,000 barrels)

Per day

Month

End stocks

Feb. 2011

907

25,400

20,809

Jan. 2011

920

28,524

20,672

Feb. 2010

833

23,328

18,897

SOURCE: U.S. Energy Information Administration

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 29

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Ethanol News & Trends

Biofuels Barnstorming

From April 13-20, USDA officials visited the sites of a cellulosic ethanol plant under construction, an algae demonstration co-located with an ethanol plant, a biodiesel plant, an agricultural cooperative that supplies ethanol and a university conducting bioenergy research. And that’s not all—more events highlighting renewable energy projects were expected through May. The goal was to express support for the biofuels industry, says Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, who attended three of the five events. “There are tremendous opportunities here,” he says. “The last thing anybody should Touring Progress USDA’s Canales tours the R&D lab at the ICM cellulosic ethanol pilot and demonstration plant in St. Joseph, Mo., on April 13. be doing is cutting the well. “We’ve got to continue moving toward U.S. would still be spending large amounts to legs out from under this industry at a time when oil prices are unsta- a free and open market, and staying engaged subsidize corn. “Vilsack has a firm grasp of with USDA and EPA is important.” the facts surrounding ethanol,” he says. ble.” Also at the roundtable was Rick Schwark, Chris Chung, CEO of the Missouri Poet LLC CEO Jeff Broin was at the president and CEO of Absolute Energy Partnership working to attract and facilitate April 19 roundtable discussion with Vilsack, U.S. EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson and LLC, a 115 MMgy ethanol plant near Saint new business investment, was also pleased others. “Any time we get the opportunity to Ansgar, Iowa. He also got a sense that Jack- with the attention paid to biofuels projects. discuss the biofuels industry with govern- son understood the increasing efficiency of On April 13, USDA Rural Business-Coopment leaders, it’s a positive,” he tells EPM. ethanol production during the last 20 years. erative Service Administrator Judith Canales “I felt like Secretary Vilsack and Administra- “Ethanol and biofuels are not a mature, visited the construction site of the ICM Inc. tor Jackson were impressed with how tech- stagnant industry,” he says. “We are mak- cellulosic ethanol pilot plant in St. Joseph, nology has helped the ethanol and biodiesel ing process improvements continually.” He Mo. “As home to one of only 12 pilot-stage industries evolve. That was a message that calls Vilsack one of ethanol’s strongest ad- biomass projects supported by the Departthey thought the public needs to hear more vocates in Washington, who understands its ment of Energy, it is not surprising that ICM often.” High gas prices are prompting a feel- value to rural America as well as supply and is garnering the attention of the USDA,” he ing of urgency to speed the development of demand fundamentals—that corn prices are says. —Holly Jessen alternatives, he says. Though that’s a positive high because of weather events, not ethanol for the ethanol industry, it’s a challenge as production—and that without ethanol, the 32 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

PHOTO: ST. JOSEPH NEW-PRESS

USDA stages events at multiple locations

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REAPing the Benefits? Much hype has been made over the USDA’s modification of its Rural Energy for America Program to allow fuel retailers the chance for grants and/or loan guarantees to install blender pumps. The changes are, undoubtedly, an important step toward expanding ethanol infrastructure, and the USDA deserves credit for finding ways to continue to provide financial support for domestic biofuels during difficult economic times. But there’s a hitch to the fresh funding: retailers must be located in communities of populations of 50,000 or less. This has some fuel retailers, such as Propel Fuels Inc. CEO Matt Horton, doubtful of the overall effectiveness of the program. “We are hugely supportive of what the USDA is doing,” Horton says. “I think it will inspire some retailers to install blender pumps. Unfortunately I don’t know that it’s going to be, on its own, a big enough incentive to get the kind of adoption that we really need in this country. Our experience has shown that the highest-performing fuel stations don’t tend to be in those rural areas. So a lot of the best real estate is not eligible for this program, which is a bit disappointing.” USDA’s Under Secretary for Rural Development Dallas Tonsager agrees that it would be beneficial if REAP funding could be used for alternative fuel pump installations

in urban areas, but says much of the traffic moving through those higher-populated areas originates in rural areas. Adding blender pumps as an eligible project to REAP is one step in “keeping the ball moving” toward continued biofuels growth, he says. While the USDA funding is a positive step, Propel believes the best way to drive retailers to install flex-fuel pumps is to extend and expand federal tax credits. The federal government currently offers an infrastructure tax credit of 30 percent, up to $50,000, for alternative fuel dispensers. The credit is scheduled to expire at the end of the year. Propel would like to see the tax credit offer extended and expanded to offset up to 50 percent, not to exceed $100,000, of the total project costs. The company would also like the program to be modified so that the tax credit can be claimed based on the entire cost of the project, rather than the incremental cost of the equipment, as is currently the case. “We talk a lot in this industry about grant programs, and we like grants, we’ve benefited from grant programs, but they take a long time to implement and are very cumbersome for individual retailers,” Horton says. “A tax credit is a more straightforward way to incentivize the industry.” Horton says Propel plans to file applications for REAP assistance in its home state

Making Choice Easier EPA modifies conversion kit regulations Citing its support for greater consumer choice at the fuel pump as motivation, the U.S. EPA recently modified regulations for manufacturers of alternative fuel conversion kits to make it easier to sell their products. “Use of alternative fuels opens new fuel supply choices and can help consumers ad-

dress concerns about fuel costs, energy security and emissions,” the EPA stated in an overview of the modifications. “EPA supports such innovation and encourages the development of clean aftermarket technologies that enable broader transportation fuel choices.” Conversion systems are used to modify gasoline or diesel engines to run on natural gas, propane, alcohols, electricity or a blend of fuels. Modifying fuel systems is a poten-

PHOTO: PROPEL FUELS INC.

USDA program for blender pumps leaves out urban sites

Pump Proprietor CEO Matt Horton plans to expand Propel in 2011 and will apply for USDA assistance to expand the availability of Propel’s E85 fuel dispensers.

of California as well as other states where the company has identified promising rural locations for its pumps. And, while he says he hopes the REAP funding will be “the first round of a long-lived program,” he also hopes the USDA will consider waiving the rural requirements as it has done for other programs in order to open up greater possibilities for urban expansion. —Kris Bevill

tial violation of the Clean Air Act, unless approved by the EPA. Previously, a certificate of conformity was required from the EPA to be exempted from the tampering prohibition. The EPA says it now recognizes that not all conversions are the same, and that they vary depending on the age of the vehicle and the type of engine being converted. Therefore, the new regulations, testing and compliance procedures will now differ based on those factors. The EPA says this streamlined, updated approach will save money for conversion kit manufacturers. —Kris Bevill JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 33

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green Stuff grows Up

More than 300 people, including curious locals, biofuels industry representatives, state officials and Secretary of agriculture Tom Vilsack, attended the official grand opening april 15 of bioProcess algae LLc’s commercial-scale algae bioreactor project, held at Green Plains Renewable Energy Inc.’s 55 MMgy Shenandoah, Iowa, ethanol plant. The event marked a truly celebratory moment for the company and the biofuels industry as a whole by bringing wide attention to an innovative technology that could transform the ethanol industry, according to GPrE cEo Todd becker. “What we are accomplishing is showing the world that not only does carbon have value, but that carbon and other byproducts from this ethanol plant can create a product that will give Americans food, feed and fuel,” he says. Vilsack cut the red ribbon at the event and toured the facility. Calling it a “remarkable project” and, declaring that he’s never seen anything quite like it, Vilsack noted four components necessary to the success of the project thus far: financial investment, innovation, networking and a “sense of place,” indicating rural areas are more likely to embrace ethanol-related technologies. The bioreactor project is a collaborative venture between GPrE, filtration product manufacturer clarcor Inc., bioProcessH20 LLc, a wastewater purification technology company, and nTr plc, an international renewable energy investment group. Waste heat, waste water and co2 from the ethanol plant are converted to algae using BioProcess algae’s trademarked Grower Harvester bioreactors. Algae harvested from the bioreactors is comprised of more than 90 percent water, so a dewatering process is applied post-harvest, which results in a product with toothpaste-like consistency. When the project was launched three years ago, the collaborators believed that 34 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

PHOTO: LANCE CHEUNG, USDA

Grand opening marks important step for ethanol-to-algae

Green Machines BioProcess Algae CEO Tim Burns (left) shows Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack (center) and his wife, Christie, the Grower Harvester Technology bioreactors in Phase two at the BioProcess Algae facility at Green Plains Renewable Energy Inc. in Shenandoah, Iowa, on April 15.

downstream markets would be ready when it became commercial. The project has advanced more rapidly than expected, however, leaving GPRE and the others to become product developers as well. Becker says the most likely use for the algae is as a feed product, although it has many other possible applications as well. “Algae gives us one of the greatest opportunities to break our dependence on foreign oil,” he says. Lipids and oils extracted from the algae can be used to produce biodiesel, but the algae could possibly be sent directly to refineries to produce biocrude. a refiner is currently evaluating this possibility. Additionally, tests show it is possible to produce ethanol from the algae. at least at a lab scale, though Becker says that’s probably the lowest-value product that can be produced using the algae. The rate at which the algae project has achieved commercial ability has surprised even the developers. Earlier this year, GPRE announced work would begin next year on a commercial-scale algae farm at the ethanol plant site. But during the bioreactor grand opening, bioProcess algae cEo Tim burns made a surprise announcement that construction would begin much sooner. And in fact, in late april burns confirmed that

site work had begun for the 5-acre farm and said the outdoor reactor will be operational later this summer. Though Burns didn’t specify the capacity of the commercial farm, becker noted during a recent GPrE financial report conference call that if the entire 150,000 tons of co2 produced annually at the Shenandoah plant were to be captured for algae production, it could be used to produce up to 50,000 tons of biomass. once the project reaches the point at which all of the co2 is being used for algae production, it is possible that ethanol produced at plants using the technology might qualify as advanced biofuels. Burns says that while the bioreactors can be fed a wide range of co2-rich emission streams, such as those from coal-fired power plants, cement producers and petroleum refineries, the established infrastructure for transportation fuels and animal feed coproducts is viewed as a huge advantage for the ethanol industry. Therefore, the company’s initial goal is to commercialize co-located algae production facilities throughout the ethanol industry, he says, which will allow BioProcess Algae collaborators to focus on what they do best—“grow algae.” —Kris Bevill

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Fool vs. Fuel

debate keeps getting recycled at ethanol’s expense In april, the Grain Farmers of ontario and Global Renewable Fuels Alliance both attempted to put an end to the food vs. fuel debate. It has been shown many times that food price spikes were not caused primarily by biofuels as originally thought, but by a variety of factors, the main one being higher oil prices. Will now be the time the debate is finally put to rest? The Grain Farmers of ontario released a study on the effects of biofuels on crop prices, food prices and world hunger. Authored by Terry Daynard and KD Communications, the 117-page study identifies four key points. First, biofuels and bioproducts reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the use of fossil fuel—a definite positive for the environment. Since 2007, biofuels have had only a marginal effect on Canadian and international food prices and the small increases have been offset by the fact that biofuels help lower the price of gas for consum-

ers. Current food and crop price spikes will stimulate agricultural development in developing countries. Finally, biofuels and other bioproducts provide an opportunity to use excess agricultural productivity in Canada, as well as address other societal goals. The world’s hungry number about 900 million and have for 40 years. Most hungry people are in Asia, although the numbers are declining there and rapidly growing in Africa, and most live in rural areas. “The ‘grain deficiency’ for the hungry people in the world’s most hungry countries is equivalent to 1.1 percent of annual world grain production,” the study says. “The problem is lack of local food production in hungry rural areas, not supply of grain from the developed world.” To feed the hungry, more local grain production is needed, rather than imports from developed countries, the study added. The spike in grain prices in 2007-’08 was higher for rice and wheat than corn. Rice is much more important as direct human food in most developing countries than corn, the grain most commonly used for biofuel production. World grain supplies did not decline during the price spikes, which were caused mostly by higher energy prices, hoarding, export bans and panic buying by governments,

Dollar at the Grocery Store

says the study. In north america, the corn price increase caused by biofuels affected food prices by less than 1 percent. In April, GRFA called on the United nations Food and agriculture organization to focus on oil prices, the real driver behind rising food costs. “There is very clear evidence that oil prices are continuing to have a disproportionate affect on the price of our food,” said Bliss Baker, spokesperson. The organization points to a USDA report released in early 2011 that answers the question, “For what do our food dollars pay?” (See illustration below.) The report identifies labor costs, packaging and processing, among other inputs. In addition, the USDA estimates that 33 percent of every dollar spent on food covers energy costs, adding that unpredictable energy costs are responsible for the recent food price spikes. “The USDA’s report echoes the GRFA’s position that oil prices are responsible for rising food prices,” Baker says. “The world needs to take decisive action today and expand our capacity to produce reliable, clean and sustainable biofuels in order to move away from our reliance on crude oil.” —Holly Jessen

cost of marketing your food?

Your Dollar at the Grocery Store GRAPHIC: IN FOOD VS FUEL FOLDER IN DISTILLED ART

other

15.8¢

84.2¢

tion,

FARM SHARE

MARKETING SHARE

What is the cost of marketing your food? Food Price Increase What’s the Real Story? Important food items like bread, eggs and milk have high prices that are largely unrelated to ethanol or corn prices, but correspond to fundamental supply/demand relationships in the world. The farm share of the food dollar is the share received by farmers from the sales of raw food commodities. The marketing share includes other costs like labor, transportation, energy and packaging.

SOURCE: DATA FROM USDA ERS/IMAGE COURTESY GROWTH ENERGY

June 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 35

EcoCar Challenge

Midwest team tests E85 hybrid As the three-year competition for the first Eco-Car challenge wrapped up in early June, the U.S. DOE announced the 16 universities selected to compete in EcoCar2. A partnership of General Motors and the DOE, the competition is meant to prepare future engineers for opportunities in clean energy and advanced vehicle industries. “The department is proud to support a program that provides real-world, hands-on experience to the students who will lead the way in designing and building the next generation of automobiles,” says DOE Secretary Steven Chu. “We look forward to seeing the exciting vehicle designs that these promising engineers of the future develop.”

On the list of competitors in EcoCar2 is tion level,” he adds. “The engine efficiency is the team from Ohio State University, which actually averaging 40 to 41 percent, whereas is wrapping up work on the first competi- the diesels it is competing against are only tion. The OSU team, made up of graduate getting 38 percent and the gasoline engines and undergraduate students, chose E85 for closer to 35 to 36 percent.” In addition to using E85, the vehicle is the first year competition for a variety of reasons, says Eric Schacht, an electrical engi- a hybrid electric. It uses electricity for about neering graduate student at OSU. Although the first 40 miles, after which the E85 engine the renewable fuel is a likely frontrunner for automatically turns on. “When the engine its EcoCar2 effort, the final decision has not is on, the vehicle runs as a hybrid electric yet been made. The team chose E85 from vehicle with regenerative braking and two options of electricity or four standard fuels: modes, a low-speed-series hybrid mode and B20, E10, E85 or hydrogen, Schacht says. a highway-speed-parallel hybrid mode,” he The team then converted two compressed says. —Holly Jessen natural gas engines to E85, helping it to achieve high efficiency with a compression ratio of 12:5:1, higher than the compression rates for a standard gasoline engine. “The team’s vehicle is for the first time in these competitions getting emissions levels Earth friendly The U.S. DOE’s EcoCar2 challenge will span the next three years. below the U.S. certifica-

Funding Better Biomass USDA, DOE seek collaborative projects The USDA and the U.S. DOE will jointly fund five to 10 projects over the next several years focused on researching and developing advanced biofuels, bioenergy and high-value biobased products. The USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture will contribute $25 million to the Biomass Research and Development Initiative, while the DOE will provide up to $5 million through its Biomass Program. The agencies anticipate providing between $3 million and $7 million to each approved project. Eligible projects will need to cover three focus areas—feedstock development, product development and biofuels development analysis. The agencies said integrating these technical areas into each project will encourage collaborative problem-solving approaches and will assist in identifying and addressing knowledge gaps. Among the issues to be addressed by these projects are the critical areas of harvest, transport, preprocessing and 36 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

storage of biomass for biofuels production. The lack of logistics systems for biomass feedstocks has been a significant barrier to the commercialization of advanced biofuels such as cellulosic ethanol. The agencies want projects to focus on dedicated biofuel crops, innovative equipment designs and systems for biomass conversion and strategies for incorporating feedstock production with existing managed land, among other things. Approved projects will also be expected to develop analytic tools that can be used to evaluate the impact of expanded biofuel production on the environment and to assess the potential of using available federal land for feedstock production. The agencies are also interested in projects focused on the research, development and demonstration of technologies using biochemical conversion, thermochemical conversion and chemical conversion to produce advanced biofuels and/or biobased

products. In the funding announcement, the agencies noted that the DOE Biomass Program has been focused on making cellulosic ethanol cost competitive with corn ethanol, resulting in the first generation of cellulosic ethanol technology now reaching demonstration scale. Cellulosic ethanol projects will be allowed to apply for the new funding, but the agencies are interested in also supporting such projects on biobutanol, hydrocarbons and Fischer-Tropsch gasoline and diesel. Additionally, the USDA is seeking farmbased and commercial demonstration projects that will quantify the benefits of using biodiesel to produce ethanol. The objectives are to improve the sustainability footprint of ethanol production, to determine the benefits of using biodiesel over traditional diesel and to update economic and environmental models, the agency stated. Approved projects are expected to be announced later this year. —Kris Bevill

