Biomass and Biofuels Feature Articles

Converting Carbon Dioxide Gas into a Clean Combination of Algae & Oxygen

Carbon dioxide capture By Bill Weaver

Recognized as a pollutant by the Environmental Protection Agency, carbon dioxide (CO2) and its capture has become a major focal point with energy companies, refineries, and other large industries. Capturing carbon dioxide emissions from various industrial processes keeps it from entering the atmosphere, helping to maintain a cleaner environment and reducing the potential for global warming.

However, one company is going beyond simply sequestering harmful carbon dioxide emissions by recycling the CO2 as food for algae with its unique, patent-pending photobioreactor system. Instead of dealing with emissions by burying them underground or at the bottom of the ocean, these patent-pending processes allow carbon emissions to serve as the catalyst for the growth of algae. The algal biomass grown then becomes the raw material feedstock for a wide range of other beneficial products such as biofuels (i.e. bio-diesel, bio-jet fuel, bio-gasoline), nutraceuticals (including vitamins), specialty chemical products, vegetable oils, and animal feed, just to name a few.

Improving anaerobic bioreactor biogas collection
By Jim McMahon

It’s all about processing corn products. At least for Casco, Inc.—one of Canada’s oldest manufacturers of corn-refined ingredients such as sweeteners, starches, oil, and animal feed. Its products are used in over 60 industries from food and beverage to pharmaceuticals and animal nutrition. However, with processing corn products, comes waste. The company recently upgraded its four million-gallon wastewater anaerobic digester at its Cardinal plant to include a floating and insulated geomembrane cover, effectively streamlining biogas collection, improving odor control, and optimizing bioreactor heat retention.

The plant processes 70 million pounds of corn monthly. Along with this is its need to process a continuing effluent of organic waste. A total average volume of 792,000 gallons (106,000 cubic feet) of wastewater per day enters its treatment facility. Eighty percent of this effluent is first processed through its anaerobic digester.

Crops to biomass By Jennifer Hutchins

Volatile gasoline prices, concerns over global climate change, fossil fuel dependence, and the desire to expand domestic agricultural economies have led to increased interest in biofuels as an alternative to petroleum in the US transportation sector. Ethanol is blended into nearly half of all US gasoline. Today, most of the ethanol in the US is produced from starch contained in corn.

The cellulosic ethanol industry involves turning renewable biomass, such as crop residues and bionenergy crops, into fuel-grade ethanol. This year, the industry has reached an important point in its evolution. The science is ready, the federal government has re-affirmed advanced biofuels mandates, and projects to scale-up production are underway. Within the next few years, the industry aims to deliver cellulosic ethanol that is competitive with gasoline.

Producing cellulosic ethanol involves converting lignocellulosic feedstocks, such as crop residues like corncobs and energy crops like switchgrass, into liquid fuel. Due to strong biofuels research over the past decade, conversion technology is already highly advanced. The technology continues to improve, but the main challenges to scale-up and deployment are optimizing engineering and establishing a reliable, cost-effective biomass supply chain.

Plant species address needs of power industry By David Allen

No longer is the power generation industry dependent upon the utilization of food crops to supply sufficient biomass for a power station. Bianchi Energy Solutions LLC, through its subsidiary White Technology, LLC, has conducted research to find plant species that address the needs of the power industry, but do not divert food-based crops. Efforts have been focused around perennial rhizomatic grasses.

“Perennial rhizomatic grasses are a classification of energy crops that are noted around the world for their potential as excellent biomass sources,” according to Kenn Davis, president of White Technology.

“Through our extensive research into bio-energy crops, we have identified two species that make terrific sources of biomass: Miscanthus giganteus and Giant Reed (Arundo donax). These energy crops have the ability to produce strong yields, with test plots indicating that annual yields can exceed 20 dry tons of biomass per acre within an 18-month period from the initial planting, with yields in warmer climates of the United States exceeding 25 dry tons per acre.”