Heard on the Floor at the BIO World Congress: Dinneen steps down at RFA, Cooper succeeds; EPA hearings in DC; organic solar cells and more

Dinneen steps down as Renewable Fuels Association CEO, Geoff Cooper to succeed; EPA hearings in DC; Lygos rockin’; biomaterials advance; organic solar cells are on the docket; iffy news for algae tech.

The Shocker

News spread like wildfire at the 2018 BIO World Congress in Philadelphia that Renewable Fuels Association CEO Bob Dinneen will transition into the role of RFA’s Senior Strategic Advisor, and Executive Vice President Geoff Cooper will assume the position of President and CEO in October 2018.

Dinneen has been with RFA for more than 30 years, including serving as the organization’s president and CEO since 2001. During his tenure, Dinneen led the industry and achieved a number of landmark legislative and regulatory victories for ethanol, including passage of the original Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in 2005 and significant expansion and extension of the RFS program in 2007. Dinneen also played a crucial role in the creation of the reformulated gasoline and oxygenated fuels requirements; securing the RVP waiver for E10; working with states to adopt bans on MTBE; and multiple extensions of the ethanol blender’s tax credit and secondary tariff on imported ethanol, among other important victories.

Cooper joined RFA in 2008 as the organization’s director of Research and Analysis and had ascended to executive vice president by 2016. He previously worked on ethanol issues for the National Corn Growers Association and served as a Captain in the U.S. Army, specializing in bulk petroleum product logistics.

“Ethanol is a remarkable product that has an incredibly bright future filled with opportunity, and I am excited to help write the next chapter in our industry’s amazing story. I am truly grateful for the chance to build upon RFA’s legacy as the authoritative voice of the ethanol industry.” Cooper said.

IRFA Executive Director Monte Shaw said:

“Few people in D.C. can say they’ve had as much impact on an industry over the past 30 years as Bob Dinneen and RFA have had on ethanol. Having worked for Bob for nearly 6 years, I know his love and dedication for the industry will not fade and I’m glad to see he’ll remain engaged in policy efforts. We look forward to working with Geoff Cooper at RFA and all ethanol supports to continue the growth of the industry.”

Donnell Rehagen, NBB CEO added:

“Congratulations to Bob on a distinguished career full of achievements. His efforts on behalf of American-made biofuels and our farmers across the country over the last three-plus decades have been vital to their growth and expanded success. While his passion will be missed, I know that RFA will be in good hands with Geoff Cooper taking the reins. NBB looks forward to continuing to work alongside the ethanol industry to advance our common interests.”

The Buzz: EPA hearings in DC

The floor was buzzing about EPA hearings in Washington, where farm leaders and renewable energy innovators urged Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler to quickly reverse the damage done under former Administrator Scott Pruitt, who was dismissed after drawing scorn in struggling rural communities for destroying demand for crop-based biofuels.

“America’s farmers need a level playing field. Amid depressed farm incomes, the certainty of a strong RFS would go a long way to restoring confidence in the agriculture economy,” said Kevin Skunes, president of National Corn Growers Association. “The EPA should end the practice of granting unjustified RFS waivers behind closed doors and uphold the strong biofuel targets promised by President Trump. America’s corn growers are ready and able to do our part to increase American energy use and production, and hold down prices at the fuel pump.”

“Acting Administrator Wheeler should not pass up this opportunity to restore the bonds of trust between the EPA and supporters, farmers, and biofuel producers across the heartland,” said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “By enforcing a strong RFS, he can immediately unleash a new wave of growth in rural America and drive investments in America’s clean energy leadership. With fuel prices spiking, there could not be a better time to drive competition from American-made biofuels.”

“The targets proposed by the EPA seem promising, but they are meaningless unless the agency reverses the demand destruction caused by handouts to refiners,” said Brooke Coleman, executive director of the Advanced Biofuels Business Council (ABBC). “Placing a check on that abuse and upholding the strong targets promised by President Trump will unfreeze investments in the advanced biofuels, like cellulosic ethanol, made from agricultural residues and waste. These fuels are delivering new revenue streams to rural America and protecting the climate, but that leadership has been under threat due to regulatory uncertainty.”

“The ethanol produced at more than 200 plants across the heartland is vital to achieving our climate goals,” said Brent Erickson, executive vice president of the Industrial & Environmental Section at the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO). “It cuts carbon emissions by at least 43 percent, according to federal data, and displaces petroleum-based octane boosters linked to harmful air pollution and smog. It’s time for the EPA to send a clear signal that this administration will no longer entertain oil-backed proposals to roll back competition from homegrown biofuels.”

“The EPA’s past mismanagement of the RFS has placed a needless strain on workers, farmers, and rural families that are already bearing the burden of rising trade barriers,” said Kyle Gilley, senior vice president of external affairs and communications at POET. “President Trump and U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue have promised their full support to rural communities, and now Acting Administrator Wheeler must deliver on that promise by restoring real competition at the fuel pump.”

Lygos raises $18M

Word came through from Lygos of a $15.5 million Series B financing led by IA Ventures and First Round Capital. Y Combinator Continuity Fund and OS Fund also participated in the financing. The Company has now raised a total of $40 million in equity financing, including non-equity government funding from the US Department of Energy, US Department of Agriculture, and National Science Foundation.

Lygos’ proprietary platform is based on a high-throughput combination of computational modeling, unique microbe engineering and screening, combined with deep learning to identify and develop new bio-routes to chemicals. Lygos uses modern biotechnology to deliver the benefits of petroleum-based and other industrial chemical technology at competitive prices. Lygos also develops new bio-routes to chemical functionalities uniquely available through biotechnology to expand the performance window in diverse materials systems. Lygos’ customers seek sustainable cost-efficient solutions enabled by biotechnology for applications where industrial chemistry uses expensive, environmentally degrading options or has none to offer.

Tech advances of note

An advance in biomaterials addresses a pressing need in advanced dentistry, specifically implants. Scientists of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, together with experts for dental implants, have now developed a nanostructured surface to accelerate wound healing after implantation and to better protect it against the attack of bacteria.  

The problem in implants? If the gum is not in perfect contact with the abutment, pockets may form, via which bacteria can reach the jawbone and cause inflammation there. Now, grooves smaller than the width of a hair circulate the abutment and guide the cells responsible for wound healing into the right direction. In this way, wound healing is accelerated. “This system is our point of departure,” Patrick Doll, scientist of IMT, says. Further development focuses on two aspects: more precise structuring of the grooves for better guiding of the cells and search for an optimum nanosurface to which the bacteria cannot attach.

Organic solar cells are on the docket this week also. 25 researchers from seven research institutes have put their heads together to draw up rules for designing high-efficiency organic solar cells. The research is led by Feng Gao, associate professor at Linköping University, Sweden appears this week in Nature Materials.

Organic solar cells, made from carbon-based materials, present unique advantages compared with other solar cell technologies. For example, they can be manufactured through low-cost printing technologies, and they can be made semi-transparent with selectable colors, which can be used architecturally in building integration. Their flexibility and low weight make them perfect for powering the sensors for the internet of things applications. A key challenge facing the development of organic solar cells is that they usually have large energy losses. New design tules address the shortfalls.

In iffy news for algae tech, new evidence out this week shows there is little or no effect of omega 3 supplements on the risk of experiencing heart disease, stroke or death. A new Cochrane systematic review, published in the Cochrane Library, combines the results of seventy-nine randomized trials involving 112,059 people. These studies assessed effects of consuming additional omega 3 fat, compared to usual or lower omega 3, on diseases of the heart and circulation. Twenty-five studies were assessed as highly trustworthy because they were well designed and conducted.