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    The Biofuels Act of the Philippines has come into effect today. The law requires all oil firms in the country to blend 2% biodiesel (most often coconut-methyl ester) in their diesel products. AHN - May 7, 2007.

    Successful tests based on EU-criteria result in approval of 5 new maize hybrids that were developed as dedicated biogas crops [*German]. Veredlungsproduktion - May 6, 2007.

    With funding from the U.S. Department of Labor Workforce Innovation for Regional Economic Development (WIRED), Michigan State University intends to open a training facility dedicated to students and workers who want to start a career in the State's growing bioeconomy. Michigan State University - May 4, 2007.

    Researchers from the Texas A&M University have presented a "giant" sorghum variety for the production of ethanol. The crop is drought-tolerant and yields high amounts of ethanol. Texas A & M - May 3, 2007.

    C-Tran, the public transportation system serving Southwest Washington and parts of Portland, has converted its 97-bus fleet and other diesel vehicles to run on a blend of 20% biodiesel beginning 1 May from its current fleet-wide use of B5. Automotive World - May 3, 2007.

    The Institut Français du Pétrole (IFP) and France's largest research organisation, the CNRS, have signed a framework-agreement to cooperate on the development of new energy technologies, including research into biomass based fuels and products, as well as carbon capture and storage technologies. CNRS - April 30, 2007.

    One of India's largest state-owned bus companies, the Andra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation is to use biodiesel in one depot of each of the 23 districts of the state. The company operates some 22,000 buses that use 330 million liters of diesel per year. Times of India - April 30, 2007.

    Indian sugar producers face surpluses after a bumper harvest and low prices. Diverting excess sugar into the ethanol industry now becomes more attractive. India is the world's second largest sugar producer. NDTVProfit - April 30, 2007.

    Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his Chilean counterpart Michelle Bachelet on Thursday signed a biofuel cooperation agreement designed to share Brazil's experience in ethanol production and help Chile develop biofuels and fuel which Lula seeks to promote in other countries. More info to follow. People's Daily Online - April 27, 2007.

    Italy's Benetton plans to build a €61 million wood processing and biomass pellet production factory Nagyatád (southwest Hungary). The plant will be powered by biogas. Budapest Sun - April 27, 2007.

    Cargill is to build an ethanol plant in the Magdeburger Börde, located on the river Elbe, Germany. The facility, which will be integrated into existing starch processing plant, will have an annual capacity of 100,000 cubic meters and use grain as its feedstock. FIF - April 26, 2007.

    Wärtsilä Corporation was awarded a contract by the Belgian independent power producer Renogen S.A. to supply a second biomass-fuelled combined heat and power plant in the municipality of Amel in the Ardennes, Belgium. The new plant will have a net electrical power output of 3.29 MWe, and a thermal output of up to 10 MWth for district heating. The electrical output in condensing operation is 5.3 MWe. Kauppalehti - April 25, 2007.

    A Scania OmniCity double-decker bus to be deployed by Transport for London (TfL) will be powered by ethanol made from Brazilian sugar cane, TfL Coordinator Helen Woolston told a bioethanol conference in London. The bus will join a fleet of seven hybrid diesel-electric buses currently running in London, where TfL plans to introduce 50 more hybrid buses by the end of 2008. EEMS Online - April 24, 2007.

    Virgin Atlantic plans to fly a 747 jumbojet on a mix of 60% biofuel and 40% kerosene in 2008. Sir Richard Branson is collaborating with Boeing to achieve this milestone in aviation history. He already hinted at the fact that the biofuels "it was possible the crops could be grown in Africa, thereby helping to alleviate poverty on the continent at the same time as safeguarding the environment." More details to be announced soon. Telegraph - April 24, 2007.

    A top executive of General Motors, vice-chairman Bob Lutz, says the US should launch a 'Manhattan Project' for biofuels to make a 'wholesale switch' within five years. Kentucky.com - April 24, 2007.

    Canada's new government launches a C$200 million 'Ecoagriculture Biofuels Capital Initiative' aimed at helping agricultural producers construct or expand transportation biofuel production facilities. Government of Canada - April 24, 2007.

    Russian oil company Lukoil reportedly installed production facilities for obtaining biofuels in its refinery Neftochim in the coastal city of Bourgas. Lukoil has over 2500 oil stations in Europe, the largest number of which are located in Bulgaria, which joined the EU this year. Sofia Echo - April 22, 2007.

