Algae biomass in EU

Meanwhile, 100 EU algae stakeholders are preparing to release a white paper, “European Roadmap for an Algae-Based Industry”, after a meeting co-organised by the European Algae Biomass Association, Miracles, FUEL4ME, Splash and the Algae Cluster (InteSusAl, BIOFAT and All-gas).

The White Paper will note:

• Further developments should be product driven. The development of marketable algae-based products is important for industrialization of the area.

• Algal strains should be further industrialized as sustainable green cell factories via strain improvement programs, allowing both GMO and non-GMO strategies.

• Advances in regulatory and standardization issues have been developed but still barriers remain for final applications of microalgae based products.

• More demonstration projects for specific markets at a production size of approximately 5 ha should be developed to push the field.

• Technological bottlenecks such as fouling and culture contamination need to be solved.

• Harmonisation is needed in terms of measurements and unit expression.

• Collaboration between algal and other industries should be enabled.

• Industrial and academic collaboration, education, communication to a wider audience about sustainability of the technology, consumers’ acceptance and legislation about products with algae inside need to be stimulated.

The EU partners also noted that developments of the last years in the algal field have been significant. Operational pilot and demonstration scale production facilities of up to 1 ha have been realized. The knowledge on fundamental biology develops rapidly, the technology for production matures and biorefineries that process algal biomass into multiple high quality products have been implemented.

The continued interest in advanced algae has produced numerous exciting technical advances on the laboratory, pilot and demonstration scales. However, attempts to translate these small scale successes into commercial technologies have been less successful. It is easy to blame lower oil and natural gas prices and opposition from special interest groups. However, nearly all commercialization projects have yet to produce significant quantities of algae on a continuing basis.

Algae needs a lot of water to live in and to make biomass with, but overwhelmingly its the habitat requirement that drives up the costs. If a 30-centimeter deep pond is producing 25 grams of algae per day, the algae are living inside 333 kilos of water.

Mainstream strategies to enhance agitation efficiency during transesterification process

Conventionally, biodiesel is produced through the agitation of the reagents, i.e., oil, alcohol (mainly methanol), and catalyst at about 60 ^oC (just below the boiling point of methanol i.e. 64.7 ^oC) for about 1 h.

Currently, the majority of industrial biodiesel production practices worldwide are batch or continuous processes with mechanical agitation. However, since oil and alcohol are not well miscible, mixing efficiency is therefore the main challenge faced.

The most efficient mixing is achieved when the alcohol–oil interfacial area is maximized by decreasing the droplet size of the reactants i.e. alcohol and oil as much as possible. Theoretically, this could be as low as the sizes of the molecules involved in the reaction. Therefore, both the agitation and temperature are indispensable elements required to accomplish a successful transesterification reaction.

Numerous attempts have been made to enhance agitation efficiency including chemical and/or mechanical strategies:

- Chemical strategies used to enhance agitation efficiency, involve the use of a co-solvent in order to achieve a single phase of alcohol-oil. The co-solvents used should:

1) be completely miscible in both the alcohol and oil and

2) have a boiling point close to that of the alcohol used e.g., methanol so that they could be easily , co-distilled and recovered/recycled upon the termination of the reaction. Cyclic ethers such as tetrahydrofuran (THF), 1,4-dioxane, diethyl ether, methyl tertiary butyl ether, and diisopropyl ether, owing to their hydrophilic oxygen atom capable of forming hydrogen bonds with alcohols, and their hydrophobic hydrocarbon portion capable of solubilizing oils, meet the first condition required for an ideal co-solvent. Having included the second condition, THF (boiling point: 66 oC) is regarded as the most ideal co-solvent especially if methanol is used in the transesterification reaction.

- Mechanical strategies used to enhance agitation efficiency fall into three different categories:

1) Improving the conventional impeller agitation systems.

2) Application of non-impeller novel agitation systems in which highly efficient mechanical energy is provided for mixing and initiating the transesterification reaction. These include ultrasound-based agitation systems, e.g., ultrasonic cavitation reactor, high frequency magnetic impulse cavitation reactor, static mixers, oscillatory flow reactors, and spinning tube in tube reactors.

