BEAN MACHINES
L. Kren
Machine Design, 9/28/06, p. 90
Diesel fuel from soybeans gains traction.  According to the National Biodiesel Board in the US, the biodiesel industry is on track to make 150 million gallons this year-- just a drop in the bucket of the 40 billion gallons consumed last year.  This article details the production of biodiesel, materials, equipment, standards.
Read more: http://www.machinedesign.com/ASP/viewSelectedArticle.asp?strArticleId=61078&strSite=MDSite&catId=0

BIOGAS LAGOON GENERATES ENERGY FOR MAPLE LEAF FRESH FOODS
Heads Up (CIPEC), September 1, 2006
In Brandon, Manitoba, Maple Leaf opted to build a biogas system to generate energy and solve the problem of disposing the manure from about 2.5 million hogs that the plant processes in a typical year.  They generate about 4.4 million BTUs an hour by harvesting methane from a city-run lagoon, saving approximately $10,000 a month in natural gas charges. The wastewater generated by the plant is treated in a facility dedicated to Maple Leaf wastewater only, however it is run by the City of Brandon at Maple Leaf's expense.
Read more: http://oee.nrcan.gc.ca/industrial/technical-info/library/newsletter/archives-2006/Vol-X-no-17-sep1.cfm?attr=24#a

BIOMASS ENERGY CENTER CREATED TO BETTER COORDINATE GREEN FUELS RESEARCH
Press Release, October 19, 2006
Penn State recently created the Biomass Energy Center to coordinate and facilitate research and outreach across the university, building teams to address the complete value chain of biomass energy systems. Center activities can be classified into four categories: improved production of biomass feedstocks; the integration of biomass production into sustainable agrosystems; conversion of biomass into energy; and technology transfer to companies, state agencies, nongovernmental organizations and citizens throughout the Commonwealth and beyond.
Read more: http://live.psu.edu/story/20199

E3 BIOFUELS TO LAUNCH FIRST CLOSED-LOOP ETHANOL PLANT IN MEAD, NEBRASKA, IN DECEMBER 2006, ELIMINATING THE NEED FOR FOSSIL FUELS IN ETHANOL PRODUCTION
October 30, 2006
The Genesis plant will begin production in December 2006 at Mead, Nebraska, as the first-ever closed-loop system for distilling commercial quantities of ethanol using methane gas recaptured from cow manure, instead of fossil fuels. This virtually eliminates the need for fossil fuels in the production of ethanol.
Read more: http://www.e3biofuels.com/nm/publish/20061030-release.html

'HOLY GRAIL' OF ENERGY?
Tom Webb
Pioneer Press, November 3, 2006
University of Minnesota scientists are working on ways to convert biomass wastes like sawdust and cornstalks into fuel.  U scientists have discovered a clean, quick and relatively easy way to transform soybean oil into high-value gases that could be used to power fuel cells and other future energy sources. And because the process works with plant wastes too, researchers hope they're on to something big.
Read more: http://www.twincities.com/mld/pioneerpress/15915561.htm

HONDA DEVELOPS NEW WAY TO MAKE BIOFUEL THAT COULD BOOST ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY CARS
Associated Press
Technology Review, September 14, 2006
Honda Motor Co. says it as developed a way to make ethanol fuel from plant waste matter in a process that has the potential to expand the use of biofuels that fight global warming.  Using supplies of inedible plant matter, such as stalks, leaves and rice straw, rather than the limited supply of sugar and starch plants, the new fuel makes biofuels more practical.
Read more: http://www.technologyreview.com/read_article.aspx?id=17500&ch=energy

HYDROGEN ENGINE CENTER, INC. FOUNDER DISCUSSES ANHYDROUS AMMONIA ENGINE
Press Release, October 13, 2006
Ted Hollinger outlined Hydrogen Engine Center Inc.'s progress on the first ammonia-fueled internal combustion engine being designed for wide commercial sales.
Read more: http://www.hydrogenenginecenter.com/founder_discusses.htm

HYDROGEN TECHNOLOGIES: FUELING THE FUTURE
J. Fischer, J. Finnell
Resource, October 2006, p. 7
An array of energy sources can be used to produce hydrogen to fuel vehicles and provide power.  Biomass may be used to produce hydrogen in two ways: by a direct gasification process or by pyrolysis to produce liquid bio-oil for reforming.
Contact the ITC Library to obtain this article.

