Using Biofuel In Cars 'May Accelerate Loss Of Rainforest'

Photo: Harvesting of palm oil, the production of which is leading to loss of rainforest. (Paulo Whitaker/Reuters/Corbis)

From Times Online:

Using biofuel in vehicles may be accelerating the destruction of rainforest and resulting in higher greenhouse gas emissions than burning pure petrol and diesel, a watchdog said yesterday.

The Renewable Fuels Agency also warned that pump prices could rise in April because of the Government’s policy of requiring fuel companies to add biofuel to petrol and diesel. More than 1.3 million hectares of land — twice the area of Devon — was used to grow the 2.7 per cent of Britain’s transport fuel that came from crops last year.

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Bacteria Make Diesel From Biomass

Photo: Bacteria power: The E. coli bacteria in this microscopic image are excreting droplets of diesel fuel. The bacteria are the small dark rods clustered in the top corners and at the bottom of the image. Credit: Keasling lab

From Technology Review:

Newly engineered E. coli streamline the conversion of cellulose into fuel.

Engineered bacteria have been rewired with the genetic machinery necessary to convert cellulose into a range of chemicals, including diesel fuel. The bacteria, developed by South San Francisco company LS9 in collaboration with researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, make the necessary enzymes for every step along the synthesis pathway and can convert biomass into fuel without the need for additional processing. LS9 has demonstrated the bacteria in pilot-scale reactors and plans to scale the process to a commercial level later this year.

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Biofuels: Can They Fuel Our Lifestyle Without Taking Food From The Poor?

Green crude from oil processed from algae

From The Guardian:

A consultation by the UK Nuffield Council on Bioethics wants to hear public opinion on the new generation of biofuels.

Just in case you thought it was safe to stop thinking about biofuels, here comes another study – this time into the ethics. Can a new generation of biofuels ensure we don't increase greenhouse gas emissions and take food from the poor to fuel our cars?

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Exxon, DNA Pioneer Join On Algae Biofuels

Image: Algae as biomass for biofuel are become more attractive to investors and developers.

From CNN:

(CNN) -- ExxonMobil is teaming up with the biotech research company run by genomics pioneer Craig Venter to produce algae-based biofuels.

The world's second largest company announced on Tuesday that it will invest at least $300 million in biotechnology research with Venter's Synthetic Genomics Inc to help develop biofuels made from algae, as it looks to diversify its energy portfolio.

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Biofuel Displacing Food Crops May Have Bigger Carbon Impact Than Thought

MBL senior scientist Jerry Melillo and his colleagues have found that carbon emissions from land-use change caused by the displacement of food crops and pastures by a global biofuels program may be twice as much as emissions from lands directly devoted to biofuels production. (Credit: Chris Neill, MBL)

From Science Daily:

Science Daily (Oct. 25, 2009) — A report examining the impact of a global biofuels program on greenhouse gas emissions during the 21st century has found that carbon loss stemming from the displacement of food crops and pastures for biofuels crops may be twice as much as the CO2 emissions from land dedicated to biofuels production. The study, led by Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) senior scientist Jerry Melillo, also predicts that increased fertilizer use for biofuels production will cause nitrous oxide emissions (N2O) to become more important than carbon losses, in terms of warming potential, by the end of the century.

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Tallying The Real Environmental Cost Of Biofuels

William Radcliffe / Science Faction / Corbis

From Time Magazine:

The promise of biofuels like ethanol is that they will someday help the world grow its way out of its addiction to oil. Nine billion gallons of corn ethanol were produced in the U.S. in 2008, while countries like Brazil have already widely replaced gasoline with ethanol from sugar cane and countless start-ups are working to bring cellulosic and other second-generation biofuels to market. The reasoning is that if we use greener biofuels in place of gasoline, it will significantly enhance our effort to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions.

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Biofuel From Sewage

Image: On Q: The Q microbe (pictured), a lollipop-shaped organism that naturally breaks down and converts plant matter into ethanol, is now being used to make biofuel from sewage. Credit: Qteros

From Technology Review:

Qteros forms a partnership to use sewage as a feedstock for making ethanol.

