American Fuels

Ethanols Effects On Classic Cars Fuel Systems

2009-08-02T18:58:00.004-04:00

Almost a year ago, I reported that the Hagerty Insurance Agency had enlisted Kettering University to study the effects of ethanol blended gasoline on the fuel systems of classic cars and boats. The study attempted to simulate 3000 hours of use in a manner that would duplicate a typical classic vehicle's use cycle.

The preliminary results were released in the Spring 2009 issue of Hagerty’s Magazine.

After several months and a full 3,000 hours of testing, the Hagerty study found that there was no difference between the performance of the SU carburetors (from a 1962 MGA) running E10 and the ones flowing E0 (gasoline without ethanol). The carburetor jets were unobstructed, the needle valves and floats were functioning properly and the throttle shafts were moving freely. Both fuel pumps continued to put out more than 3psi and were flowing fuel at an acceptable rate — regardless of the fuel.

The preliminary results seem promising but it should be noted that only the results from studying one vehicle's fuel system have been released to date. The results from the other five vehicles being studied will be released in a future addition of Hagerty’s Magazine.

Spring 2009 Issue of Hagerty’s Magazine (PDF)

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May Ethanol Production Hits New High

2009-07-30T15:38:00.003-04:00

Ethanol production hit a new high in May with over 871 million gallons produced. Imports and consumption numbers were also higher. Daily production volume reached 669,000 barrels per day.

Ethanol Production Numbers in Gallons
	Production	Imports	Stocks	Consumption
May 2009	871,584,000	21,168,000	587,958,000	928,284,000
April 2009	807,240,000	7,014,000	623,490,000	848,148,000
March 2009	833,154,000	3,276,000	657,384,000	837,942,000
February 2009	761,040,000	2,142,000	658,896,000	700,098,000
January 2009	820,890,000	15,582,000	595,812,000	837,858,000
December 2008	854,364,000	19,446,000	597,198,000	916,146,000
November 2008	842,268,000	11,676,000	639,534,000	852,474,000
October 2008	842,016,000	25,830,000	638,064,000	901,530,000
September 2008	806,274,000	103,572,000	671,748,000	863,142,000
August 2008	842,478,000	81,102,000	625,044,000	852,348,000
July 2008	799,764,000	57,120,000	553,812,000	819,840,000
June 2008	736,848,000	65,982,000	516,768,000	791,910,000
May 2008	778,806,000	36,372,000	505,848,000	793,968,000

Source: - Energy Information Administration

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Valero says all 7 ethanol plants at capacity

2009-07-25T20:27:00.001-04:00

Top U.S. oil refiner Valero Energy Corp said all seven of the ethanol plants it bought in March from a bankrupt producer were now running at capacity and making money.

"Ethanol is kind of a bright spot for us right now. They are generating cash flow," Valero spokesman Bill Day said of the plants, which have the combined capacity of about 780 million gallons a year, or about 7.5 percent of the total U.S. operating capacity to make the fuel.

Valero began production at the 110-million-gallon-per-year ethanol plant in Welcome, Minnesota, during the first week of July, Day said by telephone.

The company bought the plants from VeraSun Energy, which filed for bankruptcy protection after locking in pricey contracts for corn, the main input cost for making ethanol.

Source : Reuters India

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Ethanol's lack of compatibility over stated.

2009-06-28T05:36:00.004-04:00

Gasoline is not a single substance. It is a complex mixture of components which vary widely in their physical and chemical properties. There is no such thing as pure gasoline. Gasoline must cover a wide range of operating conditions, such as variations in fuel systems, engine temperatures, fuel pumps and fuel pressure. It must also cover a variety of climates, altitudes, and driving patterns. The properties of gasoline must be balanced to give satisfactory engine performance over an extremely wide range of circumstances. In some respects, the prevailing quality standards represent compromises, so that all the numerous performance requirements may be satisfied.

Auto manufacturers have, for many years, used materials that are compatible with oxygenated fuels. However, with the widespread use of oxygenated fuels and reformulated gasoline, certain myths have resurfaced, so they warrant mention here. In earlier versions of this manual this topic was covered in greater detail, including photographs from various tests and applicable service bulletins.

The information presented was segmented into two categories, metals and elastomers.

Most metal components in automobile fuel systems will corrode or rust in the presence of water, air or acidic compounds. The gasoline distribution system usually contains water, and additional moisture may collect in the automobile tank from condensation. Gasoline may also contain traces of sulfur and organic acids. Gasoline has always been recognized as potentially corrosive. Pipelines which distribute gasoline routinely require that corrosion inhibitors be contained in gasoline to protect their plain steel pipe. Therefore, corrosion inhibitors have been routinely added to gasoline for many years.

