2019 May Ethanol Producer Magazine

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MAY 2019

PROTEIN

MACHINE DDGS carry ideal traits for fish feed

Page 16

ALSO

Dabbling in Diversification Page 24

Tailored for the Target Audience Page 32

What to Expect at FEW Page 40

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ADVERTISER INDEX

EDITORIAL Editor Lisa Gibson lgibson@bbiinternational.com Associate Editor Matt Thompson mthompson@bbiinternational.com Copy Editor Jan Tellmann jtellmann@bbiinternational.com

ART

2019 International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo

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Apache Stainless Equipment

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Agra Industries

BetaTec Hop Products

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CEO Joe Bryan jbryan@bbiinternational.com President Tom Bryan tbryan@bbiinternational.com Sales & Marketing Director John Nelson jnelson@bbiinternational.com Business Development Director Howard Brockhouse hbrockhouse@bbiinternational.com Senior Account Manager/Bioenergy Team Leader Chip Shereck cshereck@bbiinternational.com Circulation Manager Jessica Tiller jtiller@bbiinternational.com Marketing & Advertising Manager Marla DeFoe mdefoe@bbiinternational.com

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Fagen Inc.

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Growth Energy

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Interra Global Corporation

48

ICM, Inc.

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Interstates Companies

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47

Mist Chemical & Supply Company

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Oxidizers, Inc.

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MAY 2019 VOLUME 25

FEATURES

CONTENTS

DEPARTMENTS AQUACULTURE

4

AD INDEX

Fish feed market an option for DDGS By Matt Thompson

6

EDITOR'S NOTE

7

EVENTS CALENDAR

8

DRIVE

A Different Animal

16

ISSUE 5

IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY

HIGH-PROTEIN COPRODUCTS

The Daily Grind

Diversification hedges against low margins By Matt Thompson

24

ICM INC.

ADVOCACY

10

12

Modifying the Message

Ethanol lobby tailors focus for Democratic-majority House By Lisa Gibson

32

Finding the Value By Lisa Gibson

Biofuels Education Critical to Ensuring Rural Growth By Kelly Manning

GLOBAL SCENE

When Will the EU ‘Get Real’ on Biofuels? By Emmanuel Desplechin

GRASSROOTS VOICE

Part of the Climate Solution By Brian Jennings

14

BUSINESS BRIEFS

58

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ZIMMCOMM

EVENT

FEW Technical Sessions Planner

WK $118$/

June

10-12

A guide to this year’s show By Ethanol Producer Magazine

2019

Indianapolis, IN

FuelEthanolWorkshop.com 40

CONTRIBUTION

52 STORAGE

DDGS: Options to Optimize Three solutions to boost capacity By Joel Dulin

ON THE COVER

This extruder produces fish feed from dried distillers grains with solubles at Iowa State University. PHOTO: PARTICK BODELL, SYNQRONUS COMMUNICATIONS

Ethanol Producer Magazine: (USPS No. 023-974) May 2019, Vol. 25, Issue 5. Ethanol Producer Magazine is published monthly by BBI International. 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. ETHANOLPRODUCER.COM | 5

EDITOR'S NOTE

Finding the Value High-protein coproducts are an increasingly popular hedging option as plants continue to explore new ways to diversify revenue streams. With tight margins, it’s a wise tactic. But the capacity gains some of the coproduct

Lisa Gibson

Editor lgibson@bbiinternational.com

technologies bring to an oversupplied ethanol market raise questions about truly capturing the value they promise. One source in “The Daily Grind,” on page 24, said it best: We need to make the same number of gallons, while making more protein and oil. In this market, extra ethanol production doesn’t help pay for a shiny new technology that makes a shiny new protein. Producers of both ethanol and these technologies say the value is in efficiency, as well as an ability to fluctuate production and speed with the market. It’s relevant in this market. I think it’ll be a useful read. Speaking of adding value, research is showing the aquaculture market offers promise for DDGS. Fish feed has much the same nutrient requirements as livestock or poultry feed, and DDGS have the added benefit of being cheaper than soybean meal or fish meal. The potential increases even more with the high-protein products we’re also exploring in this issue. Find out more on page 16. Moving away from products and into advocacy, the feature starting on page 32 summarizes some of the ways our industry’s lobbying efforts might evolve with a changing Congress. We have a Democratic majority in the House of Representatives, and that means we get to lean on our environmental benefits more than we have with a Republican audience. We read the room. Just like in life. Finally, this month we provide the technical sessions planner for the upcoming International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo. It’s June 10-12 in Indianapolis and, as always, offers multiple tracks of diverse content for all facets of the industry. They’re all running at concurrent times, so you’ll want to check this planner to find out which panel discussions you want to take in. It starts on page 40. We cover a lot this month, but I think the overall theme here is value. From diversified coproducts, to the messages of ethanol’s merit we deliver to Congress, to the most beneficial topics at FEW, it’s all about finding value. And we value your readership. Enjoy.

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EVENTS CALENDAR

2019 International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo June 10-12, 2019 Indiana Convention Center

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WEBINAR SERIES

Indianapolis, Indiana

From its inception, the mission of this event has remained constant: The FEW delivers timely presentations with a strong focus on commercial-scale ethanol production—from quality control and yield maximization to regulatory compliance and fiscal management. The FEW is the ethanol industry’s premier forum for unveiling new technologies and research findings. The program is primarily focused on optimizing grain ethanol operations while also covering cellulosic and advanced ethanol technologies. 866-746-8385 www.fuelethanolworkshop.com

2019 ACE Conference August 14-16, 2019 Omaha Marriott Downtown Omaha, Nebraska The ACE Conference is a must-attend event for industry leadership. Relaying timely updates on public policy, market development, board of director training, and much more, this event combines the detail of high-level training courses with all the fun of a family reunion. (605) 334-3381 www.ethanol.org/events/conference

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DRIVE

Biofuels Education Critical to Ensuring Rural Growth By Kelly Manning

While growing up on our family farm in South Dakota, I learned that hard work is what makes rural America the bedrock of our country. My family

successfully grew corn and soybeans, and raised cattle, hogs and chickens for many years. But when I left my family farm in 1986, my father was selling his corn for $1.30 per bushel—a historic low. And as I grew older and traveled around the country witnessing the new role of technology in agriculture and improvements in conservation, I saw firsthand that we needed to do a better job educating our nation’s future leaders on both the highs and lows the agricultural community feels each year. That largely means we need to create our own innovators and advocates within our communities, which is why I am so proud of Growth Energy’s new Biofuels Curriculum, created in partnership with the National Association of Agricultural Educators. The ethanol industry is an example of how rural America continues to evolve to keep rural growth strong. I joined Growth Energy close to 10 years ago, and every day I am honored to represent an industry that has done so much to create value for American agriculture. I have seen the role that education and advocacy can have in spurring growth. As an industry, we recognize how critical reinvesting in rural America and its future leaders is, and in 2014, Growth Energy’s leadership developed a relationship with the National FFA Organization to do just that. Future Farmers of America currently has nearly 670,000 members. These members, and many more non-FFA members, are taught and advised in agriculture classrooms across the country by more than 13,000 agricultural educators. Growth Energy’s investment in FFA directly supports teachers, ag careers, and advocacy by allowing young students the opportunity to participate in leadership training, gain access to educational resources, and pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) and ag-related industries. To further support these educational efforts, Growth Energy partnered with FFA and the NAAE to develop a biofuels curriculum designed to expose

8 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

students to the world of biofuels and encourage them to pursue a career in agriculture and STEM. Offering six activities over a two-week course, the curriculum gives students a glimpse into the technological, historical and political context of biofuels, and guides them through a hands-on production process where students measure ethanol’s energy content and emissions. For students interested in pursuing a career in STEM or agriscience, this course is a fantastic introduction to how rural America is staying on the cutting edge of innovation and technology, and how they can help ensure a strong future for their communities. Growth Energy, through its partnership with FFA and NAAE, continues to help the next generation rise to meet those challenges by encouraging students to explore their interests in a broad range of agricultural career pathways. A strong rural America is not only fostering future farmers, but also future biologists, future chemists, future veterinarians, future engineers and future entrepreneurs. Hard work will always be the driving force behind rural America, but it must also be paired with innovation and entrepreneurial spirit. We encourage anyone who is interested in promoting agricultural and STEM education in their communities to visit GrowthEnergy.org/education-resources and help us ensure a bright future for our next generation of ag leaders.

