From tobin at tjcog.org Thu Mar 1 14:50:03 2007 From: tobin at tjcog.org (Tobin Freid) Date: Thu, 1 Mar 2007 14:50:03 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] New on-line bioenergy reference References: Message-ID: <053801c75c3a$d790fb50$1800a8c0@cleancities> 2. The BioEnergy Wiki has been Launched! www.bioenergywiki.net What is a wiki? The website is a wiki, which means that rather than just reading what is on the website, you can actually add to and edit the website. (Our wiki is similar in approach to "Wikipedia," the online encyclopedia that has become the world's most used reference work, and it uses the same software platform as Wikipedia; but instead of providing a general encyclopedia, our effort is intended to provide a repository of useful policy-relevant information and links, and to enable users to share their views with other interested users.) Why a bioenergy wiki? The bottom line with biofuels is that the rapid increase in production will bring massive impacts. Whether these impacts will be beneficial or detrimental to us and the ecosystems that sustain us will depend on whether we produce them sustainably or not. Sustainability is THE issue. In order to facilitate information sharing and speed the development of sustainability guidelines and policy development, we recognized that we need to utilize some new tools. How do you use it? You might say, "wiki what?" But, I am pretty technologically challenged and even I can use the wiki!! You can use it just like any other website, but if you want to: link your publications, website, etc. to the wiki; debate the role of genetic modification in biofuels; discuss the food, feed, bioenergy connections, or edit or use it in any other way, the "how to edit" page can lead you through the process: http://www.bioenergywiki.net/index.php/Help You need to register as a user if you want to edit the wiki. You can also email our talented wiki administrator, Richard Forrest (richard.forrest at yahoo.com) with any questions, or to set up a wiki tutoring session. Tobin L. Freid Project Coordinator for Energy and Environment Triangle J Council of Governments (919) 558-9400 -- Triangle J Council of Governments is a Best Workplace for Commuters -- From john.bonitz at gmail.com Thu Mar 1 14:55:19 2007 From: john.bonitz at gmail.com (John Bonitz) Date: Thu, 1 Mar 2007 14:55:19 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] organic feedstocks for biodiesel? Message-ID: <84a57a420703011155t3c0cf186wee20e7d5470192ee@mail.gmail.com> Fred Kirsch asks a cherry of a question (pun intended!). "My question is this: Can feedstock for biodiesel be grown organically? It seems to me that if you can process soy, mustard, sunflowers, and whatever else in the same BD batch, then you ought to be able to grow them in the same field and reduce the need for chemicals. Does anyone have an answer for this?" Fred, my understanding is YES, these crops can be grown without energy intensive chemical inputs. Piedmont Biofuels grew a few such crops organically, on crazy-small scale (all were harvested by hand). However, there are few or no data on how production compares between, say, Organically Grown Canola and conventional Canola (gallons of oil per acre). Judging from what I've been told, that conventional Genetically Modified Canola can grow 3 to 6 feet tall (120 gallons per acre, they say), the spindly little 2 foot brassicas that we grew at our research farm have a long way to go before they're taken seriously. Folks in the north-central states (Dakotas all the way over to eastern Idaho) have lots more experience with Canola, in partiular, than we have here in the south. Come to think of it, I'm sure I've seen OG Canola Oil in the grocery store: Probably grown in Canada. I'll bet they have some solid production data there. Wouldn't know who to ask for it, though. Oh, and I guess I should add that I've heard soy (ick) produces just as well in established organic production as in conventional. It's not my favorite feedstock, though. Sounds like a SARE Grant, ready and waiting for someone to pluck it. (I'm hearing that well-written grants combining ag-production and energy issues are being evaluated very warmly this year...) http://www.sare.org/grants/ cheers! John -- John Bonitz Silk Hope, NC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ From dentonconrad at netzero.net Thu Mar 1 19:38:58 2007 From: dentonconrad at netzero.net (Denton Conrad) Date: Thu, 01 Mar 2007 19:38:58 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] eXasis engine driven by bioethanol Message-ID: <45E77222.8080206@netzero.net> "The two-seater eXasis is made of transparent high-tech plastic in a collaborative effort between Rinspeed and Bayer MaterialScience AG. It is powered by a lightweight 150-horsepower two-cylinder Weber engine driven by bioethanol." http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=119606 From biodiesel at yovo.info Thu Mar 1 22:14:16 2007 From: biodiesel at yovo.info (Jurgen Henn) Date: Thu, 01 Mar 2007 22:14:16 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] eXasis or maybe a Loremo? In-Reply-To: <45E77222.8080206@netzero.net> References: <45E77222.8080206@netzero.net> Message-ID: <45E79688.9090200@yovo.info> The eXasis is quite the looker! Personally, I think I would prefer the 150 MPG Loremo on biodiesel: http://www.loremo.com/daten_en.php They say they are working on a diesel-electric hybrid as well ... Jurgen Denton Conrad wrote: > "The two-seater eXasis is made of transparent high-tech plastic in a > collaborative effort between Rinspeed and Bayer MaterialScience AG. It > is powered by a lightweight 150-horsepower two-cylinder Weber engine > driven by bioethanol." > > http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=119606 > _______________________________________________ > Biofuels_Interest_Group mailing list > Biofuels_Interest_Group at lists.emji.net > http://lists.emji.net/mailman/listinfo/biofuels_interest_group From Patrick.Long at colfaxcorp.com Fri Mar 2 15:24:30 2007 From: Patrick.Long at colfaxcorp.com (Long, Patrick) Date: Fri, 2 Mar 2007 15:24:30 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Mercedes 300TD Turbo Diesel Wagon For Sale Message-ID: So my 1982 Mercedes 300TD wagon has suffered a catastrophic engine failure. I believe