Renewable Fuel Standard Potential Economic and Environmental Effects of U.S. Biofuel Policy (2011) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
2 Biofuel Supply Chain
2 Biofuel Supply Chain
Pages 29-78
The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.
From page 29... ...
This chapter examines the supply chains of food-based biofuels that are produced and nonfood-based biofuels that are likely to be produced in the United States within the 2022 timeline as established by the Renewable Fuel Standard amended by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (RFS2)
|
From page 30... ...
. For every bushel of corn grain used for ethanol production, about one-third comes out as DDGS, one-third as ethanol, and one-third as carbon dioxide (CO2)
|
From page 31... ...
Hydrogen is a valuable coproduct of petroleum refining because it is used in upgrading hydrocarbons to more valuable products. This loss in hydrogen production would have to be compensated with either an increase in hydrogen production from within the refinery or an increase in purchased hydrogen produced via steam-methane reforming.
|
From page 32... ...
. Given that RFS2 consumption mandate for conventional ethanol is 15 billion gallons per year from 2015 to 2022, the mandate can be achieved with a small increase in corn grain for ethanol.
|
From page 33... ...
As of 2010, there R01935 were no industry standard fuel-grade specifications and no accepted limits on the amount of biobutanol that can be safely blended into gasoline without damaging engine components. Because biobutanol properties are similar to regular gasoline, its major impact on the operation of the other refinery units would be a displacement of conventional petroleum-based, gasoline-blending components.
|
From page 34... ...
. Soybean is the typical feedstock in the United States even though corn, canola, oil palm, camelina, jatropha, used yellow grease, and animal fats can also be used to produce biodiesel through this process.
|
From page 35... ...
35 BIOFUEL SUPPLY CHAIN FIGURE 2-5 Location of ethanol biorefineries in the United States as of September 2010. NOTE: Green flags indicate locations of operating biorefineries and red flags indicate locations of biorefineries under construction.
|
From page 36... ...
, and "green diesel," developed and marketed by UOP, use large volumes of hydrogen and a catalyst to hydrogenate triglycerides recovered from animals Figure 2-7.eps or crop oils into a high-cetane diesel fuel (Kalnes et al., 2009)
|
From page 37... ...
Because of the high yield of the meal, this coproduct provides better monetary returns per ton of seed than the oil used in biofuel production. Green diesel or renewable diesel generally has poor cold-flow properties (many products are solid at room temperature)
|
From page 38... ...
Although a few dedicated green diesel hydrotreater projects are in various stages of development, most large refining companies and technology vendors have performed laboratory studies and commercial trials that have demonstrated the feasibility of coprocessing triglycerides on existing diesel HDS units. The amount of triglycerides that can be coprocessed is a function of the current limitations of the hydrotreater and the properties of the triglyceride.
|
From page 39... ...
Nonfood oils produced from algae or dedicated bioenergy crops, such as camelina, are expected to be used as biomass feedstock in the future. NONFOOD-BASED BIOFUELS Cellulosic Feedstock Cellulose,6 hemicellulose,7 and lignin8 provide the structural components of plant cells.
|
From page 40... ...
Those being considered for cellulosic biofuel production include corn stover, corn cobs, sorghum stalks, wheat straw, cotton residue, and alfalfa stems. Crop residues are sometimes called crop wastes, but this is a misnomer as they help maintain soil quality (including fertility, structure, and other physical, chemical, and biochemical qualities)
|
From page 41... ...
Examples of dedicated bioenergy crops include switchgrass, Miscanthus, mixtures of native grasses, and short-rotation woody crops such as hybrid poplar and willow. The following section describes species characteristics and summa rizes yield data from published literature.
|
From page 42... ...
(2010) used multiple regression analyses to derive a model for predicting lowland and upland switchgrass yields across the United States on the basis of variables associated with climate, soils, and management (for example, precipitation, temperature, nitrogen fertilization, stand age, and locations)
|
From page 43... ...
(2009) found that over the course of 3 years 14 A compilation of Miscanthus yields from the literature is used in the economic analyses in Chapter 4 and presented in an associated appendix.
|
From page 44... ...
× giganteus may be limited in some locations because of the expense of asexual propagation and establishment. Sterility would limit inadvertent spread of a highly productive nonnative species.
|
From page 45... ...