Alcohols are more soluble in water than MTBE. The addition of ethanol will increase a gasoline’s ability to hold water. Therefore, an ethanol enhanced gasoline may have a slightly higher moisture content than non-blended gasoline. Several tests have been reported on ethanol enhanced gasolines. Vehicle fuel tanks and fuel system components from autos operated for extended periods on these blends were removed, cut open, and examined. These tests have generally concluded that ethanol does not increase corrosion in normal, everyday operation.

Auto manufacturers have indicated they do not have major concerns about metal corrosion, provided that all fuels contain effective corrosion inhibitors at the proper treatment levels. Responsible ethanol producers recognize that not all commercial gasolines are adequately treated for blending, and have, for some time, included a corrosion inhibitor in their ethanol.

Elastomer compatibility is more difficult to generalize. A number of gasoline ingredients can have an effect on elastomer swelling and deterioration. For instance, aromatics, such as benzene, toluene, and xylene, have been shown to have detrimental effects on some fuel system elastomers. Gasolines sold today have a higher level of aromatics than those sold in the 1970s.

The addition of alcohols or ethers to gasoline can also cause swelling in fuel system elastomers. Swelling can be severe with methanol, but relatively insignificant with other alcohols. Ten volume percent ethanol contributes less swelling than the amount of additional aromatics needed to obtain the same increase in octane number. The combination of ethanol or MTBE with high aromatic levels may cause greater swelling than either product by itself.

Automobile and parts manufacturers have been responsive to the changes occurring in today’s gasoline. Materials problems are less likely to occur with newer vehicles because of the upgrading of fuel system materials that has occurred since the introduction of higher aromatic unleaded gasolines and the addition of alcohols and ethers. All major automobile manufacturers have indicated that their late model vehicles are equipped with fuel system components upgraded for use with these fuels.

While all auto manufacturers warrant the use of 10 percent ethanol blends or gasoline containing MTBE. Fuel systems in 1975 to 1980 model years were
upgraded, but not to the same extent as later models. Pre- 1975 models may have fuel system components that are sensitive to high aromatic gasolines, alcohols and ethers. Specific documentation of the effect fuel components have on older fuel system parts is often lacking.

Technicians who find themselves replacing parts on pre-1980 vehicles should specify that replacement parts be resistant to such fuel components. These products include Viton® (EGR valves, fuel inlet needle tips) and fluoro elastomers (fuel lines, evaporative control lines, etc.)

It is interesting to note that many of the aromatic components of gasoline such as benzene, toluene, and xylene do not fare very well on chemical compatibility charts with common elastomers used in modern day engines. However, many of the same elastomer components show a good to excellent rating in the presence of ethanol.

I have provided a link to a chemical compatibility chart so you too can see how ethanol and other components of aromatic gasolines fares in the presence of elastomers.

I have also provided a link to Changes in Gasoline III, The Auto Technicians Gasoline Quality Guide. Changes in Gasoline III is the latest in the ongoing series of Changes in Gasoline manuals. The first manual, entitled Changes in Gasoline & the Automobile Service Technician, was originally published in 1987. Over a four year period it was periodically updated to focus on fuel related areas of greatest interest to automobile service technicians. The first version of the manual achieved a circulation of 345,000 copies.

This is by far the most comprehensive guide that I have even seen concerning common components of gasoline and it effects on use in new and older model vehicles.

There is also a great deal of information on use in small engines including outboard motors. This manual is a must read for the automobile and small engine techicians.

Chemical compatibility chart
Changes in Gasoline III

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Corn Ethanol blamed for Gulf Dead Zones?

2009-06-27T22:48:00.008-04:00

In recent years, there has been great uncertainty regarding the cause of the hypoxic zone (low oxygen) in the northern Gulf of Mexico. This has often been the result of a lack of data to support many of the prevailing theories regarding the size, duration and source of the problem. This paper looks at the available information and draws thefollowing conclusions.

First, the hypoxic zone is seasonal. While localized effects can be severe, vast “dead zones” with widespread negative effects on the fishing industry may be overstated. On the contrary, it is possible that the water flow from the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River Basin (MARB) delivers the basic nutrients required for the very existence of the northern Gulf fishing industry.

Second, fishing data since 1985 shows no negative impact nor any clear relationship between the fish catch, the flow of water through the MARB or the size of the seasonal hypoxic zone.

Third, there is also no clear evidence of a relationship between nitrogen and the size of the seasonal hypoxic zone. In recent years, as corn production has become more efficient and yields have increased, the nitrogen removed from corn fields in the grain may equal or exceed the amount of nitrogen applied in the fertilizer.

While many conclude that corn ethanol is the real reason for the large Gulf Dead Zones, a closer look shows that this is just not true.

There are several sources of nitrogen that contribute to algae growth in the Gulf.

1) Natural sources such as fixation, soil, etc.
2) Agricultural sources such as fertilizer application
3) Industrial sources such as waste water treatment
4) Municipal sources such as sewage, golf courses, and run‐off from lawns, etc.