it is either a failed main bearing or one cylinder may have thrown a rod. The car starts, it runs, it sounds like a helicopter. After long considering my options, I have decided to sell the vehicle and go with something newer and smaller (22miles per gallon was nice, but the newer diesels are getting much better then this). I know this is not a forum that encourages posts for selling things, but I thought I would give the people on this list the first opportunity to make an offer. So the following is a description of what I've done to it: All five injectors are remanufactured Bosch (replaced 4 months ago) Antenna mast (5 months old) Kenwood CD player with removable face plate 4 Boston speakers (one year old) All five glow plugs and glow plug relay (Bosch) (1.5 years old) Rear brake calipers / flex hoses/ disks (two years old) Oil cooler and both hoses (two years old) Brake master cylinder (two years old) Remanufactured Bosch Alternator and bracket (two years old) Air filter rubbers (X3) (one year old) Exhaust hanger grommets (X4) (4 months old) Transmission flex hoses (X2) to radiator (two years old) Complete vegetable oil conversion: Looped double solenoid design. All primary fuel lines are SAEJ30R9 (biodiesel compatible) Return lines from injectors are viton. Various viton o-rings and aluminum fuel screen. That being said, the return solenoid is on its way out, vegetable tank should be redone, two feet of vegetable oil supply line should be replaced (it's getting gummy from backflushing biodiesel). The car is brown with 270,000 miles on it. It has a tow hitch, good transmission, engine block heater, original alloy rims and alloy spare. All windows work, except rear driver's sticks at the very top (last ? inch). I've got a clean North Carolina title to it, so if someone was inclined, they could rebuild / replace the motor. The car itself is pretty rusty so I wouldn't advise that route. I'm in Raleigh, inside the belt line. The car can start and can be driven onto a trailer. Thanks for bearing with me Patrick (919)832-3566 patrick.long at colfaxcorp.com From efcox at charter.net Sat Mar 3 17:57:35 2007 From: efcox at charter.net (Everett Cox) Date: Sat, 3 Mar 2007 17:57:35 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Patrick, I can't believe...she is infamous Message-ID: <000301c75de7$58bf0250$f2988a4b@CoxNC3809976> So my 1982 Mercedes 300TD wagon has suffered a catastrophic engine failure. I believe it is either a failed main bearing or one cylinder may have thrown a rod. The car starts, it runs, it sounds like a helicopter. After long considering my options, I have decided to sell the vehicle and go with something newer and smaller (22miles per gallon was nice, but the newer diesels are getting much better then this). I know this is not a forum that encourages posts for selling things, but I thought I would give the people on this list the first opportunity to make an offer. So the following is a description of what I've done to it:... Patrick, She is pictured one the biofuels website. I can't believe you are getting rid of her. Ev From wrenchwench at blast.com Tue Mar 6 15:18:49 2007 From: wrenchwench at blast.com (Rachel Burton) Date: Tue, 6 Mar 2007 15:18:49 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] First All-Biodiesel Power Plant In U.S. Starts Up In Texas Message-ID: By Anita LaFond, News Editor, Manufacturing.net Manufacturing.Net - March 5, 2007 Biofuels Power Corp. announced Monday that it has started to produce and sell electricity into the ERCOT Power Grid from its biodiesel powered generating plant in Oak Ridge North, Texas, making it the first power plant in the U.S. to run entirely on biodiesel. The Oak Ridge North facility has a capacity of up to five megawatts and uses three diesel powered Caterpillar generators that run exclusively on biodiesel fuel produced by the Safe Renewables Corp. (SRC) refinery located within two miles of the power plant. SRC produces biodiesel from renewable sources including soy, cottonseed, canola oil and animal fats. According to Ken Crimmins, COO of Biofuels Power, the new Oak Ridge North plant will help environmentally conscious companies reduce their air pollution footprint by satisfying their electricity needs with carbon neutral and 100% renewable fuels. Biofuels Power is currently building a larger turbine-based biodiesel power plant at the Safe Renewables? refinery site which is expected to deliver over 10 megawatts into the Entergy power grid that delivers electricity to customers in East Texas and Louisiana. These renewable power projects can provide ?islands of power,? protecting areas from blackouts. From wrenchwench at blast.com Tue Mar 6 15:22:05 2007 From: wrenchwench at blast.com (Rachel Burton) Date: Tue, 6 Mar 2007 15:22:05 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Biodiesel plant not coming to Wayne Message-ID: http://www.newsargus.com/news/archives/2007/03/01/ biodiesel_plant_not_coming_to_wayne/index.shtml After four years of waiting, Mount Olive's hopes for a large biodiesel facility were dashed Wednesday when Atlantic BioEnergy announced through the Wayne County Develop-ment Alliance that it would not be building a processing plant in the Mount Olive Industrial Park. The reason, Alliance President Joanna Thompson said, was money. "It was a financial issue," she said. "That's the bottom line. "The project itself was very feasible as far as the concept and what they wanted to do, but a lot of things have changed since they first developed this project. The costs and the financial aspect of it, I think, just got a little bit out of control." In a letter to the Alliance, Atlantic BioEnergy Board of Directors chairman Jeff Edwards explained that the decision to cancel the project was based purely on economic considerations. Atlantic BioEnergy was created by the North Carolina Grain Growers Cooperative in 2004. "We began this project four years ago," Edwards wrote. "Construction costs have escalated sharply, marketing conditions have changed and the federal government's energy plan is still up in the air. We simply cannot continue with the scope of the project with as much risk that is present at this time." When asked for further comment, Edwards declined. It was an ambitious project -- completely unlike the other small boutique