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Opening of New Bio-PDOTM Facility in Tennessee Continues Biotech Revolution
By Carl Wolf, BCS, Incorporated
DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products opened a 100 million dollar facility on June 8, 2007 in Loudon, Tennessee, currently one of the largest renewable materials facilities in the world. It is the first facility of its kind that produces propanediol (Bio-PDO™) from corn sugar, rather than from the traditional petroleum-based feedstocks. In its traditional form, PDOTM is a skin irritant, has unknown toxicity in several situations, and has the potential to contaminate groundwater.[i] In its biomass incarnation, Bio-PDOTM is not toxic, and environmentally friendly.[ii] The American Chemistry Society recognized this tremendous achievement by awarding the 2007 Heroes of Chemistry Award to the scientists involved in the research and development of Bio-PDO™ – Charlie Nakamura and Cathy Babowitz of DuPont, Dennis Adkesson of Tate & Lyle, and Gregg Whited of Genencor International. The award recognizes the vital role industrial chemical scientists have in improving human welfare through successful commercial innovations and products. Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman commended this accomplishment further and said, “It’s encouraging to see industry team up to make incredible advances in bio-based technology, building upon the Department of Energy’s efforts to reduce our reliance on imported oil, aggressively confront climate change, and help maintain our nation’s competitive edge in the global marketplace.”[iii]
Together, DuPont and Tate & Lyle were able to create a unique proprietary fermentation and purification process to produce propanediol that is useful while environmentally friendly. Comparison of life cycle assessment of chemically derived propanediol versus renewably sourced Bio-PDO™ showed significant environmental benefits. [iv] The production of propanediol from corn sugar consumes about 40 percent less energy and reduces greenhouse gas emissions by about 20 percent versus petroleum-based feedstock. This means that if the plant is able to meet its projected annual output of 100 million pounds of Bio-PDO™,[v] it will save the energy equivalent of ~10 million gallons of gasoline per year, enough to fuel 22,000 cars annually. [vi] As DuPont Tate & Lyle Bio Products President Steven Mirshak puts it, “the Loudon Bio-PDO™ production process is on the leading edge of industrial biotechnology.” Mirshak adds that the facility is quickly growing into a business that delivers high performing, renewable products to diverse markets globally – the goal and vision of its parent companies.[vii]
Bio-PDO™ is available in two grades, both of which are biodegradeable: Zemea™ and Susterra™. Zemea™ is a colorless glycol derived from sustained, renewable corn sugar fermentation. It can be used in cosmetic and personal care formulations to replace glycols such as propylene glycol and butylene glycol. It has a higher purity level and lower irritation than other competitive personal care and cosmetics products. [viii] According to DuPont Tate & Lyle, “clear shampoo formulations have very low cloud points, excellent stability, improved foaming, and require less salt to adjust the viscosity as compared to other glycols.” [ix] Susterra™ is a glycol used for industrial applications such as de-icing fluids, anti-freeze and heat transfer fluids. DuPont Tate & Lyle recently announced it was partnering with Cryotech Deicing Technology to launch a new de-icing product that will be 100 percent renewable and will immediately be marketed to the aviation industry. [x] When used in polymer applications, Susterra™ propanediol is used for the manufacture of polyester-based resins and as a cross linker in urethane chemistries. [xi] Other grades of Bio-PDO™ that utilize the unique properties of Susterra™ propanediol are DuPont™ Sorona® and DuPont™ Cerenol™. According to DuPont Tate & Lyle, these products are currently being used in a wide variety of segments such as automotive, engineering polymers, fibers and coatings. [xii] Mirshak said, "We are seeing strong demand for all of our grades of Bio-PDO™ due to its performance, biodegradable nature, and ability to replace petroleum-derived products. Wherever a glycol is being used today, businesses should consider replacing it with our new renewable ingredient.” [xiii]
Bio-PDO™ is just one example of the innovative efforts undertaken by industry to develop new products from non-petroleum sources such as plants. Federal and state governments, along with the private sector, are not only realizing the ways to use biobased products in an efficient manner, but are utilizing new technology to create more diverse, energy-efficient products. Brent Erickson, an executive vice president at the Biotechnology Industry Organization in Washington, D.C., stated that while DuPont and Tate & Lyle are not alone in the effort to create more energy-efficient products, the commercialization of their Loudon plant is a significant development in the biotech revolution that began 20 years ago in medicine and then agriculture about a decade ago. “It has gone beyond the doctor's office into consumer goods and other products that we never imagined,” he said. [xiv]
[iii]DuPont Media Center. 2007, June 8. DuPont Tate & Lyle Joint Venture Officially Opens $100 Million Bio-PDO™ Facility – the World’s First to Produce Propanediol From Corn Sugar. http://vocuspr.vocus.com/
[vii]DuPont Media Center. 2007, June 8. DuPont Tate & Lyle Joint Venture Officially Opens $100 Million Bio-PDO™ Facility – the World’s First to Produce Propanediol From Corn Sugar. http://vocuspr.vocus.com/
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State Spotlight: Tennessee
In June 2007, Governor Phil Bredesen unveiled BioTENN, an outreach campaign to educate people about the benefits of biofuels in Tennessee. The campaign was unveiled through the Interagency Alternative Fuels Working Group, a group formed by Governor Bredesen in 2006. This group consists of a partnership between six state commissioners, each with various responsibilities ranging from health to agriculture.[i] The Working Group champions biofuels progress and promotes the use of biofuels by combining education and outreach efforts with fleet conversion and a strengthening of the biofuel infrastructure.