IOWA IS EPICENTER FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY
Jennifer Bremer
High Plains Journal, October 25, 2006
According to Denny Harding, business services administrator for the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation, Iowa is becoming the epicenter of renewable energy, powering American and local communities.   Iowa currently produces 1.6 billion gallons of ethanol. The production level is expected to be at 2 billion gallons by next year.  Norm Olson, program manager for the Biomass Energy Conversion (BECON) Center, says that their main goals are to improve the rural economy and rid the nation of imported petroleum.
Read more: http://www.hpj.com/archives/2006/oct06/oct30/Iowaisepicenterforrenewable.cfm

NEW POWER PLANT RUNS ON MILK-PROCESSING WASTE
Adrienne Selko
IndustryWeek.com, October 26, 2006
FuelCell Energy, Inc., a manufacturer of efficient electric power plants for commercial and industrial customers, announced  Oct. 25 it will supply an ultra-clean power plant that will run on a renewable supply of fuel from dairy-processing waste, generating electricity to run a municipal wastewater treatment plant serving California's San Joaquin Valley region.
Read more: http://www.industryweek.com/ReadArticle.aspx?ArticleID=12935

THE OTHER BIOENERGY SOLUTION
Ann C Wilkie
Resource, October 2006, p. 11
Despite the general preference for liquid fuels ... there is another form of energy that merits equal attention ... energy from organic wastes, an age-old biological process called anaerobic digestion,” asserts author Ann Wilkie. A solution lauded for its renewability, it also protects the environment, creates jobs, and boasts local economies.
Contact the ITC Library to obtain this article.

OUTDOOR FURNACES HOT TOPIC OF DEBATE
Bennett J. Loudon
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, October 23, 2006
A rise in the use of alternative heat source ignites pollution discussions.  A furnace installed outside your home can burn huge logs and provide heat and hot water at a very low cost, saving thousands of dollars in utility bills.  But, "they're not a very high-efficiency method of generating heat, and consequently they put out a pretty high amount of pollution," said Rob Moore, executive director of Environmental Advocates of New York.
Read more: http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006610230342

SCIENTISTS SEEK CHEAP, PLENTIFUL ENERGY ALTERNATIVES
Michael Oneal
Chicago Tribune, October 13, 2006
It's not just about distilling auto fuel from corn, explains Nancy W.Y. Ho, the 71-year-old molecular biologist from China. It's about weaning America from its self-destructive oil habit by tapping the energy in everything else that grows--and rots--all around us.  Ho has spent the better part of a career at Purdue University figuring out how to rejigger the DNA of a simple form of brewer's yeast by cloning a gene nobody else had thought to clone.  Now, if you stir her creation into a beaker filled with the sugars derived from throwaway organic materials like wheat straw, switch grass, orange peels, even municipal garbage, it will gradually convert most of them into high-octane auto fuel. "Everybody knows that [corn] is not enough," Ho said. "We have to use all the resources we can."
Read more: http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-0610130128oct13,0,7209827.story?coll=chi-business-hed

U.S. SUSTAINABLE ENERGY CORP. ANNOUNCES ANALYSIS REPORTS OF COMPANY'S UNIQUE PATENT-PENDING GREEN BIOFUELS CONDUCTED BY SUMMIT ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
November 6, 2006
Testing Shows Superior Biofuel Over Competition.  U.S. Sustainable Energy Corp. (Other OTC:USSE.PK - News) announced today the revolutionary cold weather, viscosity and energy content properties of its unique green patent-pending biofuels as reported by Summit Environmental Technologies, Inc., an ISO, A2LA and NELAC certified environmental analytic laboratory utilizing the standard methods, SW-846 & ASTM NIOSH, to perform their tests.  The proprietary technology allows 5 gallons of a far superior biofuel to be produced in under 9 minutes.
Read more: http://www.ussec.us/index.php?page=109&articleID=60&offset=0

WHEN KITCHEN WASTE ISN'T WASTED 
UPSCALE BAY AREA RESTAURANTS HELPING FEED MACHINE THAT TURNS SCRAPS INTO ELECTRICITY, VEHICLE FUEL
Glen Martin
San Francisco Chronicle, October 25, 2006
Scraps from some of the region's trendiest restaurants -- Zuni Cafe, Jardiniere, Oliveto and Boulevard, among others -- are being enlisted in the quest for renewable energy. Eight tons a week of everything that comes back on plates or is rejected by the kitchen will be sent to a state-of-the-art digester at UC Davis, where it will be transformed into valuable "biogas" -- methane and hydrogen -- and fertilizer.
Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/10/25/BAG78LVGRC1.DTL