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October 2007

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Business Briefs

Schwartzkopf leaves Renova for ICM

By

Columns

Mike Bryan

The Way I See It

By Mike Bryan

View From The Hill

By Bob Dinneen

Raising Equity through Public Securities Offerings

By John Eustermann and Randy Shefman

Editor's Note

By Tom Bryan

EERC Update

By Joshua R. Strege

Tom Bryan

Editor's Note

By Tom Bryan

Manning Feraci

NBB In Sight

By Manning Feraci

Biodiesel Plant Construction

By Craig A. Johnson

Featured

Whitefox Technologies is a newcomer to the ethanol fuel market. However the company has been working with European industrial alcohol producers for years to make their production facilities more efficient through the use of its innovative permeable membrane ethanol dehydration technology.

Shipping containers leave a loading site via rail.

Intermodal Opportunities

By Nicholas Zeman

As distillers grains production increases, producers and marketers are finding inventive ways to distribute the ethanol coproduct. Existing intermodal trade is providing a convenient opportunity to meet the demand in growing export markets.

Bacteria can cause big problems for ethanol producers. These microbes interfere with the vitality of yeast and reduce ethanol yields. Plant managers and so-called ethanol plant doctors talked with EPM about proactive ways to keep ethanol plants healthy.

In light of the massive growth in ethanol production projected for the next 18 months, establishing markets for higher blend levels and managing distribution is critical. Experts at the American Coalition for Ethanol's 20th annual conference and trade show discussed what the future holds.

Colin South

Ready for Prime Time

By Jerry W. Kram

For years researchers have strived to lower the cost of enzymes needed for cellulosic ethanol production. It appears they are finally zeroing in on that elusive goal. Cost-effective enzymes are now just part of a larger economic, technical and logistical puzzle representing the industry's next phase.

The use of distillers grains as a biomass power source could impact more than just the feed and energy markets. The ultimate deciding factor may be its effect on ethanol producers' bottom lines.

Miscanthus at the University of Illinois tops 11 feet as shown with UIUC student Emily Doherty.

Miscanthus versus switchgrass

By Susanne Retka Schill

Switchgrass has hogged the spotlight as a perennial grass suitable for cellulosic ethanol production in the United States. In Europe, however, miscanthus takes center stage. EPM looks at how the two compare.

Dan Schmidt

Bigger & Stronger

By Ron Kotrba

Operations

The American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) held its 20th annual conference and trade show at St. Paul's Rivercentre, in the heart of Minnesota's capital city.

G&R is Hawaii's second oldest and second largest sugar producer next to HC&S. The company has been producing food-grade sugar on the island for over a century.

A Sweet Proposition

By Bryan Sims

With biofuels incentives in place to encourage local production, Hawaii's largest sugar producers intend to decrease the state's dependence on imported oil and stimulate economic growth.

David Witherspoon

300-Bushel Corn is Coming

By Susanne Retka Schill

If a seed industry representative's forecasts come to fruition, corn used for ethanol production will stay ahead of demand. Average corn yields have doubled in the past 30 years, and new biotechnology traits and research techniques may lead to similar advancements in the next 25 years.

The plasma gasification plant in Ottawa sits on three acres across the road from the Trail Road Landfill. It processes about 85 tons of city municipal solid waste each day.

Landfill Eliminators

By Jessica Ebert

The process is called plasma gasification and the technology for creating and harnessing plasma has been around for decades. However, plasma gasification technology is now being used for a new purpose-the conversion of municipal solid waste-to-energy.

Popular window maker Andersen Corp. is commissioning its new steam plant in Bayport, Minn., powered exclusively by the wood waste generated from the manufacturing of 6 million windows and doors a year.

Complaints from odor-offended neighbors and a desire to reduce greenhouse gas emissions have prompted some dairy farmers to integrate anaerobic digestion systems into their operations. Although it's not for everyone, using manure to generate power and produce a nutrient-rich soil amendment is something that should seriously be considered.

In the future, paper may be one of many products produced at pulp and paper mills.

Not So Run of the Mill

By Anduin Kirkbride McElroy

The forest products industry has years of experience in conversion technology, and cellulose and lignin separations. The industry is now looking to develop its pulp and paper mills into biorefineries with ethanol as a focus.

In the Amazon, a mysterious, black soil was discovered that was much more productive than the surrounding red clay. Research has determined that these soils were created more than 1,000 years ago by the area natives. Now, as scientists try to recreate those soils, biomass producers could be the big beneficiaries.

Biofuels, globalization and weather have teamed up to create unusual market conditions for soybeans, corn and wheat. Biodiesel Magazine takes a look at the market and how it's impacting biodiesel producers.

Biodiesel by the Book

By Jerry W. Kram

Biodiesel is a topic of interest to many people, as evidenced by the number of books and articles that have been written in the past few years. Biodiesel Magazine looks at a handful of materials published recently on the subject.

Concerns have been raised about a questionable loophole that may be allowing U.S. subsidies to be applied to biodiesel exports that were neither produced nor consumed in the United States. Legislation working its way through Congress would eliminate this loophole.

Ned Nazzaro believes that starting small-scale biodiesel operations is the best way to deal with the volatile soy market. The entrepreneur and cofounder of Big White Tiger built his business around biofuels because of their environmental benefits and positive impact on the country's dependence on foreign oil.

A new company is gearing up to galvanize the biodiesel industry with microscopic catalysts that could lower the cost of biodiesel production by up to 25 cents a gallon.

As the synchronization of biodiesel standards moves forward across the world-most notably between the ASTM D 6751 and EN 14214 protocols-a concerted effort is underway in the United States to improve D 6751 while keeping the U.S. EPA and its slow moving regulatory body at arm's length.

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