Governor Bresden announced in July that 14 grant applicants would be receiving almost $900,000 to create projects that will take advantage of biofuels. The grants will be used primarily to help cities install E85 and B20 fueling stations, in addition to the 32 that already exist around the state.[ii] The state has transitioned 50 fleets to biodiesel, and will continue offering incentives to expand the number of converted vehicles.[iii]
Building infrastructure and simultaneously ensuring a sustained supply of feedstock are two necessary components to overcoming key barriers to market penetration. In FY 2007, Tennessee made 46 million dollars available to build a pilot biomass ethanol plant. Concurrently, farmers are being offered incentives to grow switchgrass for use as a feedstock for the ethanol plant being built.[iv]
Tennessee is also investing in the research and development of technologies to improve the techniques involved in converting biomass to energy. The federal government has named Oak Ridge National Laboratory as the site of a new Bioenergy Research Center. The Center will be funded for the first five years of operation, through 2013. [v] In addition, the state of Tennessee has allocated 24 million to various types of biomass projects for FY 2007.[vi]
As the figure illustrates, biomass already accounts for 3 percent of Tennessee's total energy consumption, which is primarily in the form of biopower.[vii] Several new legislative actions and projects have been initiated to further increase the use of biomass in Tennessee in the near future.
Created Created from information obtained from the Energy Information Administration
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| Bill # |
Sponsor |
Description |
Last Action |
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| H.R. 2419 |
Rep. Peterson, Collin C. [MN-7] |
Farm Bill Extension Act of 2007. To provide for the continuation of agricultural programs through fiscal year 2012, and for other purposes. |
7/27/2007: Passed/agreed to in House. Status: Passed by recorded vote: 231 - 191 (Roll no. 756) |
| H.R.2641 |
Rep Visclosky, Peter J. [IN-1] |
Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2008. Making appropriations for energy and water development and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2008, and for other purposes. |
7/18/2007: Received in the Senate. Read twice. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 274. |
| H.R.2950 |
Rep Wilson, Heather [NM-1] |
Renewable Fuels, Consumer Protection, and Energy Efficiency Act of 2007. To reduce our Nation's dependency on foreign oil by investing in clean, renewable, and alternative energy resources, promoting new emerging energy technologies, developing greater efficiency, and creating a Strategic Energy Efficiency and Renewables Reserve to invest in alternative energy, and for other purposes. |
7/25/2007: Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel. |
| H.R.3101 |
Rep Shea-Porter, Carol [NH-1] |
To amend the Biomass Research and Development Act of 2000 to include heating fuel produced from biomass in the definition of biobased fuel. |
7/19/2007: Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Agriculture. |
| H.R.3107 |
Rep Hodes, Paul W. [NH-2] |
Renewable Energy Tax Parity Act of 2007.To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide a credit for residential biomass fuel property expenditures. |
7/19/2007: Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means. |
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H.R. 3118 |
Rep Terry, Lee [NE-2] |
To promote the production and use of ethanol. |
7/26/2007: Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Environment. |
| H.R.3221 |
Rep Pelosi, Nancy [CA-8] |
Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act of 2007. Moving the United States toward greater energy independence and security, developing innovative new technologies, reducing carbon emissions, creating green jobs, protecting consumers, increasing clean renewable energy production, and modernizing our energy infrastructure. |
8/4/2007: Passed/agreed to in House. Status: On passage Passed by recorded vote: 241 - 172 (Roll no. 832). |
| H.R. 3238 |
Rep Boucher, Rick [VA-9] |
To promote the development of renewable fuels infrastructure, and for other purposes. To promote the development of renewable fuels infrastructure, and for other purposes. |
8/3/2007: Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 193. |
| S.1804 |
Sen Burr, Richard [NC] |
National Agriculture and Food Defense Act of 2007. A bill to enhance the ability of the United States to prevent, prepare for, detect, and respond to agriculture and food emergencies. |
7/17/2007: Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. | | | |
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Gov. Crist Hopes to Spur Biofuels in Florida
Date: 08/06
Some scientists are skeptical as Gov. Charlie Crist spends millions of taxpayer dollars to nurture a plant-based biofuel industry - one of the most expensive weapons in his war on global warming. “It’s big money and hope. Politics is another way to put it,” said David Pimentel, a Cornell University professor whose research shows that it takes more energy to turn plants into fuel than the plants actually yield. Biofuels are nothing new and the technology is not rocket science, although it is evolving.