plants existing along the East Coast that serve only their immediate 30- to 50-mile radiuses, Ms. Thompson said. The plan for this plant was to produce 30 million gallons of bio- diesel per year, using primarily soy oil, but also other sources such as animal fat. It would have employed about 30 people. "It was going to be a very large project," Ms. Thompson said. "This was going to be the only facility of its kind east of the Mississippi." But even though things had seemed to be on track in recent months and weeks, the project's cancellation came as only a mild surprise. "We are obviously disappointed they are not coming," Mount Olive Town Manager Charlie Brown said. "It would have been a good fit for the Mount Olive area. "I still felt we were still on go probably as late as last week, but after four years of waiting, some people were a little skeptical anyway." Now, Mount Olive and Wayne County must move on and try and find other industrial partners. "We knew there were some challenges with the budget, but we were hopeful the board could get those issues ironed out," Ms. Thompson said. "This is disappointing news for Mount Olive and Wayne County. "We'll just have to go to plan B on the property proposed for that project and find another industry. What we'll do now is we'll start aggressively marketing that property as an industrial site." She stressed that being strung along for four years did not hurt the town's or the county's chances for landing another industry and she stressed that there was nothing else that either entity could have done to make the project come together for Atlantic BioEnergy. In his letter to Ms. Thompson, Edwards confirmed that Mount Olive and Wayne County had done all they could. "They didn't need anything else from us," Ms. Thompson said. "We had some things (grants for water and sewer and rail expansion) we were ready to pull the trigger on. "We had some things we had promised to do if it came to fruition, but we never had any money tied up in this project." She did not know if the project might ever be resurrected, but she emphasized that it was not a matter of the company deciding to look elsewhere. "The Mount Olive Industrial Park is a great site," she said. "That site has just as good potential as anything in eastern North Carolina." From pbechtel at bechtelnet.com Tue Mar 6 16:39:20 2007 From: pbechtel at bechtelnet.com (Philip B. Bechtel) Date: Tue, 06 Mar 2007 16:39:20 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] First All-Biodiesel Power Plant In U.S. Starts Up In Texas In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: <45EDDF88.2000005@bechtelnet.com> Rachel and list members, Yeah!!!! This is Very Good News! I am encouraged, heartened, and happy with this News. This is a success for everyone, that we have some power and a model for expansion, when non-renewable sources of energy are lost. I am a homepower from WVO user at this time. I have enjoyed an island of power a few times during storms in Western NY State. Thanks for the News, Phil Rachel Burton wrote: > By Anita LaFond, News Editor, Manufacturing.net > > Manufacturing.Net - March 5, 2007 > > Biofuels Power Corp. announced Monday that it has started to produce > and sell electricity into the ERCOT Power Grid from its biodiesel > powered generating plant in Oak Ridge North, Texas, making it the > first power plant in the U.S. to run entirely on biodiesel. > > The Oak Ridge North facility has a capacity of up to five megawatts > and uses three diesel powered Caterpillar generators that run > exclusively on biodiesel fuel produced by the Safe Renewables Corp. > (SRC) refinery located within two miles of the power plant. > SRC produces biodiesel from renewable sources including soy, > cottonseed, canola oil and animal fats. > > According to Ken Crimmins, COO of Biofuels Power, the new Oak Ridge > North plant will help environmentally conscious companies reduce > their air pollution footprint by satisfying their electricity needs > with carbon neutral and 100% renewable fuels. > > Biofuels Power is currently building a larger turbine-based biodiesel > power plant at the Safe Renewables? refinery site which is expected > to deliver over 10 megawatts into the Entergy power grid that > delivers electricity to customers in East Texas and Louisiana. > These renewable power projects can provide ?islands of power,? > protecting areas from blackouts. > _______________________________________________ > Biofuels_Interest_Group mailing list > Biofuels_Interest_Group at lists.emji.net > http://lists.emji.net/mailman/listinfo/biofuels_interest_group > > > From mattr at biofuels.coop Wed Mar 7 00:39:40 2007 From: mattr at biofuels.coop (Matthew Rudolf) Date: Wed, 7 Mar 2007 00:39:40 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Piedmont Biofuels Annual Member Mtg. Message-ID: <7E672DBE-D8A8-45AD-B9E3-4BE0429BCB47@biofuels.coop> SAVE THE DATE!!! Piedmont Biofuels is announcing its Annual Member Meeting April 14 at the McKimmon Center at NC State University at 9:00am. Signs will be posted to direct everyone to the room. Everybody from the community is invited to attend. Co-op members can run for office and vote. Opening Remarks by Steve Kalland, director of the NC Solar Center. Agenda Items- Annual report presentation by Executive Director Matt Rudolf on the state of the co-op. The year in review, successes and failures. Overview of internships, education and outreach efforts, fuel-making, green building, Tami Tank update. Financial Statements: by our Secretary/Treasurer Lyle Estill Equity Discussion: by Board V.P. Leif Forer Board Member Elections ? by Board President Rachel Burton. 