Author: Carrie Cox

Biofuels Digest reports that ABO member LanzaTech, in partnership with Virgin, has produced the first 1,500 gallons of low-carbon jet fuel from industrial waste gases using its breakthrough fermentation process. It is the latest in a number of succesful commercialization milestones for LanzaTech.

To make the company’s fuels Lanzatech has also partnered with China-based Shougang, one of the worlds largest steel manufacturers, to harness the industrial waste gases from its steel plants and transform into ethanol, jet fuel, plastics and other valuable products. In this case the technology is creating a much-needed liquid fuel while also preventing greenhouse gases from immediately entering the atmosphere. The result is what Biofuels Digest calls “second chance carbon,” an opportunity to use carbon-containing gases and turn them into fuels that would otherwise be made from fossil oil.

Why jet fuel? Because liquid fuels will have a role to play in the future regardless of the rise of electric vehicles, and we much find ways to make them sustainably. Electric engines won’t be able to power every vehicle, especially aircraft, and in many analyses the greenhouse gas reductions from electric cars are easily matched, or exceeded, by the renewable fuels produced by companies like LanzaTech.

Read the full story here. 

If you read this blog, you are likely familiar with the great potential that algae presents for many diverse industries. Yet some challenges still remain. One of those challenges is the cost of harvesting algae. More specifically dewatering. When algae is harvested, it is accompanied by large volumes of water that need to be extracted, requiring large amounts of energy.

Enter ABO member Global Algae Innovations (GAI). They have come up with an innovative dewatering technique that requires a fraction of the energy required by other techniques in the space. In the words of NREL, “the membrane dewatering performance furnished by GAI…is significantly better than values found elsewhere.” GAI is in fact offering the system for sale in addition to its other activities in the algae space.

In short, this is substantial breakthrough in harvesting and dewatering and one that is being shared to expand the already dynamic algae industry.

More details about the system, its scaling potential and Global Algae Innovations’ other activities can be found in this feature in Biofuels Digest.

The Biotechnology Innovation Organization has released a new report on the biobased economy: “Advancing the Biobased Economy: Renewable Chemical Biorefinery Commercialization, Profess and Market Opportunities, 2016 and Beyond.” The report takes a deep dive into the future of biobased products and comes out with some very positive results.

Perhaps one of the most exciting highlights of the report is a list of companies making waves in the space. There are many key algae companies (and Algae Biomass Organization members) prominently featured, including Heliae, Joule, LanzaTech, Matrix, Cellana, Sapphire, Terravia and others. In other words, algae is key cog in the biobased space.

McKinsey & Co. estimates that there were $252 billion in sales of biobased products in 2012; a number that is expected to grow to as large as $375-$441 billion by 2020. Over the same span of time, sales of renewable chemicals are expected to grow from 9 percent to 11 percent of the global chemical sales total.

The report highlights certain policies that have had an effect in producing that result, including both the Renewable Fuel Standard and the 2014 Farm Bill. According to the report, the former opened discussions and policy development in renewable chemicals and biobased products, while the latter extended loan guarantee eligibility to renewable chemicals and biobased products producers—key steps to advancing these new technologies.

For more about the report, visit BIO’s website.

 

 

Innovations for producing algae based fuels and chemicals will get another boost now that the  Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) is moving forward with a significant new funding opportunity.

ARPA-E’s Teaming List Announcement, entitled “SCALABLE MACROALGAE CULTIVATION TECHNOLOGIES FOR FUELS AND CHEMICALS” can be found at: https://arpa-e-foa.energy.gov/#FoaIdd498e9ab-b0a1-45fe-84da-597841a50de1

The Algae Biomass Organization had a strong presence at ARPA-E’s February workshop to explore possible funding in this area, and was able to provide ARPA-E staff with input about progress among ABO’s membership. This latest funding builds on past ARPA-E Funding Opportunity Announcements that have supported up to $30 million in project applications.

Marc von Keitz, ARPA-E’s program leader in this area, will be moderating a session on macroalgae developments at this year’s Algae Biomass Summit in Phoenix, Oct 23-26. This will be a great opportunity to hear about the latest progress in producing sustainable fuels and chemical from algae.

The FOA itself is expected to be issued in November 2016.

 

EPA will be hosting a public meeting entitled, “Opportunity for Public Comment on Algae Guidance for The Preparation of TSCA Biotechnology Submissions” at Arizona State University in Tempe, AZ on October 27, 2016, immediately following the Algae Biomass Summit.

The objective of this meeting is to receive public input and comments on EPA’s algae guidance document in support of risk assessments of biotechnology products that make use of genetically engineered algae and cyanobacteria, which are subject to Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) oversight. The meeting will inform the development of EPA’s “Algae Guidance for The Preparation of TSCA Biotechnology Submissions” document.

EPA encourages all members of the public interested in participating in this meeting to register to attend. Due to space limitations, the Agency anticipates that approximately 120 people will be able to attend the meeting in person, with seating available on a first-come, first-serve basis. For registrants not able to attend in person, the meeting will also provide Web connect and teleconference capabilities.

More information is available on EPA’s website.