PHOTO: ECOCAR2

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Savings at the Pump

89 cents per gallon saved in 2010 On April 27, May futures for reformulated gasoline (RBOB) were $3.45 per gallon, compared to $2.64 per gallon for ethanol—81 cents higher. With recent crude oil prices, that price spread ranged from 60 to 80 cents per gallon for most of April and has averaged about 40 cents per gallon since the beginning of 2011, says Geoff Cooper, vice president of research and analysis for the Renewable Fuels Association. The price spread, along with savings from the blenders credit, translates into real savings at the gas pump. In addition, Cooper points out, ethanol also impacts gas prices by adding to the fuel supply, an effect that grows

as ethanol production increases. “Several economists have estimated that the ability of ethanol to extend fuel supplies, coupled with ethanol’s relative discount to gasoline, means gasoline is 40 to 60 cents per gallon less than it would be without ethanol,” he says. “The impact may be even larger in cases where oil prices are extremely high, as we are seeing today.” A report from the Center for Agricultural and Rural Development confirms that from January 2000 to December 2010, ethanol production reduced wholesale gas prices by an average of 25 cents per gallon. In the Midwest, the impact was larger, reducing gas prices by 39 cents per gallon. Looking at 2010 only, thanks to the impact of crude oil prices and increased ethanol production, ethanol reduced the price of gas an average of 89 cents per gallon—58 cents per gallon in the East Coast and $1.37 per gallon for the Midwest. The report also delved into what might happen to U.S. gas prices if ethanol produc-

tion were halted immediately. With the ethanol industry now supplying 10 percent of the U.S. fuel supply, oil refiners would not be able to make up for that supply in the short term, leading to increased gas prices. “Under a very wide range of parameters, the gas price increase would be of historic proportions, ranging from 41 to 92 percent,” the report said. Meanwhile, at the same time the CARD report was released, oil companies announced massive profits, leading to more calls for an end to oil subsidies. BP raked in $5.5 billion in 2011 first-quarter profit, topped by Exxon’s $10.65 billion and Royal Dutch Shell’s $6.3 billion in profits. Notably, Exxon’s first-quarter profits amounted to a 69 percent increase. “It’s time we end the handouts to big oil companies,” says Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy. “It’s time we take what are the hidden costs and put them out in the sunlight. Let’s see what it really costs the taxpayer for our addiction to foreign oil.” —Holly Jessen

E10 on the Water

Proving ethanol and boating can coexist and for the entire 2011 NBRA series event races, hydroplane and runabout racing boats will fly across the water powered by none other than E10. “American boaters have been utilizing ethanol-blended fuel safely and effectively for years,” says Vernon Barfield, NBRA spokesperson. “Ethanol-blended fuel provides the high-performance engines in this series with the horsepower and performance they need to win. We are excited to show that our racing boats Boating on E10 The Renewable Fuels Association and the National Boat Racing are able to perform Association have teamed up to fuel hydroplane and runabout racing boats with E10 to their best capafor the 2011 NBRA racing season. PHOTO: NBRA

The first National Boat Racing Association Ethanol Challenge Series was held in Somerville, Texas, in early May. At that event,

bility using E10 fuel, shaking the myths that ethanol harms marine engines.” The fuel will be supplied through a newly formed partnership between the Renewable Fuels Association and NBRA. “We are thrilled to partner with NBRA to dispel any notion that ethanol is an unfit fuel for marine engines,” says Robert White, RFA director of market development. “The use of E10 in these racing boats proves that this fuel is as effective during your weekly commute in your automobile as it is on your weekend boating trips.” Information packets will be given out to educate fans and the “Fueled with Pride” logo will be displayed on signs, uniforms, course buoys and flags, T-shirts sold at the races, national trophies and near refueling areas of all boats. In addition, cash awards will be given to race participants that promote the fact that they are using E10. —Holly Jessen JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 37

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Renewable Fuel in China GE, LanzaTech, Greentech advance ethanol projects Three ethanol projects in China were announced this spring. A demonstration plant, which will produce ethanol from steel mill off-gases, is a project of LanzaTech, the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Baosteel Group Corp. They have formed a joint venture, Shanghai Baosteel LanzaTech New Energy Company Ltd., to build a 100,000 gallon-a-year facility near Shanghai to be completed by the end of the year. The model will be quickly scaled up for the first commercial plant in China, potentially capable of producing 50 MMgy of ethanol as well as chemicals for the production of polymers and drop-in fuels from CO2 or carbon monoxide. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Because China produces 50 percent of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s steel and already has ethanol mandates in many of its provinces, it is a natural first market for LanzaTechâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s technology,â&#x20AC;? says Jennifer Holmgren, CEO of Lanzatech. The companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s technology ferments and converts gases into fuels and chemicals. It can utilize industrial flue gases from steel mills and processing plants, coal-derived syngas and steam-reformed methane or syngas

generated from any biomass resource. â&#x20AC;&#x153;China is keenly aware of the importance of producing fuels without impacting the food supply, making LanzaTechâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s technology ideally suited for implementation there,â&#x20AC;? Holmgren tells EPM. â&#x20AC;&#x153;In addition, the production of ethanol at Chinese steel mills enables savings on the total cost of production of alternate fuels as most steel mills are in large industrial centers, which are highly populated. The use of biomass to make fuels in China requires the addition of large transport costs, as the biomass is typically a considerable distance from the urban centers where the fuel ethanol is needed.â&#x20AC;? Another project under development is a 33.5 MMgy ethanol plant in Harbin, China. American Jianye Greentech Holdings Ltd., a developer, manufacturer and distributor of alcohol-based fuel in China, and partner GeneSyst International announced completion of the design of the Suihua Waste-toFuel Plant. Expected to be completed in 18 months, the plant will process more than 500,000 tons of garbage and 1 million tons of sewage a year into ethanol and power,

generating annual sales of about $100 million annually. The fuel produced by this process is cleaner and costs less than conventional fuels, says Haipeng Wang, chairman and president of Jianye Greentech. â&#x20AC;&#x153;By producing our own ethanol from municipal solid waste and sludge, we can lower the input costs for our blended fuels in excess of 15 percent,â&#x20AC;? he added. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our blended fuel combines ethanol and petroleum fuel, along with our proprietary fuel catalyst, which allows us to increase the concentration of ethanol up to 85 percent.â&#x20AC;? Finally, GE announced that it would provide its Jenbacher biogas engine technology to power an ethanol plant under construction in NanYang by Henen Tianguan Group. The engines will be installed in a 36 megawatt power plant to utilize the ethanol plantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s waste methane biogas to generate renewable electricity that will be sold to the grid and used to power the ethanol plant. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Installing GEâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Jenbacher biogas engines at our ethanol production facility will offer clear environmental benefits and help us achieve significant energy efficiency gains to help us generate more profits and become more competitive throughout the region,â&#x20AC;? says Zhang Xiaoyang, chairman of the Henan Tianguan Group. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Holly Jessen

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Sustainability Doesn’t Come Cheap USDA grants $36 million for research

The USDA is providing $36 million through its National Institute of Food and Agriculture research initiative to 42 projects focused on advancing the production of biofuels, bioenergy and biobased products. Projects are spread throughout 25 states and primarily focus on feedstocks and products that can be cultivated and utilized within each specific region. Switchgrass and sugarcane, for example, will be the topics of research in California. Prairie grasses and perennial energy crops will be explored in Oklahoma, Kansas, Minnesota and Virginia. Michigan research will focus on woody biomass while researchers in Texas and Pennsylvania will conduct work on sorghum-focused projects. Other research projects will be conducted to develop life-cycle analysis methods for biofuels, to develop technology and equipment for use with biomass conversion processes, and to study potential pests affecting future bioenergy feedstocks.

Voilá!

Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack says the wide-ranging projects are consistent with the federal government’s plan to outeducate, out-innovate and out-build other nations also ramping up renewable energy efforts. “These projects will give us the scientific information needed to support biofuel production and create coproducts that will enhance the overall value of a biobased economy,” he says. The NIFA research initiative was established as part of the 2008 Farm Bill and is focused on six areas: plant health and production and animal products; food safety, nutrition and health; renewable energy, natural resources and environment; agriculture systems and technology; and agriculture economics and rural communities. The average grant through this round was about $863,000, while three received $1 million each. Auburn University researchers in Auburn, Ala., will explore the sustainable production of hydrocarbon fuels and chemicals. South Dakota State University researchers will work on a long-term project to design a bioenergy feedstock production system. A Virginia Tech project will identify switchgrass rust resistance genes that can be incorporated into the plants to ensure large-scale and sustainable production of the crop. —Kris Bevill

Poet’s corn oil technology arrives Approximately 10 million pounds of corn oil will be produced this year at the 57 MMgy Poet Biorefining-Hudson (S.D.) ethanol plant and sold into the biodiesel and feed markets, says Clayton Vaughan, director of business development at Poet Nutrition. The plant is the first of Poet’s 27 production facilities to produce the company’s trademarked Voilá corn oil, which is extracted through technology installed on the back end of the fermentation process. According to Poet, because the corn oil is captured after corn is subjected to the company’s unique cold-cook fermentation process, the oil produced contains a low free fatty acid, making it a high quality product. Plans are being finalized to install the technology at Poet’s other plants, this year Vaughan says. —Kris Bevill

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End of an Era

is the final chapter in the story,” says Ralph Groschen, senior marketing specialist at the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. “This program allowed Minnesota to build a dozen ethanol plants that were farmer cooperatives and is what really got the ball rolling for other plants. Without this program, we wouldn’t have the ethanol industry we have.” The incentive program was initially set to expire in 2010, but budget troubles led to paying only 13 cents for each gallon pro-

Minnesota to pay final state incentives

Minnesota will pay the final round of state ethanol producer payments to nine facilities in the next year. The legislative approval of approximately $13 million in funds marks the end of an incentive program that was launched in the mid-1980s. “It basically

duced in 2004-’07, rather than 20 cents per gallon, deferring the rest. Plants constructed after 2010 do not qualify and some of the first plants have closed, Groschen says, so the money approved in this year’s agriculture bill should bring the balance owed to zero. Minnesota’s initial goal was to establish an industry with an operating capacity of 200 MMgy, providing 10 percent of the state’s transportation fuel needs. “And now we have 1.1 billion gallons of capacity in the state,” Groschen says. “I think most people are thinking, ‘Mission accomplished. Let’s go on and do other things now.’” He says the state is ready to invest in other biofuel projects, such as cellulosic ethanol and renewable diesel. “Something to carry on this legacy of new ways to add value to Minnesota agriculture commodities,” he says. —Kris Bevill

Label Change Tabled

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Legislation introduced in Nebraska to eliminate required labels for ethanol-blended fuels has been tabled by the bill’s sponsor following backlash from the local petroleum lobby and concern from the ethanol industry that an amended bill would do more damage than good. In January, State Sen. Mark Christensen introduced a bill to eliminate the need for any retail pumps dispensing fuel containing more than 1 percent ethanol to be labeled. The measure passed the first of three rounds of votes, but was amended to instead require that any fuel containing no ethanol be marked with a “No ethanol” label. This change concerned the Nebraska Ethanol Board, according to Christensen. “When the industry decided it may not be beneficial to them, I knew the bill was going to die so we just opted to lift the bill,” he says. “I think we can amend it next year and maybe get this passed. We’re just trying to take a positive approach and make sure we’re doing things the right way,” he adds. —Kris Bevill

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‘Nintendo for Biofuel Nerds’ Virtual biorefinery control room coming soon

It’s the next best thing to the real thing and it’s almost ready to be put to the test. A group of students and researchers at Iowa State University, led by agricultural and biosystems engineering associate professor David Grewell, has designed a virtual biorefinery control room that lets users experiment with new feedstocks and technologies, as well as gain experience with the daily operations of a plant, complete with realistic emergencies. The Interactive Biorefinery Operations Simulator, or I-BOS, has been under development for almost three years and should be available for widespread use by September.

The USDA, Renewable Energy Group Inc., Lincolnway Energy LLC, Fastek International Ltd., Crown Iron Works Co. and Emerson Electric Co. all contributed to the $300,000 project. Grewell, who calls the virtual control room “Nintendo for biofuel nerds,” says the simulator is based on existing Iowa ethanol and biodiesel facilities. The program will be used this fall by students in a biorenewables technology class at the university to train them on production processes and plant emergency procedures “before they get to play with the real expensive toys,” he says. Because the USDA is a sponsor of the project, it will be made available to all U.S. producers at no cost. Grewell says the application will be made available for downloading through a website so that producers can train their employees or test new technologies and feedstocks. Given enough information—results from pilot-scale testing for example—the program could even be used to determine the feasibility of newly

developed technologies and/or feedstocks. “Everything is based on fundamentals, so if we put a new feedstock in there, we have to have an understanding of what happens to it as we send it through pre-treatment,” he says. “Whether you’re doing something like an ammonia steeping process or a hot water treatment for switchgrass, for example, we would have to know what happens and be able to characterize those.” The industry has supported the research project because it will increase the productivity of biorefineries, Grewell says, adding that workers will be better trained with less on-the-job training required. By late April, Grewell said he was already swamped with requests from producers interested in both the training aspects and the technology testing abilities of the program. —Kris Bevill

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 41

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FEW Features

High-octane Line-up this year’s international Fuel ethanol workshop & expo is in indianapolis—a perfect place to examine nAscAr’s historic move to e15 BY hOLLY JESSEN

less than a year ago, american Ethanol announced a sixyear agreement with naSCaR, kicking off a high-profile marketing effort aimed at its millions of fans. At the International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo, set for June 27-30, conference goers will have a chance to hear more about that decision directly from the man behind the wheel of naScar, cEo brian France, the grandson of naScar’s co-founder, bill France Sr.

Ethanol Salute The American Ethanol flag waves over the field during the start of the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Kolbalt Tools 400 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. PHOTO: TODD WARSHAW/GETTY IMAGES FOR NASCAR

June 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 45

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France and Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis will share a keynote speaking spot the morning of June 28, the first full day of FEW. Directly NASCAR Chief following, a plenary CEO Brian France panel including NAannounces that NASCAR would use SCAR representaSunoco Green E15 in tives Mike Lynch, October at Charlotte Motor Speedway. director of greening, and Eric Nyquist, president of strategic development, will dig into the details of how the partnership between stock car auto racing and American-made ethanol is a win from start to finish. “There’s no sport more American than NASCAR and there’s no fuel more American than ethanol,” Buis tells EPM. “So that fit is just perfect.” By the end of April, Buis had attended two NASCAR races, the first of the season at the Daytona International Speedway and a second at Las Vegas Motor SpeedPromoting E15 Growth Energy CEO way. The American Tom Buis will join Ethanol brand is NASCAR’s CEO in the prominently visible keynote discussion on American Ethanol’s at races, with more sponsorship. than 100,000 people waving green flags bearing the logo. For the viewers, television commercials promote domestic ethanol, such as one that features tractors rolling down highways from their farms to enter the race track. There’s also an American Ethanol in-car camera, which gets moved to various vehicles, providing even more visibility for ethanol. No less significant is the fact that every vehicle on the track uses E15. “Every weekend in victory lane is a car powered by American ethanol,” Buis says. American Ethanol also holds promotional events, where race fans learn more about the fuel from farmers and those involved in the ethanol industry. American Ethanol also has spokespeople in race car

drivers Kenny Wallace and Clint Bowyer. Promoting E15 is easy, Bowyer tells EPM, because it’s such a great product. “I’m from the Midwest,” he says. “I’ve seen the impact that it’s made throughout the Midwest.”

Other Highlights

Although racing will be a big part of the 27th annual FEW, it won’t be the only game in town. The plenary session on day two of FEW includes some big names as well. First, Bob Dinneen, president and CEO of the Renewable Fuels Association will give attendees a legislative update, speaking about broadening the industry’s scope. Following will be a plenary panel titled “Forming a Voice for the Next Generation of Ethanol Production.” Brooke Coleman, executive director of the Advanced Ethanol Council, will moderate the panel that will include Wes Bolsen, chief marketing officer and vice president of government affairs, Coskata Inc.; Bill Brady, president and CEO, Mascoma Corp.; and John McCarthy, president and CEO, Qteros Inc., all founding members of the newly formed group. “The advanced and cellulosic ethanol industry has finally come together, but now is the time for the entire biofuels industry to speak with one voice,” Bolsen says. “With enduring support, advanced biofuels will create jobs, help reduce our country’s dependence on foreign oil, lower greenhouse Policy Update Bob Dinneen, gas emissions and president and CEO help reduce the fed- of the Renewable Fuels Association, will eral trade deficit.” keynote the second day RFA and a of FEW. group of companies in the advanced ethanol arena announced formation of the AEC in February. The group, whose founding members also include Abengoa Bioenergy Corp., BlueFire Renewables, Enerkem Inc., Fulcrum BioEnergy Inc., Inbicon A/S, Iogen Corp. and Osage Bio Energy LLC, will zero in

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on commercializing advanced ethanol. “American ethanol production is one of the most dynamic industries anywhere in the world,” Dinneen says. “The innovative companies founding the AEC are leading the evolution of domestic ethanol production to include a vast array of feedstocks. The RFA is proud to join with the members of the AEC and continue its work building a bigger and broader American ethanol industry.” The afternoons of June 28 and 29 will be jam-packed with useful information in four areas: production, management, cellulosic ethanol and coproducts/product diversification. Attendees can either select the track that most interests them and sit in from the first panel presentation to the last, or pick and choose among the various presentations. In all, more than 80 speakers have been selected to give presentations, with more being added to the list as the event approaches. Matt Henry, an environmental engineer with Pinnacle Engineering Inc., will speak on compliance during a panel presentation in the management track. He’ll be covering the differences and similarities between OSHA’s Process Safety Management program and the U.S. EPA’s Risk Management Program. As a past FEW attendee, Henry points out that even though the event is only for a few days, it’s a great place to learn about many up-and-coming issues in a short Compliance period of time. “I Comparison always find FEW to Matt Henry with Pinnacle Engineering be a very compact will cover OSHA and source of informaEPA’s programs that impact ethanol plants. tion,” he tells EPM.

