Neutrons help decipher enzyme function for cellulosic conversion
By Technical University of Munich
November 02, 2015
An international research team used neutron crystallography and biomolecular simulation to characterize the inner workings of glycosidases, enzymes that speed up the conversion of biomass. One goal is to increase efficiency in alkaline environments.
DuPont celebrated the opening of its cellulosic biofuel facility in Nevada, Iowa, with a ceremony including Iowa Gov. Terry Brandstad and many other dignitaries.
Ethanol industry says anti-ethanol talking points in latest API study are false and an effort to restrict American consumers' fuel choice.
Valero Energy Corp. reported overall third quarter net income of $1.4 billion, or $2.79 per share. The ethanol segment generated Q3 operating income of $35 million, compared to $198 million in Q3 a year ago.
USDA Chief Economist Johansson calls report unique in that it centers on the pivotal role that ethanol plays in the crop and feed markets. It reviews the historical development of the industry, with multiple charts showing the change from 2000-'15.
DDGS prices are starting to work higher, after seeing their season lows at the beginning of October. U.S. buyers are picking up their usage, and demand from the export market, particularly for containers, has stayed pretty steady.
Vertimass LLC recently announced the completion of the technology validation that verifies the initial process design and preliminary cost information for a new award of $2 million by the U.S. Department of Energy's Bioenergy Technology Office.
Harvest has wrapped up and yield reports have been better than expected. Aside from the Eastern Corn Belt, most areas of the Corn Belt are projected to outperform last year's yield numbers.
News that Chinese companies have petitioned the Chinese government to launch an anti-dumping investigation over imports of U.S. distillers grains is a factor in lowered distillers grains prices and slowed exports, but it's not the only factor.
BDI-BioEnergy Int'l and Brau Union Osterreich, part of the Heineken family, celebrated the opening of a new spent-grain fermentation plant at the Goss Brewery in Austria, the last milestone in a series of efforts to make the plant carbon-neutral.
German Bioethanol Industry Association has made update versions of the renewable energy and fuel quality directives adopted this summer by the EU and officially published last month. It includes a 7 percent cap for biofuels from energy crops.
USDA is distributing $100 million in the Biofuels Infrastructure Program to add nearly 5,000 E85 and E15 pumps in 21 states. Matching commitments from state and private entities bring the total investment to $210 million.
As the U.S. natural gas market turns its eyes to 2016, there will be a new variable in the mix. After years of talking, financing, and construction, the first cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) is set to leave the U.S. Gulf Coast in Q1.
Through Q4, the ethanol market seems to be confined to a 10-cent trading range. It's trapped, not only by a range-bound corn market and a supply-burdened crude oil market which has pivoted around the $45 per barrel price level.
Agreeing to respectfully disagree was one of few assenting points reached by association heads representing the biodiesel, ethanol and advanced biofuel groups during a candid debate about the renewable fuel standard.
Algenol is sharpening its focus on advancing its technology for commercial readiness.
In the wake of the Petrobras scandal, the Brazil government shifted policy, reinstating the infrastructure tax on gasoline and raising gasoline prices in late 2014. Both moves made hydrous ethanol more competitive with gasoline.
Novozymes launches improved Avantec enzyme
By Novozymes
October 27, 2015
Novozyme launches Avantec Amp combining multiple enzyme activities into one product to improve yield and throughput, increase oil extraction and reduce chemical use.
Poet is installing fitness equipment at its plants. The corporate office in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, has a state-of-the-art fitness center and Poet officials wanted employees at its 28 plants also to have ready access to fitness equipment.
Unprocessed feed grain exports accounted for less than 15 percent of U.S. production, but adding grain equivalents for value-added products, such as ethanol, DDGS and meat, raises that to 26 percent.
Green Plains Inc.today announced that it has acquired an ethanol production facility in Hopewell, Virginia, from Future Fuels LLP. It will increase the company's annual production capacity to nearly 1.1 billion gallons per year.
Two things jumped out at me, this morning, when I went through my emails. Both were feel-good stories showing positive things happening in the ethanol industry. Not bad for a Monday morning.
Switchgrass research projects awarded grant money
October 23, 2015
Researchers have received grants from the U.S. DOE and National Science Foundation to study switchgrass. The study will analyze how switchgrass, through natural genetic mechanisms, adapts to its local environment in two separate but related studies.
Novozymes net profit grew by 11 percent in the first three quarters of 2015, according to a company report. Free cash flow before acquisitions was $2.022 billion ($2.9 billion), Novozymes said.
The Renewable Fuel Association has written the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality a letter expressing displeasure with the state's proposed amendments for its Oregon Clean Fuels Program.
A new survey shows that, once informed about the RFS, 79 percent of Republican and 90 percent of Democrat caucus-goers from Iowa think the RFS is good for the nation. America's Renewable Future and DuPont jointly released the results Oct. 21.
The November issue of EPM is now online. Tom Bryan writes in his editor's note about several maintenance-related stories, which appear in that issue.
RIN management company EcoEngineers has hired a RFS program manager, Anita Maher-Lewis. In her new role, Maher-Lewis oversees EcoEngineers' compliance program including RFS registration , RIN management and quality assurance programs.
EPA posts data for renewable identification numbers through September, showing trends for cellulosic and advanced biofuels RINs generation, as well as ethanol and biodiesel.
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