Link: http://www.news-press.com
MN Gov. Pawlenty Calls on State to Increase Use of Biodiesel-Blended Fuel to B20 by 2015
Date: 08/10
Saying it’s time for Minnesota to extend our lead as the nation’s top renewable energy state, Gov. Tim Pawlenty announced a new initiative to boost the level of biodiesel sold in Minnesota from the current 2% to 20% by 2015.
Link: http://www.grainnet.com/
In Montana, Ethanol Wait Drags On
Date: 08/12
More than two years after Gov. Brian Schweitzer touted his plans to jump-start ethanol production, the state has the same number of ethanol plants it started with: zero. Some in the industry say they're still hopeful Montana will get an ethanol production plant, and they say incentives pushed by Schweitzer and approved by the 2005 Legislature will help.
Link: http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2007/08/12/news/state/26-ethanol.txt
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Marketplace provides data relevant to the production of biofuels from biomass as well as the state of the petroleum markets in which biofuels are used. Cost fluctuations in the price of a bushel of soybeans, the main biodiesel feedstock, and corn, affect the finished products i.e., biofuels. Key indicators in the petroleum industry provide a snapshot of the supply of finished products stocks and production, and how they relate to demand and the price of finished product (i.e. gasoline and diesel). The tables show actual grain prices, indicators which may affect gasoline prices, and the production of ethanol. |
| Grain Prices Received by Farmers |
July 2007 |
July 2006 |
% Change |
24 Months |
| Corn ($/bushel) |
3.23 |
2.14 |
34% |
 |
| Soybean ($/bushel) |
7.92 |
5.61 |
29% |
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| Spot Prices W. Tex. Int Cush & Henry Hub |
July 2007 |
July 2006 |
% Change |
24 Months |
| W. Tex. Int Cush ($/Bbl) |
74.12 |
74.52 |
-1% |
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| Henry Hub ($ per MM/Btu) |
6.399 |
6.222 |
3% |
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| Fuel Supply |
July 2007 |
July 2006 |
% Change |
24 Months |
| Percent Refinery Utilization |
90.45 |
92.33 |
-2% |
 |
| Production by Product - Finished Motor Gasoline (1,000 bbl/d) |
9,288 |
9,202 |
1% |
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| Stocks - Finished Motor Gasoline (1,000 bbl) |
112,133 |
119,848 |
-7% |
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| Imports - Total Motor Gasoline (1,000 bbl/d) |
1,291 |
1,107 |
14% |
 | |
| Oxygenate Production |
May 2007 |
May 2006 |
% Change |
24 Months |
Ethanol Production
(1,000 bbl) |
11,716 |
9,093 |
22% |
 |
MTBE Production
(1,000 bbl) |
2,003 |
2,752 |
-37% |
 |
Data Sources:
U.S. DOE-Energy Information Administration, "Weekly Petroleum Status Report" and "Monthly Oxygenate Report"; USDA-National Agricultural Statistics Service, "Agricultural Prices,""Grain Stocks"; Wall Street Journal, Markets Data, Spot Prices, Oil Prices | | |
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Title: |
DOE to Provide up to $21.5 Million for Research to Improve Vehicle Efficiency |
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Description: |
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Samuel W. Bodman today announced the Department will award a total of up to $21.5 million for eleven cost-shared research and development (R&D) projects that aim to improve the fuel efficiency of light-duty vehicle engines. |
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Recipients: |
Delphi Automotive Systems LLC; Ford Motor Company; General Motors Corporation; Robert Bosch LLC; Siemens Government Services, Inc.; TIAX LLC; Visteon Corporation; Caterpillar Inc.; Cummins Engine Company; Michigan State University; |
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Award Total: |
21.5 million |
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Sponsoring Office: |
U.S. Department of Energy |
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URL: |
http://www.energy.gov/news/5298.htm | | |
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Title: Biotechnology, Biochemical and Biomass Engineering
Description: The Biotechnology (BTEC) program deals with problems involved in economic processing and manufacturing of products of economic importance by effectively utilizing renewable resources of biological origin and bioinformatics originating from genomic and proteomic information. The BTEC program supports research projects that are primarily interdisciplinary and involve multiple investigators consisting of closely collaborating engineers and biological scientists. The BTEC program emphasizes basic engineering and biological research that advances the fundamental knowledge base that contributes to a better understanding of biomolecular processes (in vivo, in vitro, and/or ex vivo) and eventually to the development of generic enabling technology and practical application.