There has been considerable finger‐pointing at agriculture as the source of N and, in particular, at corn because the total N application is relatively high.

We explored this further to determine the net N balance in relation to corn: our hypothesis was that since corn yield has increased considerably over the years then the nitrogen removed in the grain will have increased, thereby, resulting in a large increase in nitrogen use efficiency in corn.

It should be noted that between 1970 and 1980 the N removed was just over 50% of
the applied N. However, as yields corn increased without a corresponding increase in applied N, the ratio gradually improved until, for 2007, the N amount removed in the grain is about equal to the N amount applied.

Therefore, under present day cultural practices, the net balance for N applied and N removed in corn is such that there is no excess N available due to fertilizer use. The conclusion then is that any change in N entering the Gulf via the MARB, over time, is probably not related to the use of fertilizer N for corn.

Other possible sources.

The amount of N flowing through the MARB that originates from sewage has likely increased by a considerable amount. While difficult to calculate the exact number, we can assume that N output per person is relatively constant, while the population within the Mississippi watershed increased by 22% between 1970 and 2000.

Another source that is linked to population and the expansion of homes is that from the N applied to lawns.

The estimated area for lawns, which includes golf courses and other commercial grass areas, in 2005, was ~64K sq miles = 41 MM acres across the U.S. We estimate that 60% of the area falls within the Mississippi watershed, which would be 24.6 MM acres of lawns.

The typical recommendation for lawns works out to be 130 lb N/acre/season.
Therefore, the amount of N applied to lawns within the Mississippi watershed is 3.2 billion lbs, or 1.6 MM tons N per year.

Since most lawns are cut and mulched there is relatively little removal of N, unlike the grain in corn. Consequently, a major portion of the N applied to lawns may be available for leaching. While the total amount of N applied to lawns is approx 25% of the total N applied to corn, the net N available for leaching per acre is almost infinitely higher for lawns than from corn.

Complete study with charts

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President Obama Announces Over $467 Million in Recovery Act Funding for Geothermal and Solar Energy Projects

2009-05-27T16:16:00.002-04:00

WASHINGTON – President Obama today announced over $467 million from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act to expand and accelerate the development, deployment, and use of geothermal and solar energy throughout the United States. The funding announced today represents a substantial down payment that will help the solar and geothermal industries overcome technical barriers, demonstrate new technologies, and provide support for clean energy jobs for years to come. Today’s announcement supports the Obama Administration’s strategy to increase American economic competiveness, while supporting jobs and moving toward a clean energy economy.

“We have a choice. We can remain the world’s leading importer of oil, or we can become the world’s leading exporter of clean energy,” said President Obama. “We can hand over the jobs of the future to our competitors, or we can confront what they have already recognized as the great opportunity of our time: the nation that leads the world in creating new sources of clean energy will be the nation that leads the 21st century global economy. That’s the nation I want America to be.”

"We have an ambitious agenda to put millions of people to work by investing in clean energy technology like solar and geothermal energy,” Energy Secretary Steven Chu said. "These technologies represent two pieces of a broad energy portfolio that will help us aggressively fight climate change and renew our position as a global leader in clean energy jobs.”

Geothermal Energy
Geothermal energy is a clean source of renewable energy that harnesses heat from the Earth for heating applications and electricity generation; geothermal plants can operate around the clock to provide significant uninterrupted “base load” electricity, or the minimum amount a power utility must provide to its customers.

The Recovery Act makes a $350 million new investment in this technology, dwarfing previous government commitments. Recovery Act funding will support projects in four crucial areas: geothermal demonstration projects; Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) research and development; innovative exploration techniques; and a National Geothermal Data System, Resource Assessment and Classification System.

* Geothermal Demonstration Projects ($140 Million)
Funding will support demonstrations of cutting-edge technologies to advance geothermal energy in new geographic areas, as well as geothermal energy production from oil and natural gas fields, geopressured fields, and low to moderate temperature geothermal resources.
* Enhanced Geothermal Systems Technology Research and Development ($80 Million)
Funding will support research of EGS technology to allow geothermal power generation across the country. Conventional geothermal energy systems must be located near easily-accessible geothermal water resources, limiting its nationwide use. EGS makes use of available heat resources through engineered reservoirs, which can then be tapped to produce electricity. While the long-term goal of EGS is to generate cost competitive clean electricity, enabling research and development is needed to demonstrate the technology’s readiness in the near-term.
* Innovative Exploration Techniques ($100 Million)
Funding will support projects that include exploration, siting, drilling, and characterization of a series of exploration wells utilizing innovative exploration techniques. Exploration of geothermal energy resources can carry a high upfront risk. By investing in and validating innovative exploration technologies and methods, DOE can help reduce the level of upfront risk for the private sector, allowing for increased investment and discovery of new geothermal resources.
* National Geothermal Data System, Resource Assessment, and Classification System ($30 Million)
The long-term success of geothermal energy technologies depends upon a detailed characterization of geothermal energy resources nationwide. In 2008, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) conducted an assessment of high temperature resource potential in the Western United States. To fully leverage new low-temperature, geopressured, co-production, and EGS technologies, DOE will support a nationwide assessment of geothermal resources, working through the USGS and other partners. Second, DOE will support the development of a nationwide data system to make resource data available to academia, researchers, and the private sector. Finally, DOE will support the development of a geothermal resource classification system for use in determining site potential.