These days, more and more companies are finding that sewage is a veritable "black gold." In recent years, sewage sludge has been mined for electricity, fertilizer, fish food, and gasoline. Now two companies have partnered up to turn sewage into ethanol. While others have worked to produce ethanol from municipal solid waste, sewage from wastewater has been a relatively unmined ethanol source.

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How to Make Biodiesel With a Commercial Kit

Senior editor Mike Allen (who used to teach organic chemistry in a previous career) gloves up to pump methanol into the processor.

From Popular Mechanics:

“Make your own diesel for 70 cents a gallon,” the Internet ad claimed. I was tired of paying for 30 gallons of regular diesel each week to fill my pickup, so I downloaded the instructions. It wasn’t long before I was sucking used fry oil out of tanks behind a restaurant, and mixing it with lye and methanol in a 5-gallon bottle before pouring it into an old water heater.

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World Biofuel Use Expected To Double By 2015

From CNET:

Global biofuel use is expected to increase twofold by 2015 and Brazil will remain the world's top exporter of biofuel, according to a report released Wednesday by Hart Energy Consulting.

The U.S. is expected to see the largest increase in biofuel use per country, increasing its current consumption by more than 30 percent, according to data from the "Global Biofuels Outlook: 2009-2015" report.

The overall increased use of biofuel in many countries around the world will make a dent in the world's consumption of traditional gasoline, according to Hart.

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A Biofuel Process to Replace All Fossil Fuels

Image: Solar farming: A photobioreactor houses photosynthetic microorganisms that use the energy in sunlight to make fuel and other chemicals from carbon dioxide and water. Credit: Joule Biotechnologies

From Technology Review:

A startup unveils a high-yield process for making fuel from carbon dioxide and sunlight.

A startup based in Cambridge, MA--Joule Biotechnologies--today revealed details of a process that it says can make 20,000 gallons of biofuel per acre per year. If this yield proves realistic, it could make it practical to replace all fossil fuels used for transportation with biofuels. The company also claims that the fuel can be sold for prices competitive with fossil fuels.

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Study: Biofuel Threatens Water Supplies

From Live Science:

The production of bioethanol may use up to three times as much water as previously thought, a new study finds, becoming the latest work that could burst the biofuel bubble.

A gallon of ethanol may require up to more than 2,100 gallons of water from farm to fuel pump, depending on the regional irrigation practice in growing corn, according to the study detailed in the April 15 issue of journal Environmental Science & Technology.

But the water usage isn't quite so high everywhere: A dozen states in the Corn Belt consume less than 100 gallons of water per gallon of ethanol, making them better suited for ethanol production, the study found.

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Video: Oil Addiction And Biofuel Dangers Simplified

From Autobloggreen:

There's a new video from Good Magazine that explains the viewpoint of those who believe that using crops for biofuels isn't good for the environment with simple and clear language. The short clip references articles from newspapers such as the LA Times and the NY Times, as well as official agencies like the DOE. The video outlines the reasons as follows: if high demand and fear of the short of supply make oil prices rise, then biofuel producers use feedstock to make their biofuels. Then, the high oil prices and the shortage of feedstocks make food more expensive, giving us the global crisis we've seen recently. If you think that the light relief from recent cuts in oil prices is enough to keep us saved, keep this video in mind. Watch it after the jump.

GOOD: Oil Addiction
by goodmagazine

Miscanthus Can Meet U.S. Biofuels Goal Using Less Land Than Corn Or Switchgrass

From University Of Illinois:

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — In the largest field trial of its kind in the United States, researchers have determined that the giant perennial grass Miscanthus x giganteus outperforms current biofuels sources – by a lot. Using Miscanthus as a feedstock for ethanol production in the U.S. could significantly reduce the acreage dedicated to biofuels while meeting government biofuels production goals, the researchers report.

The new findings, from researchers at the University of Illinois, appear this month in the journal Global Change Biology.

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