Fruit of the Fiber

As has been true for many years, cellulosic ethanol is one of the hottest topics at FEW. One of the many speakers to tackle that subject is Sabrina Trupia, an assistant director of biological research at the National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Center,

who will speak on a panel called “Breaking the Feedstock Code: Pathways to Cellulosic Ethanol from New Inputs.” Trupia will present the findings of three years of research to characterize, saccharify and ferment corn kernel fiber. The goal is to help producers add cellulosic ethanol production at existing corn ethanol plants by fractionating the corn at the front end and using the fiber as an additional feedstock. “The idea of our research is, let’s look at the easiest cellulosic material to get, from existing ethanol production and then move forward,” she says, adding that producers could later add corn stover and corn cobs to their feedstock repertoire. The research is ready to move past the bench scale for optimization, she says. NCERC, which is a non-profit organization with the goal of helping the ethanol industry, is interested in developing a protocol that all ethanol producers could use to make additional fuel from corn fiber. “The next step we are hoping to get funded is a scaleup procedure,” she says. Converting Fiber Another area Sabrina Trupia with National Corn to of research is pre- the Ethanol Research treatment to access Center will report their continuing the sugars in corn on research. fiber. NCERC has studied pretreatment procedures such as steam explosion, dilute acid pretreatment, liquid ammonia soaking, caustic pretreatment and lime pretreatment. Dilute acid pretreatment came out on top, resulting in about 75 percent liquefaction of the total mass as well as complete saccharification of the hemicellulose component while allowing for the highest degree of cellulosic enrichment. The other methods of pretreatment resulted in up to 60 percent of mass liquefaction and rendered cellulose component digestible by commercial cellulases, she says.

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Coproducts Advance

A coproduct that’s getting a lot of attention right now is zein. Douglas Tiffany, assistant extension professor at the University of Minnesota, will talk about zein in a panel presentation called “High-Value Coproducts from Ethanol Sidestreams.” There’s a market for zein in food preservation—it can be sprayed on fruits or vegetables to keep them fresh. The question is whether zein from DDGS can break into that existing market, Tiffany says. In the past, ethanol plants produced only two products: ethanol and DDGS. With a technology developed by Pavel Krasutsky, program director of the Natural Resources Research Institute at the University of Minnesota, Duluth, heated ethanol can be leached through distillers grains, resulting in zein and other coproducts. The alcohol pulls out corn oil, which can then be diverted to biodiesel production. The process also pulls out solubles, which contain a fair amount of glycerin and can be converted by bacteria into

48 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

additional ethanol. “In terms of products to be sold, an additional 10 percent ethanol and 10 percent biodiesel or jet fuel beyond the amount of ethanol already recovered from starch fermentation can be sold from every bushel of corn processed,” he says, adding that the additional ethanol from glycerin should be considered an advanced biofuel. Not only does the method remove all traces of antibiotics used in the ethanol process, but it leaves behind a high-protein Zein Process DDG product. TypiDouglas Tiffany cally DDG is 28 perfrom the University of Minnesota will cent crude protein, bring FEW goers up Tiffany says, but this to date on work to back-end process recommercialize a zein process that has many sults in DDG protein benefits. concentrated to 34 percent. With tight margins due to high-price corn, this extraction process would help eth-

anol producers get more out of every bushel of corn. “Research results suggest that as little as 1 percent of the ethanol used in extraction is lost in the process, residing mostly in the high protein feed,” he says. The research group he is part of is now working with Crown Iron Works Co. to take what was learned in the lab and see how it will perform at a bigger scale. In addition, a substantial amount of the high protein DDG was made available for different livestock feeding trials. By the time FEW rolls around, Tiffany hopes to have more solid numbers to report on the extraction research and feeding trials, he says.

Other Events

While the education, networking and business opportunities at FEW are invaluable, the event is also known for its stellar entertainment. In keeping with the racing theme, it’s all about the brickyard this year. The brickyard nickname came about because the Indianapolis Motor Speedway was once

PHOTO: INDIANAPOLIS CONVENTION & VISITORS ASSOCIATION

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Racing History The IMS Hall of Fame Museum has one of the world’s largest, most varied collections of racing, classic and antique cars including more than 30 Indianapolis 500 winning cars.

paved in bricks and still has some bricks at the starting/finish line. NASCAR races were first held there in 1994 at the first Brickyard 400 and in 1996 driver Dale Jerret started the tradition of “kissing the bricks,” when the winning driver and crew pucker up and actually kiss the bricks at the finish line.

The FEW fun starts with the traditional golf outing, held this year at the Brickyard Crossing golf course, which has four of its holes inside the speedway and remnants of the old pit walls used in bulkheading around the lakes on the outside holes. June 29, the final day of panel presen-

tations at FEW, wraps up with a trip to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum, located within the speedway oval. The original hall of fame was established in 1956 but was only large enough to display a few vintage cars. The current museum opened in 1976 and has at least 75 vehicles on display at all times, including winning Indy 500 cars and a rare 1935 Duesenberg Model JN four-door convertible passenger car. Participants will also have the chance to do a lap around the museum track in a small bus and take pictures inside a real Indy race car. On the last day of FEW, June 30, participants will be offered a tour of the Poet Biorefining plant in Cloverdale, Ind. The 90 MMgy ethanol plant is the company’s 27th plant, and first acquisition, that was retrofitted with Poet technology and restarted in late March.

Author: Holly Jessen Associate Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine (701) 738-4946 hjessen@bbiinternational.com

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 49

Water

50 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

WATER

Water:

Reduce, Reuse and Recycle Not content to simply go with the flow, ethanol producers are working to reduce water use By Holly Jessen

Water conservation is a top priority for Poet LLC, which recently surpassed Archer Daniels Midland Co. as the largest ethanol producer in the U.S. “Fresh water is a precious natural resource that we do our utmost to conserve,” says Jeff Broin, CEO of Poet. “We have seen tremendous efficiency

gains in the 23 years I’ve been in this business, but we can and will continue to do better.” In March 2010, Poet said it would aim for a 22 percent reduction in water use across all its facilities by 2012. The company, which today includes 27 production

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 51

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WATERLOO, IOWA 52 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

facilities with a combined 1,696 MMgy of ethanol production, is aiming for an average of 2.33 gallons of water per gallon of ethanol produced. Industry wide, the amount of water it takes to produce ethanol has decreased steadily over the years. The latest numbers, taken from a 2010 report by Steffen Mueller of the University of Illinois at Chicago, reveal that on average, a dry mill cornethanol plant in 2008 used 2.72 gallons of water to produce one gallon of ethanol and discharged 0.46 gallons of water. The survey also revealed that ethanol producers are continuing to consider installing more efficient water use technologies. To produce corn from ethanol, water is required for grinding, liquefaction, fermentation and separation as well as process water, cooling water and steam generation for heating and drying, according to the Argonne National Laboratory, “Water Consumption in the Production of Ethanol and Petroleum Gasoline,” published in 2009 in the Journal of Environmental Management, the most current study available. Water losses happen during evaporation, drift, blowdown from the cooling tower, deaerator leaks, boiler blowdown, evaporation from the dryer and incorporation into ethanol and DDGs. By far, the heaviest water users are the cooling tower, which accounts for 53 percent, and the dryer, which accounts for 42 percent. Those numbers show that alternative cooling technologies would be a good place for further research, says Andy Aden, senior research engineer for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. There are existing technologies, such as dry cooling or air cooling, offering opportunities for significant reduction. “Unfortunately, those tend to come with a trade-off, which is increased cost,” he says. The Argonne report identified several areas for potential water reduction measures at ethanol plants, including increasing process water recycling by such methods as capturing water vapor from the dryer and recycling boiler condensate; increasing cycles in the cooling tower; or recycling treated process water and/or cooling

tower blowdown. If those measures were coupled with steam integration, water intensity can be reduced even more. “The ethanol industry maintains Tracking Use that net zero waA senior research engineer at NREL, ter consumption is Andy Aden says water achievable by water use comparisons are difficult when different reuse and recycling parameters are used in using existing comstudies. mercial technology and with additional capital investment,” the report says. Michael Webber, associate director of the Center for International Energy & Environmental Policy, offers ethanol producers another reason to conserve water. Although not many make the connection, he says, water is needed to generate energy, such as at a power plant or ethanol plant, and energy is needed to deliver clean water. “Many people are concerned about the perils of peak oil—running out of cheap oil,” he says in a 2008 article he authored for Scientific American. “A few are voicing concerns about peak water. But almost no one is addressing the tension between the two: water restrictions are hampering solutions for generating more energy, and energy problems, particularly rising prices, are curtailing efforts to supply more clean water.” Ethanol producers are very aware of the water conservation issue. Overall, the industry has reduced water use 48 percent in less than 10 years, the Argonne report says. Poet isn’t the only example of an ethanol producer that is applying the “reduce, reuse and recycle” principle to water consumption. Other producers on the cutting edge of water conservation include a North Dakota plant that uses wastewater for 100 percent of its water needs and a Minnesota plant that got tough on water discharge.

Waste Not Water

When the site in Casselton, N.D., was selected for Tharaldson Ethanol LLC, it

Larimore

R. RAIS N. MA

E CR .

CR.

BEAR

LT CR .

C RI

BILLINGS

WILD RICE LAKE NWR NORTH BAY DAM TEWAUKON NWR

MINN-DAK FARMERS COOP

Wahpeton

RIC

E R.

W I

Forman

HANKINSON RENEWABLE ENERGY ETHANOL PLANT

STARK

Hankinson HANKINSON RENEWABLE ENERGY ETHANOL PLANT

SLOPE

DR Y

Where’s the Water? The Casselton, N.D., location was good for supplies of corn, energy and access to transportation for Tharaldson Ethanol, but not located very near groundwater to drill wells, shown in this map as shaded areas. Map Legend Approved DAKOTA LAKE NWR

TEWAUKON NWR

Rivers, Streams & Lakes

WATER USERS

BOWMAN

HETTINGER

Irrigated Acres

3,584

in 2010

GRAND FORKS

26,082

STEELE

Rural & Regional Water Systems

1,001-5,000

2,296

CASS

27,781

SARGENT

16,923

5,001-10,000

RICHLAND

Rivers, Streams & Lakes WATER USERS

Rural & Regional Water Systems

Major Watershed Boundaries

10,001-15,000 >15,001

13,916

RANSOM

IRR. DISTRICT

Irrigation Districts

(SW=Surface Water; GW= Ground Water)

Completed Water Facilities

Potential for was because it had good access to corn and solution for all parties involved. not only Development, North Dakota’s energy, as well as rail and road transportaGround does the ethanol plant reuse wastewater Water tion infrastructure. The weakness was wa-Aquifersthat would typically be treated and dister supply, says russ newman, vice presi- charged into the Red River, but it generates dent of public relations and governmental income for the City of Fargo and Cass Ruaffairs for the 150 MMgy ethanol plant. ral Water rather than sucking up groundwaThe company started the process to ter, says Jerry Blomeke, general manager of get permission from the north Dakota the Cass county system, which completed Water Commission to drill wells at one the project cooperatively with Tharaldson of the nearest aquifers. not only are the and Fargo. aquifers located 20 or more miles away, The $15.3 million project included but there was no guarantee Tharaldson building a wastewater treatment plant and would get approval after going through the installing 26 miles of underground lines, long process of required public hearings. with 12-inch pipe used for pumping waThat’s when the idea of using wastewater ter to the ethanol plant and a 4-inch line from Fargo started looking more attractive returning to Fargo. First, Fargo treats its than wells that would be tapping into the wastewater at the city’s wastewater treatsame groundwater ment facility. Then, about 10 percent of used by some area the water it would normally discharge into farmers to irrigate the Red River is diverted to a separate wathe corn they’d ter treatment plant where it undergoes mibe selling to the crofiltration and reverse osmosis in prepaethanol plant. “We ration for use at the ethanol plant, Blomeke thought, why fight tells EPM. Cass Rural Water purchases the with those farmers water from Fargo and sells it to TharaldWater Cooperation for that same wason for $2.92 per thousand gallons, which The lack of water at the Tharaldson ter, when we can works out to 0.03 cents a gallon. Ethanol plant site led recycle city wasteThe Tharaldson facility produces to a partnership to use treated waste water water?” newman about 400,000 gallons of ethanol a day usfrom nearby Fargo, says. ing 1 million gallons of water in the sumN.D., says Russ It’s an elegant mer and about 800,000 gallons in the winNewman.

0-1,000

TRAILL

2,890

901

RANSOM

RICHLAND

SARGENT

Lower your cost per gallon, improve plant operabiility and lower your carbon footprint. ROLETTE

BOTTINEAU

McHENRY

TOWNER

WARD

*Includes 17,717 acres irrigated from a Montana point of diversion.

**Includes 13,538 acres from the Bureau of Recla5,462 mation permit on the Heart River.

Glacial Drift Aquifers

IRR. DISTRICT

Irrigation Districts

(SW=Surface Water; GW= Ground Water)

Dams (>5000 Acre-Feet Max. Volume) National Wildlife Refuges (>1000 Acres) National Wildlife Refuges (<1000 Acres)

State, National, & International Parks

PEMBINA

CAVALIER

RAMSEY

PIERCE

WALSH

BENSON

NELSON

McLEAN

SHERIDAN

WELLS

GRAND FORKS

EDDY

GRIGGS

STEELE

TRAILL

FOSTER MERCER

OLIVER

MORTON

GRANT

Energy Facilities 25 Largest Industrial Water Users (Point of Diversion)

STUTSMAN The KIDDER red shaded area represents the maximum extent of rocks belonging to the Bakken Formation in North Dakota, whileBURLEIGH the green outline represents LOGAN the extent EMMONS Forksof the Three Sanish, lying below the Bakken. Significant amountsMcINTOSH of water are required to support oil drilling operations in these areas.

BARNES

LaMOURE

DICKEY

CASS

RANSOM

RICHLAND

SARGENT

BIOGAS-TS

Cities (Pop. >1000) & County Seats

Glacial Drift Aquifers

3,989

RENVILLE

SIOUX ADAMS

Major Watershed Boundaries

PEMBINA

SOURCE: N.D. STATE WATER COMMISSION

M I N N E S O T A

S. BRANCH GO O SE R.

E L. P IPEST

W I

R AV E

LT CR .

C R.

S. BRANCH

CR LF

UN BO

ST ON EC

CR. T BANK

CR. TLE

CR.

BEAR

QU A

(GW)

DAKOTA LAKE NWR

CR.

CH R.

Oakes DICKEY-SARGENT

DUNN

CARGILL INC.

GOLDEN VALLEY

SOUTHEAST WATER DISTRICT

STORM LAKE NWR

IRR. DISTRICT Hankinson

MAPLE RIVER NWR

NORTH

DEAD COLT CREEK DAM

NORTH BAY DAM

ICE

Ellendale

Lisbon Wahpeton

THE

PL E

DEAD C

COTTONWOOD CREEK DAM

WIL

RED RIVER

BRAN

O D CR.

McKENZIE

ORT SH

R. MINN-DAK NE EN EY SH FARMERS COOP

JAMES RIVER SOUTHEAST IRR. DISTRICT WATER DISTRICT LaMoure

CARGILL INC.

CR.

ELM

DICKEY

MOUNTRAIL

MAPLE RIVER DAM

Enderlin ADM PROCESSING

FORT RANSOM STATE PARK

BURKE

CITY OF FARGO (Tharaldson Ethanol)

WILLIAMS West Fargo Fargo

. S CR LA UG DO

E E P WATER CR.

CR . D EN R

H R. E EART WHIT

G ARDE

CCO

O WSTONE R.

R M I SS O UR I

MAPLE

RUSH R. LOWE R BRANCH RUS THARALDSON ETHANOL PLANT CARGILL INC.

BEA V ER

CR .

S. FO RK

C RI

Casselton

CASS NORTH WATER DISTRICT . CR

7!34% ./4().' TRAILL

CASS

Bakken & Three Forks-Sanish Oil Formations, Western North Dakota

DIVIDE N

ALO FF

DOYLE MEMORIAL STATE PARK

GREEN LAKE OUTLET CONTROL

Hillsboro

S. BRANCH

SW A

STONEY SLOUGH NWR

(GW)

WILD RICE LAKEAshley NWR

GO O

S. BRANC

Forman

STATE LINE WATER COOP

MAPLE

STORM LAKE NWR Wishek

(GW/SW)

D A K O T A

S O U T H

L. B EAVER

HORSEHEAD IRR. DISTRICT

(GW)

Ellendale

Oakes STANDING ROCK RURAL WATER Fort DICKEY-SARGENT Yates IRR. DISTRICT

CR .

MAPLE RIVER NWR

R CR.

TR ES

CEDA

. CR

FLA T

CR .

ELM

Hettinger

B M.

CR .

BEAVER LAKE DAM SPRINGWATER LAKE NWR

Linton PIN E

BOWMANHALEY DAM

BEAVER LAKE STATE PARK SUNBURST LAKE NWR

ORT SH

D R.

TN ING

FF AL

McINTOSH

E R.

AUGUSTADT DAM

IN G

R C R.

BU EY

OAHE

C R.

PO RC U

N. BRANCH

THE

V Valley City

LaMOURE

LOGAN

SIOUX

TRAILL RURAL WATER DISTRICT

ADAMS

GOOS

HOBART RT LAKE R NWR

EMMONS

STEELE

BARNES

RIVER

BARNES WATER WA WA ATER TER DISTRICT

BONE HILL NWR

Napoleon

. CR

. R CR

Bowman

CARGILL MALT L LT

CAVENDISH A AVENDISH F FARMS

IL BONE H L CR.

CANNONBALL R. DOGTOOT H

EP SHE

MAPLE

PRETTY ROCK NWR

AL N.

Carson

Mott

ER AV A BE

PL E

APPERT LAKE NWR

GRANT

(GW)

JAMESTOWN DAM

STUTSMAN

MORTON

HETTINGER

Mayville

BOWMAN

INDIAN CREEK DAM

GOLDEN N CH G OO LAKE DAM SE R.

LAKE

LAKE PATRICIA NWR

Thompson

IRR. DISTRICT

FA BUF LO CR.