3 positions available. Members interested in running should submit a bio and a photo. Presentation of the biofarm ? Lyle Estill and Doug Jones Growth plan for 2007 From jsymon at safenet-inc.com Wed Mar 7 11:29:32 2007 From: jsymon at safenet-inc.com (Jim Symon) Date: Wed, 7 Mar 2007 11:29:32 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] NYT algae article Message-ID: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/07/business/07algae.html The information contained in this electronic mail transmission may be privileged and confidential, and therefore, protected from disclosure. If you have received this communication in error, please notify us immediately by replying to this message and deleting it from your computer without copying or disclosing it. From mapmantx at yahoo.com Fri Mar 9 11:22:14 2007 From: mapmantx at yahoo.com (John Hollingsworth) Date: Fri, 9 Mar 2007 08:22:14 -0800 (PST) Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] NC Senate Bill contains $6M/yr for biofuels Message-ID: <569851.23050.qm@web55310.mail.re4.yahoo.com> On the bottom of the front page of the Business section in today's N&O is the following article on bill just introduced to the Senate. http://www.newsobserver.com/104/story/551391.html The bill asks for $15 million dollars annually to be put into a NC Green Business Fund. It will be spent as follows: 40% on biofuels 40% on green building remaining on Green Entrepreneurship Here is a link to the text of the bill: http://www.ncga.state.nc.us/Sessions/2007/Bills/Senate/HTML/S634v0.html *** Action Item *** Please contact your NC Senator and ask them to sign on as a sponsor of this bill (SB 634). If you aren't sure who your state senator is, please go to this page (http://www.ncga.state.nc.us) and then find the section titled Who Represents Me? Cheers, John Hollingsworth ____________________________________________________________________________________ Bored stiff? Loosen up... Download and play hundreds of games for free on Yahoo! Games. http://games.yahoo.com/games/front From wrightjim at gmail.com Fri Mar 9 17:58:20 2007 From: wrightjim at gmail.com (Jim Wright) Date: Fri, 09 Mar 2007 17:58:20 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] science friday In-Reply-To: <569851.23050.qm@web55310.mail.re4.yahoo.com> References: <569851.23050.qm@web55310.mail.re4.yahoo.com> Message-ID: <45F1E68C.1030807@gmail.com> In case you didn't hear it, the Talk of the Nation Science Friday today was about biofuels.... http://www.sciencefriday.com/pages/2007/Mar/hour1_030907.html you can download a mp3 here: http://www.sciencefriday.com/feed/ From wrenchwench at blast.com Mon Mar 12 09:37:10 2007 From: wrenchwench at blast.com (Rachel Burton) Date: Mon, 12 Mar 2007 10:37:10 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Fwd: [ncbiomasscouncil] Canola Field Day - April 19 - Open Grounds Farm References: <00ae01c75f38$23bfd410$53540198@Rich> Message-ID: <9FCBEEC3-0A5A-4816-987F-1F7583AF17CA@blast.com> Begin forwarded message: > > > > > > > > > > Canola Field Day > > At Open Grounds Farm > > > > Save the Date! > > Thursday April 19, 2007 > > > > > > > > The North Carolina State University (NCSU) Solar Center, in > conjunction with the NCSU College of Agriculture and Life Sciences > and Open Grounds Farms, is hosting a Canola Field Day. The purpose > of the Field Day is to allow farmers to become familiar with this > oilseed crop, which can replace wheat in a corn-wheat-soybean > rotation using the same production equipment. The Solar Center > believes that canola could be an important feedstock for biodiesel > production in North Carolina, but in the near term, the oil and > meal can be sold in existing food markets. Hulless Barley, a > potential feedstock for ethanol production as well as an ideal > supplement in food and feed markets, will also be on display at > Open Grounds Farm. > > > > The featured speaker will be John VanDam, who is the canola product > manager and biofuel feedstock traits manager for Croplan Genetics, > a seed company owned by Land O?lakes. Mr. VanDam has participated > in canola testing in 26 U.S states and 6 Canadian provinces, so > far. He will address critical issues such as canola production > concerns and potential oil and meal markets. > > > > This Field Day is part of a venture being conducted by the North > Carolina Solar Center with funding from the Golden LEAF > Foundation. The project will evaluate the production of dedicated > energy crops including hulless barley and canola as well as > switchgrass, coastal bermudagrass, and woody biomass. > > > > This is a very busy time of year, so interested parties are > encouraged to RSVP even if they are not positive they will attend. > The event details will be released closer to the date, but for more > information and to RSVP please contact: > > > > Ben Rich > > Biomass Program Coordinator > > North Carolina Solar Center, NCSU > > Office (919) 515-9782 > > benjamin_rich at ncsu.edu > > www.ncsc.ncsu.edu > > From rachlh at yahoo.com Fri Mar 16 11:08:59 2007 From: rachlh at yahoo.com (Rachel Hoff) Date: Fri, 16 Mar 2007 09:08:59 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] "After the Peak" April 5th 7pm Century Center, Carrboro Message-ID: <20070316160859.96409.qmail@web52007.mail.re2.yahoo.com> Global Challenges, Local Solutions Local filmmaker Jim McQuaid screens his new film ?After the Peak? ? a provocative look at the world of oil scarcity set in Orange County in the near future -- followed by a public meeting about our energy future and how we can address these challenges locally. CARRBORO ? FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: A group of concerned citizens, sponsored by local organizations, will hold a public meeting on April 5th at 7pm at the Century Center on South Greensboro Street in downtown Carrboro to address our energy future with a focus on local solutions to global problems. The organizers include Mike Lanier, Stephen Hren, Tom Henkel, Alison Carpenter, Blair Pollock, Jim McQuaid, Dave Stancil and Sally Goerner. Sponsors include NC Cooperative Extension, NC Powerdown, SURGE, The Chapel Hill Solar Roofs Committee, The Alliance for Community Economics, The Orange County Economic Development Commission, The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chamber of Commerce, and The Village Project. The program will open with the premiere of McQuaid?s half-hour film After the Peak reporting on life in Orange County as people and institutions cope with $10 a gallon gasoline. The film is a natural springboard for community conversations on how to respond to the challenges facing us as oil becomes scarcer and more expensive. Following the film, three speakers will give short presentations on ideas for local solutions to these global challenges. Those presentations will be followed by audience questions and comments. Local elected officials have been invited to attend to foster community dialogue