Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey recently announced that Mark McKinley and Galen Barker from Fuel Time in St. Ansgar and Steve Neuendorf from Farmers Win Cooperative in Fredericksburg are the 2015 winners of the Secretary&rsquo;s Ethanol and Biodiesel Marketing Awards. The awards, created by Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, recognize fuel marketers who promote and sell renewable fuels through creative efforts, such as hosting special events highlighting their renewable fuels, developing creative signage, initiating new advertisements or marketing efforts, and dramatically increasing renewable fuel availability. GreenShift Corp. has announced the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office recently issued notice of allowances for several U.S. patent application numbers, including 13/450,997, titled &ldquo;Methods of Processing Ethanol Byproducts and Related Subsystems;&rdquo; 13/185,841, titled &ldquo;Method and Systems for Enhancing Oil Recovery from Ethanol Production Byproducts;&rdquo; and 11/908,891 titled &ldquo;Methods and Systems for Washing Ethanol Production Byproducts to Improve Oil Recovery.&rdquo; Fluid Quip Process Technologies has announced that United Wisconsin Grain Producers has purchased its Maximized Stillage Co-Products System. The patented MSC System produces Still Pro 50, a 50 percent purity high-value protein product from stillage. The MSC System also improves corn oil yield and clarifies thin stillage. MSC has been in full-scale operation for more than five years, and UWGP marks the third system sold.&nbsp; Lux Research, a global leader in emerging technology research and advisory services, has acquired the assets of Energy Points, a leading provider of data analytics that gives the most accurate and precise analysis of energy and resources. Headquartered in Boston, Energy Points helps large companies and government entities improve their resource efficiency through analysis of energy, water, fuels and materials. As part of the transaction, Ory Zik, founder and CEO of Energy Points, and all of the data scientists from Energy Points, will be joining Lux Research. Lux Research clients will gain access to the Energy Points team, who have a combination of modeling, predictive analytics, statistical programming, and physics-guided data mining experience.&nbsp; Accenture has entered an agreement to acquire Gapso, an advanced analytics services and solutions provider based in Brazil that specializes in solving complex supply chain and logistics challenges, mainly for companies in the natural resources and agribusiness sectors. Through the acquisition, Accenture will further expand its analytics capabilities in Brazil and provide clients with advanced analytics talent and solutions that enable data-driven decisions that can optimize operations and reduce supply chain risks and costs. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Complementing Accenture&rsquo;s end-to-end analytics services, Gapso will help position Accenture as a key advanced analytics player in Brazil, serving clients that specialize in the oil and gas, petrochemical, mining, pulp, paper, steel, grains, sugar and ethanol industries. Alliance BioEnergy Plus Inc. has announced new board members. Incumbent members Ted Chasanoff of CBIZ MHM LLC, Michael Bilodeau, Daniel de Liege and Mark Koch were reelected to the board of directors, while retired Army Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling and newly appointed CEO David Matthews were added. Chasanoff will serve as chairman of the board. Companies associated with UNICA, the Brazilian sugarcane industry association, have elected Luis Roberto Pogetti, chairman of the board of directors of Copersucar, as the organization&rsquo;s new chairman of the board. Pogetti replaces former minister Robert Rodrigues. Elizabeth Farina remains on the executive presidency of UNICA. The government of Canada has announced it will invest $3.7 million to help Integrated Grain Processors Cooperative Ethanol Inc. install Canada&rsquo;s first Fiber Separation Technology system. The investment will enable IGPC Ethanol to have a higher output of ethanol, corn oil and distillers grains, and develop new higher-value animal feed products while lowering the plant&rsquo;s energy consumption. The introduction of FST and the IGPC plant allows for the early separation of fiber from corn prior to its fermentation, increasing the efficiency of the distillation process and producing a cleaner fiber product. Pathogen control specialist Anitox has appointed Mark Danen as national accounts manager of biofuels. The company is driving growth in the green energy sector following the launch of its OpimOH yield-booster. Danen previously held a series of roles at Novartis Animal Health and has more than 15 years of sales and key account management experience.&nbsp; Lallemand Biofuels &amp; Distilled Spirits and Mascoma LLC recently announced that Lallemand has been awarded a patent (U.S. 8,956,851 B2) for the technology that is used in TransFerm Yield-plus. This invention provides for novel metabolic pathways that reduce or eliminate glycerol production and thereby increase ethanol yield by yeast or other microorganisms. This method was originally filed in April 2012 and the patent was granted Feb. 17, 2015. During the past three years, LBDS and Mascoma introduced TransFerm and TransFerm Yield-plus yeasts into the ethanol industry to help producers reduce the amount of glucoamylase needed in fermentation and also to provide a substantial yield increase through the introduction of this glycerol reduction pathway. Since that introduction, over 50 plants have utilized the TransFerm platform producing over 4 billion gallons of ethanol. Ergon BioFuels LLC, subsidiary of Ergon Inc., recently announced that it has entered into a comprehensive services arrangement with Gavilon to originate and market grain at the company&rsquo;s Vicksburg, Mississippi, facility. Under the terms of the agreement, Gavilon will operate the 3.2 million-bushel warehouse at the Ergon BioFuels facility and begin buying corn, soybeans, milo and soft red wheat from area producers in the near future. The strategic arrangement between the companies will also support the reopening of the ethanol plant located on site. Ergon BioFuels will own and operate the 65 MMgy ethanol plant and market the ethanol and corn oil. Gavilon will supply feedstocks to the facility and market certain offtake, including dried distillers grain with solubles, wet distillers grains with solubles and corn distillers condensed solubles for Ergon BioFuels. The plant is scheduled to reopen in May. Mycogen Seeds, the national retail seed company of Dow AgroSciences, has joined Growth Energy as a premiere associate member. Mycogen Seeds&rsquo; partnership with Growth Energy supports ethanol as a market option vital to corn growers throughout the U.S.

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Business Briefs

Ethanol Producer Magazine periodically takes a look at employment in the ethanol industry. In March, 234 individuals responded to an email request to participate in an online survey. How good is the sample? The response rate is considered extremely good at 23 percent. The profile of respondents by plant capacity is very close to the industry&rsquo;s as a whole, but the data was self-reported and gathered without random sampling techniques. While all job functions are represented in the sample, it is weighted toward management positions, with 14 percent of respondents being CEOs, chief operating officers, chief financial officers or general managers and another 14 percent being plant managers. The survey was comprised of 38 questions. Respondents who said they are corporate management or general managers were directed to a set of additional questions regarding the plant as a whole, such as reporting the salary ranges for multiple plant positions and recruitment methods.&nbsp; &nbsp; Who Are They? Respondents represent a range of plant sizes, with nearly half working at midsize plants with annual capacities between 40 MMgy and 69 MMgy. Another 40 percent represent larger plants, which can be further broken down into 7 percent from plants 70 MMgy to 99 MMgy, 16 percent from 100 MMgy to 119 MMgy, and 16 percent from plants larger than 120 MMgy. The number of respondents from plants smaller than 39 MMgy was 14.5 percent. The distribution of survey responses by size of plant is nearly the same as the industry&rsquo;s capacity profile calculated from plants appearing on Ethanol Producer Magazine&rsquo;s spring plant map. The last time we conducted the survey, in mid-April 2013, a question arose about capacity utilization as the industry was in the midst of a slump.&nbsp; At that time, 77 percent said their plants were operating between 90 to 100 percent capacity and 3 percent reported their plants as idled. The largest plants tended to be running at close to full capacity, with a clear trend showing lower levels of capacity utilization as plant size decreased. Not surprisingly, in early March of this year, a greater proportion&mdash;85 percent&mdash;of survey respondents report plants running between 90 and 100 percent capacity and another 9 percent report running between 80 and 89 percent. Only 1 percent of those responding to the survey now report being idled. Demographics The survey provides an overview of ethanol industry demographics. As would be expected, male employees far outnumber women at 78 percent of the total. The 22 percent of females responding has remained steady over past surveys, comparing to 23 percent two years ago and 24 percent responding in the previous survey conducted in late 2009. Respondents to the survey are a well-educated lot. If you combine those with four-year or advanced degrees and studies, it amounts to 62 percent of the workforce. Combining those with some college with those reporting post-high school vocational or technical training, it&rsquo;s another 28 percent.
Ethanol industry employees are a hard-working crew as well, with 98 percent of respondents working full time. Of those, over a third report working 45 to 49 hours a week, and roughly 20 percent work 41 to 44 hours. The vast majority, 75 percent, receive no compensation for hours worked over 40 per week while 20 percent report getting time-and-a-half. Given the ethanol boom began at the turn of the century and really ramped up in 2007, it is no surprise that 29 percent of respondents report 10 to 14 years of experience in the ethanol industry and another 29 percent report 7 to 9 years of experience. The work force does not move around much, either. We asked how many plants the respondents have worked at in the past 10 years, and nearly 70 percent have worked at just one facility and another 20 percent have worked at just two facilities.&nbsp; As for previous work experience, personnel came to the ethanol industry with a very broad range of previous jobs. Respondents named roughly 50 prior occupations. The two biggest categories for prior experience are agriculture (19 percent) and industrial manufacturing (15 percent). The next closest categories were chemical processing and construction at about 6 percent each, on down to food and beverage, food processing or milling, accounting, business and pharmaceuticals all coming in around 3 to 4 percent each. Recent graduates account for 4 percent and those reporting their previous work experience as being in the military accounted for 2 percent of respondents. Overall, ethanol plant employees are satisfied with their jobs. When asked to rate their satisfaction levels on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 meaning extremely satisfied, the weighted average was 3.69. That response was virtually identical to what respondents reported two years ago, when the weighted average was 3.68. Respondents were also asked to rate how important 11 different work-place conditions or values are to job satisfaction. No one factor clearly stands out, though job security is named as very important by 59 percent.&nbsp; In looking at the weighted average for each factor, job security edges out the others at 4.42 (5 being very important). Just behind that, and rated roughly the same at around a 4.3 weighted average, are competitive salary, good benefits and a positive atmosphere. The lowest ranked value is having a short commute at a weighted average of 3.28. Other work-place values between those mentioned include working for the renewable fuels industry, manageable workload, flexible hours, recognition by employers and opportunities to advance. Another way of viewing job satisfaction is to ask whether the respondent is considering a different job. Just over 13 percent are actively looking or seriously considering launching a job search. Nearly 40 percent aren&rsquo;t considering a different job, but 46 percent would consider one if a good opportunity came along. Most, at 60 percent, say they are compensated about right, while 36 percent say they are compensated too little. Let&rsquo;s Talk Dollars Payroll cost, including benefits, for even the smallest ethanol plants range between $1 million and $2 million. Payrolls for the larger plants, 70 MMgy and up, range from $3.6 million to over $5 million. The average annual payroll for the 37 senior managers responding to this question is $3 million, albeit responses to this question are dominated by plants in the 40 to 70 MMgy size category, which have an average annual payroll of $3 million. Senior managers reporting for the plant as a whole gave salary ranges for 15 job functions. This was the one question where one can see a significant change from the 2013 survey, with most job functions seeing more employees in higher salary ranges. In some cases, there is a big shift. In 2013, for example, 37 percent of the top corporate managers (owner, partner, president, CEO, COO) received salaries of $200,000 or more and 26 percent reported a range of $150,000 to $199,000. In 2015, there is a big jump to 59 percent reporting salaries in the $200,000 and higher and 28 percent are in the $150,000 to $199,000 range.&nbsp; General managers also jump a bracket. Two years ago, the dominant salary range was $100,000 to $149,999 with 45 percent in that salary range and roughly equal numbers getting salaries in the next two higher brackets. This year, the dominant bracket for general managers moves up to $150,000 to $199,000 with 56 percent reporting in that range. About 20 percent are in the lower bracket and just under 20 percent higher. Operations and plant manager positions also see shifts into higher salary brackets. The only job function not seeing a shift to higher salary ranges is operator, which possibly indicates new hires are starting in this position at lower salaries and experienced operators are moving up. Promoting from within is considered the most effective way to fill open positions, senior managers report, and recruiting new people by word of mouth ranks high as well. Other recruitment methods ranking in the middle are newspaper classified ads, personally recruited from related industries, headhunters, Internet job sites, personally recruited from other ethanol plants and job service. At the bottom of the list for effectiveness in recruiting is job fairs. A strong majority of senior managers, 65 percent, expect to be hiring two or more people in the next 12 months.&nbsp; Raises &amp; Bonuses Moving back to analyzing questions posed of all survey respondents, annual salary reviews are the norm in the industry, with 77 percent reporting that practice at their plants. Another 15 percent say there is no regular schedule, but only a handful say they don&rsquo;t get salary reviews at all and a similar number report six-month reviews. That said, 80 percent of respondents got a raise in the previous 12 months, and just 12.5 percent said the raise was associated with a promotion or change in responsibility. Half of respondents got a 3 percent or smaller raise and another 28 percent got 4 or 5 percent raises. There were higher raises as well, with 12 percent getting between a 6 and 9 percent raise, 6 percent getting a 10 to 14 percent raise and 3.5 percent getting a 15 percent raise or higher. &nbsp; Given the extraordinarily strong margins in the industry last year, it is not surprising that 90 percent report having received a bonus in the past 12 months. Those bonuses ranged all over the board, with roughly the same percentage getting bonuses in each of the seven categories from $2,500 to $5,000 on up to $50,000 or more, and the smallest number reporting bonuses of $2,500 or less. Nearly all respondents, at 97 percent, receive health insurance as part of a benefits package. More than 75 percent report benefits such as bonuses, life insurance, disability insurance, dental insurance and a 401(k).&nbsp; Among less standard benefits, 65 percent report receiving a cell phone as a benefit and 42 percent get long-term care insurance.&nbsp; Another 28 percent have profit sharing and 14 percent receive incentive pay. Continuing education benefits are offered to 31 percent of respondents. Other benefits hovering around the 10 percent mark each include stock options and flex time. Guys &amp; Gals The survey tool was also used to compare responses by gender and age. While no women general managers appear in this sample of the ethanol industry, women work as plant mangers and in senior management positions. (CEO, COO, CFO, owners, were categorized together.)&nbsp; Women outnumber men in two job functions&mdash;lab and quality control and human resources&mdash;and are well-represented in accounting, commodities and environmental-health-and-safety job functions. No women report working in maintenance or plant operations.&nbsp; Men and women give similar responses to many survey questions. Both sexes report working in the industry for similar periods of time and have similar education levels. They report nearly identical job satisfaction levels and rate the various factors impacting job satisfaction in virtually the same pattern. In the question about their involvement in decision making, the profile is very similar for the women as for men. When looking at gender and salaries, it shows women in all but the very top salary categories. One comparison, though, shows the proportion of women in lower salary categories is much higher than for men. Among males, just 4 percent report annual pay of $50,000 or less while 34 percent of the women report that. When looking at salaries between $50,000 and $100,000, 60 percent of the men are in that salary range compared to&nbsp; 50 percent of the women. Of the 60 women responding, just three report working in receptionist or general administrative job functions.&nbsp; When looking at hours worked, 23 percent of women work 40 hours a week, compared to 4 percent of men reporting the same work week. On the other hand, similar percentages of women (51 percent) and men (59 percent), report work weeks between 41 and 49 hours. Age Vs Job Function&nbsp;&nbsp; To get an idea whether any particular segment of the ethanol industry is soon to face more retirements, we cross-referenced reported age to job function. A handful of individuals are working beyond age 65 in various positions. When looking at top management&mdash;CEO, COO, CFO, general managers&mdash;there is a good distribution across age categories from age 35 on up. Plant managers tend to be younger, a good thing if that is a likely spot to look for promotions. Of the plant managers reporting, 10 percent are age 30 to 34, 55 percent are 35 to 45 years old and 20 percent are older. One plant manager responding to the survey is over 65. Younger respondents report job functions in lab and quality control, environmental health and safety, engineering and commodities. The 30- to 40-year olds are spread across all job functions, including top management positions. In general, no single job function stands out as having a large number of people nearing retirement. About half the senior managers report their facilities have succession planning in place for the top leadership positions at their plant. Author: Susanne Retka Schill Senior Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine 701-738-4922 sretkaschill@bbiinternational.com

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A sampling of employees working in ethanol plants paints a broad picture of an industry with  hard-working, well-educated, generally well-satisfied and well-paid men and women.  

