19 January 2016, Science Daily, One-stop shop for biofuels. First high-gravity one-pot process for producing cellulosic ethanol developed. The falling price of gasoline at the pumps may warm the hearts of consumers but it chills the souls of scientists who recognize that humankind must curtail the burning of fossil fuels to reduce the threat of climate change. Biofuels can help mitigate climate change and provide us with a sustainable source of transportation energy if yields and production costs are economically competitive. A major step towards achieving this goal has been achieved by researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI). Led by Seema Singh and Blake Simmons, JBEI researchers have developed a “high-gravity” one-pot process for producing ethanol from cellulosic biomass that gives unprecedented yields while minimizing water use and waste disposal. The process utilizes a combination of ionic liquid pretreatment, enzymatic saccharification, and yeast fermentation for the production of concentrated fermentable sugars that result in high-titer cellulosic ethanol. “High gravity” means high biomass loading — the higher the biomass loading, the lower the costs for converting it to fuels. Read More here
Category Archives: New Energy Sources
17 January 2016, Climate News Network, Grasses’ growing role for American cars. Second-generation biofuel made from natural grass species challenges ethanol derived from maize crops as the US seeks to reduce its fossil fuel use. In tomorrow’s world, it won’t be just the corn on the great American plains that is as high as an elephant’s eye. It will be the elephant grass as well. To deliver on US promises to reduce fossil fuel use, American motorists in future will drive on miscanthus − as elephant grass is also known – and prairie switchgrass. Researchers led by Evan DeLucia, professor of biology at the University of Illinois, report in a new journal, Nature Energy, that to exploit biofuels – which recycle carbon already in the atmosphere, and are therefore technically “carbon-neutral” – Americans will have to think again about how they manage the change away from fossil fuels. Right now, the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Renewable Fuel Standards foresee that by 2022 American motorists will start up their cars with 15 billion gallons (57 billion litres) of ethanol from corn. But this could be augmented by 16 billion gallons (60 billion litres) of biofuel derived from perennial grasses. Energy source The switch to the prairie’s native switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) andEurasian elephant grass (Miscanthus giganteus) will be necessary because there are problems with corn as a source of energy. One is that, in an increasingly hungry world, it reduces the overall levels of food available. The second is that corn requires annual planting, fertilising and harvesting. Perennial grasses simply grow, and can be mown once a year. So by turning over surplus land to swift-growing grasses, and at the same time reducing the levels of carbon dioxide released from cultivation, the US could meet its target of a 7% reduction in its annual transportation emissions by 2022. If farmers went on gradually to switch from corn to the grasses, the reduction could get as high as 12%. Read More here
14 January 2016, Climate News Network. Science opens routes to energy recycling. From turning carbon dioxide into a fuel to enabling cars to run on water, scientific researchers worldwide are unlocking the potential of new energy sources. Molecular biology has been used by scientists in the US to make a catalyst that can split water into hydrogen and oxygen. It means that a truly renewable biotechnological material could be used to help cars run on water. In China, chemists have announced a nanofabric – a catalyst put together atoms at a time – that could begin the process of turning the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide back into fuel. And with what seems like perfect timing, a new technological venture in Switzerland hopes to be the first commercial plant to harvest carbon dioxide from the air. The first two propositions are still in the laboratory stage, and the third has yet to prove its viability. But the laboratory advances keep alive the hopes of the ultimate in energy recycling. In the first process, water provides the energy for a chemical reaction that propels a vehicle, and then ends up again as water from the exhaust pipe of a car. And in the second, a gas released as emissions from fossil fuel could get turned back into fuel. Read more here
7 January 2016, ARENA, National bioenergy database to create new opportunities. The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) today announced $3 million funding support for the Rural Industries Research & Development Corporation (RIRDC) to undertake a comprehensive biomass for bioenergy assessment. ARENA CEO Ivor Frischknecht said the $6.2 million project would uncover new opportunities and make it easier to develop biomass generation and biofuel projects in Australia. “RIRDC will deliver a national database that brings together data on biomass resources across Australia, providing a clearer picture of where untapped sources of biomass are available,” Mr Frischknecht said. “There is currently no central, national source of data to assist with planning of bioenergy projects and existing local data is incomplete. “Australia’s growing bioenergy industry has cited this lack of reliable information as a significant roadblock to getting new projects off the ground.” RIRDC will work with states and territories to collect data on the location, volumes and availability of biomass for inclusion on the ARENA-supported Australian Renewable Energy Mapping Infrastructure (AREMI) platform. AREMI is a centrally accessible repository for ARENA project information and shares mapping data and information with the renewable energy industry. Mr Frischknecht said the new resource would build on existing work and assist project development and decision making. Read More here