January 2015 Biomass Magazine

Maintenance MattersExploring the Vital Role that Effective O&M Plays at Successful Facilities

www.biomassmagazine.com

January 2015

Plus:Outsourcing Biogas O&M

Page 36

And:Managing Dust To

Ensure Safe Pellet Production

Page 24

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JANUARY 2015 | BIOMASS MAGAZINE 3

INSIDE¦

JANUARY 2015 | VOLUME 9 | ISSUE 1

Subscriptions Biomass Magazine is free of charge to everyone with the exception of a shipping and handling charge of $49.95 for anyone outside the United States. To subscribe, visit www.BiomassMagazine.com or you can send your mailing address and payment (checks made out to BBI International) to Biomass Magazine Subscriptions, 308 Second Ave. N., Suite 304, Grand Forks, ND 58203. You can also fax a subscription form to 701-746-5367. Back Issues & Reprints Select back issues are available for $3.95 each, plus shipping. Article reprints are also available for a fee. For more information, contact us at 701-746-8385 or [email protected]. Advertising Biomass Magazine provides a specifi c topic delivered to a highly targeted audience. We are committed to editorial excellence and high-quality print production. To fi nd out more about Biomass Magazine advertising opportunities, please contact us at 701-746-8385 or [email protected]. Letters to the Editor We welcome letters to the editor. Send to Biomass Magazine Letters to the Managing Editor, 308 2nd Ave. N., Suite 304, Grand Forks, ND 58203 or email to [email protected]. Please include your name, address and phone number. Letters may be edited for clarity and/or space.

16 NEWS

17 COLUMNEPA’s Biogenic Carbon Framework: A New Chapter For BiomassBy Bob Cleaves

18 FEATURE Tuning A Power Station's Turbine HeartThe effi ciency and, ultimately, the profi tability of a biomass power plant relies upon the continuous maintenance of the facility’s steam turbines.By Katie Fletcher

POWER

06 EDITOR’S NOTEIt’s In the Way that You Use itBy Tim Portz

07 INDUSTRY EVENTS

08 BUSINESS BRIEFS

10 BIOMASS CONSTRUCTION UPDATE

46 MARKETPLACE

18

Maintenance Matters

Plus:

And:

MAINTENANCE MUSCLE: Joel Sadden, Fuel Handler at Koda Energy in Shakopee, Minn. is one of many sets of hands that keep that facility operating in top form.PHOTO: TIM PORTZ, BBI INTERNATIONAL

PELLETS 22 NEWS

23 COLUMNTransitioning From Pulverized Coal To Pulverized PelletsBy William Strauss

24 FEATURE Combustible Dust An Explosive IssuePellet plant operators continue to drive dust control measures into their operational plan, preferring to eliminate the accumulation of dust before it can become a hazard.By Katie Fletcher

CORRECTION:In the October issue of Biomass Magazine, in article Achieving Sustainability Goals, it incorrectly stated that “Wildlife may benefi t through the return of native plant communities that are among the most highly diminished of any in the world (less than a 99 percent loss),” rather than a more than a 99 percent loss. It also made a recommendation for energy crop harvest to leave less than 10 inches of residual stubble, but should have read more than 10 inches.

iowaeconomicdevelopment.com iowaeconomicdevelopment businessiowablog.iowaeconomicdevelopment.com

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become a bioscience epicenter that’s

attracted 1,250 companies. We put our

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instance, Iowa poured more than $80 million

into over 200 bioscience projects in the last

ten years. Our universities leveraged over

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last year Iowa exported $280.5 million in

pharmaceutical products to 77 countries.

So visit iowaeconomicdevelopment.com.

And discover the reasons your company

should take the fast lane to Iowa.

BREAKTHROUGHSTAKE THE EXPRESS LANE TO MARKET HERE.

Iowa’s biosciences industry has OUTPACED NATIONAL GROWTH in 3 of 5 sectors over the past decade.