2015 Ethanol Industry Salary and Satisfaction Survey

As a company seeks to position itself for longer-term sustainability and take advantage of new opportunities, the stakes for success and failure keep going up, says Scott McDermott, partner and chief operating officer of Ascendant Partners Inc. That&rsquo;s why it&rsquo;s so important that companies take a hard look at whether its employees are motivated to help the company be successful. &ldquo;In its minor form, the cost of complacency is lost earnings. Companies are leaving money on the table,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;In its extreme, the cost of complacency is the equity in the company. Those that do not stay competitive, or make bad decisions on the big issues, will destroy value in the business by a forced sale at a low value or the total loss of the company.&rdquo; There are many reasons companies don&rsquo;t take the steps necessary for change, says Jennifer Infantino, director of sales for P4 Consulting LLC. Maybe board members and executives are too busy dealing with the day-to-day emergencies to slow down for self-examination. Maybe they don&rsquo;t know what to do to start. Maybe they don&rsquo;t understand the cost. &ldquo;I think it would rank higher on the list of things that are urgent if the cost of not doing it was better understood,&rdquo; she says. Infantino clarifies that she&rsquo;s not talking about a situation where there are a few bad apple employees, causing problems. She&rsquo;s talking about a company culture that &ldquo;throws a wet blanket&rdquo; over what employees really want to and can achieve. &ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s easy to overlook how much energy gets taken up by employees that are not engaged or are distrustful of the company for reasons that can be fixed,&rdquo; she says. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s draining. It&rsquo;s taking up the executives&rsquo; time and managers&rsquo; time, and that costs money. It tends to be difficult to quantify, but it is quantifiable.&rdquo; Almighty Dollar Money is one thing that can either be a motivator or demotivator for employees. <a href="http://www.ethanolproducer.com/articles/12096/2015-ethanol-industry-salary-and-satisfaction-survey" target="_blank">EPM conducted a survey of workers at ethanol plants</a> and found that, of 234 respondents, 36 percent feel they are compensated too little. Infantino recommends that companies complete a compensation study to find out how its compensation system stacks up to the industry as a whole and the geographic area where it is located. &ldquo;You need to know whether or not you are paying your folks fairly,&rdquo; she says. Once that information is known, the company can determine the next steps. &ldquo;Here&rsquo;s really the bottom line about money,&rdquo; she told EPM. &ldquo;People have to perceive that they are paid fairly and what they are being paid makes sense compared to coworkers, and to the marketplace, and once that requirement is meet, then money really becomes very much less of a motivator.&rdquo; She adds that if the company pays its employees fairly and is transparent about that, it takes money off the table as a distraction. And, for employees who are paid fairly but remain unmotivated to do their best, giving them a raise won&rsquo;t fix the root problems anyway. &ldquo;You can pay someone a lot more and get them to stick around longer than maybe they would have but ultimately, it&rsquo;s usually not enough for people to stay in a job they dislike,&rdquo; she says. Of course, it&rsquo;s not all about salary. To look at the broader picture, compensation includes salary plus everything else a company is spending on its employees, she says. That means bonuses, vacation time, insurance, retirement plans as well as other, more difficult to quantify things like, accommodating a flexible schedule, free health screenings or even gym memberships. Feedback Employee evaluations are a potential stumbling block in motivating employees. It can be very frustrating for employees when they don&rsquo;t have a clear idea of how to reach for promotions or obtain raises, she says. One avenue for this is a review, which looks back over the past six months or year. That&rsquo;s important, but Infantino says an individual development plan (IDP) is actually more useful because it&rsquo;s forward looking. An IDP plots what the employee wants to reach for and how their manager can help them get there. &ldquo;You&rsquo;re putting power in your employee&rsquo;s hands,&rdquo; she says. &ldquo;Autonomy is actually one of the big motivators for people, so this a way you can give people info they need to know to affect change in their careers.&rdquo; Companies with a poor evaluation process can actually demotivate their employees because it can feel useless. P4 Consulting has worked with some ethanol production companies that struggled in this area. &ldquo;Part of why they weren&rsquo;t strong was that they didn&rsquo;t have job descriptions that included skills and knowledge for each level,&rdquo; she said.&nbsp; &ldquo;If that&rsquo;s not outlined well, what am I getting evaluated against? It&rsquo;s not clear. People don&rsquo;t know how to get better and advance.&rdquo; &nbsp;Change starts at the top. The boards of ethanol production companies can manage by objective, McDermott says, by setting strategic objectives for the business and putting a performance compensation system in place to reward staff for reaching those objectives. Company profitability-based compensation can also be a piece of a compensation programs, although it shouldn&rsquo;t be the only piece. Financial performance is affected by some factors out of employees&rsquo; control, such as commodity prices. Things employees can influence, such as operational and cost improvement, should be rewarded as well. &ldquo;A successful compensation program tries to find a way to get company staff to perform well in all areas,&rdquo; he says.&nbsp; Infantino&nbsp; talked about some of the same concepts in terms of company culture. All employees need to have a clear understanding of what the company values are and what behaviors correspond to those values. That means sitting down and establishing what those values are. Many things, including job descriptions, can be aligned to company values.&nbsp; P4 Consulting has helped companies come up with job descriptions by setting up cross-functional task forces, made up of employees from different departments. &ldquo;People are less likely to push back and reject something if they have been involved in the creation,&rdquo; she says. Author: Holly Jessen Managing Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine 701-738-4946 hjessen@bbiinternational.com

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How can employers motivate employees to reach for continual improvement?      

Connecting Compensation  To Performance

Todd Finneman&rsquo;s career has gone through several transformations, thanks to ongoing education and on-the job training. After owning his own garbage removal service, he went back to school at Bismarck State College, where he completed a degree in process technology in 2003. That led him to a job at Chippewa Valley Ethanol Co. where he worked for six years before he started his own hydroblasting business, cleaning ethanol plants. Finneman had only been working at CVEC a few months when an industrial cleaning company came in to perform services. Although he didn&rsquo;t know it at the time, the exposure to that type of ethanol plant service business was key to his future. Since the company was shorthanded, he and other ethanol plant employees were recruited to help out, something that bothered many of his co-workers, who complained cleaning wasn&rsquo;t what they had prepared for in school. Finneman saw it as an opportunity to learn. &ldquo;&rsquo;It&rsquo;s a great way for you to understand the equipment that you are going to be running,&rsquo;&rdquo; he told his co-workers. &ldquo;Because you are going to be in cleaning it, you are going to know what that piece of equipment is all about.&rsquo; That&rsquo;s how I looked at it, not knowing that it was going to be training that I was actually going to be using in my own company.&rdquo; &nbsp;In 2009, after working at CVEC for six years, Finneman took the plunge and started Enviro-Dyne Industrial Services Inc. Continuing education and training remains important to him. In 2013 he completed a 40-hour hazardous communication education program at Ridgewater College in Willmar, Minnesota. Recently, he hired someone who will handle training for his employees in-house. Mick Miller, president of NuVu Fuels and general manager of DENCO II in Morris, Minnesota, also went through the program at Bismarck State. Unlike Finneman, who was a nontraditional student going back to school later in life, Miller started the program not long after graduating from a nearby North Dakota high school. Although his original goal was to gain experience working at an ethanol plant and use that to get a job in another industry, that never happened. &ldquo;Once I got into the ethanol industry, I had no desire to get into an oil refinery or power plant,&rdquo; he says. Two years after starting out as an operator at DENCO, Miller worked his way up to a plant manager position at only 21 years old. He and his brother, Mitch Miller, both graduates of the Bismarck State program, were plant managers at the same time. Today Mitch Miller is the CEO of Carbon Green BioEnergy LLC and a managing partner of NuVu Fuels. Over the years, the brothers have hired a number of staff members who have gone through the Bismarck State and other technical programs, Mick Miller said, adding that those students can be difficult to come by since there&rsquo;s a high demand for workers with technical skills. Different Models The various programs offer different options for students with different needs. Southeast Community College, in Milford, Nebraska, for example, offers students training that can be completed in 18 months. Although some classes are online, the program is designed for students living nearby while completing the program. Southeastern Illinois College, in Harrisburg, Illinois, on the other hand, offers its Biofuels Technology Programs courses all online, so students can take them from any location. Both programs attract traditional and nontraditional students. John Pierce, program chair of Energy Generation Operations training at SCC, estimated that 70 to 75 percent of students in that program are retooling their careers later in life. Renee Loesche, Building Illinois Bioeconomy, SIC program director, confirms that older students are more common, although some high school juniors have taken it and done well. &ldquo;Most of our students have advanced degrees and have been working in the industry,&rdquo; she says. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve had plant operators, plant managers, human resource personnel, bench chemists responsible for fuel testing, veterans looking for a career pathway and those with a general interest.&rdquo; SIC started its program at the Nebraska school in January 2011 and, since then, 92 students have graduated. Pierce knows of 20 of that number who are currently working at an ethanol plant or in a biofuels-related industry. &ldquo;Actually we have quite a few more working in biofuels than graduating in the biofuels focus,&rdquo; he says. One of the unique things about this program is that, although students graduate with a focus on one of three industries, the first five quarters of the program are the same for all. Students in the Energy Generation Operations program are taught the same core skills and knowledge for the majority of the program and only split out into biofuels, nuclear or fossil fuels focuses for the last quarter. &ldquo;It has turned out to be a winning strategy because employers frankly don&rsquo;t care what focus the students take because they&rsquo;ve got five quarters of common curriculum,&rdquo; he says, adding that students have also been hired to work at water treatment facilities, at pet food and food processing companies, or heating and cooling plants for hospitals and schools, to name a few. In Illinois, SIC is part of a federally funded $9.9 million grant project, called Building Illinois&rsquo; Bioeconomy, to develop and enhance training for bioprocessing and water management. SIC, the National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Center and its host university, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, Lewis and Clark Community College, Lincoln Land Community College and Carl Sandburg College have formed a consortium and started work on the project. As part of the grant, SIC is working to develop self-paced courses that will allow students to earn a fast-track certificate in six months or less, with the same high-quality instruction currently offered in a nine-month program, Loesche says. The goal, she says, is to eventually offer a standardized program that other U.S. schools can access and build on, a model that is already working in Europe. The consortium of schools is also working with industry, trade and community partners. &ldquo;We have major ethanol producers, biorefineries and national associations who have committed to providing content reviews and consider graduates when hiring,&rdquo; she says. That list includes Adkins Energy, Lincolnland Agri-Energy, Big River Resources, Abengoa Bioenergy, Illinois Renewable Fuels Association, National Corn Growers Association and Growth Energy. The grant money came from the U.S. Department of Labor Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College Career Training program. The Taaccct grant program was authorized in 2009, as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. In 2010, President Obama signed a bill into law that included $2 billion to fund the program over four years. &ldquo;Through these multiyear grants, the Department of Labor is helping to ensure that our nation's institutions of higher education are helping adults succeed in acquiring the skills, degrees, and credentials needed for high-wage, high-skill employment while also meeting the needs of employers for skilled workers,&rdquo; according to the Department of Labor. Author: Holly Jessen Managing Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine 701-738-4946 hjessen@bbiinternational.com

HANDS ON:  A Southeast Community College student works on Bayport distillation and evaporation training equipment during Energy Generation Operations training.  

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Training programs around the U.S. offer opportunities in the biofuels industry for part- and full-time students.       

Top of Biofuels Class

1. Xylome: Today's Yeast For Tomorrow's Ethanol TITLE: &ldquo;Novel Yeasts For Cellulosic Ethanol Production&rdquo; SPEAKER: Thomas Jeffries, president WHEN: 8:30 am, Wednesday, June 3 &ndash; Track 4
Xylome President Thomas Jeffries says existing, natural yeasts are capable of unlocking the hard-to-get sugars in cellulosic and hemicellulosic feedstocks, and they could move corn ethanol producers closer to next-generation biorefining. He will join an FEW panel titled &ldquo;Starch Ethanol&rsquo;s Cellulosic Sequel Also Begins With Biology.&rdquo; Jeffries will talk about how converting spent corn hulls from distillers wet grains (DWG) could increase ethanol production by as much as 10 percent per bushel of corn. He will introduce FEW attendees to the yeasts that make corn fiber conversion possible. &ldquo;Our focus is on alternative yeasts for unconventional substrates,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;We focus on substrates that can&rsquo;t be consumed by saccharomyces.&rdquo;&nbsp; Xylome works with both non-GMO and GMO yeasts. The non-GMO strains the company starts out with, such as Spathaspora passalidarum, are capable of producing ethanol and other liquid chemicals from cellulosic and hemicellulosic sugars. &ldquo;A lot of people aren&rsquo;t aware that there are native yeasts out there that will handle semicellulosic sugars like this,&rdquo; Jeffries says.&nbsp; HOW IT WORKS: Traditional yeast such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae cannot ferment the five-carbon sugars that are abundant in spent grain hulls, but yeasts like Spathaspora passalidarum can. Each ton of DWG contains approximately 200 pounds of cellulosic and hemicellulosic sugar that can be converted into about 13 gallons of ethanol.
2. Ener-Core: Self-Paying Clean Power PRESENTATION: &ldquo;Reusing Process Waste Gases As A Source Of Energy To Reduce Costs, Improve Profitability And Establish A New Environmental Standard For Ethanol Production&rdquo; SPEAKER: Alain Castro, CEO WHEN: 8:30 am, Wednesday, June 3 &ndash; Track 1
When Pacific Ethanol announced in January that it had signed an agreement with Dresser-Rand to install a 3.5 megawatt cogeneration system at its Stockton, California, ethanol plant, the payback was implicit. The $12 million system, due for completion next year, will convert the plant&rsquo;s waste gases into electricity and steam, lowering its annual energy spend by up to $4 million a year. It will allow PEI to use poor-quality gases laden with volatile organic compounds (VOCs) as an energy feedstock. The enabler behind this innovative clean energy play is the Power Oxidizer engineered by Ener-Core. Alain Castro, company CEO, will present at this year&rsquo;s FEW, joining a panel titled &ldquo;Wonderful Widgets: Technologies Available For Plants Looking To Drive Out Process Expenses And Increase Profits.&rdquo; Castro calls the Power Oxidizer &ldquo;an environmental solution that pays for itself.&rdquo; CLIMATE DRIVEN: Natural oxidization of gases in the atmosphere takes up to two decades. &ldquo;We can&rsquo;t afford to wait that long,&rdquo; Castro says, explaining that his company&rsquo;s technology artificially accelerates oxidation from 12 to 20 years to 2 to 3 seconds. &ldquo;When you do it that fast, you destroy those harmful contaminants and, in the process, generate an immense amount of heat.&rdquo;
3. Bion Analytical: Defensible Lab Data TITLE: &ldquo;How To Generate Results In Your Lab That Your Operations Team Can Trust&rdquo; SPEAKER: Kristi Plack, director of technical operations WHEN: 10:30 am, Wednesday, June 3 &ndash; Track 2
Ethanol plants depend on lab data to optimize operations, troubleshoot and ensure final product quality, but what if their lab results can&rsquo;t be trusted? FEW speaker Kristi Plack of Bion Analytical says there are several sources of error that impact the accuracy of lab data, including sampling error, instrument error and human error. &ldquo;Some of it is unavoidable, but the error experienced in an ethanol plant lab can and should be managed to ensure the highest quality data possible,&rdquo; Plack says. &ldquo;We can never totally get away from error, but we can minimize it.&rdquo; Plack will present on an FEW panel titled, &ldquo;Sharpening Your Staff Saw: Training And Tools To Get The Very Best Performance From Your Team.&rdquo; Her presentation will focus on reducing lab data error by adhering to analytical standards, reference materials, sample duplicates and related control charts. She intends to offer producers specific and practical strategies for producing lab data that is both reliable and defensible. &ldquo;If you&rsquo;re trying to make value-added optimizations, you have to start with accurate data.&rdquo; ETHANOL FOCUSED: Sioux Falls, South Dakota, based Bion Analytical has tailored many of its products and services for ethanol plants. Plack says Bion has worked with more than 100 U.S. ethanol plants since its startup in 2008.
4. xF Technologies: Make Another Product PRESENTATION: &ldquo;Upgrade Of Ethanol To A Diesel Oxygenate&rdquo; FOUNDER: Len Rand, president &amp; CEO WHEN: 10:30 am, Wednesday, June 3 &ndash; Track 3
Blending ethanol into diesel has always been a challenging proposition. Incompatible boiling points, vapor pressures and energy densities have made the fuels reluctant associates. Now, the founder of a New Mexico-based technology firm says his company has developed a way to transform ethanol into an eight-carbon oxygenate that plays well with diesel. Len Rand, president and CEO of xF Technologies, is ready to talk to ethanol producers about licensing his company&rsquo;s thermochemical process to upgrade ethanol to a diesel oxygenate blendstock called Ethyl 408 (ethyl furoate). &ldquo;It offers producers a pathway to take corn and corn stover processing into the diesel market, which will be as large as the gasoline market within 25 years,&rdquo; Rand says. Dave Sams, vice president of business development at xF Technologies, will speak about Ethyl 408 at the FEW, joining a panel called &ldquo;Diversifying Product Streams And Determining Their Impact To Plant Bottom Lines.&rdquo; Rand says he thinks the economics of producing Ethyl 408 will capture the attention of FEW attendees. &ldquo;The cap-ex is about the same as a conventional corn ethanol plant,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Diesel is 50 cents to $1 more than gas, so that gives you an idea of the higher margins that producers could capture, along with D4 RINs.&rdquo; COLOCATION POTENTIAL: Rand envisions his technology being colocated with existing ethanol plants. Corn and ethanol would be routed to the xF plant where both feedstocks would be consumed in the production of Ethyl 408. Downstream, the product would be blended with diesel at 5 percent.
5. Drying Technology Inc: Money-Saving Moisture Control TITLE: &ldquo;Fuel Alcohol Industry Losing Millions Due To DDGS Overdrying&rdquo; SPEAKER: John Robinson, owner &amp; president WHEN: 1:30 pm, Tuesday, June 2 &ndash; Track 3
John Robinson believes the U.S. ethanol industry is failing to capture $50 million to $100 million annually because of poor coproduct moisture control, and he&rsquo;s got a system to stop it from persisting. &ldquo;You can call it overdrying, but it is actually the result of weaknesses in industry drying methods,&rdquo; says Robinson, the founder of Texas-based Drying Technology Inc. On an FEW panel titled &ldquo;Deploying Hardware Solutions To Maximize Coproduct Profitability,&rdquo; Robinson will discuss his company&rsquo;s three-prong approach to more efficient DDGS drying. First, the company deploys an inside-the-dryer moisture sensor that reduces &ldquo;dead time&rdquo; and final moisture control variation by no less than 30 percent. Next, another sensor is installed for detecting dryer load swings. And finally, the company uses a precise mathematical method for continuously recalculating the set point necessary for maintaining optimal moisture control following evaporative load changes. &ldquo;When these three exclusive solutions are put to work, moisture control variation is reduced by as much as 49 percent,&rdquo; Robinson says. &ldquo;This allows producers to leave more water in their product knowing that it is not exceeding the upper specification limit.&rdquo; GOOD PAYBACK: Because most plants have poor moisture control, they typically keep their target moisture below specification&mdash;usually less than 12 percent&mdash;to be on the safe side. Robinson&rsquo;s company narrows the moisture control curve and tightens up the process. &ldquo;It translates into a $1-per-ton net increase in income,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;This saves a 110 million gallon plant at least $350,000 a year.&rdquo;
6. Celignis: Speedy Biomass Analysis TITLE: &ldquo;Use Of Near-Infrared Spectroscopy For The Rapid Low-Cost Analysis Of A Wide Variety Of Lignocellulosic Feedstocks&rdquo; SPEAKER: Daniel Hayes, director WHEN: 10:30 am, Wednesday, une 3 &ndash; Track 4
Biofuels companies using third-party labs for feedstock analysis often wait up to two weeks for test results. Now, with near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR), Limerick, Ireland-based Celignis can provide full compositional data on virtually any biomass sample within one day of receiving it. Daniel Hayes, the company&rsquo;s director, says the super quick process is also accurate and affordable. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a screening method that allows customers to evaluate more samples within budget and timeframe,&rdquo; he says, adding that NIR is a great fit for cellulosic ethanol developers because the composition of feedstocks and pretreatments producers deal with varies widely. So far, Celignis has processed over 1,000 biomass samples using NIR. The company has analyzed miscanthus, peat, straw, waste paper and cardboard, sugarcane bagasse and may other raw materials, developing NIR models for many key ingredients found within biomass&mdash;glucan, total sugars, lignin and ash, for example. Hayes, who will join an FEW panel titled &ldquo;Lignocellulose&rsquo;s Sweet Side: Converting Biomass Feedstocks Into More Easily Processed Sugar Streams,&rdquo; says it is the most wide-ranging demonstration of NIR for biomass analysis ever conducted. DOWN THE ROAD: Currently, Celignis does NIR biomass testing in its own lab. Ultimately, Hayes says, Celignis&rsquo; intellectual property could be applied in an online basis within a biomass processing facility so that process data can be provided on a real-time basis.
7. Bio-Process Innovation: Boost Productivity TITLE: &ldquo;Directed Evolution Fermentation Process For Improved Yields, Rates &amp; Production In Corn Ethanol Facilities&rdquo; SPEAKER: Clark Dale, president &amp; CEO WHEN: 1:30 pm, Tuesday, June 2 &ndash; Track 1
The simultaneous deployment of multiple yeast strains could give ethanol producers a big fermentation boost, says Clark Dale, president and CEO of Indiana-based Bio-Process Innovation. Joining an FEW panel titled, &ldquo;Exploring Best Practices For Yield Maximization,&rdquo; Dale will explain how directed fermentation (DE) fermentation relies on different yeasts to be more assertive under different conditions. &ldquo;If you&rsquo;re running your fermenters a little warm, the yeast strains that are more thermophilic will be more dominant,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;DE improves and adapts to the specific way the plant is running.&rdquo; Four yeasts&mdash;one patented strain and three propriety strains&mdash;work together in DE fermentation, which would be possible with only minor changes to the way an ethanol plant&rsquo;s fermenters are run. Dale says the results at lab scale look promising. &ldquo;It would potentially give a producer a 50-percent boost in productivity from every fermenter in the plant,&rdquo; he says, explaining that the technology would also decrease fermentation time, decrease bacterial infection, lower cleaning and bring down yeast expenses. IMPLEMENTATION COST: Dale and his team have been working on DE fermentation for about five years. He&rsquo;s ready to talk to ethanol producers about proving the technology at demonstration scale. &ldquo;The investment would be small, and the payback would be almost infinite,&rdquo; he says, adding that he will discuss the associated capital and operational costs of the technology at the FEW. Author: Tom Bryan Editor in Chief, Ethanol Producer Magazine 701-746-8385 tbryan@bbiinternational.com

