While it may be way too early to declare a final winner in the race to find replacement renewable liquid fuels to replace the jet fuel and diesel that power so many of the vehicles in the world, there are some indications as to the technology that just might end up coming out ahead.
The results that are starting to appear also show that sometimes there is a disconnect between what the Government wants and considers possible and the real world. The concern over climate change (not peak oil) led many Governments around the world to mandate that propulsion fuels include a growing percentage generated from a renewable source. Six years ago I was in St Louis for the Renewable Energy Conference with its great emphasis on cellulosic ethanol. President Bush came to bless the endeavor, and much was made of it being the time to start building plants. A short while thereafter I started looking into the generation of biodiesel from algae, and brought up the, to me, logical suggestion of growing it underground. (That idea still gains me the occasional pat on the head). Some of the early reviews of the technology were not good, but nevertheless the Defense Advances Research Projects Agency began funding the development of algae, particularly as a source for jet fuel.
Time passed, and the development of the new fuels took quite different paths.In order to encourage the change to renewable fuels the EPA mandated that motor fuel include 100 million gallons of cellulosic ethanol in 2009, 250 million in 2010 and 500 million by 2013. (This is on the way to a target of around 2 mbd by 2022.) Some of the original companies to seize on this opportunity started out with too great an ambition. Range Fuels, after some $156 million of Government loans from the Bush Administration, closed its doors this past year, unable to make the product it had promised. When it became obvious that the initial targets would not be met the mandated volumes were lowered, so that, for example, this year the industry target is 8.5 million gallons. But still the Government will fine companies, for not using a fuel that doesn’t yet exist in the volumes needed to meet those quotas.
Two firms say that they will be able, in time, to produce significant volumes; POET is beginning construction of a plant in Emmetsburg, Iowa that is targeted to produce 25 million gallons a year from 700 tons a day of the left-over material from corn fields after the corn is removed. They have currently stockpiled 61,000 tons of stover for use this year. There is some concern however over the long-term Biomass Crop Assistance Program which is supposed to help with funding. (DOE is to provide a $105 million loan). However the Scotland S.D. pilot plant can only handle a ton a day of material (turning it into 80 gallons of ethanol at a cost of around $3 a gallon), and so the rest is to be burned as a fuel at the ethanol plant in Chancellor, S.D. (This is a corn ethanol plant.)
A second plant will be built at Kinross in Michigan, by Mascoma following an agreement with Valero, and the award of $80 million from the Department of Energy. The plant is intended to generate an annual flow of 20 million gallons (1,300 barrels/day ) of cellulosic ethanol from hardwood pulp. The process is based on the use of engineered micro-organisms to the necessary saccharolytic enzymes and then converting the sugars released by those enzymes into the desired end-products. The process is knows as Consolidated BioProcessing (CBP) In the meanwhile they are also licensing a technology for improving the performance of corn ethanol plants. To date, therefore, the promise of cellulosic ethanol has not been met.
Other sources for liquid fuels have been also been tested, and some – particularly the use of vegetable oils, either pre or post use in fast food chains – have found some niche in the market. Alaskan Airways are using an 80% conventional 20% cooking oil derived mix. At the moment the cooking oil derivative is six times the cost of conventional fuel and Dynamic Fuels is the only commercial source with the plant having a capacity of 75 million gallons per year. The are now working with Solazyme to meet a target delivered volume of 450,000 gallons of renewable fuel, and that brings the focus back to biodiesel from algae.
By 2010 DARPA was already claiming that the contractors it was working with had shown the promise of producing algal biodiesel at a price of $2 a gallon. Following that step, the US Navy has begun trials with oil made from algae. In the set of agreements that have flowed out of the initial success, and led to the 450,000 gallon agreement, the U.S. Navy has taken delivery of roughly 75,000 gallons of biodiesel for testing in the fleet. And while the US Air Force is continuing trials of jet fuel made from camelina as the search for replacement renewable fuels continues. Beyond camelina (which has some problems finding a suitable home for large volume growth) commercial airlines are looking at algae sourced alternatives, with a United Continental flight having used a 60% conventional 40% algal sourced mix on a flight from Houston to Chicago. The algae-based fuel comes from Solazyme, which went public last spring and the company and has signed a non-binding letter of intent with the airline to sell them 20 million gallons of bio-sourced jet fuel starting in 2014. Interestingly the plant uses “indirect photosynthesis” to grow the algae, rather than open ponds. Robert Rapier has described the technology that they use. By using algae that do not require sunlight they can generate the fuel in bioreactors where the process can be better controlled. Gail Tverberg first wrote about the company in 2008.