REASON#102


BIOGAS

34 NEWS

35 COLUMNBiogas and Fuel Cells: A Marriage of Old Ideas, New TechnologiesBy Bud DeFlaviss

36 FEATUREMitigating Operational RiskNew Jersey-based Natural Systems Utilities leverages deep biological expertise to help keep digester projects at peak output. By Tim Portz

JANUARY 2015 | VOLUME 9 | ISSUE 1

THERMAL

30 NEWS

31 COLUMNWhat EPA Leadership Looks LikeBy John Ackerly

32 FEATURE Preventative Maintenance Protocols For Commercial Biomass BoilersA manufacturer of biomass boilers offers operators some guidance on the routine maintenance necessary to keep biomass appliances running as effi ciently as their fossil-fueled cousins. By Grant Gagner

ADVANCED BIOFUELS & CHEMICALS

40 NEWS

41 COLUMNHope vs ChangeBy Michael McAdams

42 CONTRIBUTIONManaging Rail BottlenecksConventional biofuel and increasingly advanced biofuel producers eye looming winter rail bottlenecks and consider operational approaches to align production volumes with the distribution bandwidth available.By Karla Harper

INSIDE¦ADVERTISER INDEX¦

2015 Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo 46

2015 International Biomass Conference & Expo 14

Airofl ex Equipment 22

Andritz Feed & Biofuel A/S 26

Astec, Inc. 2

BBI Project Development 15

Bois Energie 2015 9

Continental Biomass Industries 8

CPM Roskamp Champion 44

DI PIÙ 30

European Biomass Conference & Exhibition 21

Evergreen Enginering 28

Hurst Boiler & Welding Co. Inc. 39

Iowa Economic Development Authority 4

Javo U.S.A., Inc. 40

KEITH Manufacturing Company 7

New Holland Agriculture 48

M-E-C Company 16

Morbark, Inc. 47

TerraSource Global 20

Vector Systems Inc. 34

Verdante BioEnergy Services 33

Warren & Baerg Manufacturing Inc. 45

Wolf Material Handling Systems 38

34

Biomass Magazine: (USPS No. 5336) January 2015, Vol. 9, Issue 1. Biomass Magazine is published monthly by BBI International. Principal Offi ce: 308 Second Ave. N., Suite 304, Grand Forks, ND 58203. Periodicals Postage Paid at Grand Forks, North Dakota and additional mailing offi ces. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Biomass Magazine/Subscriptions, 308 Second Ave. N., Suite 304, Grand Forks, North Dakota 58203.

Please recycle this magazine and remove inserts or samples before recycling

COPYRIGHT © 2015 by BBI International

6 BIOMASS MAGAZINE | JANUARY 2015

It's in the Way that You Use It

There is a concrete causeway between two rows of evenly spaced saccharifi cation tanks at the Project Liberty cellulosic ethanol plant in Emmetsburg, Iowa. In early Septem-ber, at the facility’s grand opening celebration, I joined what I think is fair to call a throng of other journalists in this causeway waiting for the day’s best photo opportunity. The King of the Netherlands along with POET-DSM executives would make their way down this alley of sorts against a backdrop of carefully

stacked corn stover bales. The event organizers rightly fi gured this spot to of-fer the assembled photographers the best opportunity for the one image that told the story of the day. Shutters snapped as the king approached and after some handshaking, he stepped through an open doorway making a left and disappeared from sight.

Earlier that day, I had made the same left. The guts of the facility is a tangle of tanks, piping and ductwork. Just beyond the distillation and fer-mentation infrastructure is a small, nondescript room that may well be the most important 600 square feet in the entire advanced biofuels segment. This control room is anything but photogenic, but the critical role it will play in bringing that facility up to capacity and keeping it there cannot be overstated. This control room serves as the nerve center of the plant and provides plant personnel with real-time access to over 10,000 data points. After all of the cel-ebration and eye-popping photo ops, this humble nerve center and the control rooms like it across the industry will be where the fate of cellulosic conversion will be decided.