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7. Bio-Process Innovation:
Boost Productivity

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5. Drying Technology Inc:
Money-Saving Moisture Control

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1. Xylome:
Today's Yeast For Tomorrow's Ethanol 

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Lightly staffed businesses are often nimble and innovative. Here are seven to size up at this year's International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo. 

Small Companies, Big Ideas

Senior management changes at ethanol companies come about for many reasons. Sometimes it is a retirement situation or natural attrition and other times it can be a separation due to differences in management philosophy or style. Ascendant Partners has observed, and sometimes assisted in, senior management transition at several ethanol companies. These transitions have provided some very good lessons about how to create a high-performance culture coming from the talented people who have become the new managers. Leadership is an often-used buzz word, but it is acknowledged as the single, critical success factor for creating a high-performance culture in ethanol companies. Managers leading a transition must step up with a plan about where they want the organization to go, lay the tracks to get there and almost always do it in the face of resistance at every juncture. A change in culture does not happen without some combination of conviction, force and finesse. Often, the biggest hindrance to culture change is a single disruptive employee. We have observed that companies sometimes go to great lengths to adjust the whole organization around one problem employee, often at the burden of productive employees. Other times, it is not a problem employee as much as a good employee in the wrong role. Good managers have a talent for knowing the difference between a bad company fit and a good person in the wrong role. A good change leader has the ability to get the right people in the right roles and, when required, make the tough decisions. For example, one company had an incredibly talented engineer who was also a manager. The company, however, was more focused on head count than effectiveness. The general manager eventually replaced the talented engineer with a good manager. The company lost a talented individual, but gained a functioning organization. The best managers understand they are impacting people&rsquo;s lives with their business decisions and agonize at great length before making staff changes. Engaged Board Board support is another feature that affects new senior management&rsquo;s ability to change the culture of the ethanol company. Most boards understand it is their job to hire the general manager or CEO. Effective boards also understand they need both to empower the new leadership to manage the business and hold the new management accountable for results. Good senior managers engage the board in aligning the strategic direction for the company so all understand where the board wants to go and plans can be put in place to drive the business forward. There have been instances where high-performance managers with a good track record of business success have failed to transition the business. One of the biggest drivers of a failed transition to a performance culture is when the manager is undermined by divisions amongst the board or alternative agendas at the board level. Superior financial and operational information is another common element leveraged by high performance managers in the ethanol industry. Many companies that struggle lack sufficient information to make informed business decisions. When a company lacks quality information, there is no way to discern fact from opinion, which is very frustrating to all. The old adage, &ldquo;If you can&rsquo;t measure it then you can&rsquo;t manage it,&rdquo; is a critical driver for getting buy-in and empowering staff to make better business decisions. High-performing managers use data and analysis to undo the business myths holding the organization back and empower the high performers to excel. In one case, an ethanol company had a long history of not using data to make business decisions. Relatively little information was available and management did not value using data and information to manage the business. Everything was run on gut feel. It worked in the early years, but over time the company fell well short of its business potential. Eventually, the ethanol company was so disadvantaged the board had to replace management to try to save the company. The new manager immediately put robust information management systems in place for accounting and manufacturing, but in the end, it did not get the business back on track. However, the information helped the board and management team realize they could not improve the business enough to make it competitive again. Instead, they pursued innovative technology to provide a competitive advantage. The gamble paid off and the information systems they developed helped guide them to prove out the technical innovation, which saved the company. Positive Reinforcement Company performance measures also set the stage for positive reinforcement for high-performance staff, which in return reinforces the culture change. Once the new manager has a financial and operational baseline for business performance, the information helps with identifying and supporting good decisions, as well as correcting bad decisions. The staff who seek high performance use the information for improvement because they want to excel and increase compensation. We have observed that high-performance employees are a catalyst for increased company pride. This is reinforced by managers who look for ways to celebrate success as the business improves. Good people generally want to contribute and be a part of a company that they can be proud of. You can&rsquo;t talk about employee performance in an organization and not discuss the role of the compensation program as a catalyst for change. Managers who are driving culture change in the organization can&rsquo;t use high-level profitability or subjective compensation programs to incent behavior. They have to utilize programs that allow staff to see the tangible performance measures that they will be held accountable for and then follow through on rewarding employees who meet or exceed the performance objectives. Compensation and incentive programs that are subjective or focus strictly on how well the company does financially can be too simplistic. In the ethanol industry, market prices are such a material part of profitability, and mostly out of the staff&rsquo;s control. The high-performance manager understands that financial performance is a combination of market margins (corn, ethanol and coproduct prices), operational performance, operational and cost improvements, as well as steps being taken to position the business for future success. High-performance managers seek compensation programs that find ways to tie staff performance compensation to all of these areas. Another observation is centered on the actual process of the high-performance culture change which has nothing to do with the manager&rsquo;s style or effort and everything to do with human nature. I call it the perpetual motion pendulum. The transition to a high-performance culture is not typically a smooth path. It has fits and starts. The resistance to change has some staying power until the positive momentum is strong enough to shift attitudes. The positive momentum is the perpetual motion and the shift in attitudes swings the pendulum to the other side. When it finally happens, it almost feels like an overnight change in the attitudes from resistance to acceptance. Finally, these high-performance managers seem to have a trait I admire most&mdash;patience. All of these managers have patience, usually gained from experience. Occasionally, an exceptional young leader is both smart and patient, but this is a rare trait. Most of the high-performing change managers have come to their wisdom via the battles and war wounds of their experiences in fostering new business cultures. This is not to say they don&rsquo;t push the organization to change. It only means they understand culture change in an ethanol company to a high-performance business model is a marathon and not a sprint. They seem to find balance between the constant pressure to improve and the wisdom to do it at a pace that brings everybody along in the journey. A special thanks to the men and women leaders who inspired this piece. Author: Scott McDermott Partner, Ascendant Partners Inc. 303-221-4700 mcdermotts@ascendantpartners.com

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Lessons in creating a high-performance culture in ethanol companies.

High Performance More Marathon Than Sprint

In baseball, they often refer to the leadoff man as the igniter, whose job is to get the offense going: get on base, start a rally and set the stage for a lot of runs. In many respects, that&rsquo;s the role of the renewable fuel standard (RFS), to set the stage for a bigger score for biofuels. But rather than focusing on a big inning, the ethanol industry may be playing small ball as we await the final rulemaking renewable volume obligations (RVO). The U.S. EPA stated it intends to package 2014 with the 2015 and 2016 volumes in what could be one heck of an announcement by the end of June. I am encouraged by numerous recent statements out of EPA that it remains committed to making the RFS all it can be. But at the same time, let&rsquo;s not kid ourselves. Do we really think there are going to be any surprises? We know that the 2014 RVO will be exactly what was consumed and 2015 is not likely to be any different. EPA will be hard-pressed to do anything more than take what was used the first half of 2015 and multiply by two, so we probably know that number as well. Sure, there might be a little more due to an increase in E15, midlevel blends and E85. For 2016, there might be a slight increase, if total gasoline use goes up. But for now, it is clear we will wind up somewhere in the 14 to 15 billion-gallons-per-year range for corn ethanol. There may be another billion or two gallons in the export market, but would the corn ethanol industry be satisfied with a 17 billion-gallon cap, when the motor fuel market is 125 billion gallons plus? I certainly am not. I have always viewed the RFS as an important building block, assuring a base market. Whether wearing my hat as CEO of ICM or as president of the Urban Air Initiative, or as a member of most ethanol trade organizations, I support the RFS. However, it should not be viewed as what defines the value of biofuels, a value which can only be realized if we get the fuel into the market. How do we get access to the market? How do we maintain the RFS and build on it? The answer lies with carbon controls and protecting public health&mdash;the new value proposition. One element Congress got right with the RFS was to reward fuels that reduce carbon emissions. While the corn cap is law and, to some extent, EPA's hands are tied, the carbon footprint of corn ethanol is demonstrably better than the credit given by EPA. Our work at ICM and other new, and constantly evolving, research clearly shows that corn ethanol can attain advanced biofuel carbon-reduction levels, one of the primary objectives of the RFS. If refocusing on achieving carbon reduction is one way to create new demand, another is the critical issue of improving fuel quality and emissions of gasoline. Ethanol's greatest strength is its high octane. This is an issue of public health in that ethanol used in midlevel blends like E15 or E30 can replace some of the most harmful components of gasoline&mdash;if we have access to the market. At ICM and Urban Air Initiative, we have concluded that EPA is blocking access to the market for midlevel blends and we are challenging them. In legal action along with the Energy Future Coalition, ICM has asked the courts to agree that the certification procedures adopted by EPA are keeping E30 out of the market. In another challenge, UAI is calling EPA out on its antiquated modeling used to guide states on how to control pollution that includes an unwarranted penalty for ethanol. Our research, supported by auto industry experts, clearly shows many of the negative emissions attributed to ethanol are, in fact, changes made to base gasoline. Splash blending ethanol always improves gasoline quality and EPA&rsquo;s outdated models simply need to be updated. Why is this so important? Gasoline is the source of some of the most dangerous and harmful pollutants linked to a range of health and respiratory ailments, including lung disease and even neurological disorders. Infants, the elderly and expectant mothers are particularly at risk. The RFS is the platform to launch and engage the environmental and health communities in this discussion. Let&rsquo;s get past the RFS numbers game&mdash;as important as it is&mdash;and look at additional ways to reduce carbon and protect public health. Author: David VanderGriend, CEO, ICM Inc.; President, Urban Air Initiative DaveV@icminc.com 316-796-0900

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The RFS  is important and worthy of support, writes David VanderGriend. However, it should not be viewed as what defines the value of biofuels, a value which can only be realized if the industry can get fuels into the market. 

Setting The Table For The Big Score

Though the ethanol industry makes a tremendous positive impact on the economy, including creating numerous jobs, it is not immune from the challenges of preventing, managing and defending against employees&rsquo; retaliation and whistleblower claims. Despite employers&rsquo; best efforts, such claims continue to grow. Employers in the ethanol and other industries also must contend with the law&rsquo;s ever-evolving interpretation of which activities and parties are covered by federal and state retaliation and whistleblower laws. A prime example of this challenging and developing area of the law is the U.S. Department of Labor&rsquo;s recently released final rule, outlining the OSHA procedure for handling retaliation complaints under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, known as SOX. Developed in response to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Dodd-Frank), the final rule makes it easier for whistleblowers to trigger an OSHA retaliation investigation, thus potentially increasing the retaliation claims employers brought by whistleblower employees. As many employers subject to SOX already know, both the statute and the DOL&rsquo;s anti-retaliation regulations protect whistleblowing employees who complain of bank, mail, securities and wire fraud violations of any Securities and Exchange Commission regulation, and violation of any federal law relating to shareholder fraud. The new final rule provides key guidance on the procedural provisions OSHA has adopted. However, the new final rule also makes it easier for whistleblowers to bring retaliation complaints and provides them with greater protection from retaliation. Below are some of the final rule&rsquo;s highlights. &bull; Whistleblowers generally have 180 days (as mandated by Dodd-Frank) to file a retaliation complaint after the alleged retaliation occurred, or after the date when the whistleblower became aware of the alleged retaliation. &bull; Whistleblowers, or anyone authorized by them, may file a retaliation complaint verbally or in writing. If a whistleblower makes a verbal complaint, OSHA, and not the whistleblowing employee, will transcribe the verbal complaint into writing. The DOL&rsquo;s new final rule essentially expands the U.S. Supreme Court&rsquo;s decision in Kasten v. Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Corp., which held that verbal complaints qualify as valid complaints under the Fair Labor Standards Act as long as they are sufficiently clear and detailed to put a reasonable employer on notice of a protected assertion of rights. &bull; If OSHA decides there is reasonable cause to believe the allegations in a retaliation complaint, it will assess a penalty calculation that could force the employer to, among other things, pay back pay with interest and the whistleblowing attorneys&rsquo; fees, as well as preliminarily reinstate the whistleblowing employee before a final determination of the employer&rsquo;s liability. An employer thus could start paying a penalty before the agency, or a court, finds it retaliated against the whistleblowing employee in violation of SOX. If OSHA determines that preliminary reinstatement of the employee is not feasible or desirable, the agency could order the employer to provide front pay (known as economic reinstatement) to the complaining employee. Even if the employer succeeds in defeating the whistleblowing employee&rsquo;s retaliation complaint, under the new final rule the employer has no right to recover the costs of the economic reinstatement from the employee. As these procedural protections illustrate, the DOL&rsquo;s new final rule presents employers subject to SOX with added challenges because the rule provides whistleblowing employees: greater protection from retaliation by employers; and, secondly, a lower standard for making an effective retaliation complaint. It also is possible that these changes are a harbinger of a DOL plan to liberalize complaint reporting requirements under other employment laws, which would have an even broader impact on employers in the ethanol and other industries. In any event, the DOL&rsquo;s new rule serves as a poignant reminder to employers&mdash;publicly traded or not&mdash;about the importance of properly responding to whistleblower complaints. Because of the significant risk of liability and reputational damage in cases involving whistleblowers, employers&rsquo; failure to adopt and implement appropriate anti-retaliation and whistleblower policies and procedures can become costly mistakes. For these reasons, an audit of anti-retaliation and whistleblower policies and procedures can be invaluable in helping employers in the ethanol and other industries to prevent, manage and defend against retaliation and whistleblower claims. Author: Daniel Kaufman, Partner, Michael Best &amp; Friedrich LLP 312-836-5077 dakaufman@michaelbest.com Contributor: Y. Douglas Yang, Associate

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A new Department of Labor rule reminds employers, including in the ethanol industry, how important it is to properly respond to whistleblower complaints, writes Daniel Kaufman of Michael Best & Friedrich LLP. 