Author: Kelly Manning Vice President of Development, Growth Energy 202.545.4000

“After seeing the benefits of the Whitefox ICE™ membrane system at Fox River Valley Ethanol in Oshkosh, we were eager to replicate the energy reduction solution at Ace. Whitefox has demonstrated its ability to help our two plants reduce energy consumption and reduce loadings on our columns and mole sieves. We are also running a more stable production at the plant, which is an additional benefit we didn’t anticipate but is greatly appreciated by our folks in the control room. We are experiencing a positive impact on our energy consumption plus a reduction in our carbon emissions and cooling.” - Neal Kemmet, President and General Manager at Ace Ethanol, LLC and Fox River Valley Ethanol LLC

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GLOBAL SCENE

When Will the EU ‘Get Real’ on Biofuels? By Emmanuel Desplechin

The European Union is now talking up its vision for a long-term strategy for decarbonization, with the goal being a climate-neutral EU economy by 2050. The European Commission, Parliament and Member States

have all weighed in to one extent or another. Nearly everyone agrees on the urgency of fighting climate change, and especially of reducing carbon dioxide emissions from transport. Unfortunately, EU policymakers apparently still are not yet ready to confront the reality of what it will take to achieve that goal. This is especially true when it comes to biofuels. And the EU consistently downplays one of the best tools it has already for an energy transition: low-carbon liquid fuels like renewable EU ethanol. This is especially troubling at a time when the EU is actually backsliding on transport decarbonization, and when other countries are showing more enthusiasm for bioenergy as a climate solution. The simple fact is the EU will need sustainable, low-carbon fuels if it wants to make real progress toward a zero-carbon future. As the International Energy Agency and the International Renewable Energy Agency have recently highlighted, a massive upscaling in the use of sustainable biofuels is essential to meeting the goals of the Paris Agreement.

Commission Impossible

If one reads the fine print in the European Commission’s strategy, it becomes clear that some officials want to restrict the definition of sustainable biofuels to second-generation technology. This is despite the clear message from the adoption of the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive for 2020 to 2030—known as Renewable Energy Directive II—that first-generation, crop-based biofuels that do not cause deforestation are still important. In fact, under all the scenarios for decarbonization in the Commission’s strategy, Europe will need a massive increase in both first- and second-generation biofuels in order to make any real impact. According to the Commission’s reports, the EU still has a long way to go to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels. More than 94 percent of European transport energy is still provided by fossil fuel—only a slight decrease from the 95.8 percent in 2009 when the first RED was adopted.

Across the EU, renewable energy accounted for just 7.6 percent of the transport energy mix as of 2017, and that number would actually be only 5.5 percent if it weren’t for the use of multipliers, which artificially inflate the accounted quantities of certain energy sources. At the current pace, reaching the RED target of 10 percent renewable energy in transport will be challenging to say the least. At the Member State level, only two countries, Finland and Sweden, have achieved their targets. Most of the renewable energy share in transport increase since 2009 is coming from artificial quantities of renewable energy, which exist only on paper. In reality, the quantities of renewables in the transport energy mix have increased at a very slow pace since 2009. Most of what was achieved in 2017 is the result of the important increase between 2004 and 2009, before the RED adoption. Fortunately, the EU has a chance to do better, starting now, by using more crop-based biofuels such as European renewable ethanol. Even though their contribution remains limited at the EU level, cropbased biofuels are actually the main renewable energy contributor in the European transport sector. They work in today’s cars and infrastructure, and their GHG-reducing impact—more than 70 percent on average in the case of European ethanol—is immediate. Cars with internal combustion engines will be a majority on Europe’s roads for decades to come. We need low-carbon liquid fuels— and governments willing to push higher ethanol blends like E10—to lower the emissions from those vehicles. Only by using all the tools it has available can Europe achieve its long-term vision for emissions reduction. Instead of looking for ways to minimize the important contribution low-carbon liquid fuels like ethanol can make, EU policymakers should: recognize that lowcarbon fuels must play an important role in decarbonizing transport; ensure investment security and predictability for sustainable biofuels; ensure the swift revision of the Energy Taxation Directive to make it a more efficient tool for environmental policy; reap the benefits of the bioeconomy, which is at the heart of the energy transition; and support the deployment of carbon-capture technologies. To be sure, all the talk about fighting climate change in the future is important, not just in EU institutions, but out on the streets and around the world. But it is up to policymakers to be bolder when it comes to recognizing and making the most of solutions that exist right now. Author: Emmanuel Desplechin Secretary General ePURE, the European Renewable Ethanol Association desplechin@epure.com

10 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

GRASSROOTS VOICE

Part of the Climate Solution By Brian Jennings

Congress is going to confront the issue of climate change in 2019, which means our industry has a choice to make. We can either stand on the sidelines

or get in the game. I believe the ethanol industry needs to engage. I am not talking about breathing life into the New Green Deal, but rather proactively advocating for reasonable policies that would increase the use of ethanol as part of the solution to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. It is well-documented that ethanol today reduces GHGs by nearly 50 percent compared to gasoline and the trend is ethanol’s friend—our emissions continue to drop while gasoline keeps getting worse. My fear is that if we stand on the sidelines, because of political or philosophical opposition to climate science, the void we leave will be filled by extremists who will paint corn ethanol as part of the climate problem. We cannot afford to be silent on this issue. (By the way, it is vital to get our brains around the fact that climate science is real. It is as real as the science behind the safety of GMOs). While I have a strong opinion on this issue, I also fully grasp that many people in rural America, who are already under tremendous economic stress, are extremely concerned Congressional action on climate could pose significant new costs or limits on business. This is another reason we need to engage in this debate and be vocal about the fact that rural America will need to see concrete economic benefits from climate-centered policies that outweigh potential negatives. We need to stand up and let Congress know there is no margin for error. One way to thread this needle is to recognize the positive impact agriculture and low-carbon fuels like ethanol can have on climate change. Farmers play an important role in mitigating climate change through practices such as conservation tillage, which can lead to soil carbon sequestration. The U.S. Department of Agriculture identifies sequestration as “among the best options for carbon storage in terrestrial ecosystems,” and estimates that U.S. farmers already store 20 million metric tons of carbon per year. USDA forecasts that agriculture could store an additional 180 million metric tons per year, representing an estimated 12 to 14 percent of total U.S. carbon emissions annually.

12 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

Unlocking the marketplace to increase demand for low-carbon fuels would create the economic driver needed to help more farmers adopt practices that maximize atmospheric carbon sequestration in soil. For example, if the California Low Carbon Fuel Standard accounted for soil carbon sequestration benefits from corn production, Midwest ethanol delivered to the LCFS market could receive a 26-cent-per-gallon premium at current credit prices in California and at current soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration rates found in the Midwest. This would generate an additional $26 million in revenue per year for a 100 million-gallon ethanol facility, creating meaningful rural economic and producer benefits. To underpin the scientific and economic opportunity for ethanol use to increase via low-carbon fuel markets, last year ACE published “The Case for Properly Valuing the Low Carbon Benefits of Corn Ethanol.” Our report highlights how farmers and ethanol producers are improving efficiencies and adopting technologies to dramatically reduce life cycle GHG emissions from corn ethanol. This report explains how increasing the use of corn ethanol beyond levels called for in the Renewable Fuel Standard will help reduce GHGs. It also calls on the U.S. EPA to adopt the latest U.S. Department of Energy Greenhouse Gases, Regulated Emissions and Energy use in Transportation (GREET) model for making determinations about ethanol’s life cycle GHG emissions. Already, many ethanol producers have experienced the economic benefit of selling product into the California LCFS market. It is possible for a similar opportunity to unfold nationally as Congress considers ways to tackle climate change. ACE will be getting in the game, going on offense to explain how increasing the use of corn ethanol should be part of the solution to reduce GHG emissions. Author: Brian Jennings Executive Vice President American Coalition for Ethanol 605.334.3381 bjennings@ethanol.org

BUSINESS BRIEFS

People, Partnerships & Projects

Minn., S.D. governors serve on Governors’ Biofuels Coalition’s 2019 Leadership Team Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz will serve as chair of the 2019 Governors’ Biofuels Coalition, and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem will serve as vice chair. For over 20 years, the Governors’ Biofuels Coalition has provided regional and national leadership on biofuels policy. The bipartisan group is comprised of governors from across the nation. “I look forward to working with Gov. Noem to advance the bipartisan work of the Governors’ Biofuels Coalition,� Walz said. “The production and use of biofuels increases family incomes in rural America, diversifies our nation’s energy portfolio,

and provides consumers a choice at the fuel pump. “We must adopt state and national policies that grow a biofuels industry vital to our states’ economies and the nation’s need to reduce carbon and other harmful emissions,� Walz added. “I’m honored to serve as vice chair of the coalition and to continue working to strengthen the energy independence of our states and nation,� Noem said. “Minnesota, South Dakota and all members of the Coalition continue to play a major role in the nation’s energy policies.�

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BUSINESS BRIEFS¦

The Andersons’ Mike Irmen retires Michael Irmen, president of the Ethanol Group for The Andersons Inc., will retire in July. James Pirolli, vice president and general manager of the Ethanol Group, assumed the role of group president April 1. Irmen will provide transition assistance until his retirement and oversee the start-up of the company’s new ethanol joint venture, Element LLC. “We are extremely grateful for all the work Mike has done to grow our ethanol business,” said Pat Bowe, president and CEO of The Andersons. “Through his leadership, the Ethanol Group has achieved record performance in productivity, expanded its portfolio of high-value coproducts and entered into new markets.” Irmen began his career with The Andersons in 1977 as a grain trainee in Champaign, Illinois. He went on to work in a variety of merchandising and risk management positions within the former Grain Group. He

FEW

was one of the first leaders of the ethanol team when it was formed in 2005. He was named vice president of the Ethanol Group in 2012 and president in 2016. Pirolli joined The Andersons in 2017 after serving as vice president of fuels for Kum & Go convenience stores in Des Moines, Iowa. While at Kum & Go, he led the development of one of the nation’s largest retail portfolios of biofuel blends that included E85, E15 and biodiesel. Jim also spent 13 years at ADM, holding various leadership roles in its grain, ethanol and oilseed processing divisions. “Jim has extensive experience in the biofuels industry and has been an excellent addition to The Andersons,” Bowe said. “I am excited for him to join my leadership team and to continue serving the company as Ethanol Group president.”