O NG

LE E

KIDDER

BURLEIGH

OLIVER

RED EASTERN DAKOTA

L TE

LAKE GEORGE NWR

DEAD COLT CREEK DAM

ENGLISH COULEE DAM

. CR

TIM

Ashley

DEAD C

BILLINGS

DAKOTA RURAL DAKO WATER DISTRICT W WA

1 to 3 4 to 6 7 to 9 10 to 12 13 to 15 16 to 17

GRAND FORKS

GRIGGS

Jamestown

EDDY

MERCER

Grand Forks

GRAND FORKS/TRAILL STARK WATER DISTRICT

TOMAHAWK A AWK NWR

RIN

LOUSE CR.

WELLS

FOSTER

RIVERSIDE PARK DAM

Grand Forks AFB

PEMBINA

WALSH

NELSON

SHERIDAN

DUNN

KELLYS SLOUGH NWR

EE UL CO

CONTINENTAL RESOURCES

S. FO R. RK

LONG LONG LAKE LAKE NWR NWR 7

LONG

LAKE NWR 6

(SW)

R VE SIL

ES M

WHITE LAKE NWR N. CE DA R

RAMSEY BENSON

McLEAN

SLOPE

CR.

WESTERN HEART IRR. DISTRICT

Finley Cooperstown

CAVALIER

TURTLE R.

BEAVER CREEK DAM

JIM DAM

Lincoln

R. E C

CEDAR CR.

K LA

C R. EP DE

D SAN

BURLINGTON OIL & GAS

HEART BUTTE DAM AND LAKE TSCHIDA AN TE LO PE

STEWART LAKE NWR

CR.

PIPESTEM DAM

DOYLE MEMORIAL STATE PARK

. CR

T BUT

Amidon

Mandan

MISSOURI WEST

WATER W WA ATER ATER COTTONWOOD CREEK DAM

WARD

ELM RIVER DAM #1

Y HE

STUTSMAN RURAL W WA ATER A TER DISTRICT WATER

HALF-WA HALF-WAY WA WA AY Y LAKE NWR

(GW)

SLADE NWR

OSE

SEITZ DAM

CHASE LAKE NWR

CENTRAL L DAKO DAKOTA T TA IRR. DISTRICT

Steele

FORT RT LINCOLN R STATE TA TATE PARK P L. H EA RT R.

LaMoure

CR .

(GW)

ARROWWOOD NWR

CR PLE

OSE

R SP

E TT

IR TY

RE S FO

UD DY

N OW

HEA RT

ARROWWOOD DAM

Lisbon

HESKETT STATION TA TATION

TESORO REFINING CO.

BALDHILL DAM

FORT RANSOM STATE PARK

SQUARE BUTTE CREEK DAM 6

CR .

HUTCHINSON LAKE NWR

SQUARE BUTTE CREEK DAM 5

SWEETBRIAR CREEK DAM

SIBLEY LAKE NWR

CR .

R MC .

ADM PROCESSING

W Washburn

LY LY

KEL

Carrington

Enderlin

ER Larimore GOLDEN AT W VALLEY T

TOWNER

PIERCE

AGASSIZ WATER DISTRICT

TURTLE RIVER STATE PARK

TURTLE R.

LITTLE GOOSE

JOHNSON LAKE NWR

McClusky

McKENZIE

McHENRY

MOUNTRAIL

LAKE ARDOCH DAM

FORDVILLE DAM

ROLETTE

BOTTINEAU

Grafton

ARDOCH NWR

LAKE T TA JUANITA CONTROL STRUCTURE

WILLIAMS

WALSH RURAL WATER DISTRICT

Park River

RENVILLE

PARK

HOMME DAM N. BR AN CH BYLIN DAM FO R

AN C H BR

MAPLE . ROCKY RUN CR RIVER DAM

MILT L ON R. LT MILTON YOUNG STATION TA TATION

JAMES RIVER IRR. DISTRICT

CR.

NC RA S. B

O D CR.

(GW/SW)

AP MJAMES

New Rockford Fessenden CENTRAL L PLAINS WA WA ATER TER DISTRICT WATER

BURKE ALCHEM ETHANOL PLANT

LARIMORE DAM S. BRANCH

CR.

GO VE

TURTLE RTLE LAKE R IRR. DISTRICT

JAMES R.

DRAYTON DAM

DIVIDE

MIDDLE BRANCH P PARK RIVER DAM 5

West Fargo Fargo

SH NEW ROCKFORD CANAL

CO. DITCHES 20 & 66

CR.

(GW)

ANTEL O P E CR

NELSON LAKE DAM

Center

RIA ETB SWE

CR .

. SHEYENNE R

HARVE R Y RVE HARVEY DAM

AMERICAN CRYSTAL SUGAR

Flood-Related Disaster Declarations in North Flood-Related Disaster Declarations in North Dakota, Dakota, 1989-2010 1989-2010

M. BRAN CH R. PARK

TER DISTRICT CITY OF FARGO T ANCH UR (Tharaldson Ethanol)

CASS WATER DISTRICT

EST

. CR

MAPLE

Casselton

CROSS RANCH STATE TA PARK TATE P

SQUARE BUTTE CREEK DAM 4

BUL

LION

Harvey SHEYENNE COAL LAKE NWR MINE LAKE DAM

BIG BEND IRR. DISTRICT

UT T E C RE B R

E Y E NNE

Cavalier NORTH VALLEY WATER DISTRICT

WILLOW

NO NORTHEASTERN IRR. DISTRICT

RUSH R. LOWE R BRANCH RUS THARALDSON ETHANOL PLANT CARGILL INC.

PIP

DICKINSON DAM AND PATTERSON LAKE

SOUTHWEST PIPELINE PROJECT

Dickinson

HEART R.

SULLY CREEK STATE PARK

. CR

GARNER

THEODORE ROOSEVELT NATIONAL PARK (South Unit)

Medora

CR.

IFE

Minnewaukan

COTTONWOOD LAKE NWR

(SW)

BONE HILL NWR

INTAKE T TAKE

STANTON STATION LELAND OLDS STATION

WESTMORELAND COYOTE COAL CO. STATION OTT

URI R.

F N.

McCLUSKY CANAL

Hazen

Beulah

IL BONE H L CR.

ES M

CROO

poleon

Manning KED CR.

NG R.

WINTERI

BUFFALO FALO LAKE F DIVERSION DAM

CAMP LAKE NWR

KNIFE RIVER INDIAN VILLAGES NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE

GREAT PLAINS SYNFUELS PLANT

CR .

Beach

G CR

KNIFE R.

L CR

SO IS M L.

SPRIN

LAKE ILO NWR

TAI

BUFFALO F FALO LAKE NWR

BU F CO FALO U LE E

LAKE NETTIE

LAKE SAKAKAWEA STATE PARK

JOINT SWPP/ BASIN INTAKE ANTELOPE VALLEY STATION

SAKAKAWEA

L. KNIFE R.

ITE

CK TA IL

SW A

Valley City

NWR STONEY SLOUGH McLEAN-SHERIDAN WATER RURAL WA W ATER ATER NWR

STATE WATER COMMISSION (Red Trail Energy)

LAKE ILO DAM

GPIE

WH BL A

IN G

Garrison FORT STEVENSON STATE PARK

DAKOTA GASIFICATION

ADM PROCESSING

LAKE OTIS NWR

LITTLE MISSOURI STATE PARK

SBY

McLEAN NWR

INDIAN HILLS STATE PARK

V Velva

CR.

WINTERING RIVER NWR

FORT BERTHOLD RURAL WATER

C RO

LAKE PLEASANT LAKE NWR

ICELANDIC STATE PARK

RENWICK DAM

SENATOR SENAT A OR AT YOUNG DAM

COULEE

Rugby

. CR

. CEG

R C R.

Langdon LANGDON RURAL WATER W WA ATER A TER DISTRICT

Towner T

BARNES WATER DISTRICT HIDDENWOOD LAKE NWR

ADM ETHANOL PLANT

N. BR ANC H PARK

ALO FF

Parshall

M BI NA R

MOUSE

OAK

. K SHELL CR E . F OR

Jamestown

FA BUF LO CR.

THEODORE ROOSEVELT NATIONAL PARK (North Unit)

VER BEA

Wishek

CR .

BALDHILL HAY AY COU AY DAM LEE

Burlington

(GW)

EE UL CO

RI R.

GREEN LAKE OUTLET CONTROL

. CR

SOU

BEI

L. SO UT H

MOUNT CARMEL DAM

ALL L SEASONS WATER WA WA ATER TER DISTRICT

CR TOMAHAWK . NWR

HOBART LAKE NWR

L. MIS

RC R

EASTERN DAKOTA IRR. DISTRICT

G BI

CR.

ELM

S. BRANCH

LOW

Minot AFB EG

S CAVENDISH MOUNTRAIL RURAL WATER DISTRICT FARMS

R CR

McKENZIE . RURAL WATER

BIG

Watford City

WIL

DAM 320

NORTH PRAIRIE RURAL WATER

CARGILL MALT

SHELL LAKE NWR

JAMESTOWN DAM CR

BRUMBA

LORDS LAKE NWR

R SP

K CR OA

BEAVER AKE DAM

N BA

LORDS LAKE DAM

ROCK LAKE NWR

A PEMBIN

Walhalla

AKE ARK

C UT

SE OU M

(SW)

NN EA U

ROCK LAKE DAM

Belcourt

NORTHWEST AREA WATER SUPPLY

New Town

(SW)

E R.

J. CLARK L LYER DAM 326 SALYER NWR

AUGUSTADT DAM

Rolla

BELCOURT R RT PUBLIC UTIL.

Bottineau

Hillsboro

ELM RIVER DAM #1

INTERNATIONAL PEACE GARDEN SCHOOL SECTION LAKE NWR

RABB LAKE NWR

WILLOW LAKE NWR

CARBURY R RY DAM

Minot

IFE

E KN

TL LIT

STUTSMAN RURAL WATER DISTRICT

(SW)

CARTWRIGHT IRR. DISTRICT

IE PE E

DAM 96

PIPESTEM DAM C

RRY CHE

IRR. DISTRICT

BENN

Y C R. AR

DAM 332

UPPER SOURIS NWR

(SW)

YELLOWSTONE IRR. DISTRICT

(SW)

ENCORE OPERATING A ATING

LAKE DARLING DAM

NESSON VALLEY IRR. DISTRICT

(SW)

Stanley

LEWIS & CLARK STATE PARK

ELK/CHARBON IRR. DISTRICT

HALF-WAY LOW. YELLOWSTONE LAKE IRR. DISTRICT CH NWR A RB O SIOUX

LAKE GEORGE NWR

HESS CORPORATION

(SW)

FORT UNION NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE

. CR

SLADE NWR

(GW)

AVER CR.

CR.

WILLIAMS RURAL WATER

CHASE LAKE Williston NWR BUFORD-TRENTON IRR. DISTRICT

DES LACS NWR

HESS CORPORATION A ATION DAM 341

UPPER SOURIS RURAL WATER

Kenmare

S C

STO

CR .

CR.

BLACKTAIL DAM

DES LACS DAM 2 DES LACS DAM 4

LOSTWOOD NWR

Tioga

COW CR.

R VE Mohall SIL

ES D

LAKE ZAHL DAM

Bowbells

JIM DAM

EM EST

L. MUDDY R.

ENTRAL DAKOTA IRR. DISTRICT

ARROWWOOD NWR

PIP

LAKE ZAHL NWR

CU . T BA CR NK

US MO

Crosby

ELM

E PR CY

LAKE METIGOSHE DAM LAKE METIGOSHE STATE TA PARK TATE P

DAM 357

LONG CR.

ARROWWOOD DAM

E R.

GOOS

N. BRANCH

L. P IPEST

SEITZ DAM

TRAILL RURAL WATER DISTRICT

Mayville

M I N N E S O T A

Cooperstown

CH R.

ELM

R MC .

DAKOTA RURAL WATER DISTRICT

DR Y

Finley

SIBLEY LAKE NWR

GO O SE R.

Carrington

GOLDEN N CH G OO LAKE DAM SE R.

LL Y

GO O

BEAVER CREEK DAM

JOHNSON LAKE NWR LAKE JUANITA CONTROL STRUCTURE

B M.

Regional Water Systems in North Dakota

NO SERVICE DESIGNATED

Water

. ROCKY RUN CR

SOURCE: NDARB Cooperative Observer Network

Fessenden CENTRAL PLAINS WATER DISTRICT

PRECIPITATION IN INCHES

Thompson

GRAND FORKS/TRAILL WATER DISTRICT

New Rockford

Grand Forks

ENGLISH COULEE DAM

LE E

ELM

AMES R.

E AV

Grand Forks AFB

BRAN

EE UL CO

ELM

OSE

ER AT W

SA L

W ROCKFORD CANAL

OSE

E C R.

TURTLE R.

LITTLE GOOSE NWR

LAKE NWR

SPIRIT LAKE WATER DISTRICT

WOOD LAKE NWR

SA L

DEVILS LAKE STATE OUTLET

ND State Water Commission 900 East Boulevard Ave. Bismarck, ND 58505 (701) 328-4989 2010

Energy Facilities 25 Largest Industrial Water Users (Point of Diversion) Cities (Pop. >1000) & County Seats ND State Water Commission 900 East Boulevard Ave. Bismarck, ND 58505 (701) 328-4989 2010

Clean Air & Energy Technology www.eisenmann.us.com es.info@eisenmann.com

June 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 53

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wabash

54 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

Elegant Solution Tharaldson Ethanol in Casselson, N.D., utilizes 100 percent wastewater pumped in 26 miles from Fargo, N.D.

ter. One of the sweetest things about the project, Newman says, is that of the water used at the ethanol plant, about 15 percent is returned to Fargo as gray water, where it is retreated to drinking water standards. Of the total amount of water the plant receives from Fargo, it uses about 2.7 gallons of water per gallon of ethanol produced. However, looking at only the net water usage, subtracting the amount sent back to Fargo for reuse, the plant uses around 2 gallons. To achieve that, the plant reuses the water it gets from Fargo as much as it can until it is piped back to the city, Newman says. Cass Rural Water financed the construction of the project with a loan through the North Dakota Public Finance Authority, Blomeke says. It then turned over the

water treatment plant to Fargo, which operates and maintains it. The pipes are operated and maintained by Cass Rural Water. Fargo’s portion of the project is about $1.6 million, which it pays back from the money generated by selling water to Cass Rural Water. In all, Tharaldson will pay back about $13.8 million of the loan, in addition to the fees it pays for water, he says. All in all, Tharaldson ethanol is pretty pleased with how the project turned out. It cost more than drilling wells would have, Newman says, but it just made sense in the long term. Besides reducing the impact to the environment by using wastewater, the ethanol plant also eliminated the need for a lagoon, which can cause odor issues. “That’s another big strength here,” he tells EPM.

PHOTO: HOLLY JESSEN, BBI INTERNATIONAL

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Conservation’s the Ticket The cooling towers at Tharaldson Ethanol give off steam on a spring morning.

PHOTO: GREG LATZA

WATER

Water Conservation Star The Poet Biorefining plant in Big Stone, S.D., uses water from the cooling ponds of an adjacent power plant, in addition to getting steam from the power plant for its process heat.

A Little ‘Ingreenuity’

Poet’s water conservation efforts are part of its Ingreenuity initiative, a sustainability effort to reduce its water use by 22 percent in five years—or about one billion gallons saved across all its plants by 2014. That translates into an average of 2.33 gallons of water per gallon of ethanol produced, down from an average of 3 gallons. “If we can surpass that goal, by all means, we will,” says Erin Heupel, director of environment and technology, public policy and corporate affairs for Poet. Poet engineers developed a proprietary process called Total Water Recovery, which recycles cooling water rather than discharging it. When the announcement was made, the system had already been installed in three Poet plants in Bingham Lake, Minn., Caro, Mich., and Hudson, S.D., where it reduced water use to an average of 2 to 2.5 gallons of water per gallon of ethanol. One year later, 13 of Poet’s 27 plants have adopted the water conservation measures, resulting in more than 400 million gallons of water savings compared to the company’s 2009 water use levels, Heupel tells EPM. Ingreenuity isn’t the first of Poet’s water conservation efforts, however, as it began working to reduce water use in 1988. “The first Poet plants used 17 gallons of water per gallon of ethanol, so it’s part of the learning curve and the continual push to improve,” she says.

Beyond just reusing water within the plant, two Poet plants recycle water used by nearby industries. In Portland, Ind., the Poet plant uses water from a Recovery limestone quarry for Total As part of its 100 percent of its Ingreenuity effort, Poet to drive down its water needs. Instead seeks water use at all plants, of being pumped says Erin Heupel. into the river, the water goes to settling ponds before being used at the 73 MMgy ethanol plant. In Big Stone, S.D., the 81 MMgy Poet plant gets 80 percent of its water from the cooling ponds of a power plant. “You are getting a lot of use per gallon of water, because it is running through two industries,” Heupel says. Other water recycling efforts include the use of treated effluent from the Corning Waste Water Treatment Plant for cooling water at the 73 MMgy Poet plant in Corning, Iowa. Previously, that water was discharged into the river. The idea originated with city officials before the plant was built and Poet was glad to cooperate. “We knew that water would be a challenge for the community,” she says. Just as it did with its corn-based ethanol production facilities, Poet will continue water conservation efforts with the next JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 55

PHOTO: GUARDIAN ENERGY

WATER

Discharge Crackdown A proprietary system installed at Guardian Energy brought down the water use at the plant to about 2 gallons of water used to produce one gallon of ethanol.