Solar Energy
Solar energy is a rapidly expanding industry with a double-digit annual growth rate in the United States. DOE is focused on supporting the U.S. industry’s scaling up of manufacturing, production, and distribution so the technology can become cost competitive with conventional sources of energy. DOE will provide $117.6 million in Recovery Act funding to accelerate widespread commercialization of clean solar energy technologies across America. These activities will leverage partnerships that include DOE’s national laboratories, universities, local government, and the private sector, to strengthen the U.S. solar industry and make it a leader in international markets.

* Photovoltaic Technology Development ($51.5 Million)
DOE will expand investment in advanced photovoltaic concepts and high impact technologies, with the aim of making solar energy cost-competitive with conventional sources of electricity and to strengthen the competitiveness and capabilities of domestic manufacturers.
* Solar Energy Deployment ($40.5 Million)
Projects in this area will focus on non-technical barriers to solar energy deployment, including grid connection, market barriers to solar energy adoption in cities, and the shortage of trained solar energy installers. Combined with new technology development, these deployment activities will help clear the path for wider adoption of solar energy in residential, commercial, and municipal environments.
* Concentrating Solar Power Research and Development ($25.6 Million)
This work will focus on improving the reliability of concentrating solar power technologies and enhancing the capabilities of DOE National Laboratories to provide test and evaluation support to the solar industry.

Department of Energy Press Release

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February Biodiesel Production Rises

2009-05-20T15:45:00.003-04:00

February biodiesel production rose by just over 2 million gallons over January numbers.

February 2009 - 35,528,366 gallons
January 2009 - 33,394,510 gallons
December 2008 - 48,584,837 gallons
November 2008 - 62,218,170 gallons
October 2008 - 61,718,000 gallons
September 2008 - 64,134,000 gallons
August 2008 - 66,696,000 gallons
July 2008 - 67,410,000 gallons
June 2008 - 63,378,000 gallons
May 2008 - 52,500,000 gallons
April 2008 - 52,836,000 gallons
March 2008 - 49,056,000 gallons
February 2008 - 43,260,000 gallons
January 2008 - 50,736,000 gallons

2007 - 489,804,000 gallons

Source : U.S. Census Bureau

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February Ethanol Production Higher

2009-05-01T15:35:00.004-04:00

The total amount of ethanol produced during February was down from the total from January due to the fact that February had 3 fewer days. The daily production volume increased from 630,000 barrels per day in January to 647,000 barrels per day in February.

Ethanol Production Numbers in Gallons
	Production	Imports	Stocks	Consumption
February 2009	761,040,000	2,142,000	658,896,000	700,098,000
January 2009	820,890,000	15,582,000	595,812,000	837,858,000
December 2008	854,364,000	19,446,000	597,198,000	916,146,000
November 2008	842,268,000	11,676,000	639,534,000	852,474,000
October 2008	842,016,000	25,830,000	638,064,000	901,530,000
September 2008	806,274,000	103,572,000	671,748,000	863,142,000
August 2008	842,478,000	81,102,000	625,044,000	852,348,000
July 2008	799,764,000	57,120,000	553,812,000	819,840,000
June 2008	736,848,000	65,982,000	516,768,000	791,910,000
May 2008	778,806,000	36,372,000	505,848,000	793,968,000
April 2008	708,456,000	60,942,000	484,638,000	763,182,000
March 2008	730,674,000	15,456,000	478,422,000	707,238,000
February 2008	631,050,000	20,286,000	439,530,000	660,114,000

Source: - Energy Information Administration

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E85 Stations Finish April At 1991

2009-05-01T15:23:00.003-04:00

One new E85 station was added during the month of April bringing the total to 1991. This is the lowest amount added for any one month since I started keeping track. Hopefully now that better weather is here more will be added in the near future.

May 1, 2009 - 1991
April 1 2009 - 1990
March 1, 2009 - 1969
February 1, 2009 - 1927
January 1, 2009 - 1899
December 1, 2008 - 1868
November 1, 2008 - 1837
October 1, 2008 - 1782
September 1, 2008 - 1743
August 1, 2008 - 1663
July 1, 2008 - 1627
June 1, 2008 - 1579
May 1, 2008 - 1560
April 1, 2008 - 1521
March 1, 2008 - 1501
February 1, 2008 - 1475
November 9, 2007 - 1378
May 7, 2007 - 1200

The current number plus the locations of all E85 stations can be found at the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition.