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AQUACULTURE

16 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

A Different

an i m al

Ethanol producers are increasingly turning to a burgeoning aquaculture industry for another coproduct revenue stream. By Matt Thompson

While ethanol’s coproducts are well-known to the livestock industry, innovative technologies and processes are opening new markets for dried distillers grains with solubles. The aquaculture industry is one of those new markets, and a partnership between White Dog Labs and Midwest Renewable Energy LLC positions the companies to take advantage of it. Worldwide, aquaculture—cultivating and harvesting fish and crustaceans for human consumption—is a rapidly growing industry. And it relies on high-protein feed, which is where the ethanol industry plays a role. Kurt Rosentrater, executive director of the Distillers Grains Technology Council and associate professor at Iowa State University’s Department of Agriculture and Biosystems Engineering, says using distillers products in the aquaculture industry isn’t a new trend, but large-scale production is. “The wide-scale commercial implementation is still yet to be seen, but I think it’s coming,” he says. And Rosentrater sees potential with some of the new, high-protein DDGS being produced by the ethanol industry. “There is room to grow and I think what we’re seeing is, especially with some of these newer high-protein products, I think the feeding trials are showing that their performance is equivalent or even better than fish meal-based diets,” he says. While protein is important, it’s not the only factor aquaculture feed producers need to consider, Rosentrater says. “If we try to put DDGS in an aquatic diet, in many respects it’s similar to putting DDGS in a poultry diet or a swine diet,” he says. “It’s one component of a bigger mixture. So the FOR THE FISH: Kurt Rosentrater, executive director of the Distillers Grains Technology Council and associate professor at Iowa State University’s Department of Agriculture and Biosystems Engineering, extrudes DDGS-based fish feed. Aquaculture is a growing market opportunity for ethanol. PHOTO: IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY

AQUACULTURE

aquaculture producers have the same kind of challenge that other animal nutritionists have in terms of balancing amino acids and fatty acids and energy.” He says trials have shown that up to 20 percent of an aquaculture diet can be effectively comprised of DDGS. After that amount, growth performance declines, and the fish flesh starts to discolor. Rosentrater says the benefit that aquaculture feed from the ethanol industry holds over traditional feed, like soybean meal and fishmeal, is its price. “We are, in general, about half the price of soybean meal,” he says. “And so cost is our biggest advantage.” He adds that the amount of oil in DDGS from ethanol plants has decreased in recent years, as well. Excess oil, he says, can also cause discoloration of the fish flesh. “Our protein levels are very good, and because we’ve got less than half the fat that we used to have, the potential for that discoloration of the fish flesh is decreased,” Rosentrater

18 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

says. “So I think that’s a benefit that we also should be promoting.” While the aquaculture industry is growing worldwide, the U.S. industry faces some challenges, according to Rosentrater. One of those challenges comes from China. “It produces more fish from aquaculture than the next 10 countries combined,” he says. “And when you can import frozen fillets of tilapia or catfish from China at half the price of what locally produced fish is, it’s hard to compete economically.” But U.S. ethanol plants can play a role in helping grow aquaculture in the U.S., as the current cost of feed for those fish is 50 to 60 percent or more of operating cost, Rosentrater says. “If you can reduce that feed cost, I think that’s going to make American aquaculture producers much more cost competitive. So I think there’s a huge opportunity for us as an ethanol industry in this space.”

Protein Production

White Dog Labs Inc., a biotechnology company, is taking advantage of that opportunity. The company has technology to produce a single-cell protein—ProTyton— which can be used as feed in the aquaculture space. According to Bryan Tracy, CEO of White Dog Labs, ProTyton differs from other ethanol coproducts in that, while it’s a single-cell protein, it’s not yeast. ProTyton is also produced on-demand, he says, rather than as a constant, standard byproduct. Tracy says White Dog entered the aquaculture feed space after developing micro-organisms to convert sugars into different products. “White Dog has had a history of exploring that for biofuels and biochemicals, but that is a challenging industry to bring new technology into,” Tracy says. He says the company was exploring other uses for its technology and found a need in the aquaculture industry. “There was a true market need for new protein

AQUACULTURE

PACKED WITH PROTEIN: Iowa State University’s Department of Agriculture PROTYTON PRODUCTION: White Dog Labs’ ProTyton production and Biosystems Engineering is running trials producing fish feed from DDGS. process will be installed in this building at Midwest Renewable Energy in PHOTO: IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY Sutherland, Nebraska. It is expected to be operational late this year. PHOTO: MIDWEST RENEWABLE ENERGY LLC

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AQUACULTURE

PROTYTON PROTEIN: The fermentation system of White Dog Labs’ ProTyton production process sits in the company’s pilot plant. White Dog CEO Bryan Tracy says the company can use an ethanol plant’s existing fermentation equipment, with some minor modifications, to produce ProTyton. PHOTO: WHITE DOG LABS INC.

ingredients, particularly in aquaculture,� he says. “So, that led to us focusing in this space.� Last fall, White Dog and Midwest Renewable Energy announced a collaboration. MRE is in the process of adding White Dog’s ProTyton production technology

to its plant, on a demonstration scale, and hopes to begin production by the end of this year. Eventually, Tracy says, the plant will completely convert from an ethanol plant to a ProTyton production plant. “If all these prove out—markets expand, economics are being demonstrated—the goal

would be to convert the entire plant over for ProTyton production,� Tracy says.

The ProTyton Process

Joe Shanle, senior plant manager at MRE, says the decision to produce ProTyton came down to market conditions. “As

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20 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

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AQUACULTURE

we sat and thought about it, we really believe that the ethanol industry is overbuilt for the supply and demand economics,” he says. “We thought this was a nice way to diversify our product offering so at least we can begin to take the starch from corn and target different markets, whether that’s the protein market or the fuels market.” Tracy says the ProTyton plant can use about 70 percent of MRE’s existing infrastructure. “We use all the front end—corn storage, corn grind, liquefaction—bringing that into new capital to separate out our starch feedstock stream to our process and removing a large portion of the protein fiber in the oil upfront of the fermentation process,” he says. He adds that the ProTyton technology will also use the plant’s existing fermentation infrastructure, after some minor modifications, but the distillation equipment isn’t used. “We’ll operate that 3,000-ton facility and ensure that the mash and water balances work out the way we think they will,” Shanle says. The larger conversion to full ProTyton production will likely occur in late 2020 or early 2021, he adds. Once that conversion takes place, Tracy says the plant will be able to switch back to ethanol production, if the market warrants it. “The way we have been engineering and considering this is that we don’t cannibalize the plant’s capability to produce ethanol,” he says, adding that a switch back to ethanol will be a lengthy process, and will likely take some planning and foresight. That ability to shift production depending on market conditions was an important factor in considering the technology, Shanle says. “We want to be able to maintain that operational flexibility so that we can drive toward the ethanol market or we can drive toward the protein market and we’ll just let the economics dictate our operational paradigm.” Shanle says MRE’s ProTyton will be sold in Northern Europe, Asia and Indonesia. “It’s kind of right where you would

expect aquaculture to be,” he says. He adds that the value of ProTyton is expected to be greater than that of DDGS. “I think, for us, the value that we can add to that bushel of corn, it’s going to be significant compared to just an upgraded version of DDGS.” Beyond producing a new product and diversifying revenue, Shanle says the technology comes with other benefits as well. “One of the things that we really got excited about was that it allowed us to repurpose a lot of our assets into something that’s just much more value-added,” he says. “But the nice thing is we don’t have to really teach our people a new skill set either.” While the process involves a different type of fermentation, Shanle says, it’s “going to be so analogous to what we already do that we feel like the transition, or the learning curve, won’t be nearly as much of a task.” Shanle says producing aquaculture feed is also a way to satisfy some of the ethanol industry’s detractors. “This is kind of a nice answer to food versus fuel,” he says. “What are we doing with a bushel of corn? Well, we’re not necessarily burning it anymore.” Author: Matt Thompson Associate Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine 701.738.4922 mthompson@bbiinternational.com