    The government of the Indian state of Haryana approves three small-scale (1MW) biomass gasification projects, while the Haryana Renewable Energy Development Agency (HAREDA) identifies seven industrial sectors it will help to adopt the biomass gasification technology to meet their captive thermal and electrical requirements. Economic Times - April 21, 2007.

    The Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) is planning to build a coconut oil biodiesel plant in Ivisan, Capiz (a province in the Western Visayas region) by the middle of this year in response to the growing demand for biodiesel. News Today (Iloilo City) - April 20, 2007.

    Scientists working for Royal Nedalco (involved in cellulosic ethanol production), the Delft University of Technology and a firm called Bird Engineering have found a fungus in elephant dung that helped them produce a yeast strain which can efficiently ferment xylose into ethanol. The researchers consider this to be a breakthrough and see widespread application of the yeast within 5 years. More info to follow as details emerge. Scientific American - April 19, 2007.

    As part of its 'Le dessous des cartes' magazine, Europe's culture TV channel ARTE airs a documentary about the geopolitics of sustainable transport tonight, at 10.20 pm CET. Readers outside of Europe can catch it here. ARTE - April 18, 2007.

    Spain's diversified company the Ferry Group is investing €50 million into a biomass plantation in new EU-memberstate Bulgaria. The project will see the establishment of a 8000ha plantation of hybrid paulownia trees that will be used for the production of fuel pellets. Dnevnik, Bulgaria - April 18, 2007.

    Bioprocess Control signs agreement with Svensk Biogas and forms closer ties with Swedish Biogas International. Bioprocess Control develops high-tech applications that optimise the commercial production of biogas. It won Sweden's prestigious national clean-tech innovations competition MiljöInnovation 2007 for its 'Biogas Optimizer' that accelerates the biogas production process and ensures greater process stability. NewsDesk Sweden - April 17, 2007.

    A joint Bioenergy project of Purdue University and Archer Daniels Midland Company has been selected to receive funding by the U.S. Department of Energy to further the commercialization of highly-efficient yeast which converts cellulosic materials into ethanol through fermentation. ADM - April 17, 2007.

    Researchers at Iowa State University and the US Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Services (ARS) have found that glycerin, a biodiesel by-product, is as effective as conventional corn-soymeal diets for pigs. AllAboutFeed - April 16, 2007.

    U.S. demand for uranium may surge by a third amid a revival in atomic power projects, increasing concern that imports will increase and that limited supplies may push prices higher, the Nuclear Energy Institute says. Prices touched all time highs of US$113 a pound in an auction last week by a U.S producer amid plans by China and India to expand their nuclear power capacity. International Herald Tribune - April 16, 2007.

    Taiwan mandates a 1% biodiesel and ethanol blend for all diesel and gasoline sold in the country, to become effective next year. By 2010, the ratio will be increased to 2%. WisconsinAg Connection - April 16, 2007.

    Vietnam has won the prestigious EU-sponsored Energy Globe award for 2006 for a community biogas program, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development announced. ThanhNien News - April 13, 2007.

    Given unstable fossil fuel prices and their negative effects on the economy, Tanzania envisages large-scale agriculture of energy crops Deputy Minister for Agriculture, Food Security and Cooperatives, Mr Christopher Chiza has said. A 600 hectare jatropha seed production effort is underway, with the seeds expected to be distributed to farmers during the 2009/2010 growing season. Daily News (Dar es Salaam) - April 12, 2007.

    Renault has announced it will launch a flex-fuel version of its Logan in Brazil in July. Brazilian autosales rose 28% to 1,834,581 in 2006 from 2004. GreenCarCongress - April 12, 2007.

    Chevron and Weyerhouser, one of the largest forest products companies, are joining forces to research next generation biofuels. The companies will focus on developing technology that can transform wood fiber and other nonfood sources of cellulose into economical, clean-burning biofuels for cars and trucks. PRNewswire - April 12, 2007.

    BioConversion Blog's C. Scott Miller discusses the publication of 'The BioTown Source Book', which offers a very accessible introduction to the many different bioconversion technologies currently driving the bioenergy sector. BioConversion Blog - April 11, 2007.

    China's State Forestry Administration (SFA) and the China National Cereals, Oils and Foodstuffs Import & Export Corp., Ltd. (COFCO) have signed a framework agreement over plans to cooperatively develop forest bioenergy resources, COFCO announced on its web site. Interfax China - April 11, 2007.

    The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock of El Salvador is speeding up writing the country's biofuels law in order to take advantage of the US-Brazil cooperation agreement which identified the country as one where projects can be launched fairly quickly. The bill is expected to be presented to parliament in the coming weeks. El Porvenir - April 11, 2007.