Despite the opportunities that the fuel market presents, it does not, however, at the present time, provide much profit to a company, since it is costing about as much to produce a product as the market price will bear (around $3 a gallon). Thus it is still more profitable for the company to use the algal product in an earlier form as a triglyceride that can then be used in cosmetics and other chemical stocks. But, in contrast to the problems that cellulosic ethanol continue to have, I must admit to a quiet smile as I see the success that algal-derived fuels are starting to achieve.
Now if I could just get them interested in nice, constant temperature locations for their plants, with much of the infrastructure, walls, roof and floor already in place, and relatively little cost for development, my original projections just might . . . . . . .
Showing posts with label biodiesel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label biodiesel. Show all posts
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Sunday, February 8, 2009
P32 Pick Points
Half-a-dozen or so stories of interest:
In what appears to be a win-win situation New York is learning what those of us who live in more rural parts have been doing for a while – adding used cooking oil to fuel . while the oil is usually transesterified to give a biodiesel, in NY they are using the vegetable oil “as is,” saving the restaurant up to $22 for 5-gallons in disposal, and the county runs vehicles for almost free. Mythbusters shows that it works, even with no change, other than filtering, of the oil which is straight from the fast food shop. On a word of caution you need to check that your engine is designed for this before trying it, since there is a world of difference between running a liter of the stuff through your engine once, and running nothing but vegetable oil all the time. Not to mention the fact that EPA considers it illegal.
Ausra is changing from producing solar power to selling equipment to industry so that they can generate it themselves, either as solar thermal or steam. This is not long after the company opened the first solar thermal plant in California and is a reflection of the times. The speed with which such plants can be built is shown by a company in Israel that expects that they will be generating power in March from the new domestic size (100 kW of electricity and 170 kW of heat) plant. Power comes from the heated air running a gas turbine. Often these quite small projects are being undertaken by students from American universities who travel to poorer countries to help with such projects.
And speaking of small subjects, drying clothes can take 6% of the nations energy, thus a move has started to overturn rules against clothes lines. There is a promise of subsidies for renewable fuels, as they scale upwards from the small, in remarks made by the new Secretary of Energy though I'm not sure that a clothes line will count.
As Britain suffers under more bad weather the price of salt for the roads has risen from 25 to 100 British pounds per ton. However, once the sun comes back, up to a quarter of British homes may be eligible for energy efficiency makeovers – though it appears the government may only pay for insulation, while encouraging investment in more efficient appliances – including wood-burning boilers. (Did I hear a mutter from Edward I’s tomb?) If you are thinking about it, there is a friendly web site to help with wood burning issues. And yet, even as they encourage wood in the UK, Montreal is thinking of banning wood-burning stoves because of pollution problems.
The question as to whether or not to build a new coal-fired power station is difficult, given the uncertainty about regulation, but in Europe the fluctuating price of carbon credits is also making it difficult to determine the balance between cost and profit, whether for the coal-plants or for wind farms on the other side of the exchange. Finland, meanwhile, is planning on starting a new nuclear power station (they currently have four and would like six). Russia is selling nuclear fuel to India, the first after the international ban was lifted. (Though Australia is still debating whether to lift it. They may need the money, since even Gazprom is talking delays in the South Stream pipeline because of money worries. They are anticipating that gas sales to Europe may fall 5% this year, with a drop in price to $280 per mcm.
I may feel the urge for a new Tech Talk (sorry about today – just swamped with requests for information at work) since Bangladesh is talking about starting “Longwall Top Coal Caving” as a way of improving the extraction ratio in their mines. It is usually used in seams above 20 ft thick, so Americans and Europeans should not get too excited. The need for energy is critical in Bangladesh, since reduced supplies of natural gas are causing increased power shortages and load shedding of up to 480 MW in January, today (Sunday) it was 1000 MW. It translates into several hours without power, and is expected to get worse in the short term. India, meanwhile, is looking to hasten the move to solar power by creating 60 “solar cities” in the next five years, dropping power needs by 10%. The first city in this program began its planning last April China also has a “solar city” and is planning for the 2010 Solar cities convention there. The focus remains on solar water heaters at present. Meanwhile in the US utility companies such as Ameren have started encouraging consumers to consider using power from renewable sources, albeit at a premium. It is an idea that is spreading into the South-East.