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HIGH-PROTEIN COPRODUCTS

THE

DAILY GRIND Low margins prompt plants to diversify coproduct streams, capturing value in efficiency. By Matt Thompson 24 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

PROCESSING PROTEIN: Fluid Quip Process Technologies' Maximized Stillage Coproducts technology is installed at United Wisconsin Grain Producers in Friesland, Wisconsin. In the midst of low margins, some ethanol plants are exploring new coproduct options. PHOTO: FLUID QUIP PROCESS TECHNOLOGIES LLC

ETHANOLPRODUCER.COM | 25

HIGH-PROTEIN COPRODUCTS As the ethanol industry struggles with low margins, uncertainty around U.S. EPA rules, and an unclear export market, some plants are hedging against those factors by producing high-protein coproducts. Things like high-protein dried

distillers grains and fiber plus corn oil sell for premiums and have allowed plants to diversify their revenue streams. Keith Jakel, sales and marketing lead for Fluid Quip Process Technologies LLC, says diversification is important, not just for ethanol plants, but for other industries as well. “In any business model, it just makes sense to diversify your revenue portfolio so that you can ride out times, especially like these low-margin times we’re in right now,� he says. “When you are an industry in which your main product and your main revenue source is basically legislation-driven revenue, every couple of years, the whims of Washington or politicians could change the value of your product. The value of the coproducts produced at a plant hedge against these low-margin times.� Dwayne Braun, general manager of ICM Biofuels LLC in St. Joseph, Missouri, agrees. The plant was the first to install ICM’s Fiber Separation Technology to produce Hi-Pro feed. He says the plant, along with ICM, evaluated the market before choosing to produce

the feed. “We really went into the marketplace with the expectation of getting 150 percent of the value of our DDG price from the HiPro and an equal price for the fiber plus syrup as what we got for our wet distillers grain,� he says. “And we set those through communication with our customers and we’ve been able to achieve all of those objectives.� Deploying high-protein coproduct technologies increases a plant’s throughput. While the ethanol industry doesn’t need more supply, Jakel says plants deal with that increase by realizing gains in efficiency, which lowers the cost of production. “You do get an additional gain, but your cost to produce that gain is driven lower, so you become a more efficient producer, or the true low-cost producer,� he says. “That efficiency gain helps plants deal with the increased production capacity that comes with the technology,� says Kurt Dieker, director of technology and strategy at ICM. “A lot of the goals are not to speed up, they’re to be more efficient, which is one of the biggest benefits of all of our technologies, is lowering the cost of operations while creating differentiated feed or additional revenue from existing sources. They want to run as efficiently as they can and then maximize their return.� Increased efficiency with increased production lead to more value, Dieker says. “Where we believe the world is protein-short

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and starch-long, if we can affect what we even put in the ethanol plant to not necessarily make more gallons, potentially grind more corn, but make the same number of gallons and make more protein and oil, that’s value added today. Especially for an oversupplied ethanol market.� Braun says increased efficiency allows the plant to change production based on market conditions. “If we’re producing for maximum throughput or maximum efficiencies, they’re not necessarily the same. And so we’re really looking to optimize the market conditions and take advantage of the Hi-Pro when we can.� During the summer, the market for cattle feed is reduced, so production needs to change to meet those demands, he says. “We aren’t able to make quite as much Hi-Pro in the summertime, but that’s understanding our local markets and switching and adapting to what is the best return for the plant, given whether it’s the corn market, the cattle market, the ethanol market.�

Capturing Value

FQPT’s Maximized Stillage Coproducts technology produces Still Pro 50, a highprotein feed ingredient made from stillage at ethanol plants. The product trades in the protein markets decoupled from corn and DDG, and sells at 250 to 300 percent of the value of DDG, or 10 to 20 percent above soybean meal,� Jakel says. “This makes MSC protein

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26 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

FIRST IN FST: Hi-Pro is produced at ICM Biofuels LLC in St. Joseph, Missouri. The plant was the first to install ICM’s Fiber Separation Technology. PHOTO: ICM INC.

the second highest-value coproduct a plant can produce, with corn oil the main value driver on a per-pound basis,� he says. “It truly diversifies a plant’s product portfolio.� Jakel says four plants currently use the MSC technology, with two more in the process of adding it this year. And interest is rapidly growing. ICM’s FST is installed at 10 plants, and the company’s Thin Stillage Solid Separation (TS4) will be installed at four by the end of the year.

One of the major benefits of FQPT’s technology is improved dryer operation. “The additional benefits that a plant sees with the MSC system are reduction in your dryer loading, because we’re automatically pulling off about 25 percent of the DDG pile to make the 50 percent protein product,� Jakel says. “So a plant typically sees a substantial decrease in its dryer loading.� The technology also allows plants to produce more corn oil. “We typically see, in

FQPT’s MSC system, about a 30 percent or greater increase in oil yield,� Jakel says. “That becomes another revenue stream.� The system also improves fermentation and distillation. All those factors combine to reduce the cost of production, he says. Flint Hills Resources has used the MSC technology at its Fairmont, Nebraska, plant for about six months, and sells the protein product as NexPro. Mark Murphy, general manager of ingredients at Flint Hills Resourc-

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MSC MAINTENANCE: Fluid Quip Process Technologies' Maximized Stillage Coproducts system, part of which is pictured here, allows ethanol plants to produce a high-value protein. PHOTO: FLUID QUIP PROCESS TECHNOLOGIES LLC

es, says the plant is producing additional corn oil and has maintained DDG quality. “We’re happy with the results,” Murphy says. “We’re able to make another valuable protein product for the market without affecting ethanol production.” Flint Hills plans to add the technology to its Shell Rock, Iowa, plant.

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Braun says the goal of FST at ICM Biofuels initially was to optimize the system’s performance. “Through that whole process, we’ve been pretty successful at being able to not only produce the high-protein distillers grains, but also to increase the throughput through the front of the plant,” Braun says. “And then also even on top of that, reap the benefits of the fiber not going through our fermenters and distillation system.” Braun says the efficiency gains because of the technology have led to benefits that weren’t necessarily expected. “I think the real benefit for us using the ICM FST technology came in removing the fiber in the front end of the process so in our heat exchangers, there’s hardly any fouling. Temperature exchange is much more efficient,” he says. “None of the fiber is going through our beer column in distillation and so it runs much cleaner and it’s much more predictable and stable. We’ve seen some tremendous benefits that we weren’t even expecting just in how easily the new mash processes.” While the plant staff is happy with the efficiency gains it’s achieved so far, Braun says he’d like to tweak the process even further. “We’re in a little bit of a unique situation because our feedstock is partly made up of the leftover corn particles that Lifeline Foods

HIGH-PROTEIN COPRODUCTS

processes in the food mill that’s attached to us,” he says. “They mill that fiber extremely fine. A little bit finer that what we would in the ethanol plant, and so getting those fine fiber and starch molecules separated from each other a little bit better, we’re looking at some enzyme things and some additional equipment and whether it takes a little bit more time. We’re not in bad shape, but we’d like to improve that a little bit more if we can.” Dieker says the ethanol industry will increasingly adopt technologies to produce high-protein coproducts. “People have to keep with low-cost producers,” he says. “People are making more money or have a lower cost of production, people have to keep up, so you’ll see that adopt faster after that trigger point. The other question is, where that exact trigger point really is.”

high-value markets, such as poultry and aquaculture. Braun says helping the livestock industry is a benefit not only for ethanol producers, but also for a world population that is short on protein. “I think we’ve got to be honest in that the ethanol prices are dictated by a lot of things beyond our control and we’re blessed in this country to have all the different livestock and the agriculture components that are still there looking for our coproducts and our

feed ingredients that we can create,” he says. “I think it’s a good arena for the ethanol industry to be focusing on and improving how we feed animals and humans via the meat sources, protein sources.” Author: Matt Thompson Associate Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine 701.738.4922 mthompson@bbiinternational.com

Greater Good

One of the factors plants need to consider is their local feed markets, Braun says. “We’re really looking to optimize the market conditions and take advantage of the Hi-Pro when we can and there’s certain times of the year that some of those markets are a little bit different.” Dieker agrees with that strategy. “It kind of depends on where the plant is, what feed species they have around them, what are their ultimate goals in the ethanol facility itself,” he says. “There is a lot of value that is created by giving end users, and in this case, cattle or swine or aquaculture, the targeted feed that they really want, rather than something that’s just a mix of the pile of what’s leftover.” Jakel says conducting feed trials for specific species is paramount. “You really have to have the feed trial data, for every specific product that is produced by an ethanol plant in this protein level, otherwise nutritionists just won’t look at your product,” he says. “You have to have that scientific evidence that it has a difference than the protein that it would be displacing. And how does it work within that specific species that they’re looking to use it in?” Jakel says FQPT has completed more than 29 feeding trials using the Still Pro 50 protein. He says the trials all prove out the value of the product to replace soy meal and fish meal in all species tested, including the ETHANOLPRODUCER.COM | 29

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ADVOCACY

Modifying the

M essage With a Democratic-majority House of Representatives, the ethanol lobby emphasizes carbon reduction. By Lisa Gibson

The ethanol industry has done a great job making friends throughout the political spectrum, says John Fuher, vice president of government affairs for Growth Energy.