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Panda sells Hereford ethanol plant

2009-04-25T13:12:00.003-04:00

Panda Ethanol's Hereford facility which filed for bankruptcy in January, has been sold for $25 million to it's creditors. The plant is in the final stages of construction.

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas-Dallas Division finalized the sale of the plant to senior lenders of the company for $25 million in credit.

The sale price represents about 12% of the cost to construct the plant.

Source : Amarillo.com

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American Coalition For Ethanol's E15 Petition

2009-04-16T23:51:00.002-04:00

The American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) has set up an online petition to show support for raising the ethanol content in gasoline to 15%.

A waiver is being considered at the U.S. EPA to allow up to 15 percent ethanol per gallon of gasoline, raising the now 30-year-old limit on having only 10 percent ethanol per gallon. ACE wants to gather as many signatures as possible to demonstrate to Congress, the White House, EPA, and the media that Americans want more ethanol.

Please help demonstrate America's grassroots support for ethanol by signing the petition today.

E15 Petition

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Producing Ethanol And Cleaning Waste With Duckweed

2009-04-10T22:05:00.002-04:00

Researchers at North Carolina State University have found that a tiny aquatic plant can be used to clean up animal waste at industrial hog farms and potentially be part of the answer for the global energy crisis. Their research shows that growing duckweed on hog wastewater can produce five to six times more starch per acre than corn, according to researcher Dr. Jay Cheng. This means that ethanol production using duckweed could be "faster and cheaper than from corn," says fellow researcher Dr. Anne-Marie Stomp.

"We can kill two birds – biofuel production and wastewater treatment – with one stone – duckweed," Cheng says. Starch from duckweed can be readily converted into ethanol using the same facilities currently used for corn, Cheng adds.

Large-scale hog farms manage their animal waste by storing it in large "lagoons" for biological treatment. Duckweed utilizes the nutrients in the wastewater for growth, thus capturing these nutrients and preventing their release into the environment. In other words, Cheng says, "Duckweed could be an environmentally friendly, economically viable feedstock for ethanol."

Source : NCSU Press Release

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Congressional Budget Office Studies Ethanol's Contribution To Last Years Food Price Increases

2009-04-10T13:15:00.004-04:00

The Congressional Budget Office has just released a report on ethanol's contribution to last years food price increases.

CBO estimates that from April 2007 to April 2008, the rise in the price of corn resulting from expanded production of ethanol contributed between 0.5 and 0.8 percentage points of the 5.1 percent increase in food prices measured by the consumer price index (CPI). Over the same period, certain other factors—for example, higher energy costs—had a greater effect on food prices than did the use of ethanol as a motor fuel.

So they concluded that ethanol was responsible for 10 to 15 percent of the overall increase in food prices during the period studied. The other 85 to 90 percent of the overall increase came from other factors, such as increased energy costs, the strength of the dollar and increases global consumption of meat.

Source : The Impact of Ethanol Use on Food Prices and Greenhouse-Gas Emissions (PDF)

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January Biodiesel Production Falls Sharply

2009-04-05T23:49:00.005-04:00

January biodiesel production fell sharply to about 33.4 million gallons, the lowest monthly total since April 2007.

January 2009 - 33,394,510 gallons
December 2008 - 48,584,837 gallons
November 2008 - 62,218,170 gallons
October 2008 - 61,718,000 gallons
September 2008 - 64,134,000 gallons
August 2008 - 66,696,000 gallons
July 2008 - 67,410,000 gallons
June 2008 - 63,378,000 gallons
May 2008 - 52,500,000 gallons
April 2008 - 52,836,000 gallons
March 2008 - 49,056,000 gallons
February 2008 - 43,260,000 gallons
January 2008 - 50,736,000 gallons

2007 - 489,804,000 gallons

Source : U.S. Census Bureau

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Senators Harkin, Thune, Johnson Introduce Legislation To Promote Biofuel Pipelines

2009-04-03T22:00:00.003-04:00

April 3rd, 2009 - Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA), John Thune (R-SD) and Tim Johnson (D-SD) today introduced legislation that authorizes loan guarantees for the construction of renewable fuel pipeline projects. While the Midwest and Plains states produce the majority of the biofuels in the United States, the nation is currently lacking the infrastructure to efficiently transport these liquid fuels to population centers in the East and elsewhere. This bill will address this issue by encouraging the construction and use of pipelines which can easily transport these fuels in a clean, safe and cost efficient manner.

"We must seize control of our energy future and take major steps towards the use of clean, renewable home-grown sources of energy," said Harkin. "Promoting the planning and development of projects that transport renewable fuels efficiently and inexpensively helps enlarge the market for biofuels like ethanol, reduces our dependence on foreign fuels and will provide good construction jobs."