56 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

WATER

generation. Project Liberty, the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol plant, is scheduled to start operating in early 2012, using corn cobs, leaves and husks as the feedstock. The 25 MMgy plant is in the design phase, Heupel says, and will be built in Emmetsburg, Iowa. Although the plant will use Poetâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s water recovery system, it will likely use more water than corn-ethanol production because cellulosic ethanol is still new. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Using what weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve learned, some with the corn ethanol process improvements, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll roll as much of that as they can into the cellulosic ethanol process improvements,â&#x20AC;? she says. Reducing water use at an ethanol plant could save producers money but it also costs money to save water. For example, Heupel says, the company had to pay to install the settling ponds at its Portland plant. For Poet, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s about water conservation, not saving money. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Ethanol is a renewable fuel,â&#x20AC;? she says. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think if you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t look at your entire environmental footprint, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re missing the importance of the renewable fuel.â&#x20AC;? Poet isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t limiting its work to its own 27 production facilities. First, the company wants to make its Total Water Recovery process available to other ethanol producers. It also plans to survey corn producers that deliver feedstock to its plants to nail down exactly how much is irrigated. Finally, the Poet Foundation has also promised more than $420,000 to help the non-profit Global Health Ministries to repair, construct and maintain 90 wells in Nigeria, giving more than 300,000 people access to pure water.

has always been considered a zero process liquid discharge, meaning water that came into contact with any part of the ethanol process was not discharged. Two other water uses, however, were discharged those being the water from cooling tower blowdown and reverse osmosis water, the process used to purify water for the heat exchanger and boiler. â&#x20AC;&#x153;With our new technology we no longer discharge that water,â&#x20AC;? Hanson says. The water conservation system cost

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Guardians of Water

In 2009, Guardian Energy LLCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first year of operation, the 100 MMgy ethanol plant used an average of 3.6 gallons of water to produce 1 gallon of ethanol. In late 2010, the company worked with U.S. Water Services to install a proprietary system that shaved more than 1.6 gallons of water off that number. The project wrapped up in early February. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve seen an overall reduction of about 38 percent,â&#x20AC;? says Tom Hanson, vice president of operations for the Janesville, Minn., plant. The plant, which utilizes groundwater,

Guardian less than $100,000 to install and is already saving the facility moneyâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;reducing the cost for sampling and chemical treatment of discharge water. In addition, the company is saving money on phosphorus credits, which the State of Minnesota requires of plants that discharge water. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s definitely a cost savings on a daily, yearly basis,â&#x20AC;? Hanson says. Still, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not really about the money for Guardian either. Reducing water use at the

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JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 57

WATER

ethanol plant helps the plant be good neighbors in its community and be good stewards of the environment. “The major reason (for installing this), first and foremost, was water conservation,” he says. Overall, the company feels it is important to identify areas of concern with ethanol production and then attempt to address them. Water conservation, energy conservation and increased efficiencies are all part of that, as Guardian Energy continues to

58 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

evaluate new technology coming to the forefront, he says. CEO Don Gales echoes that thought. “Guardian Energy is committed to being a leader in the industry and continues to look towards technologies that will allow for higher yields and increased efficiencies,” he says. “The implementation and execution of this technology is consistent with Guardian Energy’s commitment to the community, environment and the industry.”

Ethanol, Oil Compared

When ethanol skeptics start talking about the amount of water used to produce a gallon of ethanol, it would be nice to hit back with stats about how much water is used by the petroleum industry. That’s not easy to do, however. The problem is picking a number. Various sources offer up anything from 2 gallons of water used per gallon of gasoline produced, all the way up to 25. That’s because many doing the analysis use different parameters and methods, Aden says. Does the number include water used in oil production/extraction and exploration? Or does it include just the water used in the refining process, or both? Oil production and exploration is the major water user, while refining gas from crude uses less, according to the Argonne study. Looking at combined numbers for crude extraction and refining, water use depends on the recovery method and region. For U.S. offshore oil, the study gives a range of 3.4 gallons to 6.6 gallons water used per gallon of gasoline produced. Canadian oil sands numbers range from 2.6 to 6.2 gallons, while conventional oil from Saudi Arabia is estimated at 2.8 to 5.8 gallons. On the biofuels side, the report considers both irrigation to grow corn, as well as the amount of water used to produce ethanol, resulting in a higher number than generally cited by the ethanol industry. The report concludes that nearly 70 percent of ethanol is produced with 10 to 17 gallons of water used to produce each gallon of ethanol. Cellulosic ethanol is estimated at a range of 1.9 to 9.8 gallons of water. Ethanol production facilities are increasingly less water intensive, the report notes, excluding the issue of irrigated corn. On just the fuel production side, the report says an average of 3 gallons of water is used to produce 1 gallon of ethanol, citing a 2007 Renewable Fuels Association survey of existing ethanol plants. An updated Argonne report is currently being worked on, says May Wu, one of the authors, that will contain new figures reflecting water conservation efforts in both the ethanol and petroleum industries. In addition, it will also consider precipitation as well

WATER

as irrigation to show a more complete waterfootprint analysis. Although water used in irrigation and precipitation are different types of water, both evaporate and go through the hydrological cycle, eventually returning to earth again. “Not to your local area though,” Wu tells EPM. “To another area, usually. Look at the wind—it goes northeast from southwest.” Talking about irrigated corn being used to produce ethanol can be misleading for the public, who may assume all or most corn is irrigated, Heupel says. According to the National Corn Growers Association, only 11 percent of the total corn crop was irrigated in 2010. Wu acknowledges this too, pointing out that a large portion of ethanol production happens in the Midwest, where rainfall is ample and little irrigated corn is raised. Examining water use statistics can be tricky, Aden cautions. Are they talking consumptive water or water footprint, which as Wu mentions, includes a full life cycle from growth to production? Adding precipitation to water use figures could give a more complete picture, as Wu says, or it could make biofuels look like a major water hog, even though many of those gallons are part of the natural cycle of rain, evaporation and back to rain again. “If you look at it in certain perspectives it does favor fossil fuels,” Aden says. For example, a water use comparison cited by Webber claims it takes 130 to 6,200 gallons of water for a flex-fuel vehicle to travel 100 miles. Compared to those numbers, plug-in electric vehicles look great at only 24 gallons per 100 miles and gasoline vehicles look even rosier at 7 to 14 gallons. He sees some positives for biofuels but feels there are some potential problems to watch out for—such as water use. “Whether proponents realize it or not, any plan to switch from gasoline to electricity or biofuels is a strategic decision to switch our dependence from foreign oil to domestic water,” he says. On the other hand, Aden says the studies he’s seen show there should be enough water for biofuels production. Some drier areas of the U.S. will have limitations on water availability. But where corn ethanol may not be appropriate, a feedstock such as sorghum

might. “By and whole, I think people expect there’s going to be enough water for biofuels,” he says, “even if biofuels continues to grow.” Another thing to keep in mind is that water conservation is an important issue for many industries, and not just ethanol. It takes a lot of water to produce and process everything from newspapers to meat. “I think that’s one of the things we need to strive to do, is keep everything in perspective,” Heupel

says. “If you look at something in isolation, and you don’t have anything to compare it to, you get things really out of kilter.” Author: Holly Jessen Associate Editor of Ethanol Producer Magazine (701) 738-4946 hjessen@bbiinternational.com

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enzymes

Small Starts, Big Results Genencor scientist Mian Li examines a biomass substrate used in ethanol production. PHOTO: GENENCOR, A DANISCO DIVISION

62 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

enzymes

Ending the

Enzyme

Enigma

Figuring out how to produce enzymes at a feasible cost is just part of the puzzle By Kris Bevill

A decade ago, the cost of enzymes was at the top of the list of concerns for most would-be cellulosic ethanol producers. With some estimates placing them at around $5 per gallon of ethanol produced, enzyme costs were higher than the cost of feedstock in some cases, making cost-effective production nearly impossible to achieve. But after hundreds of millions of dollars spent on collaborative research and development efforts that crisscrossed the globe, enzyme costs have been dramatically reduced

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 63

enzymes

and are now being proven for commercialscale use. There is still work to be done, but developers say they are continuously improving their enzyme systems and, with the help of producers, are ready to launch the cellulosic ethanol industry into full-speed commercialization mode.

‘Sea of Change’

“We think this is a year that is quite pivotal for the industry because we will see groundbreakings for commercial plants,” says Cynthia Bryant, global business development manager of bioenergy for Novozymes. “I’m hoping this is going to be the sea of change shift that we need in order for people to finally agree and see that the technology is no longer two or three years out. It is available. It’s here today. It actually has been here for awhile.” Novozymes has been working for years to develop cost-effective enzymes for the ethanol industry. Its most recent development in this arena has been its trademarked Cellic CTec 2 enzymes, which Bryant says is the result of a goal set by the company’s CEO in 2008. Steen Riisgaard declared then that the company would deliver commercially viable enzymes to the cellulosic ethanol industry by 2010. Last February, the company unveiled Cellic CTec 2, which Bryant says enables producers to reduce enzyme dosage requirements and improve performance by 1.8 times on average, regardless of feedstock. The product will soon be put to the test in a realworld, commercialscale scenario. Italybased chemicals and plastics firm Mossi & Pivotal Year Ghisolfi Group has Cynthia Bryant, global business development been collaborating manager of bioenergy with Novozymes for for Novozymes, expects several a few years and recommercial plants will cently broke ground break ground this year, including its partner on a 13 MMgy wheat in Italy. straw/Arundo donaxto-ethanol facility in northwestern Italy. The project, expected to be the largest cellulosic 64 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

plant in the world, is scheduled to begin pro- to suit that specific facility, so Kelley says it duction, using Cellic CTec 2 enzymes, next will serve as a good showcase for Genencor’s year. technology, but won’t be used as an indicator Genencor, a division of Danisco, has of all the company has to offer. been investing heavily in cellulosic ethanol enzyme development since 2000, accord- Progress on All Fronts Novozymes and Genencor may control ing to the company’s business develop- the lion’s share of the enzyme manufacturing ment director, Aaron industry, but several smaller players appear to Kelley, and has been be making their own headway in producing aggressively launch- enzymes for the cellulosic ethanol industry. ing new enzyme Verenium Corp., which was initially an enpackages for the in- zyme developer, famously ventured into the dustry since 2007 production side of cellulosic ethanol a few No Small Business when it introduced years ago with its demonstration-scale facilAaron Kelley, business its Accellerase line ity in Jennings, La. Its partner for the project, development director for Genencor, a division of of cellulose enzymes. BP, has since acquired all of the productionDanisco, says cellulosic “That was an inter- related activities and Verenium continues its ethanol enzyme esting internal deci- research and development of enzymes for development is the most complex project sion for us, because cellulosic ethanol production. Royal DSM, a he’s been involved with we knew at that time Netherlands-based life sciences and materiin a decade worth of work within the enzyme there wasn’t a signifi- als company is also involved in a multiyear industry. cant market and we enzyme development project for the celluweren’t going to sell a lot of the product,” losic ethanol industry. Mark Emalfarb, president and CEO of Kelley says. “But we felt it was important to Florida-based Dyadic International, believes start the conversation.” Genencor’s most recent improvement, smaller firms like his offer a unique ability DUET, was also introduced last year. The to service the cellulosic ethanol industry. His product offers an improvement on hemicellulase, which also improves the digestibility of C6 sugars. Kelley says the overall result for users is a three-fold reduction in enzyme requirements. Genencor is also expected to soon have a commercial-scale home for its cellulosic ethanol enzymes. Dupont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol LLC is scheduled to break ground on its 25 MMgy corn stover-fed facility, dubbed Project Blackhawk, in Iowa Packing a Punch Genencor’s cellobiohydrolyase enzyme (shown here in a 3D this summer. The plant rendering) is one example of the types of enzymes used in the production of will use a Genencor encellulosic ethanol. zyme system tailored SOURCE: GENENCOR, A DANISCO DIVISION

enzymes

company has been developing enzymes to produce sugars from biomass for years and he says that because his company is smaller than some of the other enzyme developers, (it has about 18 people on its research team) it is more able to adapt and as a result has created “a better mousetrap” than the large firms. Dyadic’s most notable collaborator to date is Abengoa Bioenergy, which acquired a stake in Dyadic in 2007 and signed a license agreement with the company in 2009, giving Abengoa the rights to continue developing the enzyme technology. Gerson Santos, corporate director for Abengoa Bioenergy New Technologies, says Abengoa’s fully staffed research and development lab in Spain is currently optimizing the technology that will be used for its enzymatic hydrolysis process. The company had a significant breakthrough last summer when it began using its enzymes in Abengoa’s demonstration-scale facility in Salamanca, Spain. “This was a success and we are meeting our goals,” he says. Abengoa plans to break ground on its 25 MMgy corn stover/wheat strawto-ethanol plant in Hugoton, Kansas, this summer. The facility will utilize the enzyme technology being developed in Spain and Santos is confident that enzymes will be a non-issue for the facility. “Our enzyme system will be ready when the plant is ready, there is no doubt about it,” he says.

billion in more than 20 integrated biorefinery projects in the past decade and has provided multiple grants to many of the enzyme manufacturers. This combined effort has garnered tangible results. Aden says the most common price range for cellulosic ethanol enzymes has dropped from $5 per gallon 10 years ago to between 50 cents and $1 per gallon today. “If it is that range, yes it’s still an important cost component, but it’s not the overall hurdle it once was,” he says. Aden is part of an NREL team that is auditing and validating the enzyme development work of four manufacturing firms— Novozymes, Genencor, Verenium and DSM—as part of a project funded by the DOE’s Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Biomass Program. The program has provided the companies with a total of $1.3 million since 2007 for research to improve

the activity and production efficiency of enzymes. The original funding announcement cited an objective of achieving an enzyme cost of 12 cents per gallon by 2011 and having requisite quantities of enzymes available for pilot testing by 2012. Because the final evaluation of the projects is currently being conducted, Aden wasn’t able to share early results, but he says he’s not sure the original price target per gallon is still applicable. The project is scheduled to end next September. Abengoa has pegged a goal of 40 cents per gallon for its enzyme system input costs. “That’s in line with what our competitors are doing and right now we believe that is achievable based on the progress we’ve been making and on the progress others have made as well,” Santos says. “I’m fairly confident we will be achieving that objective.”

At What Cost?

As mentioned, the cost to use cellulosic ethanol enzymes has been a major factor thus far in the development of a commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol industry. Developing the enzyme systems has not been exactly cheap either, to put it mildly. Genencor alone has invested more than $100 million in its development projects. Emalfarb says his company has raised $70 million since going public. The U.S. federal government is also heavily invested in this arena. Andy Aden, a senior research engineer at the U.S. DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory says the DOE has invested more than $1

Call

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 65

enzymes

PHOTO: NOVOZYMES

Collaborative Efforts

Bales to Convert Novozymes produces enzymes for the production of cellulosic ethanol.

66 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

Kelley says that while enzyme costs are still significant, focusing only on the cost per gallon of enzymes is too narrow a view when evaluating the cost of cellulosic ethanol production. Pretreatment methods and costs are directly related to enzyme costs and, therefore, reducing enzyme costs requires extensive collaboration between ethanol producer and enzyme producer. In fact, everyone involved in developing enzymes, from manufacturers to producers to government researchers, believes collaborations are vital to reducing enzyme costs and commercializing the industry, and nearly every cellulosic ethanol producer is partnered with one or more manufacturing firm. “We’re very proud of all of our partners and the dedication that they’ve put into this because it’s not easy,” Novozymes’ Bryant says. “They really believe in this and they see the light at the end of the tunnel and we see them continuing to make progress.”

enzymes

“We’re really getting to the stage as folks integrate these processes where we’ve got to work together to find the optimal system and understand the input costs from all the different directions,” Kelley says. That is, of course, easier said than done in many ways. Production processes vary so widely depending on feedstock and technology that enzyme manufacturers must address each facility’s specific needs. And while the industry is moving together jointly to commercialize the end-product, companies are still competing for market shares and must seek to protect their own intellectual property (IP). Bryant says that while some processes are more similar than others, most have a unique niche in one or all of three specific areas—feedstock, process technology and business model. “We work with each one on a very individual level because they are so unique,” she says. “The more open we can be with a partner and the more open they are with us, the quicker we’re able to meet our milestones and get to suc-

cess. But this has to be tempered with the fact that there is concern about IP and IP ownership. It’s a real balancing act.”

Forging Ahead

Cellulosic ethanol enzymes may never be cost-comparative to starch ethanol enzymes but that perhaps should never be the goal, considering the complexity of the cellulosic systems makes it unfair to compare the two processes. “I think this is one of the most complex systems we’ve worked on,” Kelley says. He points out that starch ethanol uses two or three enzymes and requires various enzyme activities to digest the starch. “In the cellulose process you’ve probably got at least eight different families and multiple enzymes in each of those families of activities,” he says. “And all of those activities need to work together to get to your optimum yield and conversion.” “The technical challenge of breaking down biomass is always going to be a lot

more difficult than breaking down starch,” Aden says. Improving the productivity of the enzymes and activity of the overall system, all in a sustainable fashion, is what will continue to drive down the cost of the process, he says, and that is where enzyme manufacturers are focusing their efforts now. It will require dedication and significant continued financial investment, but those involved in the process don’t appear to be lacking motivation to continue. “Once you are in this business, this is something you don’t stop,” Santos says. “It is an ongoing process where you continue to improve and optimize technology that you are working on. The plan is to continue working on this package until we prove it.” Author: Kris Bevill Associate Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine (701) 540-6846 kbevill@bbiinternational.com

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POLICY

68 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

POLICY

Fuel Choice:

Turn Oil into

The authors of “Turning Oil into Salt” believe the ethanol industry should make passing an Open Fuel Standard priority No. 1 By Holly Jessen

When Gal Luft and Anne Korin talk about flexfuel vehicles they mean vehicles that are warranted to run on any combination of ethanol, methanol and gas, or on biodiesel. As a bonus, they’d like to see that vehicle also

be a plug-in hybrid for electric power. For them, what alternative fuel powers the vehicle isn’t as important as choice for the consumer. “This is about opening cars to fuel competition so that drivers can react on the fly to changes in oil price by choosing a fuel that is more economic on a per-mile basis,” Korin tells EPM, “whether that fuel is made from corn or coal or natural gas or sugarcane or anything else.”

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 69

POLICY

Fuel Choice Champs Anne Korin and Gal Luft are co-founders of the Set America Free Coalition and would like to see the ethanol industry get behind the Open Fuel Standard Act, currently introduced in the House.