and action. The first speaker will be Simon Rich, a thought leader on the interconnection of energy and agriculture. Mr. Rich is a former CEO of Louis Dreyfus Natural Gas and is active in many organizations including the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association, The Center for Environmental Farming Systems and Environmental Defense. Second will be Eric Henry, long associated with a wide variety of local solution issues from bicycling, to land use, to sustainable apparel ? apparel production which creates no unwanted chemical or environmental side effects. He produces bio-diesel fuel for a local cooperative and uses solar power at his Burlington plant. His passion is the ?triple bottom line? business model and recreating local economies. The third speaker will be Patrick McDonough, a Board member of The Village Project and a transportation planner. He will speak on how regional and local land use and transportation decisions affect our energy consumption and how future growth patterns can drastically reduce our auto dependence. The meeting is free and open to all interested members of the public. CONTACT: Mike Lanier / 919 245-2063 / mlanier at co.orange.nc.us ____________________________________________________________________________________ Finding fabulous fares is fun. Let Yahoo! FareChase search your favorite travel sites to find flight and hotel bargains. http://farechase.yahoo.com/promo-generic-14795097 From wrenchwench at blast.com Fri Mar 16 20:38:05 2007 From: wrenchwench at blast.com (Rachel Burton) Date: Fri, 16 Mar 2007 21:38:05 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Hawaii: Pacific Biodiesel to Help Project that Finds Crops for Local Fuel Message-ID: Mar 15, 2007 - MauiNews.com http://www.mauinews.com/story.aspx?id=28548 Maui-based Pacific Biodiesel will take part in a $100,000 demonstration project to test the potential of biodiesel from crops that can be grown in Hawaii. For the test, the feedstock will mostly be nuts and beans gathered from fields and roadsides, including kukui or castor bean. Kelly King, director of marketing at Pacific will take part in a demonstration this morning at the Oceanic Institute to show how the raw oil is expressed. Pacific Biodiesel?s laboratory will refine and test the output to see how well it matches to industry standards. Deborah Jordan, the Environmental Protection Agency?s Air Division director, will award the grant money to Honolulu Clean Cities. King says the consortium made a bid for enough money to do some farming, but it got only enough for the test project. She is hopeful a last-minute move in the state Legislature may get some money to grow experimental crops. Some farmers are experimenting with other crops, such as oil palm and jatropha, so unlike the castor beans, those will not have to be collected in the wild. Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis) and Jatropha curcas are two of the highest yielding oil crops grown, primarily in tropical and subtropical areas. From wrenchwench at blast.com Mon Mar 19 10:05:40 2007 From: wrenchwench at blast.com (Rachel Burton) Date: Mon, 19 Mar 2007 11:05:40 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Firm to make biodiesel in Aiken, South Carolina Message-ID: <961461BF-85C2-4DA7-97A2-050CF2D17D67@blast.com> COLUMBIA ? Farmers & Truckers Biodiesel announced Tuesday it will locate its new manufacturing facility in Aiken County. The $1.4 million investment is expected to bring 15 new jobs within six months and an additional 45 jobs within three years. The company has purchased the KT Clay Warehouse facility in Warrenville for its new manufacturing facility. Farmers & Truckers Biodiesel will produce biodiesel, a biodegradable fuel that lubricates and extends the life of diesel engines. The company will use various products such as soy oil, chicken fat and cottonseed oil as feedstock for their operation. Biodiesel is a clean-burning, renewable, alternative fuel that is produced from feedstock grown on local farms. Production of biodiesel at the Warrenville facility is expected to replace more than 100,000 barrels of imported oil each year. Individuals interested in employment should apply at the One Stop Career Center located at 1571 Richland Ave. East in Aiken or at Aiken Technical College at 2276 Jefferson Davis Highway. Jobs should be posted within a few weeks. The S.C. Department of Commerce and the Economic Development Partnership made the announcement. http://www.thetandd.com/articles/2007/03/14/business/ doc45f7536807a8c526168856.txt From biodiesel at yovo.info Wed Mar 21 13:37:52 2007 From: biodiesel at yovo.info (Jurgen Henn) Date: Wed, 21 Mar 2007 14:37:52 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Durham Parks & Rec ISO SVO mobiles Message-ID: <46017B80.7010305@yovo.info> Hi all, for the Durham Earth Day Festival, Durham Parks & Recreation is looking for owners of SVO vehicles who would be willing to show off their rides during the Festival on April 21. For more info: http://www.durhamearthday.org/ Contact: Chris Shepard Environmental Educator Durham Parks and Recreation 919-620-8154 Christopher.Shepard [AT] durhamnc [DOT] gov Cheers, Jurgen From markj.ambrose at gmail.com Thu Mar 22 11:31:21 2007 From: markj.ambrose at gmail.com (Mark J. Ambrose) Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2007 12:31:21 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Ruminations on Fuel, Food, and Investments In-Reply-To: <45F1E68C.1030807@gmail.com> References: <569851.23050.qm@web55310.mail.re4.yahoo.com> <45F1E68C.1030807@gmail.com> Message-ID: <4602AF59.2020009@gmail.com> Folks, 1) Last week I got to attend a seminar given by Ed Kerschner, Chief Investment Officer for CitiGroup on investing and global climate change. It was interesting hearing some of his analyses. Leaving out the details, his main point was to select companies that were strong in new technologies that would benefit given the physical reality of climate change and especially given a new regulatory environment with emissions limits and to avoid companies that would be hurt by the changed business environment. For example, companies involved in wind turbines, solar technology, biofuel, high-efficiency diesel , high-efficiency gasoline engines would be winners. Companies such as auto manufacturers that are not moving towards better efficiencies, power companies with no renewable sources would be losers. 