New Rule Offers Whistleblowers More Protections 

Vince Lombardi famously said, &ldquo;The achievements of an organization are the results of the combined effort of each individual.&rdquo; In the same way the success of E85Prices.com&mdash;RFA&rsquo;s newest website&mdash;hinges on the participation of individuals all across the country. E85Prices.com is a crowdsourced website providing updated and timely information on the price of higher-level fuel blends at more than 3,450 stations throughout the country.&nbsp;&nbsp; The site is unique in that it offers a price breakdown at stations selling E85 and E15. A driver can easily find the price of E85 and E10 at any reported station, as well as the prices of E15 and other midlevel ethanol blends. On a broader level, one can identify the average price spread and lowest E85 price by state and track month-by-month trends on all blends ranging from E0 to E85. The site has been the premier tool for drivers to access the most up-to-date information on the cost and availability of E85 and received more than 4 million hits last year alone. As a crowdsourcing site, E85Prices.com is only as good as the information it receives, which is why RFA also offers the mobile app for E85Prices.com. The mobile app makes it easy for individuals who stop to fill up at a station or simply pass by a station to log the information into the app on their phone.
In addition to E85Prices.com and the adjoining mobile app, RFA also manages E85Vehicles.com, which helps individuals identify flex-fuel vehicles, whether they are shopping for a flex-fuel vehicle or simply looking to see if their current vehicle is capable of running on E85. E85Vehicles.com also allows users to connect through its forum, where readers can share stories and information about everything from newly opened E85 stations to basic tips about fueling with higher-level ethanol blends. There are approximately 18 million flex-fuel vehicles on the road today and nearly a quarter of all model year 2015 vehicles coming off the line are capable of using E85. Combine that with the 23 million vehicles manufacturer warranted to use E15 and it seems clear consumer demand for these resources should be quite high.
These sites, in conjunction with www.chooseethanol.com, round out RFA&rsquo;s arsenal of digital tools ensuring consumers have access to all the information necessary to find stations and identify the lowest prices for E15 and E85.&nbsp; This information will prove useful to consumers, but will also provide a valuable resource to the government as well. So far, the government has not lived up to its obligations in keeping track of E85 availability. Last year, we examined the U.S. DOE&rsquo;s Alternative Fuels Data Center and found it woefully out of date with about 1,000 stations missing from its database. An accurate accounting of E85 and E15 availability is vitally important today as continued E85 and E15 use will help the United States overcome the so-called &ldquo;blend wall.&rdquo; And what driver with a flex-fuel vehicle wouldn&rsquo;t want to take advantage of E85? For much of last year, a $1 per gallon price difference could be found between E85 and regular unleaded. That adds up to real savings! In early 2015, E85Prices.com found that there were more than 3,450 stations in 2,155 cities selling E85. E85Prices.com helps consumers easily find a station and fill up.
Lombardi&rsquo;s Green Bay Packers had dedicated players who came together to win Super Bowls. In the same way, E85Prices.com gives dedicated individuals a way to make a difference and further the use of higher-level ethanol blends. Author: Bob Dinneen President and CEO, Renewable Fuels Association 202-289-3835

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E85Prices.com gives individuals a way to make a difference and further the use of higher-level ethanol blends, writes Bob Dinneen. That websites, and others, provide consumers and government with information about ethanol blends. 

Crowd Participation Needed 

Not being in the loop of Washington politics regarding ethanol, I have always looked at it from more of a grassroots perspective. While I&rsquo;m thankful for those who represent this industry in Washington, we need both perspectives in order to have an industry that meets the needs of the consumer as well as addresses the political realities of the policy makers. The oil industry spends an enormous amount of time and money determining what motivates their customers. Keep in mind that this effort is being made by an industry where the only choice consumers have is to either not drive or buy from a competitor. Personally, I want to know what the average consumer thinks. Not a corn farmer, or an ethanol advocate, but the person who works in an office every day, or the taxi driver, or a plumber, anyone who has no vested interest in whether the ethanol industry lives or dies. That&rsquo;s the person we need to be canvassing. Back in the early '90s when I was with the National Corn Growers Association, we conducted a phone survey and several focus groups on consumer attitudes toward renewable fuels. A significant percentage of those surveyed were not even exactly sure what renewable fuels were. Hopefully, we&rsquo;ve made progress on that front. When asked if they would use a renewable fuel in their vehicles, a very high percentage of more than 80 percent said yes. When asked if they would pay 10 cents a gallon more for that fuel, less than 25 percent responded in the affirmative. In January, the National Association of Convenience Stores unveiled their 2015 NACS Consumer Fuel Survey. The results show that when consumers were asked &ldquo;When buying gas, which of the following factors is most important to you?&rdquo; price topped the list at 71 percent, followed by location of store or station at 18 percent, brand at 8 percent, ease of entrance or exit at 3 percent and other at 1 percent. I guess things haven&rsquo;t changed much since the early '90s. Somewhere along the line, we seem to have lost touch with Joe the Plumber. The folks in the oil industry know what motivates a purchase; they are keenly aware of what buttons to push to maximize their sales. I would suggest that even if we had the money for a national advertising campaign, we would have to do a whole lot of market research before we spent a dime. I think marketing ethanol goes deeper than just getting a station to sell E10, E15 or E85. It&rsquo;s about a concerted effort to focus on locations where there is high traffic 12 months of the year, on stations that are willing to promote ethanol to their customers. We have taken the shotgun approach. There is currently no exclusivity with ethanol. The rifle approach would be that &ldquo;Only the finest stations sell ethanol blends and as a result you get the very best fuel at the lowest-possible price.&rdquo; Perhaps it&rsquo;s time to begin marketing ethanol as a step up, not in price, but as a high-quality, environmentally friendly fuel, sold only by quality stations all across the country. Everyone looks for the highest quality product at the lowest possible price. We can deliver that every day of the week. That&rsquo;s the way I see it.
Author: Mike Bryan Chairman, BBI International mbryan@bbiinternational.com

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Marketing ethanol goes deeper than just getting a station to sell E10, E15 or E85, writes Mike Bryan. He would like to see ethanol marketed as a high-quality, environmentally friendly fuel, sold only by quality stations.

Ethanol Delivers Quality And Price

Earth Day is a reminder that, now more than ever, we need to take steps to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, improve our environment and help clean the air for ourselves, our children and future generations. Planting a tree isn&rsquo;t the only way to achieve those goals. Standing up and supporting the renewable fuel standard (RFS) will make a difference too. The RFS is our nation&rsquo;s most successful energy policy in the past 40 years. By using increasing amounts of biofuels under the RFS, GHG emissions will ultimately be reduced by 138 million metric tons, the equivalent of taking 27 million cars off the road. In 2013 alone, the 13.2 billion gallons of ethanol blended into gasoline in the United States helped reduce greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 38 million metric tons, the equivalent of removing roughly 8 million cars from the road. According to the Argonne National Laboratory, compared to gasoline, ethanol reduces GHG emissions by an average of 34 percent. Advanced biofuels have the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 100 percent. Ethanol also reduces the need for aromatics&mdash;many of which are known to cause severe health problems&mdash;in motor fuel to improve their octane and performance. The American Lung Association has endorsed the RFS for these very reasons.&nbsp; Ethanol producers are constantly developing new and innovative ways to produce sustainable biofuels from farm waste and woody biomass, ushering in the next generation of renewable fuels that promise even greater reductions in GHG emissions. Meanwhile, the oil industry is polluting our air as well as our water and land with an endless barrage of spills. In 2014, Big Oil was responsible for more than 3,500 oil spills, which averages to nearly 10 oil spills each day. Only a handful of those spills managed to grab the attention of the media, and none entered the national dialogue like BP&rsquo;s 2010 Earth Day disaster&mdash;the 3.19 million barrel Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The impact of that spill is still being felt five years and billions of dollars later. In comparison, no beach has ever been closed due to an ethanol spill. While Big Oil is becoming less environmentally friendly and more expensive, the ethanol industry is becoming dramatically more efficient, with less water and less energy being used to produce more ethanol from each bushel of corn. According to the Argonne National Laboratory, ethanol production only borrows 2.7 gallons of water for every gallon of ethanol, compared to 5.8 gallons of water in 1998. The majority of the water is returned to the atmosphere in the form of steam. Not only is the ethanol industry using less water than ever, it&rsquo;s also using less energy to produce a gallon of ethanol, 23,862 Btu per gallon in 2012 versus 26,206 Btu per gallon in 2008. Additionally, the industry is now able to produce 2.82 gallons of ethanol from each bushel of corn, compared to 2.78 gallons in 2008.
Reach out to your elected officials and ask them to support these advancements by supporting the RFS, the only successful domestic energy policy that is reducing our dependence on foreign oil and fossil fuels, creating jobs right here in America and helping revitalize rural economies. The RFS is helping improve our environment by incentivizing the production of fuels that ensure a cleaner, greener future for us all. The biofuels industry has transformed the fuel market for the better and with next generation renewables right around the corner, the future is full of promise. &nbsp; Author: Tom Buis CEO, Growth Energy 202-545-4000 tbuis@growthenergy.org

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The RFS is helping improve our environment by incentivizing the production of fuels that ensure a cleaner, greener future, writes Tom Buis of Growth Energy. He urges readers to ask elected officials to support the RFS. 

A Call To Action

Market development has always been an important part of our DNA at the American Coalition for Ethanol. Our founding members recognized that the ethanol industry would only grow profitably by developing new markets for our fuel. Fifteen years ago, ACE hired our now-senior vice president, Ron Lamberty, who had established himself as an ethanol promoter while working in the retail and wholesale fuel business, to serve as market development director at the time. His initial focus was helping retailers understand the math of E10 and to see ethanol as a profit opportunity. Today, ACE applies this proven approach to E15, flex fuels and blender pumps. As retailers consider changes or additions to their fuel slate, they rely upon ACE to help them get past the avalanche of anti-E15 propaganda they&rsquo;ve been exposed to, and help them see the opportunities available with flex fuels. ACE is equipped to make sure retailers are aware of the growing market for E15, with 16 million cars and light trucks built and under warranty for E15 in the last three model years, and automakers building 8 million more E15-compatible vehicles every year.&nbsp; Fuel marketers get information in many ways, but among their most trusted sources are their competitors, their peers. To that end, ACE is launching a new retailer-focused campaign called Flex Forward in 2015, based on the real-life experiences of retailers who were able to break free of oil company restrictions, get over the &ldquo;blend wall&rdquo; and make money by offering E15, E85 and flex fuels to their customers.&nbsp; A facet of the Flex Forward campaign is a video documentary we produced, featuring the CEO of a wholesale distributorship that owns and operates 21 convenience stores that sell flex fuels, the first retailer in America to offer E15 and a single-store station owner who distinguished himself from the two major chains in his town by offering E15, E85 and midlevel ethanol blends. We have also produced short video clips of these retailers answering the kind of questions their peers will no doubt ask when they consider adding E15 or flex fuels as product options. &bull;&nbsp;&nbsp; Did they have the equipment to make the change to E15 and flex fuels? If not, what did they do? &bull;&nbsp;&nbsp; What did the change cost? &bull;&nbsp;&nbsp; Did they get any help? &bull;&nbsp;&nbsp; What about regulations and the &ldquo;blend wall&rdquo;? &bull;&nbsp;&nbsp; What almost made them not move to E15 and flex fuels? &bull;&nbsp;&nbsp; How many complaints have they had? How many repair bills? &bull;&nbsp;&nbsp; And finally, how has it worked out for them? How are sales? Can you really make a profit selling&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; E15 and flex fuels? Flex Forward is focused on retailers and their equipment suppliers and will include earned and paid advertising, engagement at fuel marketer trade shows (where retailers go to make decisions about new products), webinars and retailer workshops. ACE has specifically designed the Flex Forward campaign to reach marketers who have not yet responded to other industry efforts, and make them aware of all of the tools available to help them succeed with E15 and flex fuels.&nbsp; It would make no sense&mdash;financially or otherwise&mdash;for ACE to try to duplicate the shock and awe of the NASCAR E15 program or the Prime The Pump Fund. However, in order for these programs to translate to meaningful real-world volume, someone has to be the boots on the ground who takes that message to the independent retailers who own two-thirds of the nation&rsquo;s convenience stores. Furthermore, fuel marketers need someone to turn to for information and technical assistance on an ongoing basis and the ethanol industry needs expertise to tackle issues such as Reid vapor pressure, UL certification and ASTM specifications over the long haul. No organization is better-suited and prepared for that mission than ACE.&nbsp; To learn more about Flex Forward, go to www.ethanol.org and check out the E15 and flex-fuels section or our new website designed specifically for retailers, www.flexfuelforward.com. &nbsp; Author: Brian Jennings Executive Vice President American Coalition for Ethanol 605-334-3381 bjennings@ethanol.org

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The American Coalition for Ethanol is launching a new fuel retailer-focused campaign called Flex Forward in 2015. It is designed to reach marketers who have not yet responded to other industry efforts, Brian Jennings writes. 

Flexing Forward With E15

Salary isn&rsquo;t everything, but it&rsquo;s hard to be happy in your job when you&rsquo;re earning less than people in similar roles inside or outside your company. Ultimately, job satisfaction isn&rsquo;t just about what you make&mdash;I think we all know that&mdash;but it&rsquo;s definitely related to what you make relative to what&rsquo;s average for your profession within your industry.&nbsp;&nbsp; Every two years Ethanol Producer Magazine conducts <a href="http://www.ethanolproducer.com/articles/12096/2015-ethanol-industry-salary-and-satisfaction-survey" target="_blank">an industry salary and job satisfaction survey</a>. We do this to give the men and women who manage and work at ethanol plants perspective on industry compensation trends. This year&rsquo;s survey was delivered to more than a thousand ethanol plant employees, from CEOs to plant operators, and about one-fourth of them responded. The data was self-reported and collected without random sampling techniques, but strong participation gives weight to the results. Once again, we see an industry full of well-paid, highly educated people who tend to be extremely satisfied with their jobs and loyal to their employers. EPM Senior Editor Susanne Retka Schill, who spearheaded this year&rsquo;s survey and analyzed its results, reports that 8 out of 10 ethanol plant employees received a raise in 2014, and 9 out of 10 took home a bonus. You&rsquo;ll find more data like that, much of it brought to life in vibrantly-colored graphics, in the story. Our personnel theme continues with &ldquo;Top Of Biofuels Class.&rdquo; In this story, EPM Managing Editor Holly Jessen reports on the important role that technical colleges and training centers play in providing a steady stream of skilled and upward-bound employees to the ethanol industry. After that, Jessen circles back to topic of compensation in her feature about <a href="http://www.ethanolproducer.com/articles/12095/connecting-compensation-to-performance" target="_blank">linking employee pay to individual and company performance goals</a>. Finally, if you&rsquo;re not already registered for this year&rsquo;s International Fuel Ethanol Workshop &amp; Expo, I urge you to take a look at the agenda today. With four tracks, 25 panels and more than 100 speakers, there is something for every ethanol industry professional at this summer&rsquo;s FEW, taking place June 1-4 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. While large corporations are increasingly prevalent in the modern ethanol industry, technology and service providers of all sizes are still finding major opportunities in the space. In <a href="http://www.ethanolproducer.com/articles/12093/small-companies-big-ideas" target="_blank">&ldquo;Small Companies, Big Ideas,&rdquo;</a> we highlight the offerings of seven business presenting at the industry largest international forum. See you in Minneapolis.
Author: Tom Bryan President &amp; Editor in Chief tbryan@bbiinternational.com

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The May issue of EPM delves into human resources topics, including the magazine's salary survey, biofuels training and linking compensation to employee performance, writes Tom Bryan. There's also a story about the upcoming FEW. 

On The Money

I recognize that characterizing the production of energy products from waste as an industry segment on the verge of rapid growth runs the risk of appearing to ignore its existing widespread use, but today's industry innovators are proving that statement to be true by continually thinking outside of the box and testing and deploying new technologies. The U.S. EPA reports that 86 facilities in the U.S. combust municipal solid waste (MSW) to create electricity. Biomass Magazine&rsquo;s biomass power map illustrates the scope of waste-to-energy (WTE) plants&rsquo; grid contributions, with California and Florida earning the top two spots among all states for biomass power production, largely due to the proliferation of WTE plants there. Outside of traditional waste combustion plant data capture, last year, our team began a multiphase project to identify, track and verify the basic operational data of anaerobic digesters that produce an energy product for downstream markets. Even without including landfill gas capture facilities, our list quickly grew to nearly 400 sites. I&rsquo;m very excited to draw your attention the printed version of that map included with this issue. Waste-based energy is hardly a segment of our business that is on the verge of a beginning. Still, the stories included in this month&rsquo;s issue, focusing entirely on this topic, suggest that a new chapter in WTE may be upon us, and a period of rapid growth is just around the corner. In &ldquo;Making Haste to Zero Waste&rdquo; on page 38, Senior Editor Ron Kotrba reports that industry is acting well in advance of aggressive organic waste legislation, and food waste collection is growing steadily. Scotland&rsquo;s Zero Waste Plan seeks to drive organic waste streams from landfills entirely by 2021. Kotrba reports that the Energen Biogas facility is doubling its capacity, and Robert Etherson, operations director at the plant, shares that the plan was &ldquo;fundamental to making the decision to invest in the expansion project.&rdquo; Similarly, in both of Staff Writer Katie Fletcher&rsquo;s stories this month, on pages 20 and 46, she interviewed technology providers who are confident that once their technologies are proven commercially, the market opportunity for subsequent projects will be significant. Terry Moore, chief business development officer at WastAway, which has developed and patented a process to make pellets from MSW that are virtually free of metals, pathogens and inerts, told Fletcher, &ldquo;If we talk this time next year, there will probably be five to 10 sales that we have completed.&rdquo; This issue of Biomass Magazine makes it clear that Moore is not alone in his belief that waste to energy will continue as a major contributor of the greater biomass industry.
Author: Tim Portz Vice President of Content &amp; Executive Editor tportz@bbiinternational.com

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Biomass Magazine Executive Editor Tim Portz highlights the many advances the energy-from-waste sector is making.