3) application of novel systems in which no agitation is applied but conditions required for a successful transesterification are provided. These include microwave reactors which utilize microwave irradiation to transfer energy directly into reactants and consequently accelerate the rate of reaction and membrane reactors. In fact, the latter integrates reaction and membrane-based separation into a single process and increase the rate of equilibrium-limited transesterification reaction by constantly removing the products i.e. biodiesel from the reactants stream via membranes.

It is worth quoting that the final characteristics of biodiesel could be influenced by the procedure through which the fuel has been produced.

Purification of the Transesterification Reaction Products

The mixture of fatty acids methyl esters (FAME) obtained from the transesterification reaction must be purified in order to comply with established quality standards for biodiesel. Therefore, FAME must be washed, neutralized and dried.

Successive washing steps with water remove the remains of methanol, catalyst and glycerin, since these contaminants are water-soluble. Care must be taken to avoid the formation of emulsions during the washing steps, since they would reduce the efficiency of the process.

The first washing step is carried out with acidified water, to neutralize the mixture of esters. Then, two additional washing steps are made with water only. Finally the traces of water must be eliminated by a drying step. After drying, the purified product is ready for characterization as biodiesel according to international standards.

An alternative to the purification process described above is the use of ion exchange resins or silicates.

Glycerin as obtained from the chemical reaction is not of high quality and has no commercial value. Therefore, it must be purified after the phase separation. This is not economically viable in small scale production, due to the small glycerin yield. However, purification is a very interesting alternative for large-scale production plants, since, in addition to the high quality glycerin, part of the methanol is recovered for reutilization in the transesterification reaction (both from FAME and glycerin), and thus lowering biodiesel production costs.

The steady increase of biodiesel production is fostering research for novel uses of glycerin in the production of high-value-added products.

Vegetable Oil Kits for direct use in Diesel Engines

There are a number of kits on the market that allow someone to modify their car to directly use vegetable oil.

A typical conversion kit will have the following components:

1. vegetable oil tank - The tank holds the vegetable oil used for fuel separate from the regular diesel tank already in the car
2. filter - the filter is designed to remove any impurities that might be in the vegetable oil
3. tubing - the tubes connect the vegetable oil tank to the combustion chambers in the diesel engine
4. valves - this controls the flow of vegetable oil
5. switches - usually mounted on the dashboard which can be used to control the valves and therefore the flow of vegetable oil to the engine
6. pre-heater - the pre-heater heats the vegetable oil so that it can flow to the combustion chamber

Vegetable oil is much thicker than diesel oil and so, as noted above, it needs to be heated to 165 degrees or higher in order to thin it out enough to use. Consequently most vegetable oil conversion kits provide some type of vegetable oil pre-heater to thin the oil out so the engine can be started. There are two approaches that are commonly taken to heating the oil. One approach is to use an electric heater to heat the oil. Another approach is to run the engine for a while on conventional diesel fuel, and then use the heat from the engine to heat the oil using heat exchangers.

Because of the need to pre-heat the vegetable oil the car must usually be run for about five minutes before you can throw the switch to have it begin using the vegetable oil. The switch triggers a valve which opens the flow of vegetable oil from the now heated tank and cuts off the flow of fuel from the standard diesel tank. This process must then be reversed when you shut the engine down. Five minutes before you turn the engine off you will need to turn the switch back to conventional diesel so that the fuel lines are purged of any vegetable oil which could condense and clog the engine.

Vegetable oil kits have some definite disadvantages. First, one most own a car with a diesel engine. Second you need to establish a source for getting your vegetable oil. This is probably much less of an issue since fast food restaurants that use them are just about everywhere. Third, there is the expense of the conversion kit.. If you are not mechanically inclined it is likely that most good mechanics could put them in for you but that will add further cost. Finally, there is the issue just described of having to deal with switching fuels when starting and stopping your car. If you have the kind of lifestyle where you are doing quick short trips with your car then this requirement may be a bit more than you want to deal with.

On the other hand vegetable oil cars can for some people prove to be an ideal alternative. It uses a fuel that is completely renewable and which could help support our agricultural economy. The fuel is likely to be extremely cheap, possible even free if you have a good relationship with your local fast food owner. The engine uses fuel that would have otherwise gone into a polluting landfill and it produces less hydrocarbons than conventional diesel fuel. These are not insignificant advantages in an era of global warming and high fuel prices.