70 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

Who are Luft and Korin? The pair codirect the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security, a Washington-based think tank focused on energy security. Together they also founded the Set America Free Coalition, which has three main goals: educate people about the dangers of U.S. dependence on foreign oil and the need for fuel choice; increase demand for and use of flex-fuel vehicles (FFVs) and plug-in hybrids; and to generate support for policies that increase fuel choice. In 1999 the pair published “Turning Oil into Salt: Energy Independence Through Fuel Choice.” They are strong advocates for the Open Fuel Standard, which would require mandated quantities of FFVs. The legislation has been set before Congress since 2005 and was reintroduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in early May. The bill, sponsored by Reps. John Shimkus, R-Ill., Eliot Engel, DN.Y., Roscoe Bartlett, R-Md., and Steve Israel, D-N.Y., aims to increase the number of FFVs on the road gradually, requiring 50 percent of new vehicles be FFVs by 2014, 80 percent in 2016 and 95 percent in 2017. Besides being warranted to operate on combinations of ethanol blends, natural gas, hydrogen or gas, the bill also mentions biodiesel, fuel cell or plug-in electric drive as possible technology combinations. Last, but certainly not least, they are outspoken critics of oil’s virtual monopoly in transportation fuel. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries—OPEC— controls 78 percent of world oil reserves but accounts for only 40 percent of global oil production, they point out in their book, adding that the cartel is manipulative and deliberately constrains supply. For example, OPEC’s crude oil production has not increased since 1973, despite adding Angola and Ecuador as new members. In that same time, global oil demand and non-OPEC production has nearly doubled. “Oil’s virtual monopoly over transportation fuel is the source of its strategic importance,” Korin tells EPM. “It is the source of the power of the OPEC oil cartel to bring our economy to its knees. Opening vehicles up to fuel competition is key to knocking oil off its strategic pedestal and reducing our vulnerability to OPEC’s machinations.”

POLICY

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But what would motivate the ethanol industry to support legislation that would allow drivers to fuel up with methanol? Why should it root for the commercial success of electric vehicles? Luft and Korin present strong cases for both. Luft sees it as just plain “silly” that the ethanol industry views electric vehicles as competition and that the electric vehicle industry feels the same way about ethanol. And he doesn’t think the U.S. industry should feel threatened by Brazilian ethanol either. Methanol, Brazilian ethanol, electric vehicles—if the U.S. can break free of OPEC’s control there’s room for all to profit. “I think the more groups you have out there pursuing solutions to alternatives to oil, the more chance that we could end the monopoly of oil,” he tells EPM. Laws mandating FFVs have not gone anywhere, Korin says, because legislators coming from states outside the Corn Belt have no reason to support ethanol FFVs. If methanol were added to the mix, however, FFVs would become much more attractive to legislators from states strong in coal and natural gas production. While most methanol is made from natural gas, China makes a large amount of it from coal. If the producers and supporters of corn, natural gas and

coal were to join together to ask lawmakers to mandate FFVs, that would be a nearly unbeatable coalition, she says. Congress is currently divided into two categories when it comes to ethanol—those that love it and those that hate it, Luft says. Often legislators from coal and natural gas producing states are among those that are very hostile toward ethanol. However, if all FFVs also operated on methanol, those states would be much more sympathetic to the goals of the Open Fuel Standard, Luft says, because their states would get a bigger piece of the liquid transportation fuels pie. And, so would ethanol. In contrast, the effort to go from E10 to E15 won’t tear down the blend wall. “That might buy you a little bit of time but a few years later you are going to hit it again,” he says. “What then?” If every vehicle were a FFV there would be no such thing as the blend wall. The transportation sector would absorb as much ethanol as the industry can produce, as well as methanol. “It means that there will be much more impact in terms of energy security, because there will be a much bigger market for alternative fuels than there is today,” he says. That would cause a shift in people’s minds, Korin says, transforming alcohol

Road to Freedom from Oil Korin and Luft’s book delves into how they feel the passage of the Open Fuel Standard will lead to freedom from the oil cartel OPEC.

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POLICY

from an additive to a fuel. If 15 percent of the vehicle fleet—meaning all vehicles, not just new ones—were FFVs, there would be a strong business case for fuel station owners to retrofit or put in new pumps to sell alcohol. “As long as oil is above the price at which alcohol is economic, on a per mile cost comparison, drivers will prefer to fuel with alcohol,” she says. In the book, the case is made that critics are on the wrong track when talking about ethanol’s lower energy content com-

72 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

pared to gasoline, because the relevant metric is cost per mile, not miles per gallon.

Getting it Done

FFVs today aren’t warranted to run on both ethanol and methanol, but they could be, with just slight tweaks by the manufacturer. To show it is possible, the authors examine Brazil’s success in going from an oil-dominated market to fuel choice. In 2008, 80 percent of the vehicles sold in Brazil were FFVs. It costs

only about $100 more for manufacturers to add a fuel sensor and a corrosion-resistant fuel line, creating an FFV. “Lest anyone think it can’t be done in the United States, many of the flexible fuel vehicles sold in Brazil are made by General Motors and Ford,” they say. Natural gas is also widely used for transportation in Brazil. When oil prices soared in 2008 the Brazilian government began subsidizing natural gas. At the time the book was written, 10 percent of the Brazilian fleet, or more than 1.5 million vehicles, ran on natural gas. Many of those vehicles are also FFV so they can run on any combination of ethanol, gas or natural gas—much like the ethanol, methanol and gas FFVs Luft and Korin would like to see mandated here in the U.S. Getting the Open Fuel Standard passed for fuel choice in the U.S. will require the support of the ethanol industry in a direction it hasn’t embraced in the past. “If the ethanol industry makes it a true priority and joins forces with the methanol industry, I think it quite likely that an Open Fuel Standard bill would pass,” Korin says. “If it is not a priority for the industry, and priority means emails and letters and phones ringing off the hook, then that will have a consequence.” Things will have to change in Congress as well if the bill is to fare better than it has in previous years. Although there are 60 U.S. Senators from farm states, in 2010 the Open Fuel Standard had the support of only seven co-sponsors in the Senate, Korin says. The bill introduced in the House this year only has four. In contrast, a bill to promote the production and use of natural gas-fueled vehicles, introduced in April, had 180 co-sponsors in early May. With numbers like that its clear to Korin that legislators from farm states don’t feel the bill is important to their constituents—and they won’t, unless the ethanol industry makes it clear that fuel choice is a priority. “When the industry decides something is important, it knows how to do that very well,” she says. Luft thinks the bill has a good chance of passing in 2011 because it won’t cost the taxpayers anything, Luft says. It’s not a tax incentive, it’s simply a mandate for automakers to produce FFVs. “Right now Congress is very wary of anything that costs money,” he says. The political fight will be with auto-

POLICY

Why Oil and Salt?

makers. That’s not a reason to back off, however. The auto industry also opposed seatbelts and airbags—all standard features in vehicles today. “The way I see it, we bailed them out, we might as well get something in return,” Luft says. Korin scoffs at politicians’ hesitation at passing mandates for FFVs. Didn’t Congress cooperate long enough to mandate the transition from analog to digital television broadcasts? That’s an encroachment on a much more trivial part of our lives than fuel choice, she says.

Persistent Myths

Besides outlining the need for fuel choice, the authors tackle misconceptions facing corn ethanol—“the fuel the pundits love to hate.” For one thing, everywhere he goes, Luft meets misinformed people who believe that ethanol causes starvation. This myth has its roots in 2008 when ethanol faced its fiercest

critics, who gave the industry a black eye by claiming biofuels was at the root of a commodity price boom. The source was an “orchestrated campaign” by Big Oil, food makers and others opposed to ethanol on the grounds that it is a waste of taxpayer money, Luft says. “All of these groups came together and helped each other and funded each other,” he says. “They did huge damage to the industry.” Food companies perpetuate the myth out of resentment, Korin says. When oil prices pass a certain point, ethanol makes corn economic, she said, which means price supports for corn are no longer necessary. In that scenario the food industry has to pay market prices for corn syrup and animal feed. “Big Food for years has used underpriced corn syrup, enjoying taxpayer dollars paid as price supports to corn farmers, as a replacement for sugar, because the U.S. has a sugar quota and tariff system |continued on page 75|

The fact that most people haven’t a clue what salt might have to do with oil is the very reason Korin and Luft compared it to oil in the title of their book. Until about 100 years ago, salt was one of the most sought after commodities, according to Mark Kurlansky who wrote “Salt: A World History”. It was used to preserve food and was so important Roman soldiers were actually paid in salt—hence the word salary is derived from the Latin word for salt. Indeed, salt played an important role in many wars, including the American Revolution. In the seventeenth century, British leaders urgently talked about “the dangerous national dependence on French salt,” Kurlansky says. What seems laughable today was very serious business until food preservation technologies and refrigeration broke salt’s strategic importance as a commodity. With fuel choice, the authors hope that oil’s strategic status will be broken as completely as the hold salt once held—thus turning oil into salt. When that happens, perhaps succeeding generations will say, “Oil? What countries produce oil?”—just as most people today have no idea what nations produce salt.

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 73

POLICY

Why ‘Friendly’ Oil Isn’t the Answer

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Luft and Korin call it a fallacy that buying less oil from the Middle East and more from friendly nations, such as Canada, is the answer. The idea sounds reasonable, they say, but doesn’t work because oil is a fungible commodity. In other words, the oil market is like a swimming pool where oil from all sources comingles. “We don’t get all or even most of our oil from the Middle East,” they write. “In fact, the Middle East is the source of barely one quarter of our imports. But that doesn’t lessen the control the Middle Eastern countries, which sit on some twothirds of world oil reserves, have over the world market. We don’t import a drop of oil from Iran, but anything that impacts Iranian supply affects the whole market, affects oil prices for everyone, not just those who buy directly from Iran. If Iran’s president decided to cut the country’s oil exports or block the Straits of Hormuz, the increase in price would be felt across the board. Therefore, if we just shuffle around our sources of oil supply by buying oil from different countries than we do today, it will not reduce our vulnerability to the oil cartel’s market manipulations. Someone else will buy the oil we would have bought from supplier A, and we will buy the oil they were buying from supplier B—no difference whatsoever will be felt by the suppliers (or us).” Likewise, the push to drill for more domestic supplies of oil or the call to use less oil both perpetuate oil’s monopoly in the transportation sector and do nothing to weaken OPEC, they say. The policies might, at best, keep some U.S. dollars from going overseas. “When non-OPEC countries drill more, OPEC simply drills less, and when we use less, OPEC also uses less—witness the multiple production cuts in 2008 and 2009 geared to propping up oil prices. Neither efficiency or drilling will serve to strip oil of its strategic status.” Source: “Turning Oil into Salt,” pages 6,7.

POLICY

|continued from page 73|

that keeps sugar prices much higher than elsewhere in the world,” she says. “But instead of taking on the sugar lobby, Big Food has masqueraded itself as a defender of the market and the poor, in the hopes of reverting to a world in which ethanol goes away, corn price supports are required, and it gets all the underpriced corn syrup it wants.” Even more than Big Food, Big Oil is the real culprit, Luft says. Food prices go up when oil prices go up. “The major factor in the production of food is oil, the shipping the packaging, the fertilizer, and everything, that goes into making food,” he says. In 2010 the World Bank reversed its 2008 analysis that biofuels caused a spike in commodity prices, and said financial investors, high oil prices and other factors were likely culpable. Yet the food versus fuel argument is still getting recycled at ethanol’s expense in public opinion. This time around, Luft hopes the ethanol industry will go on the offense rather than the defense to fight the myths about ethanol while continuing to highlight the dangers of addiction to foreign oil. “All of this needs to be communicated in a very sophisticated way so that the public understands that ethanol is a friend,” he says. “It’s not some sort of corrupt lobby that is taking their money and squandering it.” The book also delves into the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit and efforts to stop subsidizing the renewable fuel. Although Luft and Korin oppose subsidies, they make it clear ethanol isn’t the only energy source receiving government support. Personally, Luft tells EPM, he’d like to discontinue all subsidies and let everyone compete in the free market. Still, if he had a choice between tax incentives for the oil industry—which has been getting billions for decades—or the ethanol industry, the choice, for him, is clear. “I’d rather give my money to Americans, who will plow the money back into the economy, than send it overseas,” he says. Conversely, ethanol haters attack ethanol over VEETC while ignoring the government support received by Big Oil. “It’s not intellectually honest to discriminate against one fuel and not the other,” he says. “You have to apply the same logic.” Another part of the problem is that many don’t realize that VEETC is actually a blend-

ers credit, not a tax credit to ethanol producers. If the public were polled they’d say the tax credit was a handout to the ethanol industry and farmers, when the recipients are actually companies like BP and Valero. “This is where I think the industry is missing a big opportunity,” he says. “It’s a handout to Big Oil, and I think the industry needs to make this point much more known to the public.” Another thing ethanol critics love to shout about is that it takes more energy to make ethanol from corn than the energy produced when it’s burned in a vehicle. This isn’t a so much a myth as it is “irrelevant and intellectually dishonest,” Korin and Luft argue. It’s a law of nature that when raw energy is converted to a usable form it takes more energy than the energy produced, be it crude oil, coal, corn or sugar cane. Food takes 10 calories of fossil-fuel energy to produce a single calorie of food for sale in today’s supermarkets, ac-

cording to food expert Michael Pollan—and the U.S. is still addicted to breakfast, lunch and supper, plus snacks. A 2008 study by Bruce Dale concluded that it takes 1.19 mega joules of fossil fuel to produce one mega joule of gasoline compared to only 0.77 for corn ethanol and 0.10 for cellulosic ethanol. “The point is, gasoline’s energy requirement is greater than ethanol’s … and yet this hasn’t prevented any of us from using this ‘net energy loser,’” Luft and Korin write. Author: Holly Jessen Associate Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine. (701) 738-4946 hjessen@bbiinternational.com

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 75

3URXG WR EH WKH YRLFH RI WKH HWKDQRO LQGXVWU\ IRU \HDUV Since 1981, the Renewable Fuels Association has proudly served our members as the voice of the ethanol industry, delivering the landmark legislative, regulatory, and tax policy victories that helped create the industry we enjoy today. And our work continues. From our industry-leading technical and research expertise to our market development activities that continue to expand opportunities, we owe our success to all of our ethanol producer members. Thank you for 30 years of commitment.

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WATER

CONTRIBUTION

Treating Minerals The cold lime softening tank pictured is a key component in a process to remove minerals from water.

Implementing Integrated Zero Liquid Dischargecharge

Reviewing results from 11 installations shows what can be achieved By Todd Potas

There are many technological solutions available to help ethanol plants achieve zero liquid discharge (ZLD). Traditional ZLD systems

use brine concentrators and evaporators for the undesired, salt-laden cooling tower (CT) blowdown and reverse osmosis (RO) concentrate, which is evaporated and the solids hauled off-site to solid waste handling facilities. Some permits allow discharging of CT blowdown and RO concentrate in the nearest flowing river or stream.

U.S. Water Services has designed ZLD systems at more than a dozen ethanol plants in the U.S., trademarking its integrated system iZLD. Some implemented ZLD during initial construction; others transitioned an existing facility to ZLD or sought to optimize an existing ZLD. The facilities analyzed in this article demonstrate CT blowdown and RO concentrate can be successfully integrated into the ethanol facility process while maintaining process water quality compatible with biological processes, cooling tower assurance and coproduct quality. Ongoing monitoring,

The claims and statements made in this article belong exclusively to the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Ethanol Producer Magazine or its advertisers. All questions pertaining to this article should be directed to the author(s). 78 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

however, becomes extremely important because a poor trend, such as high chlorides or biological fouling, can take months to correct, even leading to plant shutdown. Many ethanol facilities are required to have a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit for industrial noncontract water discharge. The renewal process typically occurs every five years, which allows the regulatory agencies to review and update permit limits and/or provide additional protection for degraded or sensitive surface water resources. In many instances, these renewals result in new discharge limits that facilities cannot achieve without retrofits. As soon as a facility has a discharge limit that is more stringent than a contaminant

WATER

parameter level in the incoming water, ZLD becomes a very viable alternative. For example, if a facility receives a conductivity limit of 1500 Âľmhos/cm (micromhos per centimeter) for their water discharge permit, and the conductivity of the incoming water is the same value, discharge no longer benefits the overall water balance for a facility. Typically, water is obtained from on-site wells, surface waters or municipalities. Water leaves the facility through evaporation, in the distillers grain, discharged wastewater streams or liquid, or solid waste hauled off-site or pumped to evaporation ponds. If regulations require the discharge to be as good as, or better than, incoming water, reuse of the water simply makes more sense than using more raw water and continuing to discharge under a restrictive and burdensome discharge permit.

Quality Parameters

Looking at a few important water quality parameters, such as conductivity, sulfate and chloride, reveals general trends and suggests what process changes may be necessary to implement an iZLD scenario at a new or existing facility. Table 1 shows the average across 10 ethanol plants for water quality and performance parameters for discharge water, as well as projected iZLD performance and actual results. The 10 dry mill corn-ethanol

plants analyzed produce between 50 and 120 MMgy. Table 2 shows the range in raw water quality at the 10 plants. The iZLD system utilized by these 10 plants improved chloride levels in the process water as shown in Table 1. The summary data shows that chloride-contributing chemicals, such as hydrochloric acid or chloride-containing biocides like bleach, were replaced or eliminated. If chloride is allowed to cycle up, corrosion in the plant process equipment and piping will likely result. Table 1 also shows the iZLD operations tended to concentrate sulfate levels in process water when compared to operating with discharge. Unlike chloride, sulfur cannot be readily reduced or eliminated. Therefore, control and management of sulfate levels becomes more significant. Encouragingly, increased sulfate levels in water do not result in a significant increase in the sulfur content of DDGS, indicated by the sulfur levels for DDGS in Table 1 that averaged a projected value of 0.06 percent. The average conductivity levels in the 10 plants also show a concentrating trend once iZLD is applied, requiring ion-specific, plantby-plant review to determine where and how much the concentration of conductivitycontributing ion levels can be tolerated, as well as the chemistry controls required. The problematic ions can include sodium, silica

Table 1. Ethanol Plant Water Qualities & Performance Cond. (Âľmho/cm)

Sulfate (ppm)

Chloride (ppm)

gal H20/gal ETOH

DGS % increase

1139

296

Average for 10 plant Raw Water Process Waterw/discharge

1676

410

4.1

ZLD Process Water projected

2381

749

3.2

0.064

ZLD Process Water actual

1340

430

2.0

Table 2. Ranges for Raw Water Quality Parameters Parameter

Low

High A

Verage

Conductivity, Âľmhos/cm

250

2100

1139

Sulfate, ppm SO4-

900

296

Chloride, ppm Cl-

300

and hardness, which can increase fouling or corrosion. In addition to water quality issues, changes to air quality must be considered when planning iZLD systems. The levels of collective total dissolved solids (TDS) are often limited for the cooling tower exhaust, commonly stated as drift loss. Evaporated solids from the cooling tower are particulate emissions generally subject to regulation, and any increase due to ZLD may require modification to a facility air permit.