On The Verge

Alternative fuel markets are volatile, as has been realized by the host of waste-to-energy (WTE) projects that have come to fruition and experienced varying feats and failures. For California-based Waste to Energy Group, which stepped into the renewable energy arena around five years ago, deploying a technology that ebbs and flows with market volatility is protection against that unpredictability. At Knott Landfill in Bend, Oregon, Waste to Energy Group is hoping to soon finalize a WTE project that will be capable of producing a number of renewable fuels. &ldquo;As the market conditions may change, our technology can plug and play to meet the market conditions,&rdquo; says company CEO Randy Lutz. In fact, the company has changed courses a few times since negotiations began in 2011. &ldquo;It moved from pipeline-quality gas to methanol, and then to ethanol,&rdquo; Lutz says. &ldquo;During project development, the market for pipeline gas went through dramatic changes. During the same period of time, our company forged technology alliances, which allowed us to bolt on a number of alternative fuel solutions.&rdquo; Should market conditions change in the future, the company can switch to methanol, diesel or back to pipeline gas. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re directly adjacent to central Oregon&rsquo;s natural gas pipeline, and this allows us to supplement, if needed, to guarantee 100 percent production with any of our fuel products,&rdquo; Lutz added. Knott Landfill collects about 130,000 tons of waste per year. According to Timm Schimke, director of solid waste for Deschutes County, a landfill gas-to-energy (LFGTE) project was on the county&rsquo;s radar, but ended up not being economically feasible due to the small amount of landfill gas produced. Traditional development companies gave little interest, but Waste to Energy came in with a unique proposal to try to increase the landfill&rsquo;s gas production without financial assistance from the county. Schimke says Waste to Energy Group&rsquo;s proposal, &ldquo;moved us from a marginal at best prospect, to potentially pretty lucrative prospect for a gas-to-energy project.&rdquo; Projects take time, and this one is no exception, especially since the design is unlike most LFGTE projects. &ldquo;We went out and retained a third-party engineering firm to review the proposal and the contract terms to give us an opinion on what they felt the project looked like,&rdquo; Schimke says. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s out of the box&mdash;it takes a little bit of time for the local government to embrace that and decide whether they want to give that a shot.&rdquo; Further extending the project&rsquo;s timeline was the challenge of acquiring funding, which has now been secured through a European investor. &ldquo;We went through several false starts until we found the means to accomplish our purposes,&rdquo; Lutz says. Heat, moisture and oxygen are needed to convert organics into methane. Waste to Energy Group provides a patented process, during which steam is injected into the landfill&rsquo;s interior, speeding up waste decomposition and producing&nbsp; methane gas. The gas is then washed or scrubbed to remove all the trace toxins, producing a contaminant-free, commercial-grade methane to make liquid fuel&mdash;in this case, ethanol after it is cleaned. Since the project uses steam, only one-sixteen hundredth of the amount of water is needed when compared to other projects that inject water to increase methane production. &ldquo;When you apply steam to the landfill mass, the organics just take off,&rdquo; Lutz says. &ldquo;They have the heat, moisture and oxygen they want, and convert very rapidly in a controlled environment.&rdquo; A landfill profile using a Piezo-Penetrometer Test finds the opportune places to drill wells for steam injection. The PPT analysis includes a 3D computer rendering of what is in the landfill and where the gas, water and vacuum pockets are. The system also monitors how the process is working once operational. Although this will be Waste to Energy&rsquo;s first project using this process at a landfill, a pilot study was conducted at Miramar in Southern California. The company now has four other landfills scheduled to implement this same technology. Last January, county commissioners approved the project by putting together an 18-month contract to have the project completed and operational within that timeframe. Since then, the company has been given the right to proceed. This gives the project the go-ahead to begin with the initial engineering and PPT analysis in April, which will take three months to complete. While this is occurring, there are two other permits that must be acquired. A site plan review will occur through the Community Development Department for a land use permit. Once complete, a land use compatibility statement will be needed for the Department of Environmental Quality application to acquire a research, development and demonstration permit. Schimke estimates that each permit will take a minimum of 60 to 90 days to obtain, one needed before the other permitting process can begin. Once all the permitting is in place, Lutz estimates they&rsquo;ll need about nine months for construction. Waste to Energy Group&rsquo;s engineering, procurement and construction&nbsp; contractor will be Swinerton Engineering and Construction. The project has a $20 million capex. Some funds will go toward purchasing equipment, such as a fuel collection system, scrubbers, ethanol technology, piping and a steam boiler&mdash;a portion of which will be fueled with landfill gas. Waste to Energy Group does not own any of the technology. Rather, it partners with providers. The patent holder for the steam injection technology is STI Engineering in Southern California, and the ethanol technology is proprietary, licensed specifically to Waste to Energy. When all is said and done, the estimated production capacity of ethanol totals around 11 MMgy, which will be sold as an additive to other fuel products. &ldquo;The operational costs make it very competitive when compared to the traditional corn ethanol-type facilities,&rdquo; Lutz says. The county signed a 15-year lease with the company, and is set to receive a percentage of the gross revenue from the project. Besides revenue from fuel sales, the project will recover landfill space, extending the life of the landfill. Schimke hopes another future benefit the project could yield is allowing the landfill site to treat portions of the waste stream before its dumped into the landfill. He foresees the possibility of waste, such as green material from the surrounding Oregon forests, treated through anaerobic digestion or gasification before it hits the landfill to achieve some level of volume reduction. &ldquo;The residuals may end up in the landfill, but it&rsquo;d be a much smaller volume than if we just put it in there raw,&rdquo; Schimke says. The county does have a few opponents to the project, as there is development near the landfill, including a middle school across the road. Community members question the need to artificially increase the amount of gas being produced, but Schimke says it will only be a matter of time before the landfill will be producing those volumes anyway. &ldquo;It seems to make sense to me to take advantage of the value of the gas, and move away from that old 1950s technology&mdash;simple flaring&mdash;which most people agree is not the best way to go, and incorporate a modern, aggressive, much better gas management program,&rdquo; Schimke says. Current progressing development is considered phase one, with the possibility of two additional phases in the future. &ldquo;There are other projects in the county that we are looking forward to participating with,&rdquo; Lutz says. One area to address is Deschutes County&rsquo;s nonmunicipal demolition landfill, which is an unlined facility with instability issues. Steam injection could potentially be used to stabilize or remediate the land for the opportunity to use the site in another way. If the waste could be treated in an unlined area, Schimke believes that would be beneficial. Waste to Energy will try to prove it can treat an unlined area to Oregon&rsquo;s DEQ. &ldquo;The steam stays in a vapor state and doesn&rsquo;t condense and travel back to the bottom of the landfill,&rdquo; Lutz says. &ldquo;This allows us to do any landfill, whether it is sealed or not, and that is very different than any other landfill or process going on in the U.S. right now.&rdquo; &nbsp;Subsequent phases depend on the success of phase one and Oregon&rsquo;s DEQ feeling comfortable enough to proceed. &ldquo;I see this as a stepping stone to other things in the future that will change the way we manage waste,&rdquo; Schimke says. Author: Katie Fletcher Staff Writer, Biomass Magazine 701-738-4920 kfletcher@bbiinternational.com

STARTING SMALL: Knott Landfill is a 135-acre zoned landfill site, with 75 to 80 acres filled with waste. Waste to Energy Group has a proposed project that will begin by using 5 to 8 acres of a lined section of the landfill, with the hope of expanding

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BURNING TO BANKROLLING: Deschutes Countyâ€™s Knott Landfill has been flaring off excess gas, not uncommon for small landfills, but now the previously flared methane gas has the potential to serve as a source of revenue for the county. 

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A cutting-edge waste-to-energy venture at an Oregon landfill will channel flared gas into ethanol production, and potentially other renewable fuels if future markets are favorable.

Profit in Plug and Play

Scotland is in the midst of implementing a very ambitious, noble goal: becoming a zero-waste society. According to the government, in 2009, Scotland produced 17.1 million metric tons of so-called waste, another term for resources that have largely been untapped or that have had monetary and environmental costs as landfilled materials. Estimates show that the value of household waste alone in Scotland surpasses &pound;100 million ($148.1 million). In 2010, the Scottish government launched its Zero Waste Plan, which exceeds its requirements as a member of the EU under the European Commission&rsquo;s revised Waste Framework Directive (rWFD). Scotland&rsquo;s Zero Waste Plan is not just about managing waste; it&rsquo;s about doing so in a way that is resource-conscious and economically stimulating to foster a circular economy. &ldquo;The Zero Waste Plan is well aligned to the aims of the rWFD, and the regulations are intended to bring about the changes required under the rWFD in a way that will maximize the economic opportunities afforded by a resource-centered approach to managing Scotland&rsquo;s waste,&rdquo; the government states.&nbsp; The end goal of the Zero Waste Plan is to achieve a 70 percent recycling rate for all waste streams by 2025. To realize this, The Waste (Scotland) Regulations 2012 were enacted. According to Eleanor Strain with the National Operations Waste Unit at Scotland&rsquo;s Environmental Protection Agency, the regulations introduce a series of measures to maximize the quantity and quality of materials available for recycling, promote closed-loop recycling over other forms of recycling, move residual waste up the waste hierarchy, drive cultural shifts in how waste is managed, and help create the market certainty needed to support infrastructure investment. Some provisions of the regulations began Jan. 1, 2014, including the requirement that all businesses and organizations must present key recyclables for collection, and businesses that produce more than 50 kilograms (110.2 pounds) of food waste per week, such as restaurants and caf&eacute;s, must present that organic waste for separate collection. Also by Jan. 1, 2014, local authorities were required to provide basic recycling services to all households. The provisions also include a ban on incinerating or landfilling any materials that were collected for recycling. Beginning Jan. 1, 2016, businesses that generate more than 5 kg of food waste per week are required to present the material for separate collection, the same date that a ban goes into effect on the use of macerators or garbage disposals to grind food waste and discharge into the public sewer system. At the same time, local authorities are required to offer a food-waste recycling service in nonrural areas. Finally, by Jan. 1, 2021, a ban is to be implemented on biodegradable wastes being landfilled. The regulations enacted in 2012 are an important part of implementing the Zero Waste Plan, but they are just one aspect of a suite of actions under the program. Other important actions, according to the government, include the development of a waste prevention strategy, new producer responsibility commitments and actions to promote changes in attitudes to waste and behavior. Strain tells Biomass Magazine that the most challenging aspects of implementation thus far have been &ldquo;raising awareness of the new duties to all the micro and small businesses across Scotland and ensuring that service provision is adequate in remote areas.&rdquo; While the new set of regulations may seem onerous to implement nationwide, Strain says that, for the most part, businesses have responded positively to the new regulations. &ldquo;As long as recycling services are delivered by their waste contractor, most businesses have adapted to the change,&rdquo; she says.
 A report issued by Zero Waste Scotland, an organization funded by the Scottish government to enact its Zero Waste Plan, shows that the amount of food waste handled by the organics reprocessing industry in Scotland increased significantly well before the introduction of waste regulations on Jan. 1, 2014, signifying that businesses and citizens are taking this initiative seriously. Released in December 2014, the 2013 survey of the organics reprocessing industry in Scotland revealed that the overall estimated increase for inputs has been 11,000 tons, or 9 percent, from 121,000 tons in 2012 to 132,000 tons in 2013. A large increase was seen in material received from food manufacturers and processors, from 2,000 tons in 2012 to 38,000 tons in 2013. &ldquo;This report shows a significant increase in the amount of food waste being processed by the organics industry in Scotland in 2013 and it augurs well for the impact of the waste regulations on the Scottish organics sector,&rdquo; says Iain Gulland, the CEO of Zero Waste Scotland. &ldquo;The figures for 2013 show increases in key areas relating to the amount of waste being input, especially from local authorities, and increased employment and economic activity in the sector. One of the biggest increases was in food waste coming from local authorities. Thanks to Zero Waste Scotland&rsquo;s support, more Scottish households than ever before&mdash;1.3 million&mdash;now have access to a food waste collection, and we would expect this, together with the impact of the waste regulations, to have a significant impact on the industry going forward.&rdquo; The report also indicates promising growth in the anaerobic digestion sector in advance of the regulations. The amount of input to anaerobic digestion plants in Scotland from local authorities increased by 12,000 tons between 2012 and 2013, and the Scottish anaerobic digestion sector saw a 13 percent increase in employment in the same period. Another, broader report issued by Waste &amp; Resources Action Programme indicates that, for 2013, the anaerobic digestion sector across the entire U.K. was up by 55 percent, from 2.07 million tons to 3.2 million tons. Scotland&rsquo;s Largest AD Facility This spring, Scotland&rsquo;s largest anaerobic digestion facility will come online. The Energen Biogas facility began operating in 2011, but in January, the joint venture between Shanks Group plc and Paragon Efficiencies began a &pound;5 million expansion project to double capacity at its Cumbernauld plant. The newly expanded biogas plant is capable of processing more than 100,000 tons of food waste per year. Robert Etherson, operations director at Energen Biogas, tells Biomass Magazine that Scotland&rsquo;s Zero Waste Plan was fundamental to making the decision to invest in the expansion project in Cumbernauld. &ldquo;The facility was operating at capacity,&rdquo; he says, &ldquo;and waste volumes were increasing as businesses prepare to meet the Zero Waste Scotland legislation.&rdquo; Peter Eglinton, managing director of Shanks&rsquo; U.K. Municipal Division, says, &ldquo;Organic waste is one of the most environmentally damaging forms of waste to be sent to landfill, so I am delighted that our Cumbernauld AD facility is continuing to reduce this burden on the environment by doubling the amount of this waste it is able to process.&rdquo; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The expansion includes installation of additional depackaging equipment. &ldquo;All packaged food waste is processed in the same manner, which is to remove the packaging and the liquid fraction is stored for processing to feed the digesters,&rdquo; Etherson says. The facility employs a combined-heat-and-power unit that generates 1.2 MW of heat used to pasteurize the incoming waste. Energen&rsquo;s prestorage capacity for depackaged food waste has also doubled in the expansion project, and another digester is being added. Furthermore, additional gas-handling equipment and electricity-generating&nbsp; capacity is being installed. Originally designed to produce 2.4 MW of power, the expanded Energen Biogas facility now has 3.6 MW of installed capacity, &ldquo;with a further 1.2 MW to be installed when incoming waste volumes increase further,&rdquo; Etherson says. Energen Biogas charges a gate fee for organics from multiple sources and sectors, including retail, local authorities, commercial businesses, and food and drink manufacturers, but Etherson would not disclose how much the fee is or provide details on Energen&rsquo;s feedstock sources. Approximately 95 percent of the liquid fraction is used to feed the digesters, with approximately 15 percent being converted to biogas and the remaining 85 percent producing an organic fertilizer, which is applied to farmland, Etherson says. A major announcement on the use of digestate was made in November by Quality Meat Scotland: The organization declared it was safe for farmers to use on their crops, an important move to develop markets for the biofertilizer. &ldquo;Historical concerns over the safety of applying compost and digestate to land have now been addressed to an extent which has allowed us to achieve significant progress and substantial revision of the previous restriction on their use by members of the assurance scheme,&rdquo; said Suzanne Woodman, QMS brands integrity manager, last November. QMS stated that concerns had previously been raised that anaerobic digestion could actively cultivate the Clostridium botulinum organism, but published information relating to this was very limited, the organization states. Three research projects have been completed, the most recent in July, which confirm no significant growth of the organism in anaerobic digestion. As a result, the Bulk Organic Fertilizers section of QMS&rsquo; Quality Assurance Standards now allows composts and digestates to be applied to land, provided they are PAS 100 and PAS 110 certified, meet additional physical contaminants restrictions and are applied in accordance with guidance provided. According to WRAP, PAS 110 certification puts controls on input materials and the management system for the process of anaerobic digestion and associated technologies and specifies a minimum quality of whole digestate, separated fiber and separated liquor, among other parameters. &ldquo;This decision by Quality Meat Scotland to permit the use of compost and fertilizer products derived from food waste is a breakthrough for a circular economy in Scotland,&rdquo; Gulland says. &ldquo;Food and other organic wastes contain nutrients which are important to plant growth, so it&rsquo;s appropriate they are returned to the soil when it&rsquo;s safe and right to do so. Zero Waste Scotland has worked extensively with the organics recycling sector over several years to develop a robust body of evidence on outputs from compost or anaerobic digestion facilities. It&rsquo;s now clear that these products, when made to a quality specification, do not pose a risk to human or animal health. This will help us advance toward our goal of diverting food waste from landfill, on which a great deal of progress has already been made, and will help farmers reduce their reliance on oil-based fertilizers. This decision opens up a potential new market for these products, but it is vital that the whole food waste supply chain responds by enabling the organics recycling industry to deliver consistent, high-quality materials to farmers who want to use them. If they do, this is a clear win-win, for farming and for zero waste.&rdquo; Zero Waste Scotland is providing direct support to the industry through various initiatives. De minimus matching grant funding up to &pound;170,000 is available to cover start-up costs for commercial food waste services or additional infrastructure at existing treatment facilities. Zero Waste Scotland is also providing free, two- and three-day consultancy support for PAS 100 and PAS 110 certification, respectively.&nbsp; Ultimately, establishing a circular economy conscious of the finiteness of&nbsp; precious resources, the empowerment of economic stimulus and the fragility of the environment takes tremendous work, but the rewards are high. &ldquo;The circular economy presents a huge opportunity for Scotland, with projected benefits for business and our economy,&rdquo; says Louise McGregor, head of circular economy for Zero Waste Scotland. &ldquo;We are gearing up support for businesses, building on our strong evidence to understand the opportunities better and working with businesses directly to help them develop more circular practices. Establishing a circular economy will take change at all stages in our traditional make-use-dispose system, and by focusing on all the aspects&mdash;from design to business support&mdash;we hope to stimulate change, which will help Scotland achieve a more sustainable economy.&rdquo; Author: Ron Kotrba Senior Editor, Biomass Magazine 218-745-8347 rkotrba@bbiinternational.com

DOUBLING CAPACITY: This spring, the Energen Biogas facility in Cumbernauld, Scotland, is finishing an expansion project that will double its capacity, a decision fueled by Scotlandâ€™s Zero Waste Plan and supporting governmental regulations. 

