An Irresistible Algae Study
April 08, 2011
To say there is a shortage of algae-based research studies would be like saying there is a shortage of cereal brands in the aisle of our favorite grocery store. Maybe it's time to stop waiting for more.
Researchers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln have made impressive strides in their work to optimize sweet sorghum for use as a bioenergy feedstock. At least two hybrid strains of the crop developed by the team will enter the market next year.
Elevance Renewable Sciences has signed a formal collaborative agreement with Wayne, N.J.-based International Specialty Products to evaluate and introduce to the market renewable waxes and derivatives as biocide carriers for wood/plastic composites.
Deputy Agriculture Secretary Kathleen Merrigan unveiled the first 60 products by 11 companies that will bear the new USDA BioPreferred product label for certified biobased products. She made the announcement during a recent biobased product meeting.
Waste plastic derived from petroleum is clearly not biomass, but finding uses for this material that would oftentimes be landfilled serves many of the same purposes as refining biomass.
Waste Management Inc. recently announced its investment, an undisclosed amount, in Agilyx Corp., a company commercializing technology to convert waste plastic into crude oil. Other investors include Total Energy Ventures and Reference Capital.
Researchers in Brazil are developing a process to extract nanocellulose fibers from biomass and use those fibers to reinforce plastics. The fibers are also known as nanocrystals or cellulose whiskers, the crystalline domains of cellulosic sources.
Job creation along with technology and feedstock parity were key messages the Algal Biomass Organization aimed to drive home to members of Congress during its two-day fly-in visit on Capitol Hill this week. ABO hosted a press call afterwards.
Is Algae worth the wait?
April 05, 2011
Welcome to the Algalsphere, a blog covering all things algae. Don't worry though, this algae-based discussion isn't relying on a clever name or big claims to get attention.
Atlanta is the new home for an Australian-based algae developer's photobioreactor manufacturing facility. The 18,000 square foot plant will fabricate Algae.Tec's algae production system that is based on readily available technology.
West Virginia University may now be the unofficial leader in liquid coal and biomass research, but not without a little help from China. In early April a team of WVU researchers will begin a project testing an FT fuel made of coal and biomass.
Neste Oil is serious about expanding the range of feedstocks used to produce its renewable diesel product, NexBTL. The company has received a loan totaling roughly $70 million for research and development from the Nordic Investment Bank.
Solix Biofuels Inc. has secured $16 million from inside investors as part of a Series B finance round. It also changed its name to Solix BioSystems to better reflect its role as an algae production systems provider, said Joanna Money, vice president.
PetroAlgae has formed a partnership to upgrade the Melbourne, Fla.-based company's algae oil technology, and the upgrade comes from a known, traditional method: catalysis. The partnership is with Haldor Topsoe's U.S. subsidiary based in Houston.
The U.S. National Science Foundation and the U.K. Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council have collaborated to issue more than $10.3 million of jointly-awarded funding to four transatlantic research teams to enhance photosynthesis.
Following President Obama's speech on America's clean energy future, the U.S. DOE announced $12 million available in funding to support lab and pilot efforts in advanced biofuels, which may help as many as five projects in the next four years.
The president mentions advanced biofuels and the sector becomes enamored of the administration
Test Blog Posting
March 30, 2011
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President Barack Obama visited the campus of Georgetown University to speak on the nation's energy security today. Among other topics, he discussed how the government will help break ground on four advanced biorefineries in the next two years.
Butamax Advanced Biofuels LLC has been granted another patent for isobutanol, prompting Gevo to respond again to patent infringement allegations, stating its GIFT platform encompasses a different approach to isobutanol production than Butamax's.
The algae industry has taken significant strides in recent years, and is attracting a great deal of investor attention. However, the industry as a whole still faces some challenges regarding credibility due to high expectations in the quest for cash.
If there was any doubt about the impact of renewable energy on the global economy, a new report by the Pew Charitable Trusts titled "Who's Winning the Clean Energy Race: G-20 Investment Powering Forward," may have put any such notion to rest.
Amid the growing number of biojet fuel test runs, one of the most recent performances is California-based Edwards Air Force base's F-22 Raptor test flight, which used a 50/50 mix of camelina-derived biojet fuel and JP-8.
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.
El Segundo, Calif.-based Cereplast Inc. has entered into a distribution agreement with DMT Plasticolor to supply its proprietary blend of bioplastic resins to the Croatian market. The resins are made from corn, wheat, tapioca and potatoes.
Logos Technologies Inc. and EdeniQ Inc. will use $20.5 million of U.S. DOE funding that came under the DOE's Integrated Biorefinery Program to retrofit and build a Corn-to-Cellulosic Migration pilot plant in Visalia, Calif.
The USDA has developed the first loan guarantee program in history based entirely on bond financing with an emphasis on advanced biofuels and bioproducts.
The idea of becoming an active participant in the biomass supply chain to provide feedstock for biorefineries and power plants may be difficult to grasp for many suppliers on the outside looking in. Experts will address this in St. Louis May 2-5.
Morrisville, Penn.-based BARD Holdings Inc. recently announced its shift from research and development to the commercialization phase of its algae production technology. Its first facility is expected to produce 40,000 gallons of algae oil per year.
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