“You have to have support from people across the divide,” he says, from the most liberal to the most conservative. “I think that’s something this industry has done very well. We have some strong Republicans and we have some strong Democrats among our strongest supporters.” It makes for an easy transition to adjusting the message of the ethanol lobby to appeal to a Democratic-majority House of Representatives. “There’s almost 90 new members in the House of Representatives and we have people on both sides who are strong supporters of ours and that’s because we work with them at a grassroots level; we have a good presence in Washington,” Fuher says. “So this is about finding what’s relevant for people making policies for this country

32 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

AT THE TABLE: Growth Energy members meet with Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., during the 2018 Biofuels Summit. This year, the ethanol lobby has had to emphasize new messages to appeal to a Democratic-majority House of Representatives. PHOTO: ZIMMCOMM

ETHANOLPRODUCER.COM | 33

ADVOCACY

ACE’S AUDIENCE: Attendees of the American Coalition for Ethanol’s 2018 fly-in listen to presentations at the event. PHOTO: ZIMMCOMM

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ADVOCACY

and making sure that we’re part of the conversation.” Ethanol provides a host of public policy benefits such as economic development, reducing dependence on foreign oil and carbon reduction, says Brian Jennings, CEO of the American Coalition for Ethanol. “It’s always important to give thoughtful consideration to the audience you’re trying to convince to support you,” he says. “The key for ACE is to be cognizant of the fact that House Democratic leadership is going to want to do a lot in the way of reducing greenhouse gases (GHG) and addressing climate change,” Jennings says. “Ethanol is part of the solution. … It’s really incumbent upon the industry to go on offense when it comes to positioning ethanol as something that can be part of the solution to reduce greenhouse gases.”

Kathy Bergren, the National Corn Growers Association’s public policy director in renewable fuels, agrees. “For many House Democrats focused on climate change and reducing carbon emissions, NCGA is reminding them that ethanol reduces emissions and, in fact, results in 43 percent less GHG emissions than gasoline,” she says. “Particularly for new members of Congress, we want them to understand how ethanol is part of the solution, as well as how increased farmer productivity and changes in farming practices continue to make ethanol an even better option to reduce GHG emissions and improve air quality.”

Climate Priority

“Overall, broadly, when you look at energy, the focus of Democrats tends to be

more on a renewable energy side, more on a carbon reduction side,” Fuher says. Republicans, meanwhile, focus more on reducing barriers to any type of energy, specific to conventional energy sources, he says. In general, but certainly with exceptions, Democrats view climate change as a larger issue than Republicans do, Fuher says. Republicans also don’t see the government playing a large part in carbon reduction, while Democrats do. “I think there’s just a difference in looking at carbon and what role the government plays in taking on a reduction in carbon,” Fuher says. The priority difference is illuminated in the number of climate change hearings held in the House since its new members took their seats. “So I think when you have that type of change and you have that type of different outlook, you’re going to have to have

ETHANOLPRODUCER.COM | 35

ADVOCACY

a different message or different approach to get through, frankly, the morass,” Fuher says. “You’re going to have a lot of people trying to compete for the same voice.” Hearings provide opportunities for the industry to communicate ethanol’s carbon-reduction benefits from both conventional corn and second-generation feedstocks, he says. “It al-

lows us to go in and present a different side. Republicans generally didn’t put reduction of carbon emissions from fuel at the top of their lists of priorities, Fuher adds. A Democratic House likely will put more emphasis on the Renewable Fuel Standard and small-refinery waivers, he says. “Now that you have a House that’s concerned about

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this in a different way, they’re going to make this part of their agenda, so we need to be responsive to that and we need to talk about that as well,” Fuher adds.

Who’s On Board?

Staff from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office have reached out to ACE to discuss what role ethanol can play in GHG reduction, Jennings says. “Nancy Pelosi remembers, frankly, that the 2007 energy bill included [a Renewable Fuel Standard] that was very important for rural Democrats,” he says. “She has a long memory and she recognizes that it was a very beneficial step for rural Democrats to support and she wants to see if we can build upon that success, according to what her staff has indicated.” “The RFS was expanded under Speaker Pelosi’s leadership when Democrats were last in control of Congress, so we look forward to her continued support for ethanol while also working to build relationships with the many new members of Congress,” Bergren says. Jennings says other important longtime supporters include Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., and House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson, D-Minn., who has been a loud champion for the RFS. Fuher says Growth Energy has established connections with new Democratic Reps. Cindy Axne and Abby Finkenauer of Iowa. New Republican representatives who have worked with Growth Energy in support of ethanol include Dusty Johnson of South Dakota and Jim Hagedorn of Minnesota. And Democratic presidential candidates who traditionally have not lined up behind ethanol are expressing support on their campaign trails in Iowa. They include Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand. “Democratic presidential candidates see the need to have a focused rural strategy

MEETING WITH PETERSON: Dave Nagler, of Chippewa Valley Ethanol Co. in Benson, Minn., meets with Rep. Collin Peterson, D-Minn., during ACE’s 2018 D.C. fly-in. PHOTO: ZIMMCOMM

because winning the presidency without rural voters is very difficult,� Fuher says, adding President Donald Trump “catapulted to victory� largely because of his performance in rural America. “There are a lot of Democrats who see that that can’t happen again if they want to win the presidency.� Jennings says, “It gives us an opportunity to educate the candidates on our priorities and I think that’s a very effective tool for us.�

WE CLEAN SILOS

Carrying Water

“Ethanol has always been a bipartisan issue,â€? Jennings says. “It’s always relied upon both Democrats and Republicans to carry our water in Congress, and we want to continue that. “We have strong champions that are Democrats, like Collin Peterson for example, and strong champions that are Republicans, like Chuck Grassley for example,â€? Jennings adds. “We absolutely have to have the political astuteness to recognize that when one party takes over control of one of the Houses, it’s important to position ourselves to be advantageous to what that party is trying to accomplish. ‌ “Ethanol reduces GHGs,â€? he adds. “That’s what we’re going to focus on. That happens to be one of the priorities of the Democrats in Congress right now.â€? Author: Lisa Gibson Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine 701.738.4920 lgibson@bbiinternational.com

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evance in the number of abstracts submitted under its umbrella. “IINCREASE have to credit ROI the service and technology providers for the Purchase an content Exhibitthat Space abundance of quality madeNow the creation of our Cleaning and Plant Maintenance track a reality,” says Tim Portz, conference planner for BBI International. “When we looked at the abstracts we received, it quickly became clear that the subject needed a full track. We’re thrilled to have this content on the agenda, enriching the FEW experience for the cleaning and maintenance professionals across the CARS & BLOCKBUSTER EVENTS ethanolFAST industry.” Book Accommodations This year’s event, featuring 150 speakers, is June 10-12 at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis. The event kicks off June 10 with its traditional Ethanol 101 pre-conference seminar, featuring presentations about the ethanol industry, the production process, the industry’s employees, revenues and costs, and much more. Ethanol 101 is a thorough primer for those new to the industry. The main event begins at 8:30 a.m. June 11 with a general session that will feature a keynote address, recognition of plants and people receiving Ethanol Producer Magazine’s industry awards, and a discussion panel that will cover a plethora of important topics. Five concurrent tracks run that afternoon and all day June 12. Again, the Advanced Biofuels Conference is rolled in, under Track 5. The conference wraps up June 13 with its well-known industry tour, this year at Poet Biorefining in Alexandria, Indiana. The 2019 FEW is expected to draw nearly 2,200 attendees, including ethanol producers, industry suppliers, service providers and researchers from around the world. “The expo hall is filling in with companies energized to discuss new technologies and services advancing the ethanol industry,” says John Nelson, director of marketing for BBI International. “Last year, the expo hall was buzzing with 560 biofuels producers in attendance, and we are expecting to reach the same number of producers this year.” “Our goal has always been to build a conference agenda that delivered valuable content to as many members of an ethanol plant team as we possibly could,” Portz says. “This year’s agenda is certainly a sterling example of that. We’ve got presentations on yeast health happening down the hall from great discussions on recruiting and retention. The diversity of presentations this year is just terrific.”