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POWER-UP: The expansion at Energen Biogas in Cumbernauld, Scotland, included additional depackaging equipment, prestorage capacity for depackaged food waste, another digester, more gas-handling equipment and additional electricity-generating capacity

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New regulations in Scotland foster a circular economy and biogas development. 

Making Haste To Zero Waste

Like many large manufacturing companies, in response to today&rsquo;s societal push to reduce waste, recycle and become more environmentally friendly, Procter &amp; Gamble Co. has a company-wide, long-term environmental sustainability vision. Maker of consumer products including Charmin, Bounty and Tide, P&amp;G embarked on its long-term environmental sustainability vision in 2010. &ldquo;That vision is that we ultimately want to be the company that uses 100 percent renewable materials for all product and packaging, with plants running on renewable energy and zero consumer waste going to the landfill,&rdquo; says Len Sauers, P&amp;G&rsquo;s vice president of global sustainability. &ldquo;One of goals is to achieve 30 percent renewable energy by 2020, and this project is an incremental step toward this long-term vision.&rdquo; In recent years, the company has transitioned to hydro power in Poland, solar power in California and wind power in China. Turning its attention to its Albany, Georgia, plant, P&amp;G found the biomass solution to make the most sense for renewable power being economically viable. And although P&amp;G already has a biomass boiler at the location&mdash;for the past 30 years, it has provided 30 percent of the facility&rsquo;s steam power from wood chips&mdash;the company saw this as an opportunity to broaden its use and go larger. Partnered with Constellation Energy for a new $200 million cogeneration plant, the project will expand the facility&rsquo;s use of renewable energy, increasing its efficiency and decreasing its environmental footprint. Partners In Power Under terms of the partnership, Constellation will build, own and operate the plant, which will supply steam to P&amp;G&rsquo;s paper manufacturing facility via a 20-year steam supply agreement, and generate up to 385,000 megawatt-hours of electricity annually that it will sell to the local utility, Georgia Power. According to Ron Melchior, executive director of distributed energy at Constellation, the plant will provide P&amp;G up to 425,000 pounds per hour of renewable process steam. &ldquo;The plant&rsquo;s fuel supply will come from local sources of biomass that would otherwise have been left to decay, burned, or potentially sent to landfill, including crop residuals (pecan shells, peanut hulls), discarded tree tops, limbs or branches, and mill waste.&rdquo; Melchior says. &ldquo;Scrap wood will be collected from the surrounding area, turned into wood chips and brought to the site.&rdquo; Sauers says the company collaborated with the World Wildlife Fund to develop sustainable fuel procurement standards, and great emphasis was placed on making sure the incoming scrap wood used at the plant met its broader forestry and sustainable sourcing guidelines. &ldquo;The incoming biomass will provide 100 percent of the steam and up to 60 to 70 percent of the total energy used to manufacture Bounty paper towels and Charmin toilet tissue,&rdquo; Sauers says. In fact, a third-party Forest Resource Assessment conducted by Black &amp; Veatch revealed that the region surrounding the plant was home to an abundant supply of waste wood to support the plant operations, and, since the supply is renewable, it enables the plant not to consume material at a faster rate than it is replenished. As Melchior explains the process, chips will be placed inside the plant&rsquo;s new boiler and burned, allowing the heat to convert piped-in water into high-pressure steam. That steam pressure will drive a turbine connected to an electric generator. A large percentage of the steam energy will be used by P&amp;G in manufacturing, while the rest will create electricity that will be fed into the power grid through an existing overhead transmission line for Georgia Power. &ldquo;What makes cogeneration so interesting is its efficiency relative to other forms of generating power, because most forms of generating power that involve any type of fossil fuel produce heat and that heat is not optimally used,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;A cogeneration plant takes that heat, in the form of steam, and optimizes the energy being produced by the plant between electricity and heat, and that makes the plant very efficient. The use of waste fuel in the form of biomass makes it ultraeffective both socially and economically.&rdquo; The new Albany Green Energy plant is a 50-MW capacity cogeneration plant, which, when coupled with the additional steam load from P&amp;G, would be equivalent in size to many of the largest biomass-fueled facilities in the U.S. &ldquo;To make the economics work, we had to move from this relatively small boiler to what was a utility-scale type of operation,&rdquo; Sauers says. &ldquo;It started getting outside the expertise of P&amp;G, so we sought out a partner and Constellation was the best fit.&rdquo; Currently, P&amp;G uses about 8 percent renewable energy and the change at the plant will result in another 5 to 7 percent, which will put the company halfway toward its goal of achieving 30 percent by 2020. And one day, the company hopes, 100 percent. &ldquo;This will account for 60 to 70 percent of our total energy use,&rdquo; Sauers says. &ldquo;We still will have 30 percent coming from natural gas, because certain properties with Charmin and Bounty require very high temperatures that we can&rsquo;t do with steam.&rdquo; The old boiler will be decommissioned once the new plant is operational. In mid-March, ground was broken and Constellation was hard at work to get the new plant up and operational by June 2017. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve started construction on the ground and we&rsquo;re starting to order major pieces of equipment,&rdquo; Melchior says. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s construction on the roads, we&rsquo;re moving the parking lot and creating room and access for fuel delivery trucks. We&rsquo;re also doing all the storm water management and normal up-front work that&rsquo;s required for a project of this size.&rdquo; Gary Fromer, senior vice president of distributed energy at Constellation, says the existing boilers provide steam for the paper mill, and will remain in place and work concurrently until everything is up and running. Only then will they be taken out, although two additional gas boilers are staying. When complete, Fromer says there&rsquo;s a chance that the Albany Green Energy plant might also one day provide energy to the adjacent U.S. Marine Corps, providing even greater benefits. Other companies with a role in bringing this all together include Exelon Power, Constellation&rsquo;s affiliate, which will collaborate on the design, construction, operations and maintenance of the plant; DCO Energy LLC, which will hold a minority stake in the project and provide engineering, procurement and construction services; the Albany Development Authority, which offered a Payment In Lieu of Tax, which helped reduce the nonlabor-related operating costs of the facility and promoted the creation of new construction jobs; and Sterling Energy Assets, which worked with both P&amp;G and Constellation on the development of the Albany Green Energy plant. Procurement Plan Fromer says Constellation is committed to the environment and the company has a sustainability program with very specific goals, which line up well with the standards of P&amp;G. &ldquo;We worked with them to set up procurement standards and fuel standards as to what qualifies as renewable fuel, which was also done in parallel with requirements we have for fuel supply with our agreement with Georgia Power,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Our purchase agreement has very specific terms approved that require fuel to meet the biomass standards in Georgia. We want to ensure that the forest floor is appropriately cleaned and replanted so it can remain a sustainable forestry industry.&rdquo; Since P&amp;G has been purchasing biomass in the area for more than 30 years, it has established relationships with proven sustainable suppliers who will continue to source the plant. &ldquo;The material will be coming from a number of external partners in our area,&rdquo; Sauers says. &ldquo;This program works because it&rsquo;s a heavily forested area, so there is plenty of biomass available to us. We will get reports annually from those procuring so we know the source of the wood, and we know if they are meeting the requirements we have in place for this. We will make sure the wood isn&rsquo;t coming from sources we deem unacceptable.&rdquo; It all goes back to that robust plan the company has instituted. &ldquo;The use of renewable energy is important to P&amp;G, and we created goals and have a vision and effort to continue to work it,&rdquo; Sauers says. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s important for our brand to have a communication with consumers so they can see we are responsible and also understand we are being very responsible for sourcing.&rdquo; Author: Keith Loria Freelance writer, Biomass Magazine freelancekeith@gmail.com

OUT WITH THE OLD: At the site of Procter & Gamble's plant in Albany, Georgia, an existing biomass boiler has provided a portion of facility's steam needs for the past 30 years. 

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Procter & Gamble and Constellation Energy are building a $200 million cogeneration plant at P&G's Albany, Georgia, manufacturing plant.

Cogeneration Cohorts

Most of us have looked at the explosive growth of solar photovoltaic systems as just a parallel and complementary renewable energy technology.&nbsp; Solar panels make kilowatts while wood and pellet stoves make Btus, right?&nbsp; Wrong. To stay relevant, the biomass heating industry needs to keep abreast of rapid advances in the solar industry. We also need to think of ways to integrate our technology with other renewables, and we need to explore how that integration can happen right away, because renewable energy policy decisions being made now will impact our industry in coming decades. The solar industry has a vision, ambition and plan for rapid expansion that is largely absent in the wood and pellet stove community.&nbsp; Pathways for rapid expansion of pellet technologies are being developed in Europe, but not in the U.S.&nbsp; While solar advocates are focused on a wide range of financing options, regulatory frameworks, R&amp;D, utility partnerships, the wood and pellet stove industry seems to put more effort into trying to maintain the status quo and fight against regulations.&nbsp; Many pellet stoves and boilers are now clean and efficient enough to be part of the mainstream renewable energy revolution.&nbsp; But they remain an afterthought in most state and federal programs.&nbsp; Part of the problem is that we are not integrated into the solar community, which is making more and more breakthroughs in many circles.&nbsp; Perhaps the most important breakthroughs are in the imaginations of the general public. A recent study by the Rocky Mountain Institute, a think tank for energy policy, found that solar will become economic for nearly all customers very soon, and that solar-plus-battery systems will follow suit within the next 10 to 15 years.&nbsp;&nbsp; It&rsquo;s battery technology that may ultimately pose the greatest disruptive threat for utilities, signaling what may be a complete breakdown of the traditional centralized power and grid model. A first step for the industry is to start integrating batteries that would enable pellet stoves to run for at least 12 to 24 hours during a power outage.&nbsp; Integrating a battery pack seamlessly into a pellet stove, without significantly raising the purchase price, would give that manufacturer a big edge on the market.&nbsp; It would also help the solar industry realize pellet stoves requiring low amounts of electricity have the potential to operate well even in off-grid homes.&nbsp; Wood and pellet stoves and boilers can also easily generate small amounts of electricity, enough to recharge phones and computers and run a few lights.&nbsp; This technology has been out there for years, but no stove or boiler company has taken advantage of it.&nbsp; Again, the benefit is not just to provide the consumer with a groundbreaking application for stoves, but to spark the imagination of the general public that biomass heaters are an exciting part of the renewable energy movement. Ironically, the wood and pellet stove industry has deployment numbers that the solar industry could only envy for many years.&nbsp; Ten million homes in America have wood and pellet stoves, whereas solar PV may just be crossing the 1 million mark soon. As their star becomes brighter, ours is in danger of becoming dimmer. Public opinion is shifting, and policies and incentives are shifting along with it.&nbsp; As solar systems become more efficient and more robust, they can also start taking on some of the heat load of homes, especially as cold climate heat pumps become more efficient and affordable.&nbsp; Incentive programs in the Northeast are already starting to push heat pumps much more than pellet stoves.&nbsp; At the same time, we are seeing more and more urban areas restrict the use of wood stoves due to air quality concerns. If the environmental community finds itself fighting against the wood stove industry more than they are partnering with it, we may lose momentum. The wood and pellet stove industry should make sure that its lawsuit against the EPA&rsquo;s new regulations is not seen as a fight for the status quo. Maintaining the status quo for wood and pellet heaters is ultimately the worst thing that could happen, because we need to keep apace of the rapid changes in the residential distributed renewable energy sector. That means being part of discussions on creative financing mechanisms, integration with solar and geothermal systems and within the green building and home performance communities.&nbsp; Mounting a major lawsuit against the EPA may just draw precious resources away from the real opportunities before us. &nbsp; Author: John Ackerly President, Alliance for Green Heat jackerly@forgreenheat.org www.forgreenheat.org

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Alliance For Green Heat President John Ackerly discusses why the biomass heating industry must continue to evolve, and integrate with other renewable technologies.