"Pipelines are the safest, most reliable, and cost effective way to move biofuels from the areas they are produced to the markets where they are consumed," said Thune. "These pipelines will reduce energy costs across the country as well as create an estimated 25 jobs for every $1 million of construction. Access to ethanol-dedicated pipelines will benefit both consumers and the ethanol industry for years to come."

"Many experts believe that a pipeline network to transport biofuels is necessary to achieve the aggressive renewable fuel requirements. But limited transportation options of truck, rail and barge will only get us so far. Pipelines are necessary to get this fuel moving to where the people are. These loan guarantees will spur pipeline development and help create new jobs and lower our dependence on foreign sources of energy," said Johnson.

When compared to other forms of biofuel transportation, pipelines have the lowest energy input requirements and produce the least amount of carbon emissions. In fact, pipelines produce 30 percent less emissions than railcars and 87 percent less than trucks. Pipeline transport of biofuels is also safer than using trucks or trains. In addition to these efficiency and safety advantages, it is estimated that the construction projects related to the renewable fuel pipelines will create up to 25,000 jobs nationally.

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January Ethanol Production Drops

2009-04-02T22:20:00.003-04:00

January ethanol production dropped to just over 820 million gallons, the lowest level since September of last year.

Ethanol Production Numbers in Gallons
	Production	Imports	Stocks	Consumption
January 2009	820,890,000	15,582,000	595,812,000	837,858,000
December 2008	854,364,000	19,446,000	597,198,000	916,146,000
November 2008	842,268,000	11,676,000	639,534,000	852,474,000
October 2008	842,016,000	25,830,000	638,064,000	901,530,000
September 2008	806,274,000	103,572,000	671,748,000	863,142,000
August 2008	842,478,000	81,102,000	625,044,000	852,348,000
July 2008	799,764,000	57,120,000	553,812,000	819,840,000
June 2008	736,848,000	65,982,000	516,768,000	791,910,000
May 2008	778,806,000	36,372,000	505,848,000	793,968,000
April 2008	708,456,000	60,942,000	484,638,000	763,182,000
March 2008	730,674,000	15,456,000	478,422,000	707,238,000
February 2008	631,050,000	20,286,000	439,530,000	660,114,000
January 2008	664,356,000	20,790,000	448,308,000	679,308,000

Source: - Energy Information Administration

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E85 Stations Finish March At 1990

2009-04-01T00:01:00.000-04:00

The number of E85 stations across the country continues to grow reaching 1990 by the end of March. For the month 21 new locations were added.

April 1 2009 - 1990
March 1, 2009 - 1969
February 1, 2009 - 1927
January 1, 2009 - 1899
December 1, 2008 - 1868
November 1, 2008 - 1837
October 1, 2008 - 1782
September 1, 2008 - 1743
August 1, 2008 - 1663
July 1, 2008 - 1627
June 1, 2008 - 1579
May 1, 2008 - 1560
April 1, 2008 - 1521
March 1, 2008 - 1501
February 1, 2008 - 1475
November 9, 2007 - 1378
May 7, 2007 - 1200

The current number plus the locations of all E85 stations can be found at the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition.

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Corn Plus ethanol plant explores using city wastewater

2009-03-30T22:34:00.002-04:00

Corn Plus is exploring the possibility of using treated wastewater from the city of Winnebago in it's ethanol plant.

The city of Winnebago discharges a minimum of about 350,000 gallons of treated wastewater into the Blue Earth River each day.

The ethanol plant just east of town uses up to 350,000 gallons of fresh groundwater daily to produce its fuel.

Ethanol plants have taken a lot of criticism lately for their water usage. This arrangement would help to divert some of that criticism and would be a new revenue source for the city of Winnebago.

Source : Agweek

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Oregon State Researchers Using Algae To Produce Hydrogen

2009-03-29T00:29:00.003-04:00

OSU researchers successfully got one type of cyanobacteria – more commonly known as blue-green algae – to live, grow and produce hydrogen while the cells were “encapsulated” in a solid state system, an important preliminary step to controlling this interaction of water, light and bacteria for practical use.

Significant progress still needs to be made in making the process more efficient and using light energy more effectively, but the advance demonstrates the feasibility of using these biological processes to produce hydrogen – which could be used directly as a fuel, or in hydrogen fuel cells to power the electric automobiles of the future.

The recent findings were published in the International Journal of Hydrogen Energy. Based on this and other progress, the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research also recently awarded a grant of $938,000 to OSU, the University of Oregon and Indiana University to continue research.

Source : Oregon State Press Release

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POET Chancellor Ethanol Plant Powered By Landfill Gas

2009-03-27T21:28:00.003-04:00

Chancellor, S.D. and the city of Sioux Falls, S.D. have taken "green" to a new level with the completion of a landfill gas pipeline that is now providing methane gas to help power daily operations of the 105 million gallon per year (MGPY) POET ethanol plant.

