By Tina Caparella
San Francisco, CA, Mayor Gavin Newsom issued an executive directive in May to increase the pace of municipal use of biodiesel. The city’s board of supervisors also passed legislation to create a Biodiesel Task Force to streamline regulations and create incentives for private-sector use of biodiesel.
Several San Francisco departments and agencies are already using B20, a blend of 20 percent biodiesel and 80 percent petroleum diesel, including the San Francisco airport, Department of Public Works, and the San Francisco Zoo. Ferries operating out of San Francisco have also used B20 with excellent results.
The San Francisco Fire Department has initiated a six-month pilot program to test and monitor the use of B20 in two fire trucks, six engines, and one ambulance. The program will take place in the southeastern section of San Francisco, an area that consistently experiences the city’s poorest air quality. Upon successful completion of the pilot program, the fire department expects to expand the use of biodiesel throughout its fleet.
The executive directive orders all diesel-using city departments to begin using B20 as soon as practicable in all diesel vehicles and other diesel equipment, with the following incremental goals:
• initiate and complete biodiesel pilot project by December 31, 2006;
• 25 percent by March 31, 2007; and
• 100 percent by December 31, 2007.
Newsom also ordered all diesel-using departments to pursue further increases through the use of greater than 20 percent biodiesel blends and/or 100 percent biodiesel.
San Francisco currently uses about eight million gallons of diesel a year. A switch to B20 could create demand for up to two million gallons of biodiesel annually.
Australians Continue to Bank on Tallow
Meat and Livestock Australia has joined Midfield Meat International, Australian Meat Processors’ Corporation, and Sustainability Victoria to launch an initiative designed to produce biodiesel from tallow.
Developed at Midfield Meats in Warnambool, Victoria, Australia, the project is funded by the red meat industry in a joint effort that has the potential to produce over 10 million liters (2.6 million gallons) of biodiesel annually from animal fat. The alternative fuel will be sold to the open market as well as being used for Midfield’s own transport fleet. Dr. Diana Day, board director, Meat and Livestock Australia, said the project was an exciting opportunity to improve the long-term sustainability of the red meat industry.
“This technology is great for profitability as it has the potential to take the volatility out of the tallow market by linking the value of tallow to international oil prices,” Day commented. “This could provide a financial return greater than current average prices and put processors in a more financially secure position.”
The Midfield Meat Group operates one of the largest red meat (beef, veal, lamb, mutton, and offal derivatives) processing plants in Australia as well as a rendering plant, a pastoral company, and a transport business. The company is also currently exploring the viability of developing a cogeneration plant to power the abattoir.
BP Pledges $500 Million for Research
Energy conglomerate BP plans to spend $500 million over the next 10 years to establish a dedicated bioscience energy research laboratory attached to a major academic center in the United States or United Kingdom that could host the BP Energy Biosciences Institute (EBI). The center will focus initially on three key areas of energy bioscience:
• developing new biofuel components and improving the efficiency and flexibility of those currently blended with transport fuels;
• devising new technologies to enhance and accelerate the conversion of organic matter to biofuel molecules, with the aim of increasing the proportion of a crop that can be used to produce feedstock; and
• using modern plant science to develop species that produce a higher yield of energy molecules and can be grown on land not suitable for food production.
The EBI would be staffed by scientists drawn both from the host university and other academic institutions, along with a small number of BP specialists. The institute will undertake basic research freely accessible to the world’s technical communities as well as proprietary applied projects for commercial bioscience applications.
Chevron Invests in Biodiesel
Chevron Corporation has formed a biofuels business unit and invested in a Galveston, TX, biodiesel facility. The biofuels business unit will operate within Chevron Technology Ventures, LLC, a corporate subsidiary dedicated to identifying, developing, and commercializing emerging energy technologies.
Through its Chevron Technology Ventures subsidiary, Chevron has invested in Galveston Bay Biodiesel (GBB) LP, a Houston, TX-based company that is building a biodiesel production and distribution facility in Galveston, TX, scheduled for completion by the end of 2006.
GBB will have initial production of 20 million gallons per year, with the capability to expand operations to 100 million gallons of biodiesel per year. Chevron Technology Ventures holds a 22 percent interest in GBB.
Engine Manufacturers Develop Fuel Specs
The Engine Manufacturers Association (EMA) has released a test specification for biodiesel fuel to facilitate testing and evaluation of how blended biodiesel fuels perform in clean-burning diesel engines.
The EMA specifications – Test Specifications for Biodiesel Fuel – establishes technical requirements for blends of petroleum fuel and biodiesel fuel that can be used to assess the effects of such biodiesel fuels on engine performance, durability, and emissions. Engine manufacturers consider the specifications a critical and necessary first step in further testing and evaluating fuel blends with biodiesel content greater than five percent.
EMA stated that the development and release of the specification does not imply or constitute any endorsement or approval of the use of B20 fuel in any engine or vehicle by EMA or its member companies.