Government Agency: National Science Foundation
Schedule: Sep 15, 2007
URL: http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do?oppId=11324&mode=VIEW
Title: Energy for Sustainability
Description: The Energy for Sustainability program supports fundamental research and education in energy production, conversion, and storage and is focused on energy sources that are environmentally friendly and renewable.
Government Agency: National Science Foundation
Schedule: Sep 15, 2007
URL: http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do?oppId=11349&mode=VIEW
Title: Biopower Research, Development & Demonstration
Description: PIER Research, Development and Demonstration efforts in the renewable energy area are focused on four objectives: Making improvements at existing renewable energy facilities; Expanding renewable distributed generation technologies; provide electricity customers with more affordable electricity, improved reliability, and a selection of choices; Conducting longer term research on advanced renewable technologies that will help meet tomorrow's electricity needs.
Government Agency: California Energy Commission
Schedule: Oct. 12, 2007
URL: http://www.energy.ca.gov/contracts/
Title: Development of Saccharifying Enzymes for Commercial Use
Description: This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is requesting applications for the development of hydrolytic enzymes or enzyme system preparations that can effectively saccharify pretreated lignocellulosics to produce fermentable sugars under process relevant conditions. The successful development of such enzyme systems is intended to meet the critical parameters and barriers listed in Appendix B of the FOA. The enzymes or enzyme systems must be able to survive a wide range of environmental conditions and be stable to denaturing conditions typically found in lignocellulosic processing. DOE expects that applicants will be willing and able to take the enzyme or enzyme systems to a commercial scale and have a sound business strategy to license and market them.. For the purposes of this FOA, ‘commercialization’ will be defined as the transition from research to routine operational application. This implies the orderly sequence and implementation of actions necessary to achieve market entry and general market competitiveness of the enzymatic systems.
Government Agency: U.S. Department of Energy, Golden Field Office
Schedule: Letter of Intent by Sept. 10, 2007; Full Proposal by Oct. 15, 2007
URL:http://e-center.doe.gov/iips/faopor.nsf
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August 21 - 24, 2007
Oahu, HI |
EnergyOcean 2007
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September 3 - 10, 2007
Jyväskylä, Finland |
Bioenergy 2007
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Sept. 3 - 6, 2007
Pakkred District, Nonthaburi 11120, Thailand |
2nd Annual Texas Biodiesel Conference & Expo
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Sept. 15 - 20, 2007
Broomfield, CO |
International Symposium on Air Quality and Waste management for Agriculture
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Sept. 24 - 27, 2007
Arlington, VA |
International Conference on Air Quality VI |
Sept. 26 - 27, 2007
Pittsburgh, PA |
Energy from Biomass and Waste Expo & Conference 2007 |
Sept. 26 - 27, 2007
Pittsburgh, PA |
Energy from Biomass and Waste Expo & Conference 2007 |
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Sept. 27 - 30, 2007
Austin, TX |
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Texas Biodiesel Conference and Expo |
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October 1 - 3, 2007
Indianapolis, USA |
7th Annual BioCycle Conference on Renewable Energy from Organics Recycling |
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Click here for additional bio-related events. | | |
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