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ETHANOLPRODUCER.COM | 41

TUESDAY, JUNE 11 1:30 – 3:00

TRACK 3: COPRODUCTS AND PRODUCT DIVERSIFICATION Liberating Valuable Corn Oil from Plant Stillage Streams

TRACK 5: ADVANCED BIOFUELS CONFERENCE Reviewing the Technologies that have Cast Corn Fiber in a While corn oil capture is largely Starring Role in Ethanol’s Next ubiquitous across the industry’s In so many ways, plant labo- production fleet, variability still ex- Chapter

TRACK 1: PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS Distilling Available Laboratory Data to Improve Production Decision-Making Processes

ratories are the eyes and ears of what is happening within an ethanol plant. The industry’s most successful plant teams have learned that the best use of lab assets may well be to guide new productionapproach concepts. Presentations in this panel will highlight the latest advancements in using labs to costeffectively predict the outcome of small and large changes in a facility’s production approach, putting plant labs at the front of the decision-making process for the facilities they serve.

TRACK 2: LEADERSHIP AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT Management Strategies to Build the Skills You Need Within the Team You Already Have

Operating a state-of-the-art ethanol production plant requires a sharp management team leading a nimble and capable production team. Finding and keeping a skilled team is tantamount to succeed and keep pace with an increasingly innovative industry. This panel will help producers think about how they can leverage this innovative spirit to inspire a desire for continuous improvement via high-quality training throughout their production team. These presentations will take it one step further by highlighting how a forward-looking training environment might be the best retention strategy.

ists in the percentage of available oil each plant captures. This panel will look closely at this variability, the likely reasons for the disparity within the industry and the leading strategies to help producers increase their own rates of capture. Anchored by a presentation that promises to illuminate the key performance indicators of successful oil capture, attendees will walk away from this session armed with a punch list of options to increase their own corn oil revenues.

TRACK 4: CLEANING AND PLANT MAINTENANCE Stillage Evaporation Approaches that Reduce Overall Evaporator Load and Improve Plant Efficiency

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of corn fiber-to-ethanol technologies is how well the prospect of this cellulosic pathway interconnects with the industry’s broader corn fractionation ambitions. That producers must continue to find ways to isolate and add greater value to each component of inbound corn is clear, and the time for widespread fiber capture and conversion to cellulosic ethanol is now. This panel features technology updates from the front-runners in the race to bring online and rapidly expand the sector’s fiber-to-ethanol output.

Keeping plant evaporators clear of organic and inorganic fouling is a crucial maintenance step that costs producers significant time and money. Not surprisingly, this has catalyzed innovation aimed at reducing the frequency of evaporator cleaning and its overall cost. Featured in this panel are a variety of approaches including the use of chemical treatments to reduce mineralized deposits, centrifuges to reduce the total solids in stillage before it hits the evaporators, and the use of robotic cleaning. FEW WELCOME: Tom Bryan, president of BBI International, delivers a welcome address at the 2018 International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo in Omaha, Nebraska. PHOTO: MONICA SEMPEK, MONICA SEMPEK PHOTOGRAPHY

42 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

TUESDAY, JUNE 11 3:30 – 5:00

TRACK 1: PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS Deploying Best Practices in Instrument Calibration to Guarantee Accurate and Reliable Lab Data

A lab’s ability to give production teams the confidence to heed the results of the trials performed within it correlate tightly with the team’s confidence in the accuracy of its instruments. Presenters in this session will walk attendees through the critical process of confirming their instruments are correctly calibrated, bolstering the team’s confidence in the conclusions they illuminate. Time will be spent discussing pH probes, solids analyzers and density meters, HPLC, NIR and level indicators.

TRACK 2: LEADERSHIP AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT Ensuring Fuel Quality Specifications Align with the Industry’s Domestic and International Market Growth Ambitions

The emergence of more and more foreign ethanol customers only adds layers to an already-complex fuel regulation and certification environment for the industry and its producers. This panel provides a nice mix of discussions on specific topics like sulfate measurement, along with broader questions like a roundup of the growing list of certification and standards organizations ethanol producers need to be up to speed on. A talk about the EPA’s fuel streamlining effort and how it impacts ethanol producers rounds out a content-packed fuel standards session.

TRACK 3: COPRODUCTS AND PRODUCT DIVERSIFICATION Positioning Your Plant Now to Maximize the Coming Opportunities in Low Carbon Fuel Markets and Carbon Sequestration

While initially met with skepticism and concern, low carbon fuel standards like California’s are now regarded by many producers as an opportunity to differentiate an otherwise commodified fuel product. These programs and the rewards they offer producers who have successfully driven down the carbon intensity of their fuels do not come without compliance requirements. This panel will help producers better understand the validation and verification steps they’ll have to complete in 2020 and 2021, the verifiers they can engage to prepare and the momentum in other markets to adopt similar LCFS programs.

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TUESDAY, JUNE 11 TRACK 4: CLEANING AND PLANT MAINTENANCE Understanding the Interplay Between Overall Plant Hygiene, Production Uptime and Reduced Infection Control Expense

Those producers who commit to a dogged pursuit of incredibly high standards for plant cleaning and overall plant hygiene do so in the hopes of saving time and money by limiting the occurrence of bacterial infection within their plant. The talks in this panel explore the plant cleaning and products available to producers in great detail, while also attempting to quantify their potential in a language all members of a plant production team can appreciate: reduced operational costs and increased overall yield.

TRACK 5: ADVANCED BIOFUELS CONFERENCE Surveying the Innovations in Enzyme Development Paving the Way for More Widespread Advanced and Cellulosic Ethanol Production

In many ways, the cellulosic ethanol industry can advance only as fast as the development of the enzymes that will unlock the tightly bound lignocellulose and make it available to a waiting yeast population. This panel will allow attendees to catch up on the progress being made within some of the industry’s leading enzyme developments that will catapult ethanol production from cellulose streams into widespread commercial deployment. Attendees will walk away with a clear picture of how far enzymes have come and the pace of their ongoing refinement.

RED RIBBON: From left: Tim Portz, BBI International's conference planner; Craig Pilgrim, vice president of marketing and product development for Lallemand Biofuels & Distilled Spirits; and Tom Bryan, president of BBI International, prepare to cut the ribbon and invite all attendees into the welcome reception at the 2018 International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo in Omaha. Lallemand sponsored the evening welcome reception. PHOTO: MONICA SEMPEK, MONICA SEMPEK PHOTOGRAPHY

CAPTIVATED AUDIENCE: Attendees listen to general session discussions at the 2018 FEW in Omaha, Nebraska. PHOTO: MONICA SEMPEK, MONICA SEMPEK PHOTOGRAPHY

KEYED UP: Emily Skor, Growth Energy CEO, delivered the keynote address at the 2018 FEW. PHOTO: MONICA SEMPEK, MONICA SEMPEK PHOTOGRAPHY

44 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12 8:30 – 10:00

TRACK 1: PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS Reviewing the Continuing Effort to Develop Yeast Strains Capable of Increasing Plant Efficiency and Overall Yield

TRACK 2: LEADERSHIP AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT Building a Plant Culture that Will Attract and Retain the Top Talent Available in Your Labor Market

TRACK 1: PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS Managing Plant Energy Requirements with Decreased Overall Carbon Intensities Top of Mind

TRACK 4: CLEANING AND PLANT MAINTENANCE Taming the Two-Headed Monster: Deploying Bestin-Class CIP Strategies to Eliminate Organic and Inorganic Fouling Deposits

The economic rewards for even modest yield gains from improved yeasts has catalyzed the continuous work in strains optimized for ethanol production. This panel features presentations on a wide variety of strain traits including those that are enzyme expressing or are more tolerant of higher temperatures, pH or organic acid concentrations. The industry’s tight margin environment mandates that plant teams stay informed on the latest advancements in yeast strains and are prepared to capture those opportunities when they become available in the marketplace.

By itself, California’s commitment to a Low Carbon Fuel Standard put driving down the carbon intensity on the radar of many plant management teams. The continued momentum for low-carbon fuel markets in neighboring Oregon and British Columbia has only accelerated this interest. Savvy management teams know that reimaging plant energy requirements is an obvious place to begin. Presentations in this panel will get producers thinking about their power and heat requirements and the carbon-reduced options commercially available to meet them now.

The importance of a motivated team to an organization is so wellagreed upon that it has become cliché. Nevertheless, developing and maintaining an energized and positive work environment vexes many management teams. The presenters in this panel assert the key to avoiding the production-sapping impact of low motivation and employee turnover is to build a team that feels empowered to make critical decisions, inspired by managers who trust in their abilities and are allowed to share in the plant’s overall success.

Clean-in-place approaches are widespread throughout the industry to control the buildup of organic and inorganic deposits throughout the production environment and inhibit bacterial outbreaks. This panel makes it clear that while the practice is widespread, there is plenty to indicate that the industry isn’t satisfied that the process has been perfected. Populated by talks that look closely at the alternative approaches that have shown early promise, the discussion promises to give maintenance teams some new CIP approaches to consider.