In this month’s issue of Biomass Magazine, we closely examine industry operations and management programs and how they are deployed. None of us in this industry are immune to the awe that big, shiny new facilities can impart whether it’s a community digester, an export scale pellet plant or a cellulosic ethanol production facility like Project Liberty. This issue’s quarterly installment of our popular Biomass Construction Update is loaded with them. That said, without effective operation, these facilities will make little more than good photographs. Going further, unless a facility’s operational strategy is best in class, delivering a return on investment is far from assured.

The stories in this issue explore how solid operations and maintenance programs not only drive performance risk out of capital intensive projects, but also reduce downtime while increasing overall plant safety.

TIM PORTZVICE PRESIDENT OF CONTENT & EXECUTIVE [email protected]

¦EDITOR’S NOTE

EDITORIAL

PRESIDENT & EDITOR IN CHIEFTom Bryan [email protected]

VICE PRESIDENT OF CONTENT & EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Tim Portz [email protected]

MANAGING EDITOR Anna Simet [email protected]

NEWS EDITORErin Voegele [email protected]

STAFF WRITERKatie Fletcher kfl [email protected]

COPY EDITOR Jan Tellmann [email protected]

ARTART DIRECTOR

Jaci Satterlund [email protected]

GRAPHIC DESIGNERElizabeth Burslie [email protected]

PUBLISHING & SALESCHAIRMAN

Mike Bryan [email protected]

CEOJoe Bryan [email protected]

VICE PRESIDENT OF OPERATIONSMatthew Spoor [email protected]

SALES & MARKETING DIRECTORJohn Nelson [email protected]

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Howard Brockhouse [email protected]

SENIOR ACCOUNT MANAGERChip Shereck [email protected]

ACCOUNT MANAGERJeff Hogan [email protected]

CIRCULATION MANAGER Jessica Beaudry [email protected]

TRAFFIC & MARKETING COORDINATORMarla DeFoe [email protected]

EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS

Chris Sharron, Western Oregon Wood Products

Amanda Bilek, Great Plains Institute

Stacy Cook, Koda Energy

Ben Anderson, University of Iowa

Justin Price, Evergreen Engineering

Adam Sherman, Biomass Energy Resource Center


INDUSTRY EVENTS¦

Le Salon Bois Energie 2015MARCH 19-22, 2015Parc Expo Nantes, FranceThe Salon Bois Energie is a unique Exhibition in France dedicated to the entire wood energy chain. It is the benchmark event for wood en-ergy. Being staged in 2015 in Nantes, already welcoming 20 countries through its doors, the Salon Bois Energie is the international show place and meeting point for the French market. This distinctive event is re-puted for bringing wood energy to life with indoor operational stoves and fi replaces, outdoor wood fuel machinery demonstrations, exhibitors from all across Europe, conferences, and innovation awards. +33 (0)3-84-86-89-30 | www.boisenergie.com

International Biomass Conference & ExpoAPRIL 20-22, 2015Minneapolis Convention CenterMinneapolis, MinnesotaOrganized by BBI International and produced by Biomass Magazine, this event brings current and future producers of bioenergy and bio-based products together with waste generators, energy crop growers, municipal leaders, utility executives, technology providers, equipment manufacturers, project developers, investors and policy makers. It’s a true one-stop shop—the world’s premier educational and networking junction for all biomass industries.866-746-8385 | www.biomassconference.com

International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & ExpoJUNE 1-4, 2015Minneapolis Convention CenterMinneapolis, MinnesotaThe FEW provides the global ethanol industry with cutting-edge content and unparalleled networking opportunities in a dynamic business-to-business environment. The FEW is the largest, longest running ethanol conference in the world—and the only event powered by Ethanol Pro-ducer Magazine.866-746-8385 | www.fuelethanolworkshop.com

National Advanced Biofuels Conference & ExpoOCTOBER 26-28, 2015Hilton OmahaOmaha, NebraskaProduced by BBI International, this national event will feature the world of advanced biofuels and biobased chemicals—technology scale-up, project fi nance, policy, national markets and more—with a core focus on the industrial, petroleum and agribusiness alliances defi ning the national advanced biofuels industry. With a vertically integrated program and au-dience, the National Advanced Biofuels Conference & Expo is tailored for industry professionals engaged in producing, developing and de-ploying advanced biofuels, biobased platform chemicals, polymers and other renewable molecules that have the potential to meet or exceed the performance of petroleum-derived products.866-746-8385 | www.advancedbiofuelsconference.com