Production of FAME biodiesel in E. coli – Microdiesel fuel

The utilization of engineered microorganisms to produce chemicals from renewable biomass is a promising alternative to petroleum-derived fuels and chemicals.

E coli is one of the most common bacteria around us, with some types harmful to health. Excessive amounts in water or food can lead to serious poisoning. Fortunately, E coli perishes quickly in heat. It is most comfortable at about 37 degrees Celsius, and most species in nature cannot survive above 46 degrees.

On the other hand, the use of feedstock oils needed for biodiesel production is a major obstacle for the broader use of biodiesel due to lack of arable land and competition with the food supply. Therefore, a possible alternative to plant and animal oil-based biodiesel is the direct biosynthetic production of biodiesel in metabolically engineered microorganisms.

Microdiesel is the biodiesel fuel produced by using micro-organisms engineered for fuel production. Optimized Microdiesel production by engineered microorganisms could offer some major advantages over established conventional production processes. Biotechnological Microdiesel production could be significantly less.

In contrast to conventional FAME-based biodiesel, Biotechnological Microdiesel production could be significantly less expensive than conventional biodiesel production if plant products like starch or lignocellulose are used for its production. These plant polymers are much cheaper than plant oils, and also much more abundant. Microdiesel production will then no longer be restricted to oilseed producing regions of the world, in contrast to conventional FAME-based biodiesel.

EU/Argentina Biodiesel Anti-Dumping Case Resolved

There has been a resolution in the European Union’s (EU) Anti-Dumping Measures on Biodiesel from Argentina. A World Trade Organization dispute panel has ruled in favor of Argentina on several of its complaints against the EU. Back in 2013, EU sanctioned anti-dumping duties on imports from biodiesel from Argentina, which served to all but shut down biodiesel trade. The charge against Argentina was that the country was selling the biodiesel at prices below the cost of production.

Argentina countered that EU’s actions were protectionist, and EU countered back that domestic tax breaks allowed Argentina producers to sell their biodiesel at below market value putting European biodiesel producers at an unfair disadvantage. The panel sided with Argentina citing that the EU acted inconsistently with the Anti-Dumping Agreement by failing to calculate the cost of production of biodiesel on the basis of the records kept by the producers under investigation. In other words, how much it cost each individual Argentine biodiesel producer to produce the biodiesel.

The panel also upheld Argentina’s claim that the EU imposed anti‑dumping duties in excess of the margin of dumping that should have been established. However, other claims made by Argentina were dismissed and ruled in favor of the EU including the profit margin analysis used by the EU. The panel ruled, “The profit margin used by EU authorities was the result of a reasoned analysis that was rationally directed at approximating what the Argentine producers’ profit margin for the like product would have been if the like product had been sold in the ordinary course of trade in the domestic market of the exporting country.”

US bio and renewable diesel imports jumped 61% in 2015

In Washington, after reaching its highest level to date in 2013, U.S. imports of biomass-based diesel fuel (both biodiesel and renewable diesel) fell in 2014 amid uncertainty surrounding future Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) targets and the elimination of the biodiesel blender’s tax credit. As higher targets for biomass-based diesel were finalized in 2015, U.S. imports of biodiesel and renewable diesel increased by 61% in 2015 to reach 538 million gallons.

The strongest drivers of the increase in U.S. biomass-based diesel demand since 2012 have been increasing RFS targets and the biodiesel tax credit, which has lapsed and been reinstated several times. Biodiesel and renewable diesel qualify for the two major renewable fuel programs in the United States: the RFS applied at the national level, and the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) in California. Biomass-based diesel fuels have additional advantages over other renewable fuels because of their relatively high energy content and low carbon intensity, which allow them to qualify for higher credit values in both renewable fuel programs.

Of the 334 million gallons of biodiesel imported into the United States in 2015, more than half (183 million gallons) were from Argentina. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s January 2015 approval of an RFS pathway for Argentine biodiesel volumes established a streamlined process for Argentina’s biodiesel producers to generate Renewable Identification Number (RIN) credits. The remaining volumes of regular biodiesel imports were sourced primarily from Indonesia and Canada, at 73 million gallons and 61 million gallons, respectively. U.S. renewable diesel imports reached 204 million gallons in 2015, up 69% from the level in 2014. All U.S. renewable diesel imports in 2015 were sourced from Singapore and entered the United States primarily through West Coast ports, likely destined for California LCFS compliance.