Native Grasses Native grasses are ecologically adapted for the environment that they occupy naturally; thus, the implicit assumption is that cultivation costs for native grass feedstock will be minimal, particularly if the agronomic practices emulate the species' environmental conditions. Experiments are being conducted on the suitability of native prairie grasses other FIGURE 2-11 Projected annual average harvestable yield of M
|
From page 46... ...
. The warm-season grasses big bluestem, little bluestem, prairie cordgrass, and Indiangrass are native to most of the United States, while eastern gamagrass is native to the Great Plains and eastward.
|
From page 47... ...
Most woody crops for bioenergy will likely be produced east of the Mississippi because rainfall levels are higher. Poplar and willow have great potential to provide woody biomass for bioenergy because they are highly productive and stand to benefit from extensive genetic research or harvesting improvements.
|
From page 48... ...
. Though hybrid poplars can grow in most of the eastern United States and in the Pacific Northwest, their productivity, range, and therefore usefulness as woody biomass feedstock is currently limited by their high demand for nutrients and water (Johnson et al., 2007; Hinchee et al., 2009; Kline and Coleman, 2010)
|
From page 49... ...
. Therefore, though there is potential, more breeding advances are needed before sycamore can contribute substantially to woody biomass production.
|
From page 50... ...
Because the Southeast has high productivity, mostly private ownership, and a large number of existing tree plantations, this region is expected to supply much of the woody biomass feedstock for biofuel production. Other regions could also contribute, but given lower growth or public ownership, they are likely to supply modest quantities.
|
From page 51... ...
. Figure 2-12.eps uneditable bitmapped R01935 FIGURE 2-13 Forestland in the conterminous United States by ownership category.
|
From page 52... ...
or stand establishment with advanced regeneration in the understory, does not fit the EISA definition of "planting." The definition discourages the establishment of new plantations for biofuel purposes. Although the law might have intended to limit the clearing of native forests for plantations to support biofuel production, it could increase competition for wood products because existing plantations are typically already dedicated for other wood products such as saw wood or pulp.
|
From page 53... ...
Once the technology is mature, MSW would become an attractive feedstock. Storage and Delivery of Cellulosic Feedstocks Most agricultural biomass production (with the exception of forest products)
|
From page 54... ...
Conversion Technologies Two types of technology are likely to be used to convert cellulosic biomass to fuels to meet the Renewable Fuel Standard: biochemical and thermochemical conversion (NASNAE-NRC, 2009)
|
From page 55... ...
Thermochemical Conversion The mechanisms of thermochemical conversion include high temperature, pressure, chemicals, and catalysts to transform lignocellulosic biomass into many different products, including ethanol, butanol, green diesel, super diesel, Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) liquids, pyrolysis oils, and green gasoline (see Figure 2-15 for an example)
|
From page 56... ...
. Figure 2-15.eps R01935 FIGURE 2-16 Schematic diagram of a thermochemical conversion refinery to produce ethanol.
|
From page 57... ...
The primary advantage of these liquefaction systems is that they do not require pretreatment and can work with high-moisture biomass feedstocks and MSW streams. Current technical barriers include residence times for high liquefaction to occur on certain feedstocks and batch or semi-batch processing, resulting in limited throughput and scalability issues.
|
From page 58... ...
Therefore, the market for coproducts would have to complement the quantities produced for the coproducts to maintain value. Coproducts of ethanol production from lignocellulosic feedstock through biochemical conversion are rich in lignin and not suitable as animal feedstuffs.
|
From page 59... ...
Biobased pyrolysis oils are not yet approved for use as a constituent of jet fuel. Tests are currently in progress for several different oils, but until pyrolysis oils are approved, inclusion of these oils in the crude-unit feedstock or the feedstock to any other unit that produces jet fuel will disqualify all potential jet fuel from that unit.
|
From page 60... ...
Among those companies listed, about half of them plan to produce ethanol via biochemical conversion (Figure 2-17)
|
From page 61... ...