    ConocoPhillips will establish an eight-year, $22.5 million research program at Iowa State University dedicated to developing technologies that produce biofuels. The grant is part of ConocoPhillips' plan to create joint research programs with major universities to produce viable solutions to diversify America's energy sources. Iowa State University - April 11, 2007.

    Interstate Power and Light has decided to utilize super-critical pulverized coal boiler technology at its large (600MW) new generation facility planned for Marshalltown, Iowa. The plant is designed to co-fire biomass and has a cogeneration component. The investment tops US$1billion. PRNewswire - April 10, 2007.

    One of India's largest sugar companies, the Birla group will invest 8 billion rupees (US$187 million) to expand sugar and biofuel ethanol output and produce renewable electricity from bagasse, to generate more revenue streams from its sugar business. Reuters India - April 9, 2007.

    An Iranian firm, Mashal Khazar Darya, is to build a cellulosic ethanol plant that will utilise switchgrass as its feedstock at a site it owns in Bosnia-Herzegovina. The investment is estimated to be worth €112/US$150 million. The plant's capacity will be 378 million liters (100 million gallons), supplied by switchgrass grown on 4400 hectares of land. PressTv (Iran) - April 9, 2007.

    The Africa Power & Electricity Congress and Exhibition, to take place from 16 - 20 April 2007, in the Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa, will focus on bioenergy and biofuels. The Statesman - April 7, 2007.

    Petrobras and Petroecuador have signed a joint performance MOU for a technical, economic and legal viability study to develop joint projects in biofuel production and distribution in Ecuador. The project includes possible joint Petroecuador and Petrobras investments, in addition to qualifying the Ecuadorian staff that is directly involved in biofuel-related activities with the exchange of professionals and technical training. PetroBras - April 5, 2007.

    The Société de Transport de Montréal is to buy 8 biodiesel-electric hybrid buses that will use 20% less fuel and cut 330 tons of GHG emissions per annum. Courrier Ahuntsic - April 3, 2007.

    Thailand mandates B2, a mixture of 2% biodiesel and 98% diesel. According to Energy Minister Piyasvasti Amranand, the mandate comes into effect by April next year. Bangkok Post - April 3, 2007.


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Saturday, May 05, 2007

The bioeconomy at work: bio-composites for home insulation made from mushrooms and starch

Sky-rocketing oil prices, rising demand for reliance on renewable resources, and an increase in environmental consciousness have placed a newfound focus on “green” solutions to global energy issues. Following his May 19 graduation from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, student inventor Eben Bayer hopes to alleviate some of those growing issues – by growing mushrooms.

A dual major in mechanical engineering and product design and innovation, Bayer has developed an environmentally friendly organic insulation. The patented combination of water, flour, minerals, and mushroom spores could replace conventional foam insulations, which are expensive to produce and harmful to the environment.

Households use nearly one-fifth the total energy consumed in the United States every year – and of that energy, 50 to 70 percent is spent on heating and cooling, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. To reduce this massive energy expenditure, new and existing homes must be fitted with more insulation. Conventional polystyrene and polyurethane foam blends are typically used because of their excellent capacity to insulate, but they require petroleum for production and are not biodegradable.

The son of a successful farmer in South Royalton, Vt., Bayer’s knowledge of the Earth and fungal growth lead him to develop a novel method of bonding insulating minerals using the mycelium growth stage of pleurotus ostreatus mushroom cells.

“The insulation is created by pouring a mixture of insulating particles, hydrogen peroxide, starch, and water into a panel mold,” Bayer says. “Mushroom cells are then injected into the mold, where they digest the starch producing a tightly meshed network of insulating particles and mycelium. The end result is an organic composite board that has a competitive R-Value – a measurement of resistance to heat flow – and can serve as a firewall.”

The organic idea was born during a class Bayer took called Inventor’s Studio, where students were challenged to create sustainable housing. Bayer was tasked with improving the insulation of a conventional home.

“I applaud Eben for his vision and passion to use technology to create significant value for all,” said Burt Swersey, a lecturer in Rensselaer’s department of mechanical, aerospace, and nuclear engineering, and Bayer’s teacher in Inventor’s Studio. “He had the creative skill to transfer information, and to ‘see’ something in mushroom cultivation that was the inspiration for a wild, crazy, and wonderful new idea. Organic insulation holds the promise of creating a win-win-win situation: better insulation that saves energy, at a lower cost, and in harmony with the environment.”