PEOPLE, PRODUCTS & PARTNERSHIPSBusiness BriefsABO announces board changes

The Algae Bio-mass Organization has appointed Tim Burns, co-founder and a board member of Bioprocess Algae LLC, as chair of its board of direc-tors. Martin Sabarsky, CEO of Cellana Inc., has been appointed vice president of the board of directors. The previous chair, Margret McCormick, CEO of Matrix Genetics, maintains a position on the board.

ADBA changes name The Anaerobic Digestion & Biogas

Association has changed its name to the Anaerobic Digestion & Bioresources As-sociation in response to a rapidly changing political and economic landscape. Central

to this decision is the recognition that, as new technologies and products develop, there will be opportunities to innovate and incorporate them with anaerobic digestion to improve profi tability and sustain the industry’s growth.

EPA recognizes Amyris, SolazymeThe U.S. EPA has recognized two

biorefi ning companies with Presiden-tial Green Chemistry Challenge Awards. Amyris Inc. was recognized for engineering yeast to make a renewable fuel replace-ment for petroleum diesel. Solazyme Inc. was recognized for developing novel oils from sugar and engineered algae in a way that signifi cantly reduces the environmental effects that typically occur in producing and processing petroleum-based or plant-based oils.

Rockwell Automation acquires assets of ESC Services

Rockwell Automation Inc. has pur-chased the assets of ESC Services Inc., a global hazardous energy control provider

of lockout-tagout services and solutions. ESC’s unique methodology utilizes quick response codes that can be scanned to obtain asset information and streamline compliance with both external regulations and internal safety policies.

AREVA signs contract with BOLT Energias

AREVA has signed a contract with Brazilian utility BOLT Energias for the construction of the Campo Grande biomass power plant in the state of Bahia. Once completed, the 150 MW plant will be the largest biomass facility in the country. Under the contract, AREVA will provide engineer-ing, procurement and construction services for Campo Grande, a plant composed of three 50 MW modules and fueled with woody biomass. The facility is scheduled to connect to the national grid in mid-2017.

Tecogen supplies equipment to biogas project

Tecogen Inc. has sold its proprietary emissions reduction system to the Eastern

Continental Biomass Industries, Inc. • 22 Whittier Street, Newton, NH 03858 USA • (603) 382-0556 • www.cbi-inc.com

CBI Magnum Force Flail Debarker & Microchipping System

Custom Built with Pride for Rentech

WorldÊs Best Portable and StationaryBiomass Recovery Systems

Burns

Sabarsky


Municipal Water District in Perris, California. The system will be a larger-scale version of Tecogen’s Ultra emission after-treatment product. It will be applied to a 48-liter engine fueled with biogas at EMWD’s Moreno Val-ley Regional Water Reclamation Facility.

Professor honored in Canada Robin Rogers has

been named Canada excellence research chair in green chemistry and green chemicals at McGill University. Rog-ers comes to Canada from The University of Alabama, where he was Robert Ramsay chair of chemistry and director of the center for Green manufacturing.

Ansell installs second biogas boilerAnsell has announced the completion

of its second biomass boiler at the Ansell factory complex in Biyagama, Sri Lanka. The new boiler has a capacity of 12.5 MW

and will be the largest hot water boiler in Sri Lanka. Ansell Lanka already has a 10.5 MW boiler installed at its premises.

Synagro Technologies appoints CEO

Synagro Technologies has named Ste-phen Cole as president and CEO. He has executive experience leading sales, market-ing, manufacturing operations, business development and logistics functions. Cole previously served as an industrial advisor for EQT Holdings/EQT Partners. He also previously served as CEO of SVM Inc. Synagro Technologies has also announced the addition of Mary Lynn Smedinghoff as vice president and chief human resources offi cer. She will be responsible for develop-ing the strategic direction and formulation of all company human resource policies, procedures, systems and initiatives in alignment with the strategic direction and expansion of Synagro. Smedinghoff most recently served as executive vice president and chief human resources offi cer at Veolia Environnement.