2) One technology that got my attendtion as something to look for in the future is miniature combined heat and power systems. We have had large-scale combined heat and power systems for a long time in parts of the world. In Europe there would be a power plant located near factories or apartment blocks. The waste heat from the power plant provides heat for the nearby buildings. The idea behind miniature CHP systems is that, say in the Northeast, every house that heats with natural gas would have a combined electric generator and furnace, so you would first produce electricity and the "waste" heat would heat your home. The electricty would first supply your needs, and the extra would be pumped back into the grid. I have no idea how far along this technology is or whether it is limited to to natural gas (or bio-methane) or could be adapted to liquid fuels such as biodiesel. 3) Kerschner talked a little about biofuels. Like many he was big on cellulosic ethanol and cellulosic butanol, and not excited by corn-based ethanol. But I think he reached the right conclusion with the wrong.reasoning. He used a fuel vs. food argument -- grow corn for food, not for fuel. I think corn-based ethanol is not a great choice because the energetic gain is modest and the economics aren't great. The reason that the food vs. fuel argument doesn't work given present conditions is as follows. I got curious and went to the statistics from the national Corn Refiner's Association: http://www.corn.org/statistics.htm You can check out the details on the web, but here are a few interesting bits. In 2004, the US produced 11.8 billion bushels of corn. In the same year, only 2.67 billion bushels went into refined corn products of any kind. Where did the rest of it go? Mostly livestock feed. This is actually good because a byproduct of ethanol production is brewer's grain (the stuff that doesn't ferment) that makes a great livestock feed, so part of the corn supply diverted from livestock feed to ethanol comes back into the livestock feed supply. Even so increased ethanol production may push the prices of meat, eggs, and milk up. Now, looking at the corn used for refined products (let me switch to more recent 2006 data, showing a major increase in ethanol production ) 3.5 billion bushels were refined. Of that, 2.1 billion went to fuel ethanol. But of the remainder, most did not go to things like corn meal or cornflakes. The next highest use of corn was for high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), 537 million bushels. So, if corn prices go up because of ethanol production, it will be seen in the price of all the refined foods and junk foods that use HFCS. If the price goes up enough, manufacturers may switch back to using sugar in their products. My take on this is that, given that the US is becoming an increasingly obese nation, a rise in the price HFCS and products made from it would not be such a bad thing if it means folks consume a little less of those products. 4) Thinking of soybeans and extending that corn logic. I know many folks are not that big on soybeans for biodiesel because production per acre is not the best and soy biodiesel has cold flow issues. But I really like it from an agronomic perspective and a coproducts perspective. Agronomically I like it because soy fixes nitrogen, so fertilizer inputs are minimized. In terms of coproducts, the great thing is that you press out the oil and are left with the rest of the high protein bean, which makes an excellent animal feed. Also, that meal can be processed into a number of high-protein, low-fat soy-based foods, so in the case of soy, you can have your biofuels and eat it too. If soybean production increases to produce biodiesel, it will actually increase the availability of raw material for soy-based animal feed and soy-based foods, so soy biodiesel could bring the costs of some foods down. Food for thought. -- Mark From markj.ambrose at gmail.com Thu Mar 22 13:33:38 2007 From: markj.ambrose at gmail.com (Mark J. Ambrose) Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2007 14:33:38 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] [Fwd: Ruminations on Fuel, Food, and Investments] Message-ID: <4602CC02.6060809@unity.ncsu.edu> From john.bonitz at gmail.com Thu Mar 22 14:18:51 2007 From: john.bonitz at gmail.com (John Bonitz) Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2007 15:18:51 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] local Mercedes 300D on Ebay Message-ID: <84a57a420703221218l4243dbe0l84fd5494fed7e343@mail.gmail.com> FYI. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Mark Stinson Date: Mar 22, 2007 4:01 PM Subject: 300 D mercedes To: john.bonitz at gmail.com John I have a friend wanting to sell a 1981 300 D Mercedes ,, it broke the timing chain but ran fine till that happened . Its on Ebay Item number: 140099485653 He will stop the auction for a cash offer ,, I hate to bother you but I know it would be a great bio diesel conversion ,, can you post it for me and just refer then to the ebay item number ,, or my email . Thanks Mark Stinson From marc at theforestfoundation.org Thu Mar 22 16:41:50 2007 From: marc at theforestfoundation.org (Marc Dreyfors-President) Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2007 16:41:50 -0500 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Biodiesel in Bobcat Model 640 Message-ID: Does anyone have any experience with using biodiesel in a Bobcat? We had one that started "choking," worked for a while great, then just would not run, wouldn't turn over. Soon as we stuck the fuel line in diesel, cranked right up. Not sure if it clogged filters, injectors or what. Marc Carolina Biodiesel From jcbaron at verizon.net Thu Mar 22 19:20:12 2007 From: jcbaron at verizon.net (Jim Baron) Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2007 19:20:12 -0500 (CDT) Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] local Mercedes 300D on Ebay Message-ID: <30274759.3052681174609213819.JavaMail.root@vms170.mailsrvcs.net> > >Date: Mar 22, 2007 4:01 PM >Subject: 300 D mercedes >To: john.bonitz at gmail.com > >John > I have a friend wanting to sell a 1981 300 D Mercedes ,, it broke >the