Plant Conversion

Once regulatory Maximized Recycling requirements are com- Todd Potas, biofuels pleted, including any business leader for U.S. Water Services, needed permits, equip- shares comparisons ment installation or of 11 systems installed to achieve zero liquid modifications can be- discharge. gin. In virtually every instance of iZLD installation reviewed here, it makes technical and economic sense to replace sulfuric and hydrochloric acid with plant-generated CO2 for recarbonation (pH adjustment) of the treated plant water. This replacement is critical for managing process water ion balance, which can include sulfate loading in the DDGS. The recovered CO2 can also be used for acidification in other areas of the facility. The conversion to iZLD begins with integration of the two primary wastewater streams, beginning with cooling tower water. Once the CT blowdown is integrated and observations of ion cycling in the water system at all stages stabilize, RO concentrate is introduced. Integration is typically complete in one or two weeks, depending upon site-specific issues. Subsequent water testing, both on-site and with samples sent off-site for more detailed lab analysis, monitors plant operation. Water specifications monitored include cooling tower makeup, boiler water makeup, and most importantly, process water used in fermentation. While the 10 facilities reviewed using

SOURCE: U.S. Water Services.

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 79

WATER

iZLD have achieved satisfactory performance, there are examples where other iZLD systems are needed. One iZLD facility with an evaporator/crystallizer and storage pond was reviewed, and its water quality parameters given in Table 3. The raw water quality is very challenging in this example, showing a clear advantage to using an evaporator/ crystallizer and brine storage pond to handle the high salts. While there was some cycling up of the key water quality parameters, concentrations of conductivity, sulfate and chloride did not reach the levels demonstrated for the averaged iZLD facilities. In addition, relatively good water usage performance was achieved at 2.81 gallons of water/gallon of ethanol produced and the projected versus

actual results were fairly consistent.

Total Water Savings

Facility water use efficiency performance was an average of 4.3 gallons of water/gallon of ethanol produced for all the facilities reviewed prior to ZLD implementation. The projected, worst-case water use after going to

First System The first zero liquid discharge system in the U.S. utilized cold lime softening and was designed for a dry mill ethanol plant in Madera, Calif., to meet stringent discharge restrictions.

Table 3. Example of a ZLD facility with evaporator/crytallizer and storage pond Cond.

Sulfate

Chloride

gal H20/gal

(Âľmho/cm)

(ppm)

ETOH

3560

335

846

Process Water w/discharge

7.1

5.26

ZLD Proce Water projected

156

17.3

40.0

2.76

ZLD Process Water actual

300

4.1

35.3

2.81

Raw Water

SOURCE: U.S. Water Services

80 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

ZLD was an average of 3.1 gallons of water per gallon of ethanol produced, or close to 1 billion gallons of water per year on the combined 800 MMgy ethanol production of all plants reviewed here. The actual performance was closer to 2 billion gallons of water saved per year. The large difference between projected and actual performance for water use per gallon of ethanol occurs often, primarily because the projections are done on a worst-case water balance, raw wa-

WATER

LEADERSHIP, AT YOUR SERVICE! ter quality and supply information. Many facilities were able to optimize in-coming water among multiple wells, municipal supply, and/or graywater and stormwater, both on-site and off-site. The relatively soft water properties of storm water can be very favorable to any ZLD operating scenario, especially if a facility already has a pond for containment and control of stormwater. While projections for water use per gallon of ethanol differ greatly from actual performance, this review of the conductivity, sulfate and chloride levels for the plants analyzed demonstrates good agreement between projected and actual results. Based on these results, facilities contemplating an iZLD system can predict the likely operating differences with some level of confidence. The financial and environmental liability benefits of not discharging can be significant. Monitoring, testing and reporting of discharges for permit compliance have become much more costly in recent years. Requirements for whole effluent toxicity (WET) testing, for example, can greatly increase costs. Many facilities have, or are considering, voluntary ZLD conversion, which can permit optional discharge of nonprocess water and stormwater. If no discharge occurs, reporting can be as simple as stating â&#x20AC;&#x153;no dischargeâ&#x20AC;? in monthly NPDES discharge monitoring reports. No sampling and analysis costs would be required, and no potential discharge permit violations would occur. Each facility location will have unique advantages and disadvantages that require a customized engineering approach to optimally design a ZLD system that accounts for local water quality and quantity, as well as process and operational variations in the ongoing effort to conserve water usage. Author: Todd Potas Biofuels Business Leader, U.S. Water Services tpotas@uswaterservices.com

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CONTRIBUTION

Iowa Does Its Part in Encouraging Adoption of E15 Leading ethanol producing state wants to lead the nation in promoting new blend By Lucy Norton

Today the state of Iowa’s renewable fuels industry is strong and looking to the future. Iowa leads the nation in ethanol production with 41 ethanol production facilities with the combined ability to produce nearly 3.7 billion gallons of ethanol annually. While the future holds many opportunities, there are significant challenges as well.

We must work to knock down the artificial barriers that hold back renewable fuel use. America has smacked into the E10 blend wall, and the federal blenders tax credit for ethanol is set to expire at the end of this year. So, it’s obvious that 2011 is the year to seriously evaluate ethanol’s future. When the U.S. EPA announced the approval of E15 for 2001 and newer model

vehicles and light-duty trucks, it opened the door for an exciting market for ethanol to help overcome the E10 blend wall. With 85 percent of all vehicles on the road by 2014 capable of using E15, it’s time to start the groundwork for bringing E15 to motorists. When E10 was introduced in the 1970s, Iowa led the nation to embrace this new fuel produced from Iowa’s farm fields. The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association is working to put Iowa in position to lead the nation again—this time in embracing E15. Adoption of 15 percent ethanol blends opens up a

promotion

new 7 billion-gallon-per-year market, which is twice the size of Iowa’s 2010 ethanol production. As ethanol acceptance has grown, E10 is no longer considered a “boutique” fuel. Now it is the base fuel. So, it’s time to move on to the next generation of ethanol blends and strive for adoption of E15. The challenge for E15 is making it widely available so every motorist driving a 2001 and newer vehicle has the option to buy this higher-octane, lower-cost fuel. Retailers and convenience stores can make this happen. Iowa should seize the opportunity E15 offers to expand the ethanol market and keep more dollars in the local economy, since Iowa imports most of its energy needs. Policies for incentives and financial assistance for infrastructure build out are needed to encourage retailers to offer E15. While EPA approval of the fuel creates an opportunity, E15 becomes a reality for consumers only if retailers make the fuel available. Retailers are understandably concerned about misfueling penalties and consumer lawsuits. While we can debate forever the likelihood of these perceived threats, there is no denying that the concerns will hold back many retailers from offering E15. Why? Today, most Iowa fuel stations have two gasoline storage tanks—one holding non-ethanol fuel, and one holding E10. For E15 to become readily available in the near term, a retailer is going to have to fill one of those two tanks with E15. Providing some type of meaningful E15 incentive can provide a counterbalance to liability fears and reward retailers who decide to offer their customers E15. The IRFA is working to prove to retailers that E15 is a wise choice and that customers will buy E15 if they offer it. The IRFA recently launched a retailer campaign driven by their potential E15 customers. Motorists are dropping off cards at their local retailers informing them that they “own a 2001 or newer vehicle and that they would buy E15 when it’s available.” It also tells retailers they want more American fuel choices that are better for the environment.

E85 also paints a bright future for ethanol. With the commitment by the three major U.S. automakers to make 50 percent of their 2012 production as flex-fuel vehicles, more motorists will have the option to purchase renewable fuels. To make this happen, we need to move toward every gas station in Iowa having a flex-fuel pump that offers not only E85, but midlevel ethanol blends such as E30 and even the new E15 blend. This is how we break the Big Oil monopoly over consumer fuel choice and high-priced gasoline. It’s time to take a serious approach to cutting our addiction to foreign oil and it’s time to seriously commit to locally-produced renewable choices. By spending $28 billion a month on imported oil, the U.S. is transferring a massive amount of wealth during a period of economic hardship. Over the past 30 years, this reliance on foreign oil has cost U.S. taxpayers over $7 trillion.

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We’re taking a 10 percent bite out of foreign oil, thanks to E10 use, which currently eliminates the need for 445 million barrels of imported oil annually, the equivalent of our imports from Saudi Arabia each year. Just consider how many barrels of oil could be eradicated and how many dollars would stay in this country if another 7 billion gallons of ethanol were sold as E15. E15 is not the only challenge facing the ethanol industry today. While the federal renewable fuels standard (RFS) expands the market for ethanol, anti-corn environmentalists convinced policymakers to cap corn ethanol at 15 billion gallons a year. The RFS calls for the growth in renewable fuels production above 15 billion gallons to be from “advanced biofuels”—biofuels that achieve a 50 percent reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions compared to a baseline 2005 petroleum fuel. But the fine print in this regulation states that corn ethanol

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Iowa Leads The round gold dots show existing corn ethanol plants in Iowa and orange indicates plants under development. A square indicates a cellulosic ethanol plant. SOURCE: EPM SPRING 2011 ETHANOL PLANT MAP

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 83

PHOTO: IOWA RENEWABLE FUELS ASSOCIATION

promotion

Corn Conversion IRFA says corn ethanol contributes 49,000 jobs to the state providing $2.4 billion in income and $ 588 million in state tax revenue last year.

doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t qualify regardless of its environmental performance. No matter how much corn ethanol may reduce GHG emissions in the future, it is statutorily forbidden from ever participating in the advanced biofuels part of the federal RFS. This is an unfair characterization of ethanol because it is continually advancing in reducing greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. According to (S&T)2 Consultants Inc., ethanol has a positive impact on reducing global GHG. In 2010, world ethanol production is estimated to have reduced GHG emissions by 101 million tons. This reduction would be equal to taking 18.7 million cars off the road, which we know will never

promotion

happen. So why not boost ethanol use as an alternative to forcing mass transit and recognize ethanol for what it is—an advanced biofuel—that has far superior environmental benefits over petroleum-based fuels? The excitement raised by prospects for increasing ethanol production to meet new demand is tempered by the continual criticism by those who don’t understand—or choose not to—the role of corn in providing food, feed and fuel. What the naysayers choose to overlook is that one-third of every bushel of corn processed into ethanol also produces a high-energy, protein-rich feed ingredient known as distillers grains. This distillers grain is feeding livestock around the globe and reducing the cost of producing beef, poultry and pork. And, currently distillers grains replace 1 billion bushels of corn previously used as livestock feed. As for the claim that ethanol takes a bite

out of food supplies, ethanol production actually uses only 3 percent of the world’s feed supply on a net basis. So the feed grains mostly consumed as human food—wheat and rice—are not affected by ethanol production. Through new ethanol production technology, seed genetics and agriculture production efficiencies, no new acres have been needed to produce ethanol. These trends will continue, so there’s no better time to advance domestic, renewable energy Promoting E15 production. IRFA is asking consumers to drop The benefits of off cards at their gas using more ethanol stations saying they’d buy E15, says Lucy are significant to this Norton. country and Iowa’s

future. In addition to supporting 49,000 jobs and providing $2.4 billion in income, Iowa’s ethanol industry contributed $588 million in state tax revenue last year. If Iowa takes the lead in developing new markets for ethanol, it will provide economic stability, keep dollars from being sent to unstable oil-producing nations and improve the environmental health of this nation. Author: Lucy Norton Managing Director, Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (515) 252-6249 lnorton@iowarfa.org

yeast

photo: ÂŠ stockphoto.com/svengine

CONTRIBUTION

Yeast Management Provides Stable Fermentation Performance New propagation technique offers savings while increasing yields By Peter Krasucki

Grain pricing volatility and the comparatively low margins associated with commodity products such as ethanol require diligent reevaluation of material and energy balances of every unit operation in the ethanol industry. To remain competitive, these significant market pressures demand absolute focus on

optimal ethanol yield and maximum process efficiency. There are inherent limitations due to the complexities of carbohydrate processing and yeast metabolism, although 88 to 93 percent of the theoretical maximum yield is frequently achieved in the corn ethanol process. The typically closed-loop bioprocessing configuration of ethanol plants and the de-

pendence on the biocatalytic activity of the living microorganism, Saccharomyces cerevisiae (yeast), offers many challenges and a very limited number of economically feasible solutions. While the self-limiting nature of the industrial scale, batch-fermentation process would appear to offer very few options, a promising new technology optionâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;High Density Seed Cultivationâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;may significantly improve the performance of the standard dry grind ethanol plant. Ethanol manufacturing platforms de-

yeast

pendent on batch- or continuous-yeast propagation may improve performance by incorporating advanced technologies already utilized in other biotechnology industries using fedbatch fermentation platforms. The core bioprocessing systems in the ethanol process require high throughput, and any modification of current systems may be economically unreasonable. Improvements could be made, however, to the accessory bioprocesses such as yeast propagation that can be appropriately scaled while maintaining or improving performance. The modernization of current yeast management strategies through use of the high-density seed cultivation platform targets production of low-volume, high-density fermentation inoculums. When combined with cell recycling and fed-batch yeast cultivation, it can lower operations costs while improving fermentation performance.

Yeast Inoculum

Ethanol fermentation is first dependent on the availability of yeast biomass. In contrast to other bioprocess ingredients where concentrations are based on the effluent and influent composition and additions, yeast acts as a self-reproducing biocatalyst, properties of which are functions of plant processes. While the properties of various commercial yeast products have significant impacts, these

properties alone do not ensure satisfactory performance. Instead, successful process performance depends on economical production and maintenance of the viable yeast biomass. Currently, the ethanol industry mostly uses active dry yeast products as the source of the initial yeast inoculum. These products are closely related industrial strains of typically polyploidy Saccharomyces cerevisiae. A definitive review was written by W.M. Ingledew in 2005, covering the properties and performance of seven such products and similar reviews are available on yeast performance under different saccharification conditions, chemical balances and process conditions.

Fermentation Requirements

The overall fuel ethanol biological process can be separated into two distinct phases—yeast biomass propagation (inoculum build up) and ethanol fermentation. The biological process culminates in the beer well and downstream distillation and recovery. These two steps are common across various fermentation industries where a required biomass is first propagated and then used as a biocatalyst in the production phase. In view of the overall process principles, propagation design targets are based on fermentation inoculum density requirements of 5 to 10 x 106 cells per milliliter. Additionally,

Basic High-Density Seed Yeast Cultivation System From Cook

Mash Enrichment

Fed Batch Control

• Growth Rate • Metabolism • Culture Density • Products Yields • Secondary Metabolite • Fermentative Capacity

Control Loops • Temperature • pH • Nutrient Utilization • Exhaust Composition • Biomass

HIGH DENSITY SEED REACTOR 2ND STAGE

Acid

HIGH DENSITY SEED REACTOR 1ST STAGE

Caustic

Air Yeast Slurry

SOURCE: FERMATRIX

Yeast Cell Recycle Loop

Fed-Batch Cell Recycle Control Targets

To Fermentation

propagation processes are designed and based on the selected yeast product properties, process cycle, temperature, medium composition, specific growth rate target and fermentative capacity of yeast biomass. The yeast cultivation process has a big impact on the specific fermentative capacity of the yeast biomass. Beside yeast biomass considerations, significant attention needs to be devoted to controlling microbial contamination that could reduce ethanol yield. Industrial-scale fermentations are run as self-limiting batch processes where only the final substrate and product concentrations are of consequence. That self-limiting nature provides, on one hand, wide latitude in initial conditions, yet, it also prevents reasonable control or optimization of the fermentation process itself. Such variability in initial conditions, which results in seemingly similar performance, frequently leads to the false sense of “process control.”

Yeast Propagation Performance

The inherent engineering-scale limitations dictating the use of the self-limiting, batch-fermentation platform offers many process control challenges resulting in often unpredictable performance. Review of the current industrial data and relevant publications reveals that in view of the specific attainable fermentation goals, the propagation process contributes an unreasonable amount of uncertainty—frequently resulting in performance losses. The unnecessary limitations imposed on the current propagation process lead to the very low volumetric productivity, and to final yeast biomass with less than optimal fermentative capacity. A focused propagation platform, however, should provide significant control over self-limiting batch fermentations. Using standard-scale factors, fermentation inoculum density requires production of 484 to 726 kilograms of yeast in active dry yeast equivalent (ADY) during biomass propagation. This process is typically initiated by using approximately 40 kg (ADY equivalent) of yeast and results in the initial yeast propagation density of between 10 to 20 x 106 yeast cells per milliliter. After eight hours, the final JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 87

yeast

yeast biomass concentration of 320 to 640 x 106 yeast cells per milliliter is produced in four to five generations. Regardless of the yeast strain, the batch propagation conditions can create significantly imbalanced metabolic fluxes in the yeast biomass, resulting in increased production of secondary metabolites such as glycerol, acetate and acetaldehyde that can inhibit fermentation.

• • • • •

tion inoculum properties and fermentation process kinetics. Feedstock flexibility beyond C6 carbohydrates. Pure culture and mix culture process flexibility. Full process control automation. Immediate return on investment. Additional bioproducts options.