Metso provides equipment to biomass plant in Poland

Metso will supply an innovative super-heater corrosion management solution to Tauron Cieplp sp. zo.o’s combined-heat-and-power plant in Tychy, Poland, in cooperation with Valmet. The solution enables the power plant to extend the lifetime of its superheater in the 35 MW unit’s biomass-fi red bubbling fl uidized bed boiler, maximize fuel fl exibility, optimize fuel economy and lower its envi-ronmental impact.

Pennsylvania funds AD projectThe Pennsylvania Commonwealth Fi-

nancing Authority has provided a $546,382 grant to Drew Remley Farm to aid in the purchase and installation of an anaerobic digestion at its farm located in Liberty Township.

BUSINESS BRIEFS¦

SHARE YOUR INDUSTRY NEWS: To be included in the Business Briefs, send information (including photos and logos, if available) to Business Briefs, Biomass Magazine, 308 Second Ave. N., Suite 304, Grand Forks, ND 58203. You may also email information to [email protected]. Please include your name and telephone number in all correspondence.

Rogers


Marquette Green Energy

Location Belleville, MichiganEngineer/builder Steam Control Systems Inc.Primary fuel Tire-derived fuel, wood, waste woodBoiler type Bubbling fl uidized bed boilerNameplate capacity 34 MWCombined heat and power YesGovernment incentives CRA and New Markets Tax Credit Qualifi ed including green bonds

IPP or utility IPPGroundbreaking date TBDStart-up date TBDProposed retrofi t of an existing generating facility that was part of KI Sawyer Air Force Base prior to closure of the base.

Escanaba Generating Station, Escanaba Green Energy LLC

Location Escanaba, MichiganEngineer/builder N/APrimary fuel Waste wood, tire-derived fuelBoiler type StokerNameplate capacity 23 MWCombined heat and power YesGovernment incentives NoneIPP or utility IPPGroundbreaking date TBDStart-up date TBDThe facility has been purchased and fi nancing required for fuel conversion is nearing completion.

Looking at the following profi les two clear themes emerge: The repurposing of closed or idled facilities, and the move of new technologies from the lab to pilot, demonstration or full scale facilities.

Both Rentech pellet facilities, Atikokan and Wawa, were shuttered wood fi ber facilities. E-Pellets Group is pursuing a similar development strategy as it has acquired a Louisiana Pacifi c oriented strand board (OSB) mill in Athens for its pellet facility. These companies are exploiting the existing structures, equipment, transportation resources and even the existing workforce while avoiding many of the issues associated with siting a new facility.

Additionally, the Escanaba Generating Station was a municipally owned coal facility that was being closed when it was purchased by Escanaba Green Energy for conversion to biomass and tire-derived fuel (TDF). In a similar move Marquette Green Energy is fi nalizing the purchase of a shuttered coal fi red plant, which powered the now closed K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base. Marquette Green Energy plans to return it to service with biomass and TDF as well, selling excess heat to other civilian industries that are taking up locations on the closed base.

The emerging technologies profi led include completion of a number of facilities with multiple

energy coproducts such as Abengoa’s 25 MMgy cellulosic ethanol facility in Kansas where the facility produces more electricty than it requires to operate. A new proprietary process to be installed at Mendota Bioenergy’s Demo Plant uses energy beets to produce ethanol, biogas and electricity in addition to fertilizer.

This quarter’s Biomass Construction Update is peppered with projects that are exploiting location selection and technology advancements as they look to maximize their project’s productivity, resource use, coproduct utilization and fi nancial viability.