The 10-mile, low-pressure pipeline from the Sioux Falls Regional Sanitary Landfill began supplying methane to the plant at the end of February, ahead of the expected completion date. The POET plant will utilize the landfill gas in a wood waste-fuel boiler to generate process steam. Combined, the two alternative energy sources will initially offset up to 90 percent of the plant’s process steam needs currently met using natural gas and has the potential to replace 90 percent of the plant’s total energy needs (combined with waste wood) over time.

The methane is produced when solid waste decomposes at the landfill. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the annual environmental benefits from using this gas for power is equal to removing emissions from more than 27,000 passenger vehicles, removing carbon dioxide emissions from more than 344,000 barrels of oil or sequestering carbon with nearly 34,000 acres of pine or fir forests. Besides reducing greenhouse gasses, the partnership provides additional revenue to Sioux Falls and lowers energy costs at the Chancellor plant.

"At POET, we take a lot of pride in helping reduce the human impact on our environment," POET CEO Jeff Broin said. "Ethanol already cuts greenhouse gasses significantly compared to gasoline. This partnership makes that process even cleaner."

Sioux Falls Mayor Dave Munson said the new Methane Gas Compressor system provides a benefit for everyone in the area.

"Not only is this now allowing us to reuse the methane, but with POET as our customer we have added a revenue stream to the landfill which is going to keep rates low for the entire region," Munson said.

POET and the City of Sioux Falls are members of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Landfill Methane Outreach Program (LMOP). The program aims to reduce methane emissions from landfills by encouraging development of cost-effective and environmentally sound landfill gas projects.

Source : POET Press Release

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Minnesota State Study : E20 No Harder On Engines Than Gasoline

2009-03-25T01:11:00.004-04:00

The fruits, so far, of a $497,000 grant to Minnesota State University to study ethanol: A 20 percent blend appears to be no harder on vehicles than regular gasoline.

The study, led by Bruce Jones and Jim Rife in MSU’s automotive engineering technology department, has tested the effects of different blends of ethanol on the raw materials of a vehicle as well as fuel system parts.

Today all gas sold in Minnesota includes 10 percent ethanol. Some gas is 85 percent ethanol ( called E85). It’s the intermediate blends — between 10 percent and 85 percent — that MSU is studying.

It’s using regular vehicles, not the “flex fuel” models specifically designed to run on high ethanol blends. Jones said research into the 20 percent blend has just been completed.

Tests on raw materials — the metals, plastics and rubber- like substances — found no problems with the E20 blend.

Likewise, fuel pumps using regular gasoline, E10 and E20 were run for 5,000 hours and there was no more wear and tear on the higher- ethanol blend.

The research is being done to support a Minnesota proposal to move to a 20 percent blend in all gasoline by 2012.

Source : Minnesota State

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Kohler Introduces Industry’s First E85 Compatable Small Engine Line

2009-03-22T13:09:00.006-04:00

Fuel efficient, cleaner burning engines will soon be the standard – not an option – on all KOHLER Command PRO® and Aegis® twin-cylinder engines.

Starting with its Command PRO 30 gasoline, twin-cylinder model in March, Kohler will introduce the first flex-fuel, electronic fuel injection(EFI) engine. Over the next two years, Kohler will convert its entire Command PRO air-cooled and Aegis liquid-cooled engines with this technology. And at a competitive price with traditional carbureted engines.

Kohler partnered with Delphi – a leading global supplier of mobile electronics and transportation systems – to design this new flex-fuel EFI system with patent-pending technology that will offer significant fuel savings, improved performance and reduced emissions.

KOHLER flex-fuel EFI models will be available on 26 twin-cylinder models ranging from 19-41 hp, and will operate efficiently and without excessive wear on the engine when E-85 or any other alternative fuel is used. An additional benefit of the new Kohler flex-fuel EFI engines is instant load response. The Kohler exclusive EFI system allows the engine to respond with peak Kohler performance even in changing altitudes and load requirements, which in turn, operates at top efficiency.

Kohler also designed this new line of engines within the same footprint as its current Command PRO and Aegis models, so that OEMs can easily drop in the newest Kohler engine without altering the end equipment design to accommodate the engine.

This is accommodated by Kohler’s exclusive self-contained EFI design, which features only one fuel line rather than an additional return fuel line with a special harness. The fuel module, electronic control unit and sensors are also all engine-mounted.

“Kohler introduces this new technology not only at a time when fuel prices are hitting all-time highs, but there’s also been movement of diesel-powered users looking more carefully at spark-ignited engines and what they can now bring to the table,” said Rich Koehl, director of marketing and quality, Kohler Engines. “Depending on the application, end users can realize a 17% to 28% fuel efficiency savings. And, Kohler will be within the EPA phase 3/CARB Tier 3 levels immediately, with extremely low levels of HC and NOx being produced. If the engines run on E-85, those emissions levels are reduced even further compared to operating with gasoline.”