Solar Generation May  Sideline Biomass Heating

People who burn their trash do so for various reasons, the most common of which are convenience in avoiding a haul to a local disposal site, and bypassing the cost of a regular waste collection service. Backyard burning is discouraged by the U.S. EPA, however, because of harmful dioxins that are released into the air. This raises questions as to how a solid, MSW-based fuel created from that very trash could result in a positive environmental impact when combusted, but there&rsquo;s a difference between the two methods, and it all comes down to how the waste is treated and where it is burned. A number of steps are involved in densifying MSW to produce fuel pellets or briquettes, also referred to as refuse-derived fuel (RDF) or solid-recovered fuel (SRF). The process essentially changes the physical form of the waste, enriching its organic content by removing the moisture and inorganics. End markets for the fuel include coal and biomass plants, cement kilns and industrial thermal boilers. Besides incineration, raw MSW can be used for conversion technologies like pyrolysis and gasification. RDF debuted when the oil shortage of the 1970s sparked interest in processes that could take advantage of the energy content in MSW. EPA demonstration grants helped fund a number of waste-processing projects that included RDF. As a result, facilities were built during the last few decades of the 1900s, but few have continued to operate through this century. Still, there are producers in the U.S. and new projects on the horizon. RDF and SRF are more widely recognized in the United Kingdom. In Europe, there is the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) and technical committee (TC), which established all necessary standards for SRF under CEN/TC 343. The standards were created to promote free trade of these fuels in the internal market, as well as help equipment providers and permitting authorities build acceptance and trust amongst the public. The EPA has published definitions, assessments and tests regarding RDF and its cofiring attributes in thermal units, and there are independent North American laboratories testing the fuels. Some companies have tested their fuel product against the European standard as well, but without specific quality thresholds in the U.S., questions remain about the product&rsquo;s quality, emissions and consistency. Despite that, producers in the space seem confident in the fuels&rsquo; present and future market potential. A few U.S. enterprises creating solid fuel from MSW include Tennessee-based WastAway, America First Inc.&rsquo;s project in Maryland, and New Bedford Waste LLC in Massachusetts. Fuel Familiarity WastAway began processing MSW in 2003, at its commercial facility in Warren County, Tennessee, using a patented process to create a product called Fluff. According to Terry Moore, chief business development officer with WastAway, the material that comes out of the process is basically free of metals and most of the inert materials, including ash from glass, rocks and dirt. Trash is first shredded, then the metals and inert material extracted, leaving the organic portion of the MSW. &ldquo;Those things are shredded again, and they go through the hydrolyzer, which is a continuous-flow autoclave that runs at a higher temperature and pressure than an autoclave for sterilizing surgical instruments,&rdquo; Moore says. &ldquo;The reason we do that is to kill anything that is in the waste, any kind of pathogen.&rdquo; Around 2009, the company fired up its commercial facility in Morrison to pelletize its Fluff product, after the idea was suggested by WastAway shareholder Battelle Institute, an applied science and technology development company. Densifying aided with gasification, but the genesis of the move was for easier and cheaper shipping and handling. &ldquo;It has the same Btu value whether it is pelletized or not, it is just a matter of whether the plant is close enough,&rdquo; Moore says. &ldquo;If you have to ship it a long distance, Fluff is maybe 15 pounds per cubic foot, and pellets are 35 or 40 pounds per cubic foot, so you get more pellets on a truck, and you still pay the same amount for freight.&rdquo; Since then, the company has tested the product with engineering companies and labs. According to Moore, the product is &ldquo;amazingly consistent,&rdquo; usually about 8,700 Btu per pound, varying between 8,500 and 8,900 Btu per pound. The material has been tested to the European CEN/TS standard. According to Moore, the scaling system is rated one to five in three different categories&mdash;Btu value, chlorine content and heavy metals. The poorest score being all fives, Moore says WastAway&rsquo;s fuel generally qualifies as two-two-one. &nbsp;Last year, WastAway completed testing in Canada, the purpose of which was for Canadian power companies to determine whether the fuel behaved similarly to coal. &ldquo;They found that it does, that the ash that&rsquo;s generated from combusting this material is a little bit improved from the ash that you would get from coal,&rdquo; Moore says. &ldquo;They were also shown that it completely combusts in the firing zone&mdash;there are not any residual, noncombusted parts&mdash;and that it pulverizes just like coal will pulverize for a pulverized coal boiler.&rdquo; The testing results sparked interest in some Canadian provinces where CO2 emissions are very stringent, Moore adds. &ldquo;If they burn 5 to 10 percent blend of our material with coal, they could get enough carbon credits to lower below the emission levels so they can continue to operate these large, electrical facilities,&rdquo; he says. Depending upon the location of a community or company, WastAway pellets may qualify for carbon credits, greenhouse gas (GHG) credits, renewable energy credits, recycling credits, landfill diversion credits and renewable portfolio standards certificates. Other sources of revenue can include tipping fees, ferrous and nonferrous metal sales, glass and inert sales and Fluff or WastAway pellet sales. &ldquo;We look at all of the garbage that comes out of the back of the garbage truck as having value&mdash;we want to get all but the oink out of the pig&mdash;so we are looking at recovering everything there is,&rdquo; Moore says. Besides cement kilns and pulverized coal boilers, gasification is another outlet the company is marketing to, for creation of power, biofuel or chemicals. Moore says companies that operate on coal usually value Wast-Away pellets on a relative Btu basis with coal. &ldquo;If you had 11,000 Btu of coal selling at $60 a ton, you would probably see our pellets selling at $40 or $45 a ton,&rdquo; Moore says. &ldquo;It just depends on the value of the coal and the price they&rsquo;re paying for that coal, as to what the customer will be willing to pay for the pellet.&rdquo; Although WastAway has been actively marketing the process to sell the equipment and license the technology, the company has just two commercial operations&mdash;the one in Warren County and one on the island of Aruba. &ldquo;We don&rsquo;t have any other plants at this time, but I can tell you if we talk this time next year, there will probably be five to 10 sales that we have completed,&rdquo; Moore says. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re always looking for places that can support the process, both from a raw material standpoint and as a user for the output.&rdquo; One example is a project at Drayton Valley&rsquo;s municipal landfill in Alberta, Canada, where testing will resume. According to Moore, the project was held up when a power company suspended testing the pellets in a pulverized coal boiler due to economic issues, particularly what the carbon credits would be valued at. Model Landfill Project Over the past few years, the 40-West Landfill in Washington County, Maryland, has experienced several hardships that have caused long-term financial strain on the operational tipping fee revenue. Some of these strains include an increase in recycling rates leading to decreased tipping revenue, the economic downturn resulting in less materials needing disposal, and the county landfill&rsquo;s position surrounded by competitive, privately owned landfills. All these factors compounded, reducing the waste coming to the landfill to under 300 tons per day. The county decided the solution was a public-private partnership and after assessing a number of companies, it selected Green Kinetics Gateway or America First Inc. The project was first announced in August 2013, but an extension was needed. Changes in the permitting approach by Maryland Department of the Environment required both phases of the project to be permitted for the federal and state air permits at one time in the third quarter of 2014. &ldquo;The developer had to modify the schedule and incorporate the design and equipment selection into the phase-one permitting process,&rdquo; says Julie Pippel, Washington County director of environmental management. According to Pippel, the county now anticipates permit acquirement late this year. Construction, which will last six to eight months, will begin soon after. The project will cost nothing to the county, and AFI will be the sole signer of the loan, so the county bears no upfront financial risk for construction or operational expenses associated with the project. Phase one of the project will include AFI&rsquo;s construction of a waste-to-energy (WTE) facility on 15 acres of the 40-West Landfill site. This facility will handle up to 500 tons of MSW landfill deliveries per day to create pelletized RDF, with the possibility of future expansion. &ldquo;Converting MSW into RDF will not only reduce the volume of solid waste placed in the landfill by 95 percent, it will generate revenue while eventually lowering expenses such as leachate management,&rdquo; Pippel says. The second phase of the project includes the construction of a Fischer-Tropsch synthetic fuel plant to transform RDF pellets into high-energy gas, which will then be converted into transportation fuels. This phase will begin construction 18 months after phase one, and is estimated to take 12 to 18 months to complete, with production expected within 90 days of commissioning. The county says it anticipates approximately 10 percent of the pellets produced at the facility will feed the gasification plant, and the remaining pellets will continue to be sold into the market. At full production, the planned capacity is approximately 700 barrels of FT fuels per day. As part of this phase, the existing 40-West Landfill will be mined to recover buried MSW. The county will receive a portion of the revenue from both project phases. Using today&rsquo;s market value for RDF pellets, Washington County&rsquo;s estimated share of net profits would be in excess of $50,000 per month from phase one, and in excess of $200,000 per month for phase two. This will be AFI&rsquo;s first use of the technology on a commercial scale to date. &ldquo;This innovative approach in processing MSW will position Washington County ahead of the curve to comply with upcoming federal and state regulations; furthermore, the county will serve as an international benchmark in environmentally responsible waste management,&rdquo; Pippel says. &ldquo;The goal is not only to make this project noteworthy in Maryland, but also nationwide.&rdquo; New Bedford&rsquo;s Briquettes While the WTE facility in Maryland is slated for construction later this year, a project in Massachusetts anticipates construction completion in October or November. New Bedford Waste Services, a sister company of ABC Disposal Service Inc., is building an MSW-recycling and RDF briquette-manufacturing facility in New Bedford. This facility will be known as Zero Waste Solutions LLC. NBWS currently has a construction and demolition (C&amp;D) recycling plant and transfer station in Rochester known as the Rochester Environmental Park. This plant is permitted to accept 1,500 tons of MSW and C&amp;D debris per day. The planned 103,000-square-foot ZWS operation is being built at the location as the end-disposal outlet for the C&amp;D transfer station&rsquo;s MSW and residuals. The ZWS facility will initially take in about 850 tons per day of waste and produce about 300 tons per day of briquettes valued at about $60 per ton. The facility is estimated to achieve 90 percent or more recycling rates, which, according to Michael Camara, president of NBWS, will be the highest in the surrounding area. The RDF briquettes are called EcoTac fuel briquettes, created using WERC-2 Inc.&rsquo;s patent-pending process. The EcoTac fuel is said to guarantee over 10,500 Btu per pound with limited moisture content and predictable outputs for cofiring with coal or woody biomass. According to WERC-2 Inc., the fuel briquettes contain virtually no mercury, and when compared to coal average over 90 percent in sulfur reductions, 78 percent in ash reduction and cut CO2 emissions by 17 to 22 percent. All of the fuel&rsquo;s testing data was provided to the EPA, and, according to Camara, the fuel briquette was approved by the EPA as a nonhazardous and nonsolid waste fuel. The fuel will be sold to biomass and coal-burning plants and cement kilns. All in all, emerging projects demonstrate RDF potential, and those involved believe it can compete with other fuels in the market. NBWS and WastAway claim their products have a better shelf life than wood pellets. &ldquo;The pellets that we make, because there is no active microorganisms in them, have a shelf life that is infinite,&rdquo; Moore says. These companies also say their products are odor free, and are on par with the consistency of coal or wood pellets. For now, however, the market is much narrower for RDF. Players in the space agree RDF use will expand, but only commercially&mdash;not on the residential side. &ldquo;Inherent in garbage are some things that you would need a more sophisticated emission control system for than what you would find in a household stove,&rdquo; Moore says. &ldquo;When you burn wood you just get CO2 and water for the most part, maybe some VOCs, but with burning garbage you get lots of stuff.&rdquo; Moore adds, &ldquo;I think it will be a game changer, but the first rule of a manager is to maximize shareholder wealth, so the idea here is we want to make some money so our investors are repaid for their patience and the risk they&rsquo;ve taken.&rdquo; Author: Katie Fletcher Staff Writer, Biomass Magazine 701-738-4920 kfletcher@bbiinternational.com

PATHOGEN ELIMINATOR: A key part of WastAwayâ€™s technology is the continuous-flow hydrolyzer, but those is similar to autoclaves used in Europe, which tend to be batch units. The hydrolyzer heats the material to about 350 degrees Fahrenheit at pressu

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FLUFF TO FUEL: After municipal solid waste is shredded to an inch or less, it is exposed to heat under pressure, further reducing it into an intermediate material called Fluff. The Fluff is then pelletized to create hygroscopic pellets with moisture 

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The concept of solidifying preprocessed municipal solid waste into fuel pellets or briquettes is not new, but the market has been slow to mature. 

A Solid Approach to MSW Fuel

&nbsp;&ldquo;I read the news today, oh boy&hellip;&rdquo;&nbsp; (&ldquo;A Day in the Life,&rdquo; The Beatles, 1967) In the ongoing media coverage of Maine&rsquo;s severe winter, it was perhaps inevitable that pellet heating issues would make the front page. The first story surfaced in Maine&rsquo;s northernmost Aroostook County, where, during February&rsquo;s subzero temperatures, the local CBS affiliate reported, &ldquo;County Retailers and Bulk Distributors Struggling with High Demand for Wood Pellets.&rdquo; A follow-up piece featured the owner of Northeast Pellets as a manufacturer working hard to keep up with demand and wishing that retailers would place their orders earlier. It included great footage of his plant and bagged product. So far, so good. Shortly thereafter, on Valentine&rsquo;s Day, the Bangor newspaper headlined &ldquo;Stores Running Out of Wood Pellets,&rdquo; while also enabling our association to outline the need for earlier ordering by retailers.&nbsp; However, a few days later, a southern Maine TV news station headlined &ldquo;Stores Running Out of Wood Pellets&mdash;Suppliers Focus on Getting Shipments to Larger Stores.&rdquo; The interview featured a decidedly grouchy hardware store owner. A few days later, Maine&rsquo;s most-viewed TV news went with &ldquo;Wood Pellet Distributors Deny Shortage in Maine.&rdquo; During the midst of these stories, U.S. Sen. Angus King was back in Maine, using a pellet-heated ski lodge to announce his reintroduction of the BTU Act. This proposal, which our industry is working hard to see enacted, will provide biomass heating with the same federal tax advantages accorded to other renewable energies. King, a former TV host himself, suggested to some of our members that we simply assign the temporary pellet scarcity to the winter weather. In light of how quickly the &ldquo;shortage&rdquo; stories disappeared after a few days above freezing, this answer might have sufficed. Subsequently, a more political story has put pellets and other forms of heating back in the headlines. It seems that the legislation that made possible Maine&rsquo;s $5,000-per-boiler incentive program, also in its final passage, accidentally deleted the word &ldquo;and&rdquo; from a key sentence. In a 2-1 decision, our state&rsquo;s Public Utilities Commission has determined that Efficiency Maine&rsquo;s funding stream must therefore be severely curtailed come July 1, 2016. Maine&rsquo;s Democratic party, still stung by abject failure in the 2014 elections, quickly made Efficiency Maine their poster child and generated a party fundraising appeal. Our state&rsquo;s largest environmental organization mounted a contact-your-legislator campaign. Republican legislators have agreed to consider a legislative &ldquo;fix,&rdquo; but only if some of their other concerns with the law, which was originally passed over our governor&rsquo;s veto, are addressed as well. The media loves the drama engendered by a redrafting error. For our industry, the public attention to home heating issues is welcome, provided cooler heads prevail and resolve the funding language issue between now and next year. The third issue placing home heating in the media spotlight involves an initiative that began two years ago.&nbsp; Significant parcels of our state&rsquo;s forests are located on public lands, going back to the colonial charter, which set aside special lots for public purposes such as building towns and schools.&nbsp; For the past several years, the Maine Forest Service has been increasing the allowable harvest on these lands, to the dismay of some conservationists who believe these lots should be managed to preserve old growth. Two years ago, our association proposed a revenue bond whereby proceeds from the increased harvest would go to incentivize pellet boiler sales.&nbsp; Maine&rsquo;s largest environmental group went ballistic.&nbsp; Efficiency Maine initiated a pellet boiler incentive program. We dropped the issue. Our governor, reelected by the largest number of votes in Maine history, has brought it back. The governor now proposes that the timber harvest funds go &ldquo;to heat Maine homes&rdquo; without reference to any particular technology. Environmental groups are just as opposed now as they were two years ago. In response, the governor is holding hostage bond funds for land conservation. These funds were approved by Maine voters. Many of these voters are the same folks who see wood pellets as a great alternative to fossil fuel. This time around, we are simply interested observers. Author: Bill Bell Executive Director, Maine Pellet Fuels Association &nbsp;207-752-1392<a style="margin: 0px; border: currentColor; left: 0px; top: 0px; width: 16px; height: 16px; right: 0px; bottom: 0px; overflow: hidden; vertical-align: middle; float: none; display: inline; white-space: nowrap; position: static !important;" title="Call: 207-752-1392" href="#"><img style="margin: 0px; border: currentColor; left: 0px; top: 0px; width: 16px; height: 16px; right: 0px; bottom: 0px; overflow: hidden; vertical-align: middle; float: none; display: inline; white-space: nowrap; position: static !important;" title="Call: 207-752-1392" src="data:image/png;base64,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" alt="" /></a> feedalliance@gwi.net &nbsp;

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Maine Pellet Fuels Association Executive Director Bill Bell on why wood pellets have recently been the center of attention in  Maine.

Living In The Limelight

When a Covanta Energy waste-to-energy (WTE) plant undergoes an outage, it&rsquo;s most likely that the company&rsquo;s traveling maintenance team, Covanta Field Services, will be on the job. It&rsquo;s during that time that ultrasonic testing&mdash;nondestructive testing techniques based on the propagation of ultrasonic waves&mdash;is performed, to monitor tubing erosion and corrosion and measure the thickness of the test objects. Metal tube corrosion, a major operating problem at WTE plants due to typically high chloride and sulfur levels in MSW, can cause tube leaks, resulting in downtime and unexpected shutdowns. However, the timely deployment of numerous metal repair techniques enable plant operators to overcome most issues. While every WTE plant experiences different rates of metal loss due to varying fuel composition, Jay Lehr, vice president of operations at Covanta, says that virtually every WTE plant does some kind of thermal spray, weld overlay or other corrosion prevention method. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve actually experimented with a bunch of them [techniques], with Inconel overlay being the most prevalent,&rdquo; he says. Lehr emphasizes the huge investments the company has made in ensuring it has experienced, expert welders and technicians on the payroll and at its disposal, as corrosion and erosion prevention and maintenance represent a large chunk of a plant&rsquo;s annual expenditure&mdash;much more than at a wood-fired biomass plant, where Lehr says weld overlays and other techniques are used, but on a much smaller scale. While specific fuel composition does have an impact on corrosion and erosion rates, Lehr says it&rsquo;s just the general nature of MSW as fuel. &ldquo;We see this in all of our plants across the country, and we take preventative maintenance steps to control it each year. When we have a scheduled maintenance outage, we send in a team, scaffold the furnace and perform ultrasonic testing to measure the tubes in there. We have guidelines based on the original manufacturers for tube thickness and ASME guidelines, but we also have our own guidelines&mdash;we take a safety margin above the others.&rdquo; With 20-plus years of experience in metal loss, Covanta has a good indication of wear patterns and how much metal will be lost each year. &ldquo;We know how thick the tubes need to be to go another year without any leaks, and we&rsquo;ve been very successful minimizing them,&rdquo; Lehr says. Once it&rsquo;s determined a tube needs repair during an outage, it&rsquo;s taken care of immediately. &ldquo;We won&rsquo;t start up again until the tubes are built up to acceptable levels and we can get a good run,&rdquo; Lehr says, adding that some boilers undergo annual outages, and others more frequently, such as every six months. &ldquo;The trend really is to do it once a year, because it involves a lot of expense to scaffold the furnace,&rdquo; Lehr says. &ldquo;If we do that, and the UT testing, most often we will do the weld overlay to give us a safety margin for the next year.&rdquo; Covanta most commonly uses Inconel overlay, though it has experimented with other options. &ldquo;At one of our biomass plants, we experimented with a form of clad where the tube was wrapped and baked in a vacuum oven,&rdquo; Lehr says. &ldquo;That seems to work very good in key areas at one of our biomass plants. We also have a boiler reliability team that helps analyze patterns in the furnaces&mdash;they look at what options are out there, thermal sprays and overlays, and oftentimes they&rsquo;ll set up side-by-side tests with a couple tubes that are thermal spray, Conforma Clad or something else, and we&rsquo;ll do an evaluation to see if there&rsquo;s something that works better or works the same and is less expensive. We&rsquo;re constantly looking for other options.&rdquo; One option that is less common at WTE plants but proving itself through research and real-world application is high-velocity thermal spraying. During a research project at VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd. high-velocity oxy-fuel (HVOF) thermal spraying at WTE was the study focus, and, according to project lead Maria Oksa, it demonstrated and proved sufficient corrosion resistance behavior in relative plant conditions. Oksa says that since there is a risk of high costs if the coatings fail in operations, attitude toward these thermal spray coatings within power plants is cautious, and there are some doubts surrounding their protection ability, though industry has shown interest in the project&rsquo;s findings. Research Application Due to very aggressive corrosion conditions at WTE plants, overlay welded claddings&mdash;such as the method Covanta typically deploys&mdash;are utilized more than thermal spray coatings, Oksa explains. &ldquo;This is mainly&nbsp; due to the fact that references and scientific data on the ability of thermal spray coatings to endure in such demanding conditions has been lacking,&rdquo; she says. &ldquo;However, it is expected that with current advanced thermal spray technologies, dense coatings may increase corrosion resistance of WTE plants.&rdquo; During Oksa&rsquo;s research, several thermal spray coatings with high chromium content were sprayed with HVOF technique, and their mechanical properties and high-temperature corrosion resistance were tested and analyzed.&nbsp; &ldquo;Thermal spray is a complex process with numerous factors that influence the coating formation,&rdquo; she says. The main factor affecting the formed coating is the selected thermal spray method, which includes flame, arc, plasma, HVOF, detonation and cold gas spraying. &ldquo;Common to all thermally sprayed coatings is a lamellar structure, although there are vast differences, such as in the nature of lamellae boundaries, porosity and residual stress state,&rdquo; Oksa says. &ldquo;High-velocity techniques (HVOF, HVAF (high velocity air fuel) generally produce a dense and well-adhered coating. Within these techniques, the spray gun and used fuels (liquid, gaseous) have strong effect, on particle temperature and velocity, particle melting and state of oxidizing, which in turn influence&nbsp; the formed coating.&rdquo; &nbsp;Oksa notes that every plant is different in terms of design, fuel and operation parameters, and all can have an effect on corrosion conditions in different areas of the facility. The main factors that influence selection of coating material composition and structure are temperature and corrosive elements that deposit on the boiler components. &ldquo;Typically, the steam temperature of waste-to-energy plants has been restricted to 400 to 500 degrees Celsius, due to corrosion issues,&rdquo; Oksa says. &ldquo;According to my research, nickel-chromium and even iron-chromium-based HVOF thermal spray coatings can offer protection up to 550 C and even up to 750 C in aggressive conditions containing alkali chlorides.&rdquo; On the study&rsquo;s ultimate conclusion, Oksa says HVOF thermal spray coatings are recommended for corrosion protection, increasing the lifetime of carbon steel or low-alloy steel substrates in plants, where chlorine and low-melting compounds can cause severe corrosion. The EU-funded project, NextGenPower, is continuing, she says, and last analyses and reporting, including writing scientific papers on the final results, are ongoing, with plans to cooperate with future commercial projects in the energy sector.&nbsp; Outside of research, companies like Integrated Global Services are expanding their market reach to WTE plants, and already offer high-velocity thermal spray, though IGS offers a different application method than implemented in Oksa&rsquo;s research. On The Market &ldquo;WTE plans are burning low-Btu fuels that usually are high in sulfur and chlorides, and they experience different dynamics in their boiler than a traditional pulverized coal boiler or solid fuel would,&rdquo; says IGS sales engineer David Kahan. &ldquo;So some of their corrosion issues are much more extreme.&rdquo; IGS offers weld overlay, but there&rsquo;s a key difference between its capabilities and thermal spray, Kahan says. &ldquo;Weld overlay&mdash;a process that builds metal on top of the existing surface&mdash;is a metallurgical bond, so it has diffusion into the base metal and will act as the new surface. But you are limited what you can get in a wire and actually weld. Some alloys don&rsquo;t respond well to welding.&rdquo; Thermal spray, which is very similar to cladding, Kahan notes, is metal sprayed onto existing substrates, but rather than a metallurgical bond, it is a mechanical bond that has a very high bond strength. &ldquo;This acts independent of how the weld overlay would, so you have a thin layer of high-grade alloy on top of your base metal,&rdquo; he explains. &ldquo;You can actually spray other high-grade alloys that couldn&rsquo;t be welded, because it is a different process.&rdquo; IGS has trademarked MetalSpray and even created its own high-velocity arc spray (HVAS) gun; traditional equipment on the market is low-velocity. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a method of using two wires to create the cladding, but we use high-velocity air to propel the liquid droplets,&rdquo; Kahan says. &ldquo;This creates a much smaller particle that is deposited on the surface, which results in a very dense, low-porosity coating. These coatings respond and act just as the raw alloy would.&rdquo; Thermal spray coatings can be repaired and built back up over time as needed, but how long it ultimately lasts depends on the fuel the customer is burning. IGS can supply a coating monitoring system that reads the thickness of the coating on initial application and during subsequent outage inspections to determine the performance of that coating. While IGS&rsquo;s spray coating thickness is somewhat proprietary, Kahan says, typically it is 16 to 20 mils. On weld overlay costs versus thermal spray, Kahan says though the initial cost is slightly more expensive for HVAS, it is significantly less expensive for thermal spray application than the weld overlay, based on production rates. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s kind of like putting 87 octane compared to 93 in your gas tank. So there&rsquo;s a performance-based upgrade from one to the other, with a very small price increase.&rdquo; And in terms of quantifying results, if a plant typically experiences seven to 10 mm of wastage per year off base metal, HFAS is likely to reduce it to very little or none. &ldquo;Therefore, the end-user would not need to replace components [as quickly]. It gives longer life to existing equipment.&rdquo; Author: Anna Simet Managing Editor, Biomass Magazine 701-738-4961<a style="margin: 0px; border: currentColor; left: 0px; top: 0px; width: 16px; height: 16px; right: 0px; bottom: 0px; overflow: hidden; vertical-align: middle; float: none; display: inline; white-space: nowrap; position: static !important;" title="Call: 701-738-4961" href="#"><img style="margin: 0px; border: currentColor; left: 0px; top: 0px; width: 16px; height: 16px; right: 0px; bottom: 0px; overflow: hidden; vertical-align: middle; float: none; display: inline; white-space: nowrap; position: static !important;" title="Call: 701-738-4961" src="data:image/png;base64,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" alt="" /></a> asimet@bbiinternational.com