Economical technologies such as cellrecycle, fed-batch yeast cultivation promise to be the next step in development for biorefineries. Additional options in fermentation process management are also available to the fuel ethanol industry. Author: Peter Krasucki General Manager, Fermatrix info@fermatrix.com

Alternative Technologies

The current targets for inoculum of 1 to 2 percent, volume to volume, are excessive, and based on a low-density yeast cultivation process. Current processes producing biomass densities of only 8 to 12 grams per liter versus the more ideal 137 grams per liter, illustrate that there are clear optimization opportunities, as well as significant potential savings in adopting new approaches. Advanced, yet inexpensive, features such as integrated fed-batch control loops can be easily incorporated into existing computer control systems. Furthermore, additional advanced features such as medium enrichment, cell recycling, mixed yeast cultures and feedstock flexibility can all be easily implemented to realize additional cost savings and performance gains. Compared to existing propagation processes, single-stage or multi-stage, cell-recycling, fed-batch systems offer the following advantages: • Production of high-density, low-volume fermentation seed. • Faster fermentations. • Improved fermentation process stability. • Improved material and energy balance. • Decreased risk of infection, lower sanitation costs. • Reduced costs of about 50 percent. • Reductions in commercial yeast use, regardless of strain, of up to 95 percent. • Elimination of commercial yeast product variability impacts on fermentation. • Stringent control over final fermenta88 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

FRACTIONATION

•

EXTRACTION

•

OIL PROCESSING

•

DEMO FACILITY

CROWN IRON WORKS COMPANY Call 1.651.639.8900 or visit www.crowniron.com

MAINTENANCE

CONTRIBUTION

Pellet Power High density dry ice pellets in a variety of sizes are used in dry ice cleaning systems.

Dry Ice Blasting Solves Ethanol Plant Maintenance Headache Faster cleaning with fewer workers is possible when dry ice is used instead of water By Kellie Grob

Prior to the introduction of dry ice blasting for cleaning, many in the ethanol industry faced significant challenges with maintenance. Distillers dried grains (DDGS) and corn dust coats the walls of

buildings, tunnels and grain pits, working its way throughout the plant. The dry ice method of cleaning has had excellent results, particularly in the energy centers at ethanol plants, which include thermal oxidizers, stack economizers, coils and

induced draft (ID) fans. Hardened corn dust gathers on these pieces of equipment and greatly reduces thermal efficiency and their ability to generate steam. According to guidance from the U.S. EPA, ethanol producers cannot have more than one-sixteenth of an inch of dust on building or equipment surfaces. For many ethanol producers, the commonly available method for cleaning their plants and removing dust is water blasting. When it comes

MAINTENANCE

time for a plant’s semiannual cleaning, a maintenance crew brings in tanker trucks of water—enough to fill a pond outside the facility three feet deep when the project is done. The cleaning process typically takes 36 to 48 hours and requires 15 to18 workers to clean the equipment and handle the secondary waste, which consists of water, dirt, grease and dust.

The Problem

Cleaning with water can create problems, explained Shawn Easterly, an ethanol energy center expert. He coordinates maintenance for four facilities in the Midwest, and previously managed 16 ethanol plants for another ethanol producer. “The biggest challenge when it comes to cleaning with water is the chance of damaging the ceramic block refractory that is used to insulate the interiors of several of the pieces of equipment. If this refractory becomes wet, the damaged blocks have to be replaced—an added expense that many plants simply cannot afford. In addition, there are also certain areas of the facility and pieces of equipment and electronics that simply cannot get wet.” Rather than clean the economizers with water, Easterly comBlast Cleaning mented that some in Kellie Grob says Cold the industry simply Jet’s dry ice blast cleaning systems work avoided cleaning the well in cleaning critical equipment, which areas of ethanol plants. ultimately impacts production. “Even in the plants that I began overseeing,” Easterly added, “they had avoided cleaning the economizers, either because they feared damaging the refractory or simply because they didn’t understand the impact that the blocked economizer tubes had on their bottom line. Once I started to calculate the lost efficiency due to the clogged stacks, however, we realized that we needed to find an alternative to water.” “Many of our customers have decided

that they simply cannot afford to use water in their plants,” said Brad Potts, owner of New Age Cryo, a service offered by Stoc Products Inc. “Water does not mix with the grease on the machines, and equipment with electronics and computer chips have to be covered or avoided. Despite efforts to remove the water, it can be weeks before it is completely gone, and if not removed, the plant could develop a mold problem.”

A Solution

Dry ice blast cleaning provides all the benefits of high pressure water without the negative impacts. Dry ice blasting uses reclaimed CO2 in the form of dry ice pellets to remove the layers of DDGS and dust from various surfaces within an ethanol plant. Blasted by controlled, pressurized air, the dry ice pellets sublimate upon contact with equipment without damaging the surface being cleaned and without producing any secondary waste. Using Cold Jet Aero series dry ice blast cleaning systems, New Age Cryo can clean the economizer and boiler tubes, ID fans, grain tunnels, DDGS tunnels and pits, gas stations, lime slurry stations, wet cake areas and offload buildings. In addition, since dry ice blasting is a dry cleaning process, New Age Cryo can also clean electronic components without worrying about damaging the equipment. “The process works extremely well in ethanol plants,” stated Easterly. “We are able to clean these areas in the plants with fewer people and without the mess left behind by high-pressure water blasting. It is safe to say that dry ice blasting will likely become the standard cleaning practice in these areas of the ethanol plants.”

The Benefits

As a result of being able to more effectively clean the equipment and areas of the plant, ethanol producers are finding significant costs and energy savings by adopting dry ice blasting. According to Easterly, it was not uncommon for his plants’ energy centers to see a 20 to 30 degree drop in stack

temperatures after each cleaning. This results in increased production, significant savings in natural gas and fewer emissions. “By cleaning our stack economizers every six months, we saved $100,000 per plant in natural gas savings alone,” Easterly said. “With four plants, the annual savings totaled roughly $400,000 for the company. The economizer coils preheat the water for the ethanol production process, but when the coils are covered by the refractory, they are less efficient at heating the water and producing steam, so we have to use more natural gas. Dry ice blasting has allowed us to reduce the amount of gas that we use, while also helping us to run at higher rates.” Potts emphasized that these savings and benefits are not unique to Easterly’s plants. “A reliable, durable cleaning system that cleans faster, with zero secondary waste and less mess is clearly something that can help the industry. Many ethanol plants across the country are identical in design and struggle with the same cleaning challenges. That said, many ethanol plants can also realize similar savings and benefits as described above by implementing dry ice blast cleaning into their maintenance process.” Author: Kellie A. Grob Senior Vice President, Cold Jet, LLC (800) 337-9423 kgrob@coldjet.com

JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 91

Firefighting

photo: NSW Fire Brigades

CONTRIBUTION

2004 Fire A blaze started in a 32 meter (100 foot) diameter tank containing about 4,000 cubic meters (more than 1 million gallons) of ethanol at Port Kembla, Australia, in 2004.

Fighting an Ethanol Tank Fire Presents Unique Challenges Swedish group seeks better understanding, new and better firefighting methods By Henry Persson

One obvious consequence of challenges for fire protection and that have occurred have resulted in burnout increasing ethanol blends, both response. The increasing diameter and rather than extinguishment. Some critical in Europe and the U.S., is that volume of storage tanks is also making any differences between fighting fires involving the volume of bulk ethanol trans- potential firefighting operations a significant petroleum-based products and ethanol need ported, handled and stored will challenge. Experience in tank firefighting in- to be better understood. increase dramatically in com- volving ethanol or other water miscible fuing years, creating new risks and els is very limited, and those few tank fires What Makes Ethanol Different? The claims and statements made in this article belong exclusively to the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Ethanol Producer Magazine or its advertisers. All questions pertaining to this article should be directed to the author(s). 92 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

The most important differences in terms of fire performance between ethanol

FIREFIGHTING

heat exposure of personnel and equipment. The most important difference from a fire-extinguishing perspective is that ethanol is a water miscible fuel. Some data concerning foam firefighting of ethanol fuels and other water miscible products is available, even for reasonably large-scale scenarios, but they all represent spill fires. Early in the1980s, SP conducted a large test series using methanol where approximately 80 tests were conducted ranging from 0.25 square meters (0.29 square yards) to 50 square meters using a fuel depth of about 200 millimeters (7.8 inches). In the large scale acetone/ethanol tests mentioned above, two extinguishing tests were performed using an average fuel depth of about 150 millimeters. In 2006, a series of small-scale tests (0.6 square meters) were conducted to investigate the influence of low blending of ethanol in gasoline on existing firefighting capabilities. Approximately 30 tests were conducted with between 2.5 to 10 percent ethanol blends, using both gentle and forceful foam application. A series of fire tests were also conducted in the U.S. in 2007 by the Ethanol Emergency Response Coalition. Tests were conducted both on E95 (denatured ethanol) and E10 using several types of foam concentrates. The tests on E95 showed that the requirements of UL 162 were only fulfilled when using an AFFF-AR and a Type II application, which is a gentle application shown in the accompanying photo where the foam is first bounced on the ground.. Similarly, existing test standards for alcohol-resistant foam concentrates (ISO 72033, EN 1568-4, UL162, etc.) all employ thin fuel layers and short pre-burn timesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;spill fires. Even spill fires pose serious firefighting issues and the general conclusion from various large-scale tests and standard test methods, is that the use of alcohol resistant (AR) foams is a fundamental requirement to obtain extinguishment of water miscible fuels. The tests have also shown, however, that even AR foams will fail unless gentle foam application onto the burning fuel surface can be achieved. As tank fires are usually extinguished

using large capacity foam monitors, gentle application is not possible and therefore extinguishment cannot be expected. Furthermore, a tank fire will present a more severe situation compared to a spill fire due to the large fuel depth, as the dilution effect from the fire fighting foam will be limited. In most situations, the pre-burn time will also be longer than that expected in a spill fire, thereby increasing the temperature of the fuel and creating hot steel surfaces making extinguishment even more difficult.

photo: Birger Markusson SRV

and gasoline concern flammability properties, burning behavior and extinguishment methods. In a closed vessel or a tank, pure ethanol forms flammable fuel Fire Planning vapors at a temperaHenry Persson ture range of about explains how the behavior of an ethanol 12 to 40 degrees Centank fire differs greatly tigrade (12 to 104 defrom a fire occurring in a scenario involving grees Fahrenheit while a spill. gasoline needs to be below about minus 20 C for such formation. Ethanol blends have a flammability range between pure ethanol and gasoline, depending on the specific composition. As a result, the possibility for flammable conditions in a storage tank, and thereby the risk for ignition, is greater for ethanol than gasoline. A very important and related issue is that the burning behavior of a large-scale ethanol fire might be significantly different from a petroleum fire. Experience from small-scale fires shows that radiation is significantly lower from an ethanol fire compared to gasoline. There are indications, however, that the opposite may be true in a large-scale fire. Such observations were made during a 200 square-meter fire-test series conducted in Sweden using a mixture of acetone and ethanol. Measurements showed that the heat flux from the acetone/ethanol fire was about twice that of gasoline at this scale, although gasoline produced a significant higher heat radiation in small-scale tests. The reason for this is probably that a large-scale gasoline fire generates large amounts of smoke that tend to block the visible parts of the flames, thus reducing the heat radiation. The acetone/ ethanol fire was almost free from smoke, and the associated heat radiated was therefore not dissipated by smoke. This is likely to be true for pure ethanol fuels. Indeed, such observations were made during a 2004 Port Kembla ethanol tank fire in Australia. One consequence of this phenomenon could be an increased risk for escalation and complexity in firefighting operations due to higher

Foam Test One of the extinguishing tests bounced foam on the ground in front of a 200 square meter (240 square yard) acetone/ethanol fire to obtain a gentle foam application.

ETankfire

Clearly, existing test data, both from large-scale tests and in performance according to standardized tests, cannot be immediately extrapolated to tank fire scenarios. In response, SP Fire Technology and the Swedish Petroleum Institute have developed a research project on ethanol tank firefighting called Ethanol Tank Fire Fighting, or Etankfire. The goal of the proposed tank fire research project is to develop and validate a methodology for firefighting of tank fires containing ethanol fuels and to determine the large-scale burning behavior of ethanol fuels. The results will form a platform of knowledge to ensure adequate investments for the fire protection of ethanol storage facilities. To achieve the goal, it will be important to JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 93

FIREFIGHTING

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better understand the challenges in fighting tank fires presented by the increased depth of fuel, the longer pre-burn time and the difficulty in achieving a gentle application of the foam when compared to better-understood spill fires. Based on the results of initial laboratory tests, the most promising extinguishing methods and media will then be selected for further evaluation and verification at larger scales. Questions regarding the burning behavior and heat radiation from ethanol fuels will primarily be investigated in the large-scale tests.

Stakeholder Input Sought

The project idea was presented in April at a meeting in France to the Lastfire group. Two additional public workshops are planned, the first on June 28 in London. The second will be held in the U.S. with a date and location yet to be determined. Interested representatives from various organizations, companies and agencies will be given the opportunity to obtain more detailed information about the project goals and plans and to influence the planning process as we progress. A steering committee will be formed by those willing to participate in the funding of the tank project that will participate in the final detailed planning, including the choice of venue for the large-scale tests. Author: Henry Persson Research Project Leader SP Fire Technology, SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden +46 (0)10 516 51 98 henry.persson@sp.se

 on the web For information about the tankfire project and the date and locations for the workshops visit: www.sp.se/en/index/research/etankfire

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www.pft-alexander.com

Maintenance Software ICM, Inc. 877-456-8588

Fractionation-Corn

ICM, Inc. 877-456-8588

PFT-Alexander, Inc. 1-800-696-1331

Maintenance Services

Dryers-Rotary Drum

Bear Boring LLC 309-695-5150

www.agraind.com www.sukup.com

L&M Ethanol Maintenance Contracting, Inc. 515-955-2010 www.lmethanol.com

www.icminc.com

www.rjsales.com

Pipe-Fittings Hammertek Corp. 717-898-7665

www.hammertek.com

Robert-James Sales, Inc. 800-666-0088

www.rjsales.com

Pipe-Flanges Robert-James Sales, Inc. 800-666-0088

www.rjsales.com

Productivity Enhancements ICM, Inc. 877-456-8588

Meters

www.icminc.com

Pumps PeopleFlo Manufacturing 847-929-4774 www.peopleflo.com

PFT-Alexander, Inc. 1-800-696-1331

www.pft-alexander.com

Millwright

Structural Fabrication Agra Industries, Inc. 715-536-9584

Agra Industries, Inc. 715-536-9584

www.agraind.com

Molecular Sieves ICM, Inc. 877-456-8588

Pipe

Robert-James Sales, Inc. 800-666-0088

Loading Equipment-Liquid

Dryers-Fluid Bed

Buhler Inc. 763-847-9900

Foundation Analytical Laboratory 712-225-6989 www.foundationanalytical.com

www.agraind.com

L&M Ethanol Maintenance Contracting, Inc. 515-955-2010 www.lmethanol.com

Tanks

www.icminc.com

Agra Industries, Inc. 715-536-9584

www.agraind.com

Parts & Services ICM, Inc. 877-456-8588

www.icminc.com JUNE 2011 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | 97

AdIndex

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H2O INNOVATION 763-566-8961 www.H2OINNOVATION.com

Yield Enhancement

EdeniQ, Inc. 559-302-1780

2011 International Biorefining Conference & Trade Show 2011 International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo 2011 Northeast Biomass Conference & Trade Show 2011 Southeast Biomass Conference & Trade Show American Coalition For Ethanol

ADI Systems Inc.

Agra Industries

Ashland Hercules Water Technologies

BetaTec Hop Products

BrownWinick Law Firm

Cloud/Sellers Cleaning Systems

www.edeniq.com

Finance Insurance

Thermal Oxidizers

ERI Solutions, Inc. 316-927-4294

erisolutions.com

Mergers & Acquisitions Moglia Advisors 847-884-8282

www.mogliaadvisors.com

Marketing Fuel Ethanol • 60 Years of Experience • 500+ RTO Installed Base

CHS Renewable Fuels 651-355-6271

www.chsinc.com

• 100% Uptime Guarantee

Miscellaneous

• 24/7/365 Emergency Response Service Guarantee

Maas Companies 507-424-2640 www.maascompanies.com

Engine Testing

Clean Air & Energy Technology www.eisenmann.com/usa Email: es.info@eisenmann.com

Used Equipment

Marketplace_EthanolProducer.indd 1

UPM Machine 713-440-8200

1/31/2011 11:45:54 AM

www.upmmachine.com

Valves Cashco, Inc. 785-472-4461

www.cashco.com

Wastewater Treatment Services ICM, Inc. 877-456-8588

www.icminc.com

98 | Ethanol Producer Magazine | June 2011

52 & 71

www.roush.com

Transportation Railcar Gate Openers The Arnold Company 800-245-7505 www.arnoldcompany.com

CPM Roskamp Champion

Crown Iron Works Company

EISENMANN Corporation

ETS Laboratories

Fagen Inc.

Ferm Solutions Inc.

19 73

Fermentis - Division of S.I. Lesaffre Flottweg Separation Technology

Foundation Analytical Laboratory

Freez-it-Cleen

Gamajet Cleaning Systems, Inc.

31 & 100

Research & Development Roush Industries 734-779-7736

2 81 5 8&9

GENENCOR® - A Danisco Division Growth Energy Hydro-Klean Inc. ICM, Inc. Inbicon

Indeck Power Equipment Co.

Lallemand Ethanol Technology

Lindquist & Vennum PLLP

Maas Companies

Nalco Company

Natwick Associates Appraisal Services

North American Bioproducts Corp.

Novozymes

Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc.

POET LLC

Premium Plant Services, Inc.

R3 Fusion

Renewable Fuels Association

Robert-James Sales, Inc.

Roeslein & Associates, Inc.

Sturtevant, Inc.

Verenium

Vicam

Vogelsbuch USA, Inc.

Wabash Power Equipment CO.

WCR Incorporated

WINBCO

Spezyme® CL Conventional Liquefaction, Superior Performance Call 1-800-847-5311 to add us to your team www.genencor.com