Biofuels That Look Like Gasoline
April 15, 2009 by admin
Filed under Alternative Energy, Alternative Fuel, BioFuels, BioMass, Ethanol, Featured, Hybrid Cars
The offspring of Jay Keasling’s synthetic biology research and vision, Emeryville, CA-based Amyris Biotechnologies has made a double impact. First, the company, with more than $40 million of backing from the Bill Gates’ Institute for One World Health charity, developed a microbial route to the anti-malarial compound artemisinin. In and of itself this work was a stunningly successful scientific achievement, and the resulting process has been licensed to Sanofi-Aventis for low-cost manufacturing and distribution in the third world.
But how does that relate to biofuels? Well, producing the anti-malarial drug relied on the engineering of a metabolic pathway to produce a key intermediate that is in the class of chemicals called terpenes. Chemically, terpenes are hydrocarbons, similar to diesel or gasoline, and are therefore very good fuel compounds. Thus, the same basic science that led to artemisinin can be applied, with appropriate tweaking, to produce fuels based on terpenes. And according to the company, a desired fuel compound can be selected based on its properties (flash point, cloud point, boiling point, density, fuel value, etc), and then the pathway to produce it can be designed. Voila! You have a designer fuel. And being hydrocarbons with properties similar to gasoline, terpenes do not suffer from the limitations that alcohols (particularly ethanol) have as fuels. If you want to put something into your gas tank or jet engine, a designer hydrocarbon is likely to be superior to any alcohol. At least that is what Amyris argues.
Amyris has the backing of a well-heeled group of VCs: Kleiner Perkins, TPG Biotech, and DAG Ventures. In the area of bio-based production of gasoline-like fuels, Amyris is at the head of the class. Economics remain to be proven, but Amyris has formed a joint venture with the second largest Brazilian sugar producer, Crystalsev, to get access to inexpensive sugar feedstock, and the first demonstration plant is scheduled to be built right on the sugar plantation in Brazil by 2010. It will produce a biodiesel (with the interesting name of “No CompromiseTM”), currently being piloted at Amyris’ Emerville facility. Amyris promises that a bio-gasoline and a bio-aviation fuel are not far behind. If any company can make terpene-based fuels successfully, Amyris appears to be that company.
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David Rozzell maintains a web site and blog dedicated to the latest developments and news in biofuels, biocatalysis, and industrial biotechnology. For informative, sometimes amusing, always opinionated analysis go to http://www.bio-catalyst.com He has 25 years of experience in biocatalysis and industrial biotechnology, and speaks frequently at international symposia. He is available for consulting projects. Contact him at david@bio-catalyst.com. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=David_Rozzell
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Bio Fuel and Bio Mass
October 30, 2008 by admin
Filed under
As fuel prices skyrocket, personal financial situations and entire economies are threatened. Biomass energy has been offered up as a possible solution.
An Overview of Biomass Energy
Energy can be produced in a number of ways. We can burn fossil fuels, use the sun’s light for solar energy, use water for hydroelectric generators or even the heat of the Earth’s core in geothermal energy. One often overlooked source of energy that belongs among all these others is biomass energy. Indeed, President Bush seems particular keen on the subject.
Biomass is biological (natural) material that was once living, or still is living, that can be used to produce energy. For example, lawn clippings, dead trees, unused crops, wood chips and other wood byproducts are all biomass. Even household trash can be considered biomass, as can “landfill gas”, produced when garbage decomposes in landfills.
Biomass energy is produced when these materials are burned as fuel to produce energy. Some biomass materials are burned to produce steam, which is then used with generators to produce energy and heat. Other biomass materials, such as landfill gas, ethanol (produced from corn and other leftover crops) and biodiesel (this fuel is made from leftover animal fats and vegetable oils) can be used to create biomass energy that can even power transportation vehicles.
While biomass energy should be used as frequently as possible, as the biomass fuels are readily available, this type of energy is often overlooked. Biomass energy only accounts for about three percent of the energy used yearly in the United States. Some people feel that using biomass for energy is not safe for the environment, or that they do not want a “garbage” burning power plant in their area. In fact, biomass energy is actually very safe for the environment – the only byproduct is carbon dioxide, which comes from the burning of any fuel. This greenhouse gas does have some harmful properties, but not near as many as the pollutants that are released with the burning of fossil fuels.
In order to see just what biomass energy can do for our world, society needs to become more open to the use of biomass as an energy source. Using discarded and waste products can help to reduce the amount of trash going into our landfills, as well as cut down on our need to use fossil fuels. This, in turn, will not only help the environment but also the world’s economy. Biomass energy is an under-utilized energy source that needs to be fully researched and used in the years to come.
The Cost of Biomass
The skyrocketing price of fuels is posing a threat to the entire economy as well as the average consumer. In such situations, the use of Biomass energy can be a possible solution. Biomass is a biological or a natural material that can be used to produce energy. The sources of Biomass comprise a wide variety of materials such as dead trees, unused crops, forest and mill residues, animal wastes, aquatic plants and municipal and agricultural wastes.
When these materials are burned as fuel to produce energy, we get biomass energy. Other biomass materials such as ethanol, which is produced from corn and other leftover crops and biodiesel, which is produced from vegetable oils and animal fats can be used to create biomass energy that can even power transportation vehicles.
Today, biomass fuels are readily available. But biomass energy only accounts for about three per cent of energy used yearly in the United States. The main reason is the production cost of various bio energy fuels. The production cost does not match the production price of fossil fuels such as coal. This means the commercial production of Biomass is quite far-fetched at present. Hence there is an urgent need to cut down the production cost to make bio energy affordable. There should be an economic analysis of the commercialization of Biomass and concentration should be more on a wider commercial market. This will help to lower the production cost of biomass. According to Haq Z. in his book “Biomass for Electricity Generation” (2004) “By 2020, the United States is estimated to have a maximum of 7.1 quadrillion Btu of biomass available at prices of $5 per million Btu or lower.”
The society needs to be more open to the use of biomass as an energy resource. The trash that goes into our landfills can be readily used to produce Biomass. There will be no dependency on fossil fuels. This, in turn, will help the world economy as well as the environment.
About Author: Pauline Go is a professional writer for many websites. She also writes other great articles like Crude Oil Usage In USA, Do Fuel Savers Work?
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Pauline_Go
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