TRACK 5: ADVANCED BIOFUELS CONFERENCE The Technologies Achieving Commercial Scale Today that Will Deliver the Biofuels and Biochemicals of Tomorrow

Taken together, the presentations that populate this panel articulate just how widely the advanced biofuels industry is casting its gaze with regard to feedstocks and conversion approaches. The panel kicks off with a look at glucose production at existing ethanol plants, but then leaves the established corn conversion complex behind to look at the cellulosic components of feedstocks like municipal solid waste (MSW) and the lignin fractions found in abundance within the world’s pulp, paper and forest products sector.

TRADE TALK: Attendees mill around the trade show floor at the 2018 FEW in Omaha, Nebraska. PHOTO: MONICA SEMPEK, MONICA SEMPEK PHOTOGRAPHY

ETHANOLPRODUCER.COM | 45

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12 10:30 – Noon

TRACK 2: LEADERSHIP AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT How to Make Informed Decisions About New Technology Deployments and Ensure They Deliver on Their Bacterial infection is inevitable Promised Values

TRACK 1: PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS The Options Available to Ethanol Producers for Bacterial Control and Strategies to Cultivating the perfect condi- Ensure Their Efficient Use

TRACK 1: PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS Deploying Cutting-Edge Yeast Health Strategies to Maximize Plant Fermentations

tions inside of plant fermenters to maximize yeast propagation is a perpetual goal for ethanol plant teams, but one that comes with some expense. Periods of tight profit margins often drive plants to scrutinize the necessity of all expenditures, including those tied to increasing yield. The presentations in this panel will look to answer the hard questions about the cost benefits of antimicrobial inputs, process water cooling, yeast nutrients and added air into propagation. This panel promises an unvarnished look at the relative return on investment for the industry’s leading yeast health and fermentation enhancement strategies.

46 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

in ethanol production but peppered throughout the presentations in this panel are warnings of the risk to plant yields that comes along with passive acceptance of this reality. Instead, the presentations in this panel will remind producers of the financial cost of even those infections producers might regard as routine or expected. The panel also makes room for presentations on both the responsible use of available antibiotics and the alternative treatment option afforded by hop cones.

This discussion will begin with a presentation that gives plant leadership teams a framework for making more of strategic planning meetings and retreats. The discussion then pivots and looks more specifically at the tools available to plant management teams to make decisions about new technology deployments and the oversight approaches that guarantee they get built on time and within budget. Teams that have felt paralyzed by capital investment at their facility will appreciate this multi-disciplined look at the best practices in strategizing, deciding and ultimately seeing a project through to commissioning.

TRACK 3: COPRODUCTS AND PRODUCT DIVERSIFICATION Practical Approaches for Deriving Maximum Value from Plant Distillers Grains Streams

TRACK 4: CLEANING AND PLANT MAINTENANCE Strategies for Making Your Plant Maintenance Program Both Predictive and Coproduct revenues have of- Proactive

ten meant the difference between black or red ink on plant profit-andloss statements. Their importance to producers cannot be overstated and it should come as no surprise that producers are eager to derive even more value from coproduct streams, including distillers grains. Attention will be given in this panel to the continuing efforts to innovate pathways that allow producers to diversify into higher-value feed products, including high purity protein. The panel will also feature an exhaustive study conducted on the lack of antimicrobial residues in distillers grains taken from a broad swath of the ethanol fleet.

Performing maintenance on a predictable schedule is certainly preferable to managing through an unplanned maintenance event and unscheduled downtime. This panel is loaded with presentations that make this desired plant maintenance state more tangible and achievable for plant maintenance teams. The discussion begins with the economic argument for a predictive maintenance program, moves into a presentation about best practices in plant shutdowns and concludes with a look at harnessing the power of artificial intelligence to gain greater visibility into tomorrow’s maintenance needs.

1:30 – 3:00

TRACK 1: PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS Creating the Optimal Environment in Plant Fermentation Tanks to Maximize Ethanol Yield

While plant professionals understand stressed yeast populations curtail overall ethanol yield, operational discipline is required to establish and maintain the optimal fermentation environment. This panel will begin with a look at the use of a common shake flask and the new tools available to help producers leverage this simple piece of equipment for a better look at what is happening in their fermentation tanks. The discussion then moves on to quickly identifying when and why a fermenter may be in a stressed condition and concludes with a presentation on the best practices in nitrogen supplementation.

ETHANOLPRODUCER.COM | 47

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12 TRACK 1: PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS Eyes and Ears: Innovative Approaches to Data Management and Its Use in Real-Time Plant Control

The challenge for producers has now moved well beyond capturing crucial operational and financial data to making sense of it all and using it effectively to guide their decision-making process. The first presentation will look at the value of configuring financial data in new ways so human minds can see new things within it. The discussion then turns to a review of the tools available to plant teams to capture and analyze the sea of operational data that is so vast it can’t be considered without the aid of well-designed process control systems.

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TRACK 1: PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS Minding Your Stack: Keep Plant Emissions in Tight Alignment with Air Permits

Plant professionals charged with keeping their plants in compliance with their permitted emissions limits will appreciate this panel’s twopronged look at both monitoring and control. The discussion opens with a presentation that will help operators make sense of the testing options available to them and when to deploy each. The discussion will then move on to the leading technologies in volatile organic compound (VOC) capture and destruction before concluding with a presentation on a plant confronted with an underperforming dust collection system that led to the development of a custom filter bag that shows great potential.

TRACK 3: COPRODUCTS AND PRODUCT DIVERSIFICATION Catching Up with Fractionation Technologies that Aim to Simultaneously Diversify Plant Revenue Streams and Increase the Captured Value of Inbound Corn

Producers have long known that they were delivering non-fermentable components of inbound corn into their fermenters. These components were captured later downstream, and the inefficiencies were tolerated in the process. Still, the concept of refining inbound corn in such a way that only the starch fraction was targeted for fermentation continues to hold great intrigue and promise. This panel features a presentation on the commercial scale deployment of a dry-fractionation approach as well as a biological approach to adding value to coproduct streams.

TRACK 4: CLEANING AND PLANT MAINTENANCE Your Plant’s Beating Heart: The Critical Importance of Staying Abreast of Innovation in Pump Technologies

Ethanol plants move millions of gallons of flowable material through their process each year, relying on dozens of pumps deployed throughout the plant to do the work. The vital nature of the function they perform paired with the conditions into which they are typically deployed requires maintenance teams to systematically anticipate and plan for their refurbishment or replacement. Presenters in this panel will go beyond the normal fare of pump maintenance programs and urge attendees to see pumps as a promising pathway to increasing overall plant efficiency while reducing key input expenses.

3:30 – 5:00

TRACK 1: PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS Assessing the Continuing Innovations Available to Producers for Ethanol and Coproduct Dewatering

This panel will outline the growing list of options available to producers to remove water from their process at two important waypoints: after distillation and from distillers grains streams. Dehydration is a process bottleneck that has inspired its fair share of innovation and process rethinking. This panel allows producers to perform a side-by-side analysis of molecular sieves, emerging membrane technologies and centrifuges and determine whether their own facility is due for an improved, more efficient dehydration approach.

TRACK 1: PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS Instrument Flying for Ethanol Producers: Utilizing Analytical Tools to Determine the Efficacy of New Production Approaches

Conducting effective and informative plant trials is vital to any plant team hoping to leverage the industry’s incredible innovation for increased profitability at their plant. The presentations in this panel make it clear that producers have a deep toolbox to assist them in conducting effective trials more efficiently and more rapidly. Presenters will offer discussions about new spectrometers designed specifically with ethanol plants in mind, new thinking in analytical approaches, and conclude with a presentation on the potential for predictive modeling software.

PANEL PRESENTATIONS: Jenny Forbes, product manager in yeast and antimicrobials for Phibro Ethanol Performance Group, delivers her presentation at the 2018 FEW as moderator Lisa Gibson, editor of Ethanol Producer Magazine, and speaker Rachel Murdy, technical services manager for Lallemand Biofuels & Distilled Spirits, follow along. PHOTO: MONICA SEMPEK, MONICA SEMPEK PHOTOGRAPHY

TRACK 2: LEADERSHIP AND FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT Reviewing Industry Plant Margins and the Options Available to Improve the Profitability of Your Facility

In an ethanol market awash in stories of lesser, not greater, ethanol use and tight margins, plant teams are hungry to know where their plant stands regarding profitability and the pathways to higher returns from their operation. This discussion offers both. The discussion will begin with a data-rich presentation about the profitability the leaders and laggards of the industry are achieving, informed by the industry’s largest benchmarking effort. The discussion will then look at using risk management strategies to lock in future margins, and finish with a discussion about the importance of asking hard questions about the realistic chances of margin improvements promised by new production approaches and technology deployments.

