COMPREHENSIVE CANADIAN ENERGY STRATEGY NEEDS FAST DEVELOPMENT
Energy Policy Institute of Canada News Release, July 18, 2011
The Energy Policy Institute of Canada (EPIC) presented to Ministers attending the Energy and Mines Ministers Conference interim recommendations that support the implementation of a pan-Canadian and pan-energy strategy. "Strategy for Canada’s Global Energy Leadership - Progress Document" outlines the elements of a national energy strategy that would allow a Canada to achieve its full potential as a global energy power.  The recommendations include: eliminating overlapping federal, provincial and municipal regulations; expanding energy exports to Asia; moving towards a long-term carbon-pricing regime in Canada; promoting greater public knowledge; fostering energy innovation by encouraging more private sector investment in game-changing technologies.
> Read more: http://www.canadasenergy.ca/current-update/

GREENHOUSE PACKS A POWER PUNCH
Joan Melcher, BioCycle, July 2011
The first commercial-scale Green Power House at the F.H. Stoltze Land and Lumber Co. near Columbia Falls, Montana is using a system designed to take waste products and turn them into a high nitrogen soil amendments while producing energy.   The Algae Aqua Culture Technology (AACT) process is a closed-loop system with an Organic Carbon Engine (OCE) which takes waste wood from the mill and uses a gasification process to create biochar, a bio-oil, carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide to fuel algae growth, and thermal heat to keep other components of the system at desired temperatures.
> Read more: http://www.jgpress.com

HARPER GOVERNMENT LAUNCHES NEW CLEAN ENERGY INNOVATION INITIATIVE
Canada News Centre, August 2, 2011
The government of Canada has announced the launch of a new ecoENERGY Innovation Initiative. The $97-million proram will invest in research, development and demonstration projects for clean energy technologies that will create high-quality jobs for Canadians.
> Read more: http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/media
> Details: http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/eneene

JET GREEN
Todd Woody, Forbes, 7/20/11
The biggest thing to hit the Paris Air Show this year was a tiny seed that comes from an inedible weed called camelina and fueled the first transatlantic flight powered by biofuel--in this case, Honeywell's Green Jet Fuel.  Unlike ethanol's divisive political battles and the economic uncertainties surrounding other biofuels for ground transportation, renewable jet fuel has a welcoming market.
> Read more: http://www.forbes.com

THE LOW-HANGING FRUIT: ARE WE IGNORING THE SMALL BUT BRILLIANT INNOVATIONS THAT COULD BRIDGE THE ENERGY GAP?
Hillary Rosner, Popular Science, July 2011
Big oil? Big coal? Our dependence on big systems steers us away from the small but brilliant innovations—such as biofuel made from garbage—that we need to bridge the energy gap. Biogas is transforming communities in other countries. Could we bring it home?
> Read more: http://www.popsci.com

NIST FINDS THAT ETHANOL-LOVING BACTERIA ACCELERATE CRACKING OF PIPELINE STEELS
Laura Ost, EurekAlert, August 3, 2011
U.S. production of ethanol for fuel has been rising quickly, topping 13 billion gallons in 2010. With the usual rail, truck and barge transport methods under potential strain, existing gas pipelines might be an efficient alternative for moving this renewable fuel around the country. But researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) caution that ethanol, and especially the bacteria sometimes found in it, can dramatically degrade pipelines.
> Read more: http://www.eurekalert.org

NOVEL GENE INCREASES YEAST'S APPETITE FOR PLANT SUGARS
Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center, 7/25/11
A Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC) team identified several new genes that improve yeast's ability to use xylose, a five-carbon sugar that can make up nearly half of available plant sugars. If researchers can coax yeast into using most of these sugars, they can improve the efficiency of producing renewable fuels from biomass crops like corn stover or switchgrass.
> Read more: http://www.glbrc.org

OPTIONS FOR BIOMASS FUELS UTILIZATION IN POWER PLANTS
D. Koza, Shuang Ma, Power Engineering, May 2011
This article discusses various options for biomass combustion, such as stoker/grate-fired boilers, suspension-fired boilers, fluidized bed boilers, including co-firing, identifying fluidized bed boilers, including co-firing, identifying characteristics, applications and performance.  The article also addresses issues and challenges in combustion technologies related to biomass fuel flexibility, fluctuation in properties and seasonal supply variability, integration of material handling systems, wood pelletizing and emission control systems as well as operational contraints.
> Read more: http://www.power-eng.com