TABLE 2-3 Companies That Have Secured Funding for Demonstration of Nonfood-Based Biofuels Estimated Production (million gal/yr) Conversion Company Location Feedstock Technology Product 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Abengoa Hugoton, KS Corn stover, Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0 0 0 15 15 15 sorghum Biochemical stubble, switchgrass ADM Decatur, IL Corn stover Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0 0 1 1 1 1 Biochemical AE Biofuels Butte, MT Switchgrass, Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0.02 0.05 10.04 10.5 10.5 10.5 straw, corn Biochemical stover, bagasse AltAir Anacortes, WA Camelina Thermochemical Drop-in fuel 0 0 100 100 100 100 American Process Alpena, MI Woody biomass Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0 0.89 0.89 0.89 0.89 0.89 Biochemical Amyris Emeryville, CA Sweet sorghum Cellulosic feedstock Drop-in fuel 0.01 0.02 1.02 27.02 27.02 27.02 Biochemical Aquatic Energy Not specified, LA Algae Oil extraction Oil feedstock 0 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.03 Aurora Algae Vero Beach, FL Algae FAME Drop-in fuel 0.01 0.01 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5 BioProcess Algae Shenandoah, IA Algae FAME Drop-in fuel 0 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 BlueFire Renewables Lancaster, CA Woody biomass Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0.01 3.91 3.91 22.91 22.91 22.91 Biochemical BP Biofuels Jennings, LA Wheat, Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 1.4 1.4 37.4 37.4 37.4 37.4 switchgrass Biochemical Buckeye Perry, FL Woody Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 Technologies/UF biomass, Biochemical sugarcane Clearfuels Not specified, HI Bagasse, woody Thermochemical, Drop-in fuel 0 0 0 0 0 18 biomass Fischer-Tropsch 61 continued
|
From page 62... ...
TABLE 2-3 Continued 62 Estimated Production (million gal/yr) Conversion Company Location Feedstock Technology Product 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Clearfuels Commerce City, CO Woody Thermochemical, Drop-in fuel 0 0.07 0.07 0.07 0.07 0.07 biomass, corn Fischer-Tropsch stover, bagasse Clearfuels Collinswood, TN Woody biomass Thermochemical, Drop-in fuel 0 0 0 0 20 20 Fischer-Tropsch Cobalt Sausalito, CA Woody biomass Cellulosic feedstock Drop-in fuel 0.01 2.01 102 102 102 102 Biochemical Biobutanol Coskata Green County, AL Woody biomass Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0.05 0.05 55.05 55.05 55.05 55.05 Biochemical DDCE Vonore, TN Corn stover, Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.25 switchgrass Biochemical Dynamic Fuels Geismar, LA Animal fats, Thermochemical Drop-in fuel 75 75 75 75 75 75 tallow, and vegetable oils Fiberight Blairstown, IA Organic-based Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0.01 6 6 6 6 6 MSW Biochemical Fulcrum Reno, NV Organic MSW Thermochemical, Ethanol 0.01 0.01 10.51 10.51 10.51 10.51 gasification Gevo St Joseph, MO Corn, sugar Cellulosic feedstock Drop-in fuel 1 1 16 300 300 300 cane, sugar Biochemical Biobutanol beets Green Star Products To be determined, Algae FAME Drop-in fuel 0 0 2 2 2 2 UT Haldor Topsoe Des Plains, IL Woody biomass Cellulosic feedstock Drop-in fuel 0 0 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 Thermochemical HCL Clean Tech Durham, NC Woody biomass Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 Biochemical
|
From page 63... ...
TABLE 2-3 Continued Estimated Production (million gal/yr) Conversion Company Location Feedstock Technology Product 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 IneosBIO Vero Beach, FL Organic-based Gasification- Ethanol 0 8 8 8 8 8 MSW Fermentation Joule Leander, TX Algae FAME Drop-in fuel 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 Kent BioEnergy Mecca, CA Algae Oil extraction Oil feedstock 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 KiOR Columbus, MS Woody biomass Thermochemical, Drop-in fuel 0.23 0.23 0.23 80 80 120 pyrolysis KL Energy Upton, WY Sugarcane, Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 1.3 bagasse, woody Biochemical biomass LiveFuels To be determined Algae FAME Drop-in fuel 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 Logos Technologies Visalia, CA Switchgrass, Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0 0 0.8 0.8 0.8 0.8 corn stover, Biochemical woody biomass LS9 Okeechobee, FL Sugar cane Cellulosic feedstock Drop-in fuel 0.1 10.1 10.1 10.1 10.1 10.1 Biochemical Mascoma Rome, NY Switchgrass, Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0.2 0.2 0.2 20.2 20.2 20.2 woody Biochemical biomass, ag waste Murphy Oil Hereford, TX Organic-based Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0 0 115 115 115 115 MSW Biochemical PetroAlgae Fellsmere, FL Algae Biochemical and Drop-in fuel 0.12 0.12 70.12 140.12 210.12 210.12 thermochemical Phycal Central Oahu, HI Algae Oil extraction Oil feedstock 0 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 POET Emmetsburg, IA Corn stover Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0.02 0.02 25.02 25.02 25.02 25.02 Biochemical 63 continued
|
From page 64... ...