Bayer’s process resulted in a new energy-saving, cost-effective, environmentally friendly class of insulation that could replace traditional synthetic insulators such as foam and fiberglass.

Applications in the developing world
Beyond insulation applications, the inventor envisions modifying the growing mixture slightly to include reinforcing materials that could be used to create strong, sustainable “growable” homes. Examples of this application include inexpensive structural panels that could be grown and assembled on-site in developing nations where usable housing is scarce and generally hard to obtain, or in disaster areas where temporary housing is essential:
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This spring Bayer began working with fellow classmate Gavin McIntyre – who will also be graduating from Rensselaer May 19 with a dual degree in mechanical engineering and product design and innovation – to produce larger samples using different substrates, insulating particles, and growth conditions.

Together Bayer and McIntyre will be forming a company called Greensulate to commercialize the technology. The invention’s potential to revolutionize the green building industry already has been recognized in a variety of outlets.

A winner
In fall 2006, it was a winning entry in Rensselaer’s “Change the World Challenge” idea competition, which supports entrepreneurship education and inspires ideas to improve the human condition by providing a $1,000 cash award for ideas that will make the world a better place.

In winter 2007, Bayer was announced as a finalist for the $30,000 Lemelson-Rensselaer Student Prize competition, which is awarded to a Rensselaer senior or graduate student who has created or improved a product or process, applied a technology in a new way, redesigned a system, or in other ways demonstrated remarkable inventiveness.

This November Bayer and McIntyre will travel to Seattle, Wash., to compete as semifinalists in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers’ Innovation Showcase (I-Show) competition. Participants will display their product’s key features and commercialization components, and will have the opportunity to compete for a cash prize.

Image: Sample of organic insulation - water, flour, minerals, and mushroom spores - developed by Rensselaer students Eben Bayer and Gavin McIntyre. Credit: Rensselaer/Eben Bayer.

More information:
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute: Graduate Develops “Growable” Solution to Energy Issues - May 4, 2007.

Pictures of the composite, here.


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Brazil's Petrobras and Denmark sign biofuel cooperation agreement

Quicknote bioenergy cooperation
According to New Europe, Denmark and Brazil's state-run oil company Petrobras have inked a biofuel research cooperation agreement, Petrobras recently announced. The agreement was signed in Rio de Janeiro by Denmark's Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen and Petrobras President Jose Sergio Gabrielli. It is a preliminary accord, Petrobras said.

A more detailed version will be signed in September when Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva visits Denmark, the company confirmed. Denmark aims to fulfill the goals set by the European Union to reduce its fossil fuel consumptions and has planned to have 10 percent of its vehicles shifted to bio fuels by 2020.

Gabrielli said joint research and bilateral exchanges may result in the discovery of new technologies to produce bio fuels. Brazil has already signed similar agreements with neighbouring South American countries such as Venezuela, Colombia, Paraguay, Ecuador, Chile and Peru, as well as with France, the United States, Italy, Japan, Norway and Indonesia. Some of these bilateral agreements are aimed at helping third countries, mainly in Africa, to develop a biofuels industry. Brazilian state-run agricultural research organisation Embrapa also has an Africa office, dedicated to kickstart the bioeconomy on the continent [entry ends here].
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Myanmar to create biofuel plantations on 3.25 million hectares


Earlier we reported on the Jatropha curcas planting campaign in Myanmar (Burma), a country ruled by a military junta that has a very bad human rights record. The South-East Asian country has a wealth of natural resources, including a large agricultural, forestry and mining potential, but it is exploited almost exclusively by a small elite of people connected to the military leaders. According to human rights watchers, forced labor remains a commonly used practise in Burma, where people from ethnic groups who resist the authority of the central government are forced to build roads, harvest crops and work in mines.

The vaguely communist military junta also often organises initiatives that summon all citizens to carry out 'national duties'. Planting jatropha (also known as physic nut) has become such a 'duty' to be carried out by 'all the people and locals' (see picture, click the banner to read the full article, published in a local state-owned newspaper; those who have ever visited the country know that in the cities there, huge billboards with similar slogans dot the streets).

The country now announces a sharp increase of biofuel output next year from jatropha plantations to substitute diesel. According to the Myanmar Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation, jatropha will be established on 3.25 million hectares/8 million acres of land to realize the projected increase of 20 million tons of biodiesel a year, the ministry-run enterprise dealing with industrial crops told People's Daily.

The intensive campaign has so far resulted in jatropha plantings on 650,000 hectares/1.6 million acres, mainly in three dry zones around the divisions of Mandalay, Sagaing and Magway.