timing chain but ran fine till that happened . Its on Ebay > >Item number: 140099485653 > He will stop the auction for a cash offer ,, I hate to bother you >but I know it would be a great bio diesel conversion ,, can you post >it for me and just refer then to the ebay item number ,, or my email >. > > Thanks Mark Stinson >_______________________________________________ >Biofuels_Interest_Group mailing list >Biofuels_Interest_Group at lists.emji.net >http://lists.emji.net/mailman/listinfo/biofuels_interest_group It's very unlikely that a broken timing chain while the motor is running, even just idling, will result in less than a ruined camshaft, broken cam support towers (a deliberate "weakest link" element in the design which sometimes saves the pistons or at least rods and crankshaft), and several ruined pistons and valves. More likely, all of the above. Keep that in mind while bidding. Jim Baron Senex From richmason at mindspring.com Thu Mar 22 21:15:17 2007 From: richmason at mindspring.com (Rich Mason) Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2007 22:15:17 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] local Mercedes 300D on Ebay In-Reply-To: <30274759.3052681174609213819.JavaMail.root@vms170.mailsrvcs.net> References: <30274759.3052681174609213819.JavaMail.root@vms170.mailsrvcs.net> Message-ID: <2302E2CD-C5D0-425D-97D5-2597CDE24B52@mindspring.com> I just went and looked at this car. The camshaft is broken. I looked the body and interior over while I was there. If anyone has any questions about it, please feel free to call me at 919 260 4973. FWIW, I had a timing chain break in my 240 D a year or so ago. I pulled the head and besides the bent valves, broken cam towers, etc, there were divots in the pistons. Impossible to know if they were cracked without pulling the motor and the pistons, while you are there you should do the rod bearings and rings, machine the crank, it goes on and on. This car has a 5 cylinder non-turbo engine. Pretty rare motor if you hope to find one used in my experience as I think there were many more 115 cars built with that engine than 123s and they are different. I rebuilt one in my dad's shop 10 years ago that had broken a chain I think. I spent over a grand in parts and machine shop work at cost. Rich Mason On 22 Mar 2007, at 20:20, Jim Baron wrote: >> >> Date: Mar 22, 2007 4:01 PM >> Subject: 300 D mercedes >> To: john.bonitz at gmail.com >> >> John >> I have a friend wanting to sell a 1981 300 D Mercedes ,, it broke >> the timing chain but ran fine till that happened . Its on Ebay >> >> Item number: 140099485653 >> He will stop the auction for a cash offer ,, I hate to bother you >> but I know it would be a great bio diesel conversion ,, can you post >> it for me and just refer then to the ebay item number ,, or my email >> . >> >> Thanks Mark Stinson >> _______________________________________________ >> Biofuels_Interest_Group mailing list >> Biofuels_Interest_Group at lists.emji.net >> http://lists.emji.net/mailman/listinfo/biofuels_interest_group > > It's very unlikely that a broken timing chain while the motor is > running, even just idling, will result in less than a ruined > camshaft, broken cam support towers (a deliberate "weakest link" > element in the design which sometimes saves the pistons or at least > rods and crankshaft), and several ruined pistons and valves. More > likely, all of the above. Keep that in mind while bidding. > > > Jim Baron > Senex > _______________________________________________ > Biofuels_Interest_Group mailing list > Biofuels_Interest_Group at lists.emji.net > http://lists.emji.net/mailman/listinfo/biofuels_interest_group From john.bonitz at gmail.com Thu Mar 22 22:39:07 2007 From: john.bonitz at gmail.com (John Bonitz) Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2007 23:39:07 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Ruminations on Fuel, Food, and Investments In-Reply-To: <84a57a420703222024w127c7836s3ce62d58b8ddacbf@mail.gmail.com> References: <84a57a420703222024w127c7836s3ce62d58b8ddacbf@mail.gmail.com> Message-ID: <84a57a420703222039y50dd284y79539bc87d01c468@mail.gmail.com> Hiya Mark, Thanks for the ruminations. Interesting thoughts. You mentioned small-scale combined heat & power: Was Capstone mentioned? It's a small microturbine, designed to cleanly burn a wide variety of fuels. I've not checked on the stock in a long time (Nasdaq CPST). I've also not checked on their product development in a long time -- but I seem to recall they were working on a heat recovery package. I also seem to recall they claimed it could even burn biodiesel, sour gas, landfill methane, digester gas etc. (This is not an endorsement: Do your own due diligence before investing.) Did Kerschner mention any other particular stocks in this realm (any that you care to share?)? You wrote: "In 2004, the US produced 11.8 billion bushels of corn. In the same year, only 2.67 billion bushels went into refined corn products of any kind. Where did the rest of it go? Mostly livestock feed." Thanks for bringing up this question of supposed food price inflation due to ethanol production. It's one of my pet-peeves that the media so glibly repeat this myth. I'm no huge fan of ethanol, but corn prices have been unusually low in recent years, so when you hear that "corn has DOUBLED in price!" bear in mind that it used to be $2 a bushel and now that it is $4 a bushel, farmers are just beginning to recover from the lows. A friend of mine recently shared with me the observation that corn prices have tended to inflate during the year prior to Congressional Farm Bill deliberations. He showed me a graph, and sure enough, every single one of the high-price years in recent decades was just prior to Farm Bill time. It makes you wonder who stands to gain from federal policies that keep corn production prices low? I'm pleased to hear your succinct argument for biodiesel feedstocks: It's good language to use in talking it up. However, I'd point out that canola also offers protein-rich seed-cake after the oil has been pressed out. And we get two or three times as much oil per acre. AND it can be grown in rotation with soy! Confinement animal feeding operations around here don't care for this argument, because they're reluctant to feed their animals canola meal. I have