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The Fuel of the Future: Starch Ethanol vs. Cellulosic Ethanol

The Fuel of the Future: Starch Ethanol vs. Cellulosic Ethanol. Tommy Underhill. Ethanol. Made by fermenting sugars into alcohol Flammable Used in thermometers, and alcoholic beverages Commonly referred to as grain alcohol. History.

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The Fuel of the Future: Starch Ethanol vs. Cellulosic Ethanol

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  1. The Fuel of the Future: Starch Ethanol vs. Cellulosic Ethanol Tommy Underhill

  2. Ethanol • Made by fermenting sugars into alcohol • Flammable • Used in thermometers, and alcoholic beverages • Commonly referred to as grain alcohol

  3. History • Ethanol residues have been found on 9,000 year old clay pots in China • First recorded production of alcohol from wine was in the 12th century. • 1796: Johann Tobias Lowitz obtained pure ethanol by filtering distilled ethanol through charcoal • 1826: Samuel Morey developed the first engine that ran on ethanol • 1908: Henry Ford’s Model T was designed to run on ethanol or gasoline. • 1940’s: First Ethanol Plant was built in Nebraska • 1974: The Solar Energy Research, Development, and Demonstration Act was the first legislation action to promote ethanol as fuel. • 1992: The Energy Policy Act • 2007: Energy Independence and Security Act

  4. Ethanol Production • Starch Ethanol • Wet Milling • Dry Milling • Fermentation • Separation • Purification

  5. Ethanol Production • Cellulosic Ethanol • Have to be Pretreated • Physical - grinding • Chemical – acids • Require the use of enzymes to break down cellulose • Cellbiohydrolases • Endo – β-1,4-glucanases • β-glucosidases • Fermentation • Separation and Purification

  6. Funding • US government has given out numerous grants, loans, and tax incentives for the production and use of ethanol • Government spends $5 billion per year to subsidize ethanol production • 2007 : US department of Energy spent $385 million on six large scale ethanol plants and another $200 million on bio-refinery plants. • Big Oil Contributions: • Chevron - $40 Million • BP – $500 Million • Exxon - $600 million

  7. Environmental • Conventional ethanol reduces greenhouse-gas emissions 10 to 20 percent • Cellulosic range from 80 percent to completely CO2 neutral • Cellulosic ethanol requires less care than starch ethanol

  8. Political • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9QQcP_Y1II

  9. Other Concerns with Starch Ethanol • Rising prices of corn and starch

  10. Concerns with Cellulosic Ethanol • Price of Enzymes

  11. Future • Competition with other ethanol sources such as Algae. • Competition with electric cars and hydrogen fuel cells • Sustainability

  12. Resources • Biello, D. (2008). Grass Makes Better Ethanol than Corn Does. Scientific American. Retrieved from http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=grass-makes-better-ethanol- than-corn • Biofuels. (2011). The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/info/biofuels/ • Brahic, C. (2006). Humble grasses may be the best source of biofuel. New Scientist. Retrieved from http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn10759-humble-grasses-may-be-the-best- source-of-biofuel-.html • Bothast, R., Schlicher, M. (2005). Biotechnological processes for conversion of corn into ethanol. Appl Microbial Biotechnical, 67, 19-25. Retrieved from http://www.tamu.edu/faculty/tpd8/BICH407/fulltext.pdf • CBS News. (2007). UN: Biofuels Could Devastate Environment. Retrieved from http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/05/08/tech/main2774983_page2.shtml?tag=co ntentMain;contentBody • Dale, Bruce. “Cellulosic Biomass to Ethanol.” Diagram. PowerPoint presentation. 7/16/2007 • Doggett, Tom. (2007). Ethanol to take 30Percent of U.S. corn crop in 2012. Retrieved from • http://www.reuters.com/article/2007/06/11/us-usa-ethanol-corn- • idUSN1149215820070611 • “Dry Mill Process.” Diagram. Icminc.com 2009. • <http://www.icminc.com/ethanol/production_process/>

  13. Ethanol Timeline. (2008) Green Plains Renewable Energy, Inc. Retrieved from • http://www.gpreinc.com/Ethanol-Timeline • “Fuel Ethanol Production in the United States.” Graph. Data360.org 5/20/2008. <http://www.data360.org/dsg.aspx?Data_Set_Group_Id=1344> • Fuel Testers. (2009). Ethanol Fuel Timeline. Retrieved from http://www.fuel- testers.com/ethanol_fuel_history.html • Gecan, R., Johansson, R., FitzGerald, K. (2009). The Impact of Ethanol Use on Food Prices and Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Congressional Budget Office. Retrieved from http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/100xx/doc10057/toc.shtml • Greer, D. (2005). Creating Cellulosic Ethanol: Spinning Straw into Fuel. Biocycle. Retrieved from http://www.harvestcleanenergy.org/enews/enews_0505/ enews_0505_Cellulosic_Ethanol.htm • Gupta, R., Demirbas, A. (2010). Gasoline, Diesel, and Ethanol Biofuels from Grasses and Plants. • New York, NY. Cambridge University Press. • Jacquot, Jeremy. “Biofuel Comparison Chart.” Diagram. Treehugger.com 05/10/08. <http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/05/biofuel-comparison-chart.php> • Kleiner, K. (2007). The backlash against biofuels. Nature Reports Climate Change. Retrieved from http://www.nature.com/climate/2008/0801/full/climate.2007.71.html

  14. Kubiszewski, I. (2007). Energy Timeline. Earth Portal. Retrieved from http://www.earthportal.org/?p=80#1940AD • “Maize Price Chart.” Chart. Mongabay.com 2009. <http://www.mongabay.com/images/commodities/charts/maize.html> • Murray, Shailagh. (2007). Ethanol Undergoes Evolution as Political Issue. The Washington Post. • Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12 /AR2007031201722.html • Myth: Corn ethanol is great. You Tube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9QQcP_Y1II • State Energy Conservation Office. Cellulosic Ethanol. Retrieved from http://www.seco.cpa.state.tx.us/re_ethanol_cellulosic.htm • “Sugar, world price chart.” Chart. Mongabay.com 2009. <http://www.mongabay.com/images/commodities/charts/sugar.html> • The Economist. (2010). The post-alcohol world. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/node/17358802?story_id=17358802&CFID=161806477&CF TOKEN=18203629 • U.S. Department of Energy. (2011). Federal Incentives and Laws for Tax Incentives. Retrieved from http://www.afdc.energy.gov/afdc/laws/laws/US/incentive/3234 • Wang et al. (2007). Diagram. Environmental Research Letters, Vol 2. Diagram • Wikipedia. (2011). Ethanol. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethanol

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