Explosion Kills Worker
According to news reports, an explosion and fire at a New Plymouth, ID, facility being converted to a biodiesel plant killed one man in early July. New Plymouth is about 50 miles northwest of Boise, ID, on the Idaho and Oregon border.
According to Payette County Sheriff’s investigators, Blue Sky Biodiesel employee Blaise Black, 25, was killed when vapors from a 25,000 gallon steel storage tank containing about 30 to 40 gallons of glycerin and methanol ignited after Black lit his cutting torch. He was working on top of the tank attempting to install a two-inch steel pipe with a 90-degree elbow on the end to function as a vent on the top of the tank. Reportedly, during the installation of the vent tube, a steel two-inch cap was removed from the side of the tank where the vent was to be installed, allowing the vapors to escape the tank. An Idaho state police spokesman said Black’s father, Rob Black, suffered second-degree burns and smoke inhalation trying to rescue his son, as did another employee.
Blue Sky had been converting an old fruit warehouse into a biodiesel facility, according to news reports.
Iowa Passes Legislation
Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack recently signed into law two renewable fuels and infrastructure bills, House Files 2754 and 2759, which will increase the use of biodiesel in the state.
The legislation provides point-of-sale retailers a three-cent income tax credit on each gallon of a two percent (B2) or higher blend of biodiesel and petroleum diesel. To qualify, at least half of the distributor or retailer’s diesel sales must be B2 or higher.
One bill also establishes a renewable fuels standard, saying sales of ethanol or biodiesel must equal 25 percent of a retailer’s fuel sales by 2020. There are exceptions for small fuel retailers.
Michigan to Provide Incentives
Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm recently signed a package of legislation that will create incentives for consumers who buy alternative fuel vehicles and service stations that make ethanol and biodiesel available to their customers.
A portion of the $2 billion 21st Century Jobs Fund is being targeted to developing alternative energy production in Michigan. The seven-bill package reduces the gas tax by 36 percent on fuel that contains ethanol and by 20 percent on biodiesel blends. The legislation also provides grants to service station owners who want to renovate or expand their existing stations to make E-85 (85 percent ethanol, 10 percent gasoline) and biodiesel available and allows for the creation of new agriculture zones to help spur more ethanol and biodiesel plants.
New Holland Allows B20
A leader in agricultural and construction equipment, New Holland recently approved the use of up to B20 blends in all equipment currently produced with New Holland engines, so long as the biodiesel meets the specified industry standard for fuel quality, American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) D6751. The announcement was greeted with strong acclaim by industry observers.
“This is what we have been working toward for years: a major equipment manufacturer announcing full support for use of high quality B20 in all of their equipment that has New Holland engines,” said National Biodiesel Board Chief Executive Officer Joe Jobe.
“We are proud to once again take a leading role in giving support to the biodiesel industry as it rapidly moves toward fulfilling its fundamental role in the future of energy use,” stated Dennis Recker, vice president of New Holland Agricultural Business in North America. “New Holland strongly recommends the use of approved fuels and compliance with strict handling, storage, and maintenance requirements to maintain the integrity of the fuel.”
New Holland is offering, through its network of dealers, technical advice and specific maintenance programs to ensure the biodiesel is handled properly and critical areas such as fuel hoses and injectors receive further inspection so customers can confidently work with high-quality B20 blends without compromising the machine’s performance or durability.
Ohio Plant Begins Construction
JatroDiesel, a company that has been manufacturing and marketing biodiesel processing equipment for the past two years, is building its own production facility outside of Dayton, OH. The five million gallon per year facility will use multiple feedstocks, including yellow grease purchased from Darling International and other suppliers.
“We would definitely be looking at using yellow grease at this facility since we think soybean prices would be a detriment in the future,” said JatroDiesel’s Raj Mosali. “They are already up by about 20 percent in six months and future prices seem to be pointing to further hike in the [soybean] oil price.” The plant is expected to go online in September.
The facility will have a testing laboratory on-site to test nearly every batch of the biodiesel to ensure the fuel meets the ASTM D6751 specifications. The plant will also be a “zero waste” facility and use no water in the production process.
Perdue Forms Bioenergy Company
Perdue, Inc., a poultry processor and grain company, has formed Perdue BioEnergy, LLC, a new company that will focus on the growing biofuels industry. Perdue currently partners with biodiesel and ethanol producers to provide feedstocks and to market co-products.
The company is also actively exploring opportunities for equity positions in biofuel plants through strategic partnerships or building its own biofuel plants.
“Perdue BioEnergy will evaluate a number of options which will further leverage our vertical integration and built-in demand for biofuels and their co-products,” said Dick Willey, president of Perdue Farms Grain and Oilseed Division. “We are committed to the biofuels market as a supplier, producer, and consumer.” The company is currently using biodiesel in part of its fleet.
Biodiesel Bulletin - August 2006 Render