READYING THE SURFACE:  Boiler roof tubes are prepared for Integrated Global Services, 
MetalSpray technique, a high-velocity arc spray. 

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BEFORE AND AFTER:  The lefthand portion of the tubes are prior to being treated with MetalSpray, the righthand portion has been treated.  

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WANDERING WORKFORCE:  Covantaâ€™s traveling maintenance team, Covanta Field Services, is VPP Star Certified by OSHA. VPP status, uncommon for mobile workforces to achieve, recognizes employers and workers in the private industry and federal agencies 

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METAL MAINTENANCE: A Covanta Field Services team member performs a weld overlay during a plant outage.

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Waste-to-energy plants have different fuel mixes, 
but corrosion and metal wastage is a commonality.

Combatting  Corrosion

Last month, the Biomass Power Association contributed to evolving policy and regulatory discussions at the U.S. EPA and U.S. Senate Finance Committee. Both proceedings could have a major impact on the future of the biomass power industry. &nbsp;In late March, we testified at the EPA&rsquo;s Scientific Advisory Board meeting to review the Framework for Assessing Biogenic CO2 Emissions from Stationary Sources that the agency released last November. This panel&rsquo;s scientists, experts representing several areas of forestry and agriculture, have been meeting regularly for the past four years. Their simple-sounding mission is to determine a method for accounting for carbon from all biogenic sources. Not surprisingly, this has proven to be a daunting task with implications far beyond the realities of the biomass power sector. How to account for corn ethanol and its production? Dedicated energy crops? Pelletized fuel? While interesting topics to consider, none of them have much bearing on biomass power.&nbsp; &nbsp;The goal of the panel is to come up with an all-purpose and all-encompassing way to measure carbon from biogenic fuels. However, in keeping the process completely separate from policy considerations, the panel may be keeping biomass power in a policy limbo at a time we can&rsquo;t afford uncertainty. The EPA&rsquo;s final Clean Power Plan is due out this summer, and will shape how states are able to design carbon reduction plans. We need a clear understanding of how biomass will count under the Clean Power Plan. &nbsp;If the final language defers to the SAB panel&rsquo;s future decision on biomass&mdash;one that may not be available for years&mdash;states may be uncomfortable including biomass in their carbon reduction plans. States with abundant biomass, or the potential for a strong biomass industry, need a baseload power source to include in their energy mix alongside intermittent sources like wind and solar. Failure to create certainty around biomass would be a major oversight.&nbsp; &nbsp;Fortunately, there is an easy fix here: The EPA simply needs to declare biomass from residuals and low-value, organic sources as a permissible, zero-carbon power source under the Clean Power Plan. Virtually every scientist who has studied biogenic carbon accounting agrees with this approach, even the staunchest biomass skeptics. We are doing all that we can to make this point to the EPA. &nbsp;Meanwhile, the Senate Finance Committee, led by Sens. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., is undertaking another challenging task: how to reform our tax code. The two senators have broken down the tax code into five sections, and are soliciting comments on each of these pieces of tax law. In late March, Biomass Power Association presented our views on how to improve taxes to preserve our industry. &nbsp;Alongside representatives of the other baseload power sources, we highlighted to a panel of staffers the important role that biomass plays in our power grid. In addition to being a reliable and consistent energy source, biomass also provides rural jobs and is an important market for discarded forestry and agricultural materials. To a panel of Senate Finance Committee staffers, we recommended a more balanced approach to supporting renewable energy sources through the tax system. By ensuring parity among the renewable sources, and taking into account the factors that distinguish them&mdash;like longer lead times for building projects&mdash;the tax code can play a role in making sure that the appropriate renewable resources are available and taken advantage of in every state and region. &nbsp;Biomass Power Association is holding its annual fly-in to Washington, D.C., in May. Our members will be meeting with their elected officials, emphasizing the need to get tax policy and carbon regulations right.&nbsp; Author: Bob Cleaves President and CEO, Biomass Power Association www.biomasspowerassociation.com bob@biomasspowerassociation.com

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Biomass Power Association President Bob Cleaves discusses ongoing policy and regulatory discussions affecting the industry.

Washington Update: Carbon And Tax Policy

Javo International introduces toploader to North America Javo International has introduced its patented toploader for biomass use in North America. The toploader provides a robotic solution for bulk storage and distribution of biomass materials. The toploader, in use for biomass energy production in Europe for nearly a decade, can move up to 60 cubic meters per hour, and has virtually unlimited bunker capacity. UGA professors recognized The Southeastern Society of American Foresters has recognized two University of Georgia professors for their service to forestry education and research. David Dickens was awarded the public education/technology transfer award while Michael Kane received the research and development award. Both Dickens and Kane are professors in UGA&rsquo;s Warnell School of Forstry and Natural Resources. WPAC appoints Rebiere as president, director The Wood Pellet Association of Canada has appointed Michele Rebiere as president and director following the resignation of Brad Bennett. Rene Landry will serve as vice president and director, while Wayne Young will serve as director. Rebiere is chief financial officer of Viridis Enegy Inc., where she began in 2009. Since joining Viridis, Rebiere has been an active industry advocate and a member of the board of directors and vice president of the WPAC the past five years. Landry joined Shaw Resources in May 2014 and currently serves as operations manager. Young has served as president of Pacific BioEnergy since 2009. WPAC&rsquo;s other board members include Vaughan Bassett of Pinnacle Renewable Energy Inc., Narda Brink of Control Union Canada, Jenna MacDonald of Belledune Port Authority, and Ken St. Gelais of Granules LG Inc. Lux Research acquires data analyst firm Energy Points Lux Research, a global leader in emerging technology research and advisory services, has acquired the assets of Energy Points, a leading provider of data analytics that gives the most accurate and precise analysis of energy and resources. Headquartered in Boston, Energy Points helps large companies and government entities improve their resource efficiency through analysis of energy, water, fuels and materials. As part of the transaction, Ory Zik, founder and CEO of Energy Points, and all of the data scientists from Energy Points, will be joining Lux Research. Lux Research clients will gain access to the Energy Points team, who have a combination of modeling, predictive analytics, statistical programming, and physics-guided data mining experience. Alliance BioEnergy Plus announces board members Alliance BioEnergy Plus Inc. has announced new board members. Incumbent members Ted Chasanoff of CBIZ MHM LLC, Michael Bilodeau, Daniel de Liege and Mark Koch were reelected to the board of directors, while retired Army Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling and newly appointed CEO David Matthews were added. Chasanoff will serve as chairman of the board. Amyris, Genome Compiler announce collaboration&nbsp; Amyris Inc. and Genome Compiler Corp. have entered into a collaboration agreement to integrate Amyris&rsquo;s automated lab services with Genome Compiler&rsquo;s online design tools and e-commerce platform to enable users to design and order DNA or other biological products seamlessly. Capstone Turbine to upgrade biogas operation Capstone Turbine Corp. has received an order to upgrade the Irvine Ranch Water District&rsquo;s Michelson Water Recycling Plant in Irvine, California, with five C200 microturbines. Regatta Solutions Inc., Capstone&rsquo;s distributor in California, secured the order, which is expected to be commissioned in early 2016. Once commissioned, the microturbines will cleanly and effectively operate on the biogas produced on-site from municipal solid waste. Capstone microturbines will be installed in a grid connect configuration to provide electricity to the recycling plant in parallel with the local utility. The site will include a biogas conditioning skid to compress the plant&rsquo;s biogas for use in the microturbine engines. The microturbines are deployed in a combined-heat-and-power (CHP) configuration. Fecon announces expansion Fecon Inc. has purchased 9.25 acres of land a 40,000-square-foot building. The addition will complement the company&rsquo;s 111,000-square-foot facility. In addition to providing more room for engineering and tractor production, the new building will also offer an expansive research and development department. Viridis secures pellet contract Viridis Energy Inc. has announced its wholly owned subsidiary Viridis Merchants Inc. has secured a contract with an existing supplier for exclusive distribution of up to 18,000 metric tons of 100 percent Douglas fir pellets. The contract value is more than CA$6 million during 2015. Anesco appoints commercial director Delvin Lane has been appointed commercial director at U.K.-based Anesco. Lane will oversee all aspects of the day-to-day running of the company, with particular focus on the ECO, ESCO and the biomass businesses. Lane has nearly 20 years of experience in the energy and environmental sector. Prior to joining Anesco, he served as head of energy services at EDF.

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There has been a great deal of conversation around the speech I recently gave at the Advanced Biofuels Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C. I would like to further explain some of the key areas of my remarks in today&rsquo;s column.&nbsp; As I stated, members of the Advanced Biofuels Association are facing incredible challenges, including diminishing capital markets, an uncertain tax code, and a patch quilt of state laws and federal regulations. Unfortunately, the renewable fuel standard (RFS)&mdash;the very tool that was created to foster our industry&mdash;has become one of the greatest obstacles to continued development of the advanced and cellulosic biofuel industry due to inconsistent and poor implementation. This is clearly evident as we are now well into 2015 and still waiting for the administration to publish the renewable volume obligations for 2014. Yes, you have it right, they were due Nov. 30, 2013. For those of you who invested your hard earned money to build an advanced plant, you believed you had a reliable and stable contract with the federal government. A contract that would help develop the next generation of biofuels, diversify our energy markets, and reduce our dependence on foreign oil. However, this contract is broken, and the federal government is not holding up its end of the deal. This failure has put your business and the investments you have made in harm&rsquo;s way. Sadly, eight years after its passage, it is easy to see that the RFS is only minimally helpful to advance the promise and potential of next-generation renewable fuels. We have already waited two years for the administration to move forward, only to continue to be left in suspended animation over the political difficulty of deciding on how to move forward. Repeatedly missing deadlines to set annual RFS requirements, and reducing those requirements below statutory levels, has created significant uncertainty. That ambiguity causes financing for advanced and cellulosic companies to evaporate. This delay puts those of you seeking financing to build a new plant in a real bind. Even if your company has a business plan that works when a barrel of oil costs $50, at today&rsquo;s RIN (renewable identification number) prices, capital markets now question whether the support provided by the RFS will exist after 2022.&nbsp; Investors in the second-generation space need answers and decisions, not more rulemakings and comment periods. We must have a clear and defined long-range policy in place, well beyond 2022, in order to be able to finance the building of this new industry. In addition, we must be able to count on the RIN values for advanced and cellulosic pools. When it comes to these issues, I&rsquo;ve been working with EPA since 2009 to attempt to get pathways approved, feedstocks approved, and annual volume requirements released on time. Despite their hard work and commitment to advanced biofuels, I&rsquo;ve frequently been told by those in the agency that they do not have sufficient legal authority to address these important changes. As such, it became clear to members of ABFA that statutory changes need to be made to the RFS and that we need to call upon Congress to pass the legislative fixes needed to strengthen the RFS. We recognize that the political climate in Washington is difficult at best, but members of Congress voted, overwhelmingly, in 2007, with former Pesident George Bush&rsquo;s support, to build an advanced and cellulosic sector. Walking the halls of Congress today still finds overwhelming support for this sector, and we believe that if Congress enacts the changes that ABFA calls for, then the investment community will have the certainty necessary to finance continued development of the advanced and cellulosic industry. If you are committed to fulfilling this mission, and if you believe like I do that advanced and cellulosic biofuels are still poised to flourish in the right environment, then I ask you to join us and work with the Advanced Biofuels Association to reform and strengthen the RFS so it can deliver the promise of next-generation renewable fuels. Author: Michael McAdams President, Advanced Biofuels Association www.advancedbiofuelsassociation.com (202) 289-2001<a style="margin: 0px; border: currentColor; left: 0px; top: 0px; width: 16px; height: 16px; right: 0px; bottom: 0px; overflow: hidden; vertical-align: middle; float: none; display: inline; white-space: nowrap; position: static !important;" title="Call: (202) 289-2001" href="#"><img style="margin: 0px; border: currentColor; left: 0px; top: 0px; width: 16px; height: 16px; right: 0px; bottom: 0px; overflow: hidden; vertical-align: middle; float: none; display: inline; white-space: nowrap; position: static !important;" title="Call: (202) 289-2001" src="data:image/png;base64,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" alt="" /></a>

May 2015

Business Briefs

Business Briefs

Business Briefs

Columns

Setting The Table For The Big Score

New Rule Offers Whistleblowers More Protections

Crowd Participation Needed

Ethanol Delivers Quality And Price

A Call To Action

Flexing Forward With E15

On The Money

On The Verge

Solar Generation May Sideline Biomass Heating

Living In The Limelight

Washington Update: Carbon And Tax Policy

Strengthening The RFS For Next-Gen Biofuels

Featured

2015 Ethanol Industry Salary and Satisfaction Survey

Connecting Compensation To Performance

Top of Biofuels Class

Small Companies, Big Ideas

Profit in Plug and Play

Making Haste To Zero Waste

Cogeneration Cohorts

A Solid Approach to MSW Fuel

Combatting Corrosion

Contributions

High Performance More Marathon Than Sprint

May 2015.css-7jxktu{position:absolute;bottom:0px;left:0px;right:0px;height:3px;border-radius:3px;background-color:var(--chakra-colors-brandBlack);}

Business Briefs

Business Briefs

Business Briefs

Columns

Setting The Table For The Big Score

New Rule Offers Whistleblowers More Protections

Crowd Participation Needed

Ethanol Delivers Quality And Price

A Call To Action

Flexing Forward With E15

On The Money

On The Verge

Solar Generation May Sideline Biomass Heating

Living In The Limelight

Washington Update: Carbon And Tax Policy

Strengthening The RFS For Next-Gen Biofuels

Featured

2015 Ethanol Industry Salary and Satisfaction Survey

Connecting Compensation To Performance

Top of Biofuels Class

Small Companies, Big Ideas

Profit in Plug and Play

Making Haste To Zero Waste

Cogeneration Cohorts

A Solid Approach to MSW Fuel

Combatting Corrosion

Contributions

High Performance More Marathon Than Sprint

May 2015