Fischer-Tropsch Trenton Fuel Works Trenton, NJ Organic-based Cellulosic feedstock Ethanol 0 0 0 0 3.87 3.87 MSW Biochemical UOP-Aquaflow Hopewell, VA Algae Thermochemical Drop-in fuel 0 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 Bionomic
|
From page 65... ...
TABLE 2-3 Continued Estimated Production (million gal/yr) Conversion Company Location Feedstock Technology Product 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Virent Madison, WI Sugar beets, Thermochemical Drop-in fuel 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 corn stover, sugarcane, woody biomass, switchgrass ZeaChem Boardman, OR Woody biomass Gasification- Ethanol 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.25 Fermentation DATA SOURCE: Individual companies and Biofuel Digest (2010b)
|
From page 66... ...
. Algae Biochemical 26% Thermochemical 28% Figure 2-17.eps R01935 46% FIGURE 2-18 Percent companies with secured funding for demonstration of nonfood-based biofuels that plan to produce algal biofuels or cellulosic biofuels via biochemical or thermo chemical pathways.
|
From page 67... ...
The facility will produce ethanol refinery and ethyl acrylate, a compound used to make a variety of materials, and will also recover minerals and salts from the biomass that can then be returned to the soil. Clearfuels Commerce $23,000,000 $13,433,926 Unknown This project will produce renewable diesel and jet fuel from woody Technology Inc.
|
From page 68... ...
from unknown sources Logos Technologies Visalia, CA $20,445,849 $5,113,962 Corn stover from This project will convert switchgrass and woody biomass into ethanol Next Step Biofuels using a biochemical conversion processes. Inc.; switchgrass from Ceres; wood from central California facilities Renewable Toledo, OH $19,980,930 $5,116,072 Unknown This project will produce high-quality green diesel from agriculture and Energy Institute forest residues using advanced pyrolysis and steam reforming.
|
From page 69... ...
Increased Funding to Existing Biorefinery Projects Bluefire LLC Fulton, MS $81,134,686 $223,227,314 Unmerchantable This project will construct a facility that produces ethanol fuel from timber and logging woody biomass, mill residue, and sorted municipal solid waste. The wastes from sites facility will have the capacity to produce 19 million gallons of ethanol 75 to 100 mile per year.
|
From page 70... ...
The environmental effects of algal biofuel production are discussed in another NRC study on Sustainable Development of Algal Biofuels to be completed in 2012. Production of hydrocarbon fuels directly from biomass is mostly in the research and development phase (Huber et al., 2005; Roman-Leshkov et al., 2007; Kunkes et al., 2008; Gürbüz et al., 2010)
|
From page 71... ...
At the time this report was written, the technologies for producing advanced and cellulosic biofuels were being developed and demonstrated at pilot scale. Many potential feedstocks, including crop residues, dedicated bioenergy crops, forest residues, and MSW, have been proposed.
|
From page 72... ...
Pp. 309-345 in Genetic Improvement of Bioenergy Crops, W
|
From page 73... ...
2010b. Renewable Fuel Standard Program (RFS2)
|
From page 74... ...
2007. Biomass bioenergy crops in the United States: A changing paradigm.
|
From page 75... ...
2010. An Economic Breakeven Model of Cellulosic Feedstock Production and Ethanol Conversion with Implied Carbon Pricing.
|
From page 76... ...
2008 Ethanol Industry Outlook. Washington, DC: Renewable Fuels Association.
|
From page 77... ...
Golden, CO: National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Steinbeck, K
|
From page 78... ...
2007. Corn stover to sustain soil organic carbon further constrains biomass supply.
|
Key Terms
This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
More
information on Chapter Skim is available.