not had the time to inquire in Canada and the middle-Northern states, but I suspect there is much data already about the performance of rapeseed-meal as animal feed. I wanted to echo your conclusion: "If soybean production increases to produce biodiesel, it will actually increase the availability of raw material for soy-based animal feed and soy-based foods, so soy biodiesel could bring the costs of some foods down." Yep, and all the more so if canola production is ramped-up for biodiesel production. Could also be the case if we ever figure out how to produce commercial-scale oil-from-algae. I'd be even more specific and say that cheap beef, chicken, and pork may get cheaper still. Which is a prospect I do not relish. Mmmm, relish. First fuel, then food, and now condiments. cheers, -- John Bonitz Silk Hope, NC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -- John Bonitz Silk Hope, NC ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ From wrenchwench at blast.com Mon Mar 26 16:20:37 2007 From: wrenchwench at blast.com (Rachel Burton) Date: Mon, 26 Mar 2007 17:20:37 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Cummins Approves B20 Biodiesel Blends for Use in its 2002 and Later Emissions-Compliant Engines Message-ID: <4E41B1B3-FC04-48B9-8CD0-0BC9B27408E5@blast.com> Louisville, KY--Cummins Inc. announced March 22 the approval of biodiesel B20 blends for use in its 2002 and later emissions-compliant ISX, ISM, ISL, ISC and ISB engines. This includes the recently released 2007 products. Cummins is able to upgrade its previous position on the use of biodiesel fuel, which limited the use to B5 blends only, up to B20 for three key reasons. First, the American Society of Testing Materials specification ASTM D6751 now includes an important stability specification for B100 biodiesel. Second, the availability of quality fuels from BQ-9000 Certified Marketers and Accredited Producers is growing rapidly; and third, Cummins has completed the necessary testing and evaluations to ensure that customers can reliably operate their equipment with confidence using B20 fuel. ?We have completed exhaustive analysis and test evaluations which enable Cummins to provide the necessary guidance and information to our customers for the proper and successful use of this fuel in our engine,? said Edward Lyford- Pike, Chief Engineer ? Advanced Alternative Fuel Programs. ?This will enable our customers to have a choice that includes renewable fuel.? The popularity and use of biodiesel fuel continues to climb. Recent studies predict that, by 2008, 1.2 billion gallons of B100 biodiesel will be produced in the United States. Cummins will continue its efforts to ensure that future products will be compatible with biodiesel fuels, and will continue to participate in industry efforts aimed at the development of consistent quality throughout the biodiesel industry. From tes at unc.edu Tue Mar 27 21:45:23 2007 From: tes at unc.edu (tes thraves) Date: Tue, 27 Mar 2007 22:45:23 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] 83 300TD, Benz wagon Message-ID: Mercedes for sale. Running well: ran on B100 all winter, one week of trouble resolved with new fuel filters and a little dinodiesel. Brake work done recently. Can send pics and more details to anyone interested. Asking $4300?what I have in it. Need (as opposed to want) to sell. 1983 wagon 300TD 193000 miles 28mpg cosmetics: Good transmission no rust or body damage manual moon roof all power windows and door locks work CD player working AC and heat 24-28mpg ________________________ tessa eliza thraves tes at unc.edu or tes at biofuels.coop home phone: 919.542.9999 cell: 919.619.8897 >> Even if you don?t have room for a garden, you have three opportunities a day >> to support local farmers: breakfast, lunch, and dinner. . . . At seventy >> dollars a barrel for oil, we can?t eat forever on the basis that it?s always >> summer someplace else. It?s as if we order takeout 365 days a year. >> Bill McKibben From leif at biofuels.coop Thu Mar 29 11:41:22 2007 From: leif at biofuels.coop (Leif Forer) Date: Thu, 29 Mar 2007 12:41:22 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] Diesel cars for sale References: Message-ID: <53610F86-0610-44F6-BE4D-542AAB2C98A1@biofuels.coop> Contact Rob Cotter (in N. Raleigh): 919-414-0720 '02 Jetta GLS, auto, blue/beige, liquid cells boot gauge, 85k, $12,800 '97 Mercedez, 1 owner, 97k, $15,600 '93 Mercedez, 2 owners, 205k, $7,500 Contact Rob Cotter (in N. Raleigh): 919-414-0720 From wrenchwench at blast.com Thu Mar 29 15:33:03 2007 From: wrenchwench at blast.com (Rachel Burton) Date: Thu, 29 Mar 2007 16:33:03 -0400 Subject: [Biofuels_Interest_Group] U.S. imports seen as threat to biofuels Message-ID: LONDON (Reuters) - Britain is looking for a way to tackle imports of biofuels from the United States which it believes will undermine the commercial case for European production, transport minister Stephen Ladyman said. "People who are being subsidised to produce renewable fuels in the United States are now planning to export that fuel to Europe where they hope to get a second subsidy when it is sold in Europe," he said. "That is undermining the commercial case for investment in Europe. It is one of the things that we have got to try and sort out," he told a conference organised by biofuels industry lobby group, the Environmental Industries Commission. The United States has seen rapid growth in its bioethanol industry, boosted by strong goverment support motivated by a desire for energy security. European biodiesel makers have made the same complaint to Brussels -- that increasing sales of U.S. biodiesel are being made in the EU with the help of unfair subsidies. Britain offers tax incentives for motor fuels which contain biofuels as part of its effort to reduce emissions of the greenhouse gases which are believed to contribute to global warming. The incentive is provided to both domestically produced and imported biofuels. Bioethanol, which is usually blended with petrol, can be made from grains or sugar crops. The U.S. and Brazil are the world's two leading producers of bioethanol. Britain currently has no significant bioethanol plants although many are planned. It currently imports much of its bioethanol from Brazil. http://biobased.org/list2.php?storyid=11529