TRACK 4: CLEANING AND PLANT MAINTENANCE Mechanical and Biological Considerations for Ensuring Plant Cooling Towers are Operating at Peak Efficiency

The ability to create optimal fermentation at ethanol production facilities year-round hinges on the production team’s ability to operate plant cooling towers at great

efficiency, especially during the hot and humid dog days of summer. The options available are well understood—new pumps, increased chiller capacity or the addition of new cells or new towers altogether. This discussion dives into the fundamentals of cooling tower operation with the hopes that attendees will walk away better armed to make the right decisions regarding their cooling infrastructure and program moving forward.

TRACK 5: ADVANCED BIOFUELS CONFERENCE The First Advanced Biofuel: An Update on Biodiesel Production, Use and Its Likely Market Trajectory

In many ways, biodiesel and ethanol have a shared history. Both biofuels were developed to add value to a row crop whose downstream markets weren’t delivering the kinds of returns their growers needed. Both industries owe their initial build-out and rapid early growth to the Renewable Fuel Standard and both are now trying to break out of the confines of their first-generation production approaches and blending rates. This panel offers the audience the program’s best opportunity to catch up not only with the policy status of the biodiesel industry but also the developmental progress of pathways that will deliver the industry’s next gallons. ETHANOLPRODUCER.COM | 49

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There is a lot of valuable information presented at the FEW. It also gives the producer some exposure to new and developing technology that has the potential to take our facilities to the next level in terms of production and efficiency. // Don Fricke, Chief Industries, Inc.

SMART SYSTEM: An S-Series Smart Conveyor for dried distillers grains with solubles, built by Biomass Engineering & Equipment, is installed at Cardinal Ethanol in Union City, Indiana. PHOTO: BIOMASS ENGINEERING & EQUIPMENT

52 | ETHANOL PRODUCER MAGAZINE | MAY 2019

STORAGE

DDGS: OPTIONS TO OPTIMIZE

Rail car uncertainty increases the need for efficient DDGS storage. By Joel Dulin

Richard Kloster, senior vice president at AllTranstek, a logistics provider for the rail sector, says the rail car surplus decreased by 29 percent in 2018 as demand increased 3 percent. He

projects demand will rise in 2019. Unreliable transportation is troublesome for ethanol producers. When rail cars arrive late, ethanol producers sometimes approach capacity limits for dried distillers grains with solubles. This difficulty compounds year by year as plants make more DDGS. Producers not only need more storage, they require more from it. In an effort to better monetize DDGS, producers are developing multiple lines of it. Some now pelletize it. Separate products, of course, require divided storage. Typically, producers will divide storage (and thereby solve the capacity issue) by adding infrastructure, such as a silo. Such an undertaking is expensive, however, and does not address problems associated with

traditional DDGS storage, such as wheel loader expenses and animal infestations in the storage building. Older ethanol facilities face a third material handling problem: aging, inefficient conveyor systems they must soon replace. Rather than dealing with these issues piecemeal, producers should tackle them together. Three options for doing so include optimizing the setup of the current DDGS storage building, using container bins with moving floors to add capacity, and extending the storage building and automating loadout.

Additional Chutes

To optimize their current storage building, producers can add chutes between the current openings of the conveyor that dumps DDGS onto the floor. Better yet, they can replace this conveyor with a newer, more efficient model with extra chutes. Additional chutes will allow DDGS to form more of a ridge. Alternatively, producers can add perpendicular conveyors off the main conveyor. These conveyors will allow

DDGS to form wider piles and fill in the space between the center piles and retaining wall. A third option is to add a conveyor in or over the storage building that runs parallel to the existing conveyor. This second conveyor will widen the piles and fill in gaps between the piles or between the piles and the retaining wall. The limitation to these options is that they will not divide producers’ storage. They also will not truly add capacity. They will just better utilize the current storage space. They may also only free up enough capacity to help producers get by a few extra days, at most, if rail cars come late for pickup.

Container Bins

A second option to increase storage and address aging conveyors is to install container bins with moving floors, and conveyors that service them. Ethanol producers can place these bins outside the current storage building and stack them to increase vertical storage space. Producers can use the bins to divide their storage as well.

CONTRIBUTION: 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). ETHANOLPRODUCER.COM | 53

MODEL STORAGE: A rendering of Biomass Engineering & Equipment's Smart Container system for DDGS storage. PHOTO: BIOMASS ENGINEERING & EQUIPMENT BB)LQDOB&RS\B9LDOV )XOO %OHHGB:LWK 0DUNV SGI 30

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The primary benefit of a containerbased system is that it adds capacity without the capital investment of a silo. Not only do moving-floor containers cost less up front, but they depreciate faster than silos because they are machines, not buildings. Another benefit is automated discharge. A producer with moving-floor bins will not have to use wheel loaders to fill rail cars or a loadout pit. If a producer opts to add enough bins to replace their storage building, they can stop using their wheel loader and utilize the storage building for another purpose. Exclusively using bins for DDGS storage can also potentially reduce what producers pay in insurance, as they will eliminate the agricultural explosive environment of the storage building. Plus, producers can maintain the bins and the conveyors feeding them with standard tools, which will reduce operational expenses. Producers may opt to place their container bins inside their storage buildings rather than outside. It is possible the containers might eliminate the explosive environment in this setup, and the setup will help regulate DDGS temperature during winter months. However, it will require producers to shut down production while a crew installs the containers and new conveyors. But container bins retain heat. So, ethanol producers who rely on wheel loaders to move around DDGS so they can cool cannot use containers for storage. To utilize the bins, these producers will have to install a post-dryer cooler or an oscillating deck conveyor to cool their DDGS before storage.

Automated Loadout

A third option for optimized storage is to extend the current DDGS building and add moving floors. The benefits of this setup are that it increases true capacity, utilizes current infrastructure, automates output, and eliminates the need for a wheel loader. It can be designed to allow for divided storage and be completed without interrupting operations.

Completion can occur in two stages. In the first stage, crews will construct the storage building addition and route a conveyor to it. In this addition, moving floors will direct DDGS to a loadout conveyor in the center of the floor. In the second stage, the new addition will handle DDGS storage while crews add moving floors, drags and a loadout conveyor to the original storage area. Besides benefitting from the added capacity, producers can better utilize the space available in the building as a whole because they will use more of the floor space to store DDGS. They will not need space for a wheel loader to maneuver. The downside to this option is that it does not eliminate the agricultural explosive environment. It also requires more capital investment than the container option. Furthermore, it prevents producers from moving around DDGS for cooling.

In an environment where tomorrow’s scheduled loadout is uncertain and where ethanol producers must operate more efficiently than ever, producers need solutions that decrease risks to production. They need solutions that decrease operational costs. Traditional solutions like silos and wheel loaders may resolve a producer’s challenges, but they will not do it as cost effectively as other methods. Solutions that ultimately benefit the bottom line, such as those outlined above, are worth considering. Author: Joel Dulin Digital Marketing Manager Biomass Engineering & Equipment 317.346.0711 joel@veneerservices.com

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Here’s a checklist our competitors hoped you’d never see. 100% virginiamycin activity in product FSMA-compliant supply chain tracking In-house virginiamycin residue testing* Technical support for optimal product dosing Filler products * 2,854 no detect samples since 2010

Lactrol®. The only 100% virginiamycin antimicrobial on the market. Compared to other products on the market, Lactrol checks all the right boxes and Phibro is the sole manufacturer of virginiamycin. When you need superior control of bacteria in the ethanol fermentation process, the choice is clear.

©2019. Phibro Animal Health Corporation. Lactrol, Phibro, and Phibro logo design are trademarks owned by or licensed to Phibro Animal Health Corporation or its affiliates.

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DSM introduces eBOOST™: Increased yields, reduced glycerol, dry and cream op�on, and full tech support Innova�ve Fermenta�on Solu�on for Starch Conversion No other yeast technologies have been shown to increase ethanol yields and reduce glycerol forma�on as significantly nor as consistently as DSM’s new eBOOST™ technology, when compared to industry-standard yeast products.

Features & Benefits

• Robust performance with consistent results • Increased ethanol yields up to 6%* • Reduc�on of glycerol up to 75%* • Ac�ve Dry Yeast (ADY) or Stabilize Cream Yeast (SCY) forms of the advanced yeast available • Proprietary technology • Manufactured in USA • All regulatory approvals in place (MCAN, GRAS)

Strong ethanol performance sets a new industry standard

* As observed in lab, pilot and full-scale application trials compared to industry standard yeast.

Full technical support.

eBOOST™ is supported by a dedicated team focused on the development and commercializa�on of products and services for biofuel produc�on. Our commitment includes 24/7 technical support from our experienced technical service team, applica�on development and tes�ng laboratories at our Midwestern headquarters and global research facili�es located in Del� (The Netherlands).

Large glycerol reduc�on improves downstream process performance and co-product quality

To Learn More:

www.biofuelthefuture.com

847-608-2560

bio.based@dsm.com

Copyright © 2018 DSM. All rights reserved.

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