PHASE SHIFT: 12 HOT GAS-BASED BIOFUELS TECHNOLOGIES
Jim Lane, Biofuels Digest, August 8, 2011
The Digest looks at a new generation of technologies coming along fast, primarily in advanced biofuels, which is gasifying biomass at the front end along its path towards making fuels, chemicals or other biomaterials – or in some cases, using organic chemicals already in a gaseous state. Syngas fermentation is profiled as well as the companies to watch.
> Read more: http://biofuelsdigest.com

RESEARCH PAPER DETAILS ECONOMIC POTENTIAL OF ALGAL OIL
OpenAlgae Press Release, July 25, 2011
Researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have found that growth and harvesting, not oil recovery, are the remaining economic bottlenecks for algae as alternative fuel.  The cost to lyse cells and separate algal oil from water and biomass can be just one percent of the total production cost of algal oil.
> Read more: http://www.openalgae.com

STUDY: REGULATORY HURDLES HINDER BIOFUELS MARKET
Phil Ciciora, University of Illinois News Bureau, July 21, 2011
In a new study, University of Illinois law professor Jay P. Kesan, and Timothy A. Slating, a regulatory associate with the University of Illinois Energy Biosciences Institute, argue that regulatory innovations are needed to keep pace with technological innovations in the biofuels industry.  Currently, regulatory hurdles abound for the successful commercialization of emerging liquid biofuels.  In the paper, Kesan and Slating focus on biobutanol, an emerging biofuel with the potential to be a viable alternative to petroleum-based fuels.
> Read more: http://news.illinois.edu

STURMAN CAMLESS ENGINE SET TO IGNITE NATURAL GAS HD TRANSPORTATION
NGV Global News, July 7, 2011
The application of a fully flexible electro-hydraulic valve train (“camless” engine) designed and developed by Sturman Industries was the key enabler for achieving breakthrough thermal efficiencies while meeting the ultra-low emission requirements set by the California Air Resources Board (CARB).  The technology is a solution for California’s interest to utilise biomethane, also known as renewable natural gas (RNG).
> Read more: http://www.ngvglobal.com

SWITCH FROM CORN TO GRASS WOULD RAISE ETHANOL OUTPUT, CUT EMISSIONS
Diana Yates, University of Illinois News Bureau, July 12, 2011
Growing perennial grasses on the least productive farmland now used for corn ethanol production in the U.S. would result in higher overall corn yields, more ethanol output per acre and better groundwater quality, researchers report in a new study. The study used a computer model of plant growth and soil chemistry to compare the ecological effects of growing corn , miscanthus, and switchgrass. The analysis found that switching 30 percent of the least productive corn acres to miscanthus offered the most ecological advantages.
> Read more: http://news.illinois.edu

THE ROAD TO JERUSALEM: CODEXIS UNLOCKS THE BAGASSE-TO-CHEMICALS PATH, AND LAYS DOWN THE GAUNTLET, IN ENTERING THE $6B MARKET FOR SUSTAINABLE DETERGENT ALCOHOLS
Jim Lane, Biofuels Digest, July 29, 2011
Codexis and Chemtex (California) announced a broad collaboration to develop and produce the first sustainable detergent alcohols, made from cellulosic biomass instead of from sugar. Detergent alcohols – a $6 billion worldwide market – are surfactants which stabilize mixtures of oil and water. They are widely used in laundry detergents, shampoos and other consumer products. Detergent alcohols today are made from palm kernel and petroleum sources.   The author contends that the real battle for renewable chemicals and advanced biomaterials is brewing in Brazil.  The feedstock is bagasse.  The leftovers from the sugarcane production process, bagasse is already aggregated at the mill, and available at scale.
> Read more: http://biofuelsdigest.com

CORTEC CORPORATION LAUNCHES BIOBASED FILM PRODUCTS FOR MARINE AND ANAEROBIC DIGESTION MARKETS
BusinessWire, August 8, 2011
A leading bioplastics producer located in Minnesota, USA, is launching the commercial availability of EcoOcean™. The new bioplastic offers a unique combination of environmental and performance benefits previously unattainable—flexibility and strength; commercial and low-temperature backyard compostability; 77% annually renewable raw material content; anaerobic and marine biodegradability.  The films, which rapidly breakdown in as little as 15 days in anaerobic digestion (AD) systems or methane producing landfills (WtE), have been tested to numerous standards and specifications, including ASTM D6400, D5511, and D7081.
> Read more: http://www.businesswire.com