Official statistics show that Myanmar produced about 405 million liters/90 million gallons of petrodiesel a year while importing more than 900 million liters/200 million gallons annually to meet its domestic demand. Some 22% of those imports will now be replaced by locally produced biodiesel, if the target is reached.

According to the enterprise, Myanmar has about 6.41 million hectares/15.85 million acres of land suitable for growing jatropha plants. Myanmar has eyed physic nut oil as fuel since late 2005, advocating the use of it as fuel in the country and urging the country's people to grow such nut plantations extensively.

The authorities also stressed the need for the country to use such biodiesel to avoid spending millions of foreign exchange on fuel, pointing out that the use of biodiesel as an alternative fuel for petrol, kerosene and diesel would also enable rural people to avoid searching fuelwood and help protect forests from depletion and conserve trees:
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There are two physic nut species in Myanmar - castor and jatropha. Crude oil derived from milled Jatropha can be directly used as fuel only after filtering it with cloth. Experimental use of the Jatropha crude oil in running machines and cars has shown promising results, experts in Myanmar say.

Meanwhile, since October 2005, Myanmar has raised its official fuel prices under limited supply quota to a record high by nearly nine times to 1,500 kyats (1.22 U.S. dollars) from the previous 180 kyats (14 U.S. cents) per gallon for petrol and 160 kyats (13 cents) per gallon for diesel.

These prices are still far below regional and world averages, with the government continuing to subsidize fuels heavily. In addition to the official fuel prices, there exists a black market with prices of 3,800 Kyats (about 3 dollars) per gallon for petrol and 4,800 Kyats (about 3.84 dollars) for diesel.

In a bid to curb costly oil imports, in August 2004 Myanmar also introduced a plan to modify all vehicles in the country so they can run on compressed natural gas (CNG). Burma has major natural gas reserves, that are gradually coming online. So far, a total of over 10,000 petrol- or diesel-run motor vehicles have been converted in the former capital of Yangon.

However, natural gas projects are struggling because of a boycott by international companies, who refuse to do business in Myanmar as long as the country doesn't alter its human rights record and doesn't hold democratic elections. In 1990, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi won the country's first democratic elections since independence, but a military coup ended the transition and put the popular leader under house arrest. Despite pressure from the international community, the situation in Myanmar remains unchanged and Aung San Suu Kyi remains imprisoned.

More information:
People's Daily: Roundup: Myanmar plans sharp increase of biofuel output in 2008 - May 5, 2007.



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Third generation biofuels: scientists patent corn variety with embedded cellulase enzymes

Quicknote energy crops
A new variety of corn developed and patented by Michigan State University scientists could turn corn leaves and stalks into products that are just as valuable as the golden kernels. The variety has cellulase enzymes embedded in its leaves. This makes it a crop typical of so-called 'third-generation' bioproducts. These green fuels and products are made from energy and biomass crops that have been designed in such a way that their very structure or properties conform to the requirements of a particular bioconversion process.

An example of such third-generation biofuels are those based on tree crops whose lignin-content (the hard, 'woody' part of plants' cell walls) has been artificially weakened and reduced, and disintegrates easy under dedicated processing techniques. The energy crop grows normally, but is far more easy to transform into bioproducts. Low-lignin hybrid trees (poplars) are being developed by several research organisations, amongst them the laboratory of the father of plant genetic engineering, Marc van Montagu of the University of Ghent, Belgium.

Likewise, the modified corn developed by the MSU scientists is different from the corn from which most US ethanol is currently made. 'First generation' ethanol is derived from the starch contained in the corn kernels only. This is because breaking down the cellulose in corn leaves and stalks into sugars that can be fermented into ethanol remains difficult and expensive.

The MSU scientists however have tricked corn in such a way that it already contains the needed enzymes itself, in its leaves. "We've developed two generations of Spartan Corn," said Mariam Sticklen, MSU professor of crop and soil sciences. "Both corn varieties contain the enzymes necessary to break down cellulose and hemicellulose into simple sugars in their leaves. This will allow for more cost-effective, efficient production of ethanol."

Sticklen will co-chair a panel on energy crops for biofuels at BIO2007, the annual international convention of the Biotechnology Industry Organization, which kicks off tomorrow, and present the new variety. "In the future, corn growers will be able to sell their corn stalks and leaves as well as their corn grain for ethanol production," Sticklen said. "What is now a waste product will become an economically viable commodity."

The technique is widely applicable to other energy crops. As soon as details on the qualities of this particular corn variety become available, we will report back [entry ends here].
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