Those of us who have concerns about the long-term prospect for fuel supply from fossil fuels have often seen our arguments disputed by Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA) which is headed by Daniel Yergin. It often seems we are on the opposite sides of everything. Well this is their big week in Houston, and it will be interesting to see what news their meeting makes. The title is “Risk and the Rebuilding of Confidence.”
For more stories visit The Energy Bulletin and Drumbeat at The Oil Drum.
In what appears to be a win-win situation New York is learning what those of us who live in more rural parts have been doing for a while – adding used cooking oil to fuel . while the oil is usually transesterified to give a biodiesel, in NY they are using the vegetable oil “as is,” saving the restaurant up to $22 for 5-gallons in disposal, and the county runs vehicles for almost free. Mythbusters shows that it works, even with no change, other than filtering, of the oil which is straight from the fast food shop. On a word of caution you need to check that your engine is designed for this before trying it, since there is a world of difference between running a liter of the stuff through your engine once, and running nothing but vegetable oil all the time. Not to mention the fact that EPA considers it illegal.
Ausra is changing from producing solar power to selling equipment to industry so that they can generate it themselves, either as solar thermal or steam. This is not long after the company opened the first solar thermal plant in California and is a reflection of the times. The speed with which such plants can be built is shown by a company in Israel that expects that they will be generating power in March from the new domestic size (100 kW of electricity and 170 kW of heat) plant. Power comes from the heated air running a gas turbine. Often these quite small projects are being undertaken by students from American universities who travel to poorer countries to help with such projects.
And speaking of small subjects, drying clothes can take 6% of the nations energy, thus a move has started to overturn rules against clothes lines. There is a promise of subsidies for renewable fuels, as they scale upwards from the small, in remarks made by the new Secretary of Energy though I'm not sure that a clothes line will count.
As Britain suffers under more bad weather the price of salt for the roads has risen from 25 to 100 British pounds per ton. However, once the sun comes back, up to a quarter of British homes may be eligible for energy efficiency makeovers – though it appears the government may only pay for insulation, while encouraging investment in more efficient appliances – including wood-burning boilers. (Did I hear a mutter from Edward I’s tomb?) If you are thinking about it, there is a friendly web site to help with wood burning issues. And yet, even as they encourage wood in the UK, Montreal is thinking of banning wood-burning stoves because of pollution problems.
The question as to whether or not to build a new coal-fired power station is difficult, given the uncertainty about regulation, but in Europe the fluctuating price of carbon credits is also making it difficult to determine the balance between cost and profit, whether for the coal-plants or for wind farms on the other side of the exchange. Finland, meanwhile, is planning on starting a new nuclear power station (they currently have four and would like six). Russia is selling nuclear fuel to India, the first after the international ban was lifted. (Though Australia is still debating whether to lift it. They may need the money, since even Gazprom is talking delays in the South Stream pipeline because of money worries. They are anticipating that gas sales to Europe may fall 5% this year, with a drop in price to $280 per mcm.
I may feel the urge for a new Tech Talk (sorry about today – just swamped with requests for information at work) since Bangladesh is talking about starting “Longwall Top Coal Caving” as a way of improving the extraction ratio in their mines. It is usually used in seams above 20 ft thick, so Americans and Europeans should not get too excited. The need for energy is critical in Bangladesh, since reduced supplies of natural gas are causing increased power shortages and load shedding of up to 480 MW in January, today (Sunday) it was 1000 MW. It translates into several hours without power, and is expected to get worse in the short term. India, meanwhile, is looking to hasten the move to solar power by creating 60 “solar cities” in the next five years, dropping power needs by 10%. The first city in this program began its planning last April China also has a “solar city” and is planning for the 2010 Solar cities convention there. The focus remains on solar water heaters at present. Meanwhile in the US utility companies such as Ameren have started encouraging consumers to consider using power from renewable sources, albeit at a premium. It is an idea that is spreading into the South-East.
Those of us who have concerns about the long-term prospect for fuel supply from fossil fuels have often seen our arguments disputed by Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA) which is headed by Daniel Yergin. It often seems we are on the opposite sides of everything. Well this is their big week in Houston, and it will be interesting to see what news their meeting makes. The title is “Risk and the Rebuilding of Confidence.”
For more stories visit The Energy Bulletin and Drumbeat at The Oil Drum.
Read more!
