In Canada, unnamed investors have agreed to build a commercial-scale biodiesel facility in Botwood, Newfoundland that will use Tennessee-based Proton Power’s technology to produce the fuel from wood. The process burns the biomass to produce hydrogen that in turn is then used to produce biodiesel. The company’s 7.2 million gallon facility is set to come […]
Adapted from remarks by Digest editor Jim Lane at the 2016 International Bioenergy Conference. Knock Knock Who’s there? Noah. Noah who? Noah good low carbon technology? Well, yes, you do. Lucky you. With all the uncertainty about the future of the world in the face of trade issues, immigration woes, energy and national security concerns, […]
In North Carolina, the same process plants use to respond to environmental stress acts as an on/off switch for a key enzyme in wood formation, NC State researchers have found. The discovery improves scientists’ understanding of how lignin, which gives wood its strength and ability to transport water, is formed in plants and how it can […]
In Finland, UPM’s ValChem project has received EUR13.1 million funding from the European Union. The project will be done in cooperation with Sekab, METabolic EXplorer and Technische Universität Darmstadt. The total budget of the project is around EUR 18.5 million. ValChem (Value added chemical building blocks and lignin from wood) is an ambitious project combining […]
In Finland, researchers have developed a new method that can produce accurate three-dimensional (3D) models of recovered stumps and root systems. These models provide new information on the impacts of stump wood energy on the carbon sink capacity of forests, the biodiversity of forest nature and the soil structure of recovery areas. Tree stumps and root […]
In Scandinavia, according to Wood Resource Quarterly, forest companies have announced that they will invest $3 billion in 2014 to diversify their product lines to include bio-products from wood fiber and to generate bioenergy resources. In addition to the investments in the pulp and paper industry, there has also been an announcement that the Swedish […]
In Finland, the Biofore Company UPM and the conservation organization WWF Finland have agreed on versatile cooperation to promote sustainable wood-based biofuels, forest management, and sourcing of raw materials in Finland. “Sustainably produced, wood-based biofuels provide a promising alternative to decrease both emissions in traffic and oil import, as well as to increase national energy […]
In Illinois, a study from the Energy Biosciences Institute at the University of Illinois looked at 21 species of short-rotation woody biomass, planted in 2010 and harvested and measured in 2011 and 2012. Of the 21, black locust, northern catalpa, flameleaf sumac, silver maple and sycamore proved to be the best short-rotation biomass crops for […]
In Norway, until now, it has taken weeks to make biofuel from trees. This slow pace has been a bottleneck for the industry. Researchers from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology have now shortened the process to a few hours. The biggest challenge in making biofuel from wood to date has been that it […]
In Canada, Cellufuel’s demonstration pilot plant to covert wood into biofuel slated for Nova Scotia is set to come online in February after securing a $1.5 million loan from the province. The remaining $2.5 million needed for the facility has already been secured from private investors. The facility expects to produce 1 million liters per […]
