Other News

French renewable fuels company Global Bioenergies has announced that its demo plant, located at the Leuna refinery site, has successfully operated its entire technical process: fermentation, purification, and filling station. The first bottle containing renewable isobutene has been filled. The construction of the Leuna demo plant was completed at the end of 2016, and the first months of 2017 were…
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Researchers at Michigan State University (MSU) will use a $1.1 million (€930,000) U.S. Department of Energy grant to produce disease-resistant switchgrass in order to produce biofuels from it. It will use the grant to fight disease in switchgrass by identifying regions of the genome that cause disease resistance. According to the MSU, locating these disease-fighting regions will help improve…
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The price of oil has fallen back to around $58.59 a barrel after hitting a two-year high on 26 September, 2017, according to the BBC. Rising demand and geopolitical worries had fuelled the increase, along with indications that production cuts by Opec (Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) members are starting to bite. Brent rose about 4% to just short of $60 (€51), its…
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Developing better algae is a vital requirement in the quest to achieve sustainable algal biofuel. Now, researchers claim to have developed a new technology that could ‘revolutionise’ the search for the perfect algal strain – algal droplet bioreactors on a chip. In the new technology, developed by researchers from the Boyce Thompson Institute and Texas A&M University, a…
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Scientists have successfully converted the wastewater from olive oil production into a green biofuel. To create oil, olives are crushed and mixed with water in mills. The oil is then separated out of this mixture, and dirty water and solid residue discarded. The wastewater created can pollute waterways, reduce soil fertility and trigger extensive damage to ecosystems. In Mediterranean countries,…
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Jet biofuel produced by the oil extracted from ground seeds of camelina and carinata could be a step closer, thanks to new research from South Dakota State University (SDSU), reports Phys.org. Glucosinolate is one of the bioactive compounds that remains after oil has been extracted from the ground seeds of camelina and carinata. According to Zhengrong Gu, an associate professor at South Dakota…
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Scientists at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Colorado are leading a project to improve how algae-based biofuels and bioproducts are made. The US Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office has announced its support for the project, titled: “Rewiring Algal Carbon Energetics for Renewables,” in the form of a $3.5 million (€2.98 million) grant. The…
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US advanced biofuels company Gevo announced that it expects to supply its renewable alcohol-to-jet fuel (ATJ) to the Virgin Australia Group, a well-known Australian airline group.  The Virgin Australia Group will be responsible for coordinating the purchase, supply and blending of the ATJ into the fuel supply system at Brisbane Airport in Queensland, Australia. Gevo’s ATJ is expected…
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A major breakthrough has been made in the direct conversion of methane and carbon dioxide into liquid fuels and chemicals. Researchers claim that the new process could help industry reduce greenhouse gas emissions while producing vital chemical feedstocks. The researchers from the University of Liverpool have developed a plasma synthesis process for a direct, one-step activation of carbon dioxide…
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A four year, $6 million research project is aiming to determine how the US’ Upper Missouri Basin would be affected if biofuels were produced and carbon capture technologies implemented in the region. Experts from the Wyoming, South Dakota and Montana State Universities will generate economic models to see if changes in commodity and capturing carbon are sustainable, and feasible, in the…
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Stuttgart Airport has started using Finnish company Neste’s renewable diesel in a bid to reduce its CO2 emissions. The move to Neste’s MY Renewable Diesel comes as part of the climate program of Baden-Württemberg's state airport in Germany. All the ground fleet vehicles at the airport in Germany which are not electrified, such as the trucks of the airport fire department and…
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Two technologies that could allow cars and trucks to run on seaweed biofuel are currently being developed by the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). The projects have received a combined $2.5 million (€2 million) in funding from the DOE. Macroalgae, to give seaweed its technical name, is most commonly grown for human consumption. However,…
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Biofuels group Leaders of Sustainable Biofuels (LSB) has welcomed Swedish company SEKAB as its new member. SEKAB is a producer of bio-based chemicals and biofuels and also commercialising in-house technologies to convert forestry and agriculture residues to cellulosic sugars, ethanol and lignin. LSB is a coalition of leading advanced biofuels producers and technology developers committed to…
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