Also true to Kohler Engines, the “closed-loop” system will continue to be a standard feature on these new engines. In most EFI engines, when an EFI engine is started, it operates in an “open loop” mode mapped by the electronic control unit (ECU). Only KOHLER EFI engines include an oxygen sensor that analyzes the air/fuel mixture in the exhaust. If the oxygen level strays from the ideal air/fuel mixture, the sensor triggers adjustments in the ECU map to adjust the amount of fuel injected into the system. Only KOHLER EFI engines then “close the loop” between the air/fuel intake and the exhaust output to provide a constant steam of critical feedback - and optimal power and fuel economy. The closed loop advantage also means that only KOHLER EFI engines automatically adapt to air cleaner conditions and altitude changes.

Kohler was the first small-engine manufacturer to introduce EFI with closed loop on its engines in the mid 1990s, featuring the EFI system as an option and just a few select air- and liquid-cooled models, which carried a higher price tag over its carbureted models. Since then, KOHLER has found a way to take the EFI technology – long used in the automotive industry – and integrate it among multiple horsepower levels at an extremely competitive price.

Source : Kohler Press Release

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Landfill to build power plant run on methane gas

2009-03-20T23:54:00.003-04:00

Waste Management Inc. plans to build Arkansas' second "gas-to-energy plant" near its Tontitown landfill.

The plant will convert methane gas to generate about 5 megawatts of electricity, which could power 5,000 homes, said George Wheatley, a spokesman for the Houston based company. Methane gas is created naturally as waste decays in landfills.

"It's green electricity," Wheatley said. "It moves your landfill from being just a landfill to being a component of renewable energy."

The Tontitown landfill should have an ample supply of methane to provide 5 megawatts of electricity for about 30 years, Wheatley said.

Source : NWAnews

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VeraSun Energy Selects Valero as Successful Bidder for Seven Facilities

2009-03-17T22:55:00.000-04:00

VeraSun Energy Corp. today announced that it has selected Valero Renewable Fuels as the successful bidder for assets contained in the “VSE Group”, in addition to ethanol production facilities in Albion, Neb., and Albert City, Iowa, following an auction in Wilmington, Del. The secured lenders submitted successful credit bids for each of the remaining facilities.

The VSE Group consists of production facilities in Aurora, S.D.; Charles City, Fort Dodge and Hartley, Iowa, and Welcome, Minn., and a development site in Reynolds, Ind.

Upon the conclusion of the auction, VeraSun selected Valero as the successful bidder to purchase the VSE Group facilities for a base purchase price of $350 million, $72 million for the US Bio Energy facility in Albert City, Iowa and $55 million for the ASA facility in Albion, Neb., plus working capital and other certain adjustments.

The secured lenders for the remaining facilities submitted successful credit bids. Dougherty Funding, LLC submitted a credit bid of $93 million for the Marion, S.D. production facility. A group of lenders led by AgStar Financial Services submitted a credit bid of $324 million for the remaining “US BioEnergy Group”, which includes ethanol production facilities in Central City and Ord, Neb.; Dyersville, Iowa; Hankinson, N.D.; Janesville, Minn., and Woodbury, Mich. A group of lenders led by West LB AG submitted a credit bid of $99 million for the remaining “ASA Group” facilities, consisting of production facilities in Bloomingburg, Ohio and Linden, Ind.

VeraSun will seek approval of the successful bids at a sale hearing conducted by the US Bankruptcy Court on Wednesday, March 18, 2009 at noon. The sales are expected to close in April.

Source : VeraSun Press Release

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POET And Magellan To Assess Dedicated Ethanol Pipeline

2009-03-16T23:36:00.000-04:00

Magellan Midstream Partners, L.P. today announced that it has signed a joint development agreement with POET to continue assessing the feasibility of constructing a dedicated ethanol pipeline. The proposed ethanol pipeline system would safely and efficiently deliver ethanol from the Midwest to distribution terminals in the northeastern United States.

The proposed common carrier pipeline system would gather ethanol from production facilities in Iowa, South Dakota, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio to serve terminals in major Northeastern markets. The project, preliminarily estimated to cost in excess of $3.5 billion, would span approximately 1,700 miles and would take several years to complete.

Although there are many hurdles to overcome to make this ethanol pipeline project a reality, Magellan and POET are optimistic that the obvious need for a pipeline to deliver ethanol from the Midwest to distribution terminals in the northeastern United States may lead to a viable and successful project. A positive assessment will allow one or both partners to enter into a subsequent agreement to construct a dedicated ethanol pipeline.

Source : POET Press Release

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