ENERKEM (CANADA) ANNOUNCES TOTAL FINANCING REACHED C$88 MILLION IN 2011 -- ADDITIONAL C$29 MILLION RECENTLY RAISED
Enerkem News Release, July 28, 2011
Enerkem Inc., a leading waste-to-biofuels and chemicals company, recently announced the closing of C$29 million in additional financing through corporate equity (C$14.5 million) and corporate debt (C$14.2 million) transactions.
> Read more: http://www.enerkem.com

FROM ANCIENT GRAINS, A HEALTHY NEW OIL
Anne Kingston, Maclean's, July 14, 2011
Three farmers from Midale, Saskatchewan are making their mark with camelina sativa -- but not for biofuel.  The lifelong farmers and a soil scientist are cold-pressing the grain into an “artisanal” oil targeted at food- and nutrition-conscious consumers who want to know where their food comes from and are willing to pay $24.99 a 500-ml bottle for the privilege.   Seeing potential in the grain’s fatty-acid profile, they researched possible uses, such as omega-3 supplements, skin care and an edible oil.
> Read more: http://www2.macleans.ca

GLOBAL BIOPOLYMERS MARKET EXPECTED TO GROW TO 2.4 BILLION LB BY 2016
Anne Marie Mohan, Packaging World, June 24, 2011
According to a new technical market research report, the global market for biodegradable polymers will amount to an estimated 932 million pounds in 2011 and is expected to increase to more than 2.5 billion pounds in 2016, for a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 22%.
> Read more: http://www.packworld.com

A NEW CATALYST FOR ETHANOL MADE FROM BIOMASS
Mary Beckman, EurekAlert, August 1, 2011
Researchers in the Pacific Northwest have developed a new catalyst material that could replace chemicals currently derived from petroleum and be the basis for more environmentally friendly products including octane-boosting gas and fuel additives, bio-based rubber for tires and a safer solvent for the chemicals industry.  To make sustainable biofuels, producers want to ferment ethanol from nonfood plant matter such as cornstalks and weeds. Currently, so-called bio-ethanol's main values are as a non-polluting replacement for octane-boosting fuel additives to prevent engine knocking and as a renewable replacement for a certain percentage of gasoline. To turn bio-ethanol into other useful products, researchers at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and at Washington State University have developed a new catalyst material that will convert it into a chemical called isobutene. And it can do so in one production step, which can reduce costs.
> Read more: http://www.eurekalert.org

NEW MARKET REPORT PUBLISHED: SOY CHEMICALS: A GLOBAL STRATEGIC BUSINESS REPORT
PR-inside.com, July 7, 2011
The global soy chemicals market is forecast to reach over $13 billion by the year 2017, spurred by the anticipated high demand from bio-diesel's market and growing adoption of alternative renewable sources of energy. In particular, the soy-derived chemicals such as soy-based foamed plastics, polyols, methyl soyate, fatty acids and waxes hold tremendous potential for future growth.
> Read more: http://www.pr-inside.com

RESEARCHERS AT THE UPC’S TERRASSA CAMPUS DEVELOP AN INNOVATIVE SYSTEM FOR PRODUCING CARPETS
Universitat Politčcnica de Catalunya (UPC) News Release, July 12, 2011
The so-called “cradle-to-cradle” model has been central to the work done by the team led by Tzanko Tzanov, a researcher with the Molecular and Industrial Biotechnology Group at the Universitat Politčcnica de Catalunya.  The outcome is an enzyme-based biological technology that paves the way for three Netherlands companies to manufacture carpets that are much lighter, sustainable, biodegradable, and 100% recyclable. At the end of their useful life, the carpets can be used as fertiliser or substrate for growing plants. The system saves a great deal of energy, completely closes the biological cycle for wool, and significantly reduces the final cost of carpet products.
> Read more: http://www.alphagalileo.org

REVEALING RESEARCH: CANADA MISSING ITS POTENTIAL IN BIOPRODUCTS
Richard Ivey School of Business Press Release, July 27, 2011
A recent Ivey School of Business study reveals barriers preventing growth in the bioproduct industry in Canada.  Apparently having the essential ingredients (biomass, scientific capabilities, strong industry sector) to create a profitable bioproduct industry isn't sufficient.  The report contends that the Canadian landscape is underdeveloped, lacking comprehensive planning and is vulnerable to foreign takeover.
> Read more: http://www.ivey.uwo.ca

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