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
P21. Pick Points
Half-a-dozen or so stories of interest.
When the normal supplies of fuel are cut-off, as electricity has become intermittent in Pakistan, and gas supplies are also restricted, then those that need the heat will find and use what is available. So now the nation is beginning to be worried about deforestation. As the Crown Prince of Belgium noted at the World Future Energy Summit, this has happened in Europe in the past.
Over in Bengal the situation is no better, with coal, of which India has plenty in the ground, running short to the power stations even as more come back on line, after being down for maintenance. Part of the problem appears to be delays in getting environmental permits for the increase in coal production.
While the immediate dispute between Russia and Ukraine appears over, Pravda wants you to know that Ukraine is near default on its loans. And others doubt that stability will last. Nevertheless gas has now arrived in Germany and so this years crisis is over.
But for those who think that this disturbance might help move the Nabucco pipeline forward, which includes a fair number of Eastern European countries there is good news and less good. With the discovery of gas in a lower field below the existing reservoir in the Shah Deniz field in Azerbaijan the prospects for a second stage is being contemplated and Iran (with 10% of the first phase) has some interest in investing in this production. It would also feed into the Nabucco pipeline, if Russia has not tied up the additional production, by purchase. And while Russia is supposedly buying all available Turkmen gas, one might note that General Petraeus did just happen to drop by there last week. Still Kazakhstan has caught on to the game, and has now raised the price for transiting the gas from Turkmenistan to Russia by 21%.
More information is available on the interesting conditions that will be met when the Shtokman field off Russia is developed. In the last 48 years a total of 220 icebergs have been registered, and the ice thickens to about 2 meters in winter. Production is thus being anticipated as being from a ship. Its impact on the Norwegian economy is expected to be small.
Hmm and h/t to WUWT it turns out that the switch to a portion of biodiesel in the tanks of the school buses in Minnesota brought some grief last week, at least to some, as the fuel gelled in the tanks in the bitter cold. However the reports may have the wrong cause, since some of the problem seems to have come from the petroleum part of the fuel, although many of the buses that did not have problems seem to have been left running all night. The explanation of gel points in biofuels can be seen on Youtube.
As usual more stories can be found at the Energy Bulletin and in Drumbeat at The Oil Drum.
When the normal supplies of fuel are cut-off, as electricity has become intermittent in Pakistan, and gas supplies are also restricted, then those that need the heat will find and use what is available. So now the nation is beginning to be worried about deforestation. As the Crown Prince of Belgium noted at the World Future Energy Summit, this has happened in Europe in the past.
Over in Bengal the situation is no better, with coal, of which India has plenty in the ground, running short to the power stations even as more come back on line, after being down for maintenance. Part of the problem appears to be delays in getting environmental permits for the increase in coal production.
While the immediate dispute between Russia and Ukraine appears over, Pravda wants you to know that Ukraine is near default on its loans. And others doubt that stability will last. Nevertheless gas has now arrived in Germany and so this years crisis is over.
But for those who think that this disturbance might help move the Nabucco pipeline forward, which includes a fair number of Eastern European countries there is good news and less good. With the discovery of gas in a lower field below the existing reservoir in the Shah Deniz field in Azerbaijan the prospects for a second stage is being contemplated and Iran (with 10% of the first phase) has some interest in investing in this production. It would also feed into the Nabucco pipeline, if Russia has not tied up the additional production, by purchase. And while Russia is supposedly buying all available Turkmen gas, one might note that General Petraeus did just happen to drop by there last week. Still Kazakhstan has caught on to the game, and has now raised the price for transiting the gas from Turkmenistan to Russia by 21%.
More information is available on the interesting conditions that will be met when the Shtokman field off Russia is developed. In the last 48 years a total of 220 icebergs have been registered, and the ice thickens to about 2 meters in winter. Production is thus being anticipated as being from a ship. Its impact on the Norwegian economy is expected to be small.
Hmm and h/t to WUWT it turns out that the switch to a portion of biodiesel in the tanks of the school buses in Minnesota brought some grief last week, at least to some, as the fuel gelled in the tanks in the bitter cold. However the reports may have the wrong cause, since some of the problem seems to have come from the petroleum part of the fuel, although many of the buses that did not have problems seem to have been left running all night. The explanation of gel points in biofuels can be seen on Youtube.
As usual more stories can be found at the Energy Bulletin and in Drumbeat at The Oil Drum.
Read more!
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