Biomass CONSTRUCTION UPDATENew Technologies Revive Old Facilities by Steve Stucko

Escanaba Generating StationPHOTO: ESCANABA GREEN ENERGY

Marquette Green EnergyPHOTO: MARQUETTE GREEN ENERGY

Biomass Power Pellets Biogas Thermal Advanced Biofuel


E-Pellets Group - Athens

Location Athens, GeorgiaDesign/builder N/AExport Port Savannah, GeorgiaExport location European UnionPellet Grade Industrial premium pelletsCapacity 450,000 metric tonsFeedstock Yellow pineGroundbreaking date N/AStartup date August 2015This shuttered Louisiana Pacifi c OSB mill will be converted it into a wood pellet production facility.

CONSTRUCTION UPDATE¦Conifex Power, Mackenzie Generating Station

Location Mackenzie, British ColumbiaEngineer/builder Spectrum Energy/Clean Energy/JV DriverPrimary fuel Hog fuel, wood shavings, forest residuesBoiler type ABB ICFB BoilerNameplate capacity 36 MWCombined heat and power YesGovernment incentives N/AIPP or utility IPP contracting to BC HydroGroundbreaking date November 2013Start-up date Anticipating Q1 2015Start up was delayed due to electrical equipment failure during a 72-hour test run in October.

Thunder Bay Generating Station, Ontario Power Generation

Location Thunder Bay, Ontario, CanadaEngineer/builder N/APrimary fuel Advanced biomass pelletsBoiler type Suspension fi re systemNameplate capacity 150 MWCombined heat and power NoGovernment incentives 10-year PPAIPP or utility Provincial utilityGroundbreaking date 2nd half 2014Start-up date Q2 2015 This facility is no longer burning coal and the construction plan is progressing.

E-Pellets Group-AthensPHOTO: GOOGLE

Rentech Inc. - Atikokan

Location Atikokan, OntarioDesign/builder N/AExport Port Port of OntarioExport location EuropePellet Grade Industrial premium pelletsCapacity 100,000 metric tonsFeedstock Crown Forest WoodGroundbreaking date 2014Startup date November 2014This project has a 10-year off-take contract with Ontario Power Generation for 45,000 tons annually.

Rentech Inc. - Wawa

Location Wawa, OntarioDesign/builder N/AExport Port Port of OntarioExport location UK (Drax)Pellet Grade Industrial premium pelletsCapacity 450,000 metric tonsFeedstock Crown forest woodGroundbreaking date 2014Startup date 1Q 2015Major equipment is in place. Drying, bark furnace and both log cranes have been commissioned.

Biomass Secure Power Natchitoches, Biomass Secure Power

Location Natchitoches, LouisianaDesign/builder Biomass Secure PowerExport Port Port of New OrleansExport location Europe, AsiaPellet Grade Industrial premium pelletsCapacity 3 lines, 340,000 metric tons eachFeedstock Softwood, 30 percent hardwoodGroundbreaking date January/February 2015Startup date Q1 2016Construction will start after completion of fi nancing, which is expected in January.

Zilkha Biomass Selma, Zilkha Biomass Energy

Location Selma, AlabamaDesign/builder Zilkha Biomass FuelsExport Port Port of MobileFeedstock Mostly softwood, some hardwoodPellet Grade Zilkha Black Pellets, premiumAnnual capacity 275,000 metric tonsExport location EuropeGroundbreaking date April 2014Start-up date 2015Construction is continuing on schedule for completion in early 2015.

ProjectComplete


District Heat Montpelier, Montpelier, Vermont

Location Montpelier, Vermont

Engineer/Builder Engineer: Hallam ICS, Evergreen EnergyContractor: Kingsbury Companies LLC

Primary fuel Wood chipsBoiler type Two 600-horsepower, dual-fuel AFS Energy Systems steam boilers

Nameplate thermal capacity 40.2 MM Btu/hrHeat end use $8 million U.S. DOE, U.S. Forest Service, Vermont Village Green grants

Government incentives/grants 2 MWGroundbreaking date April 2013Start-up date October 2014The project utilizes 100 percent biomass during the heating season and fuel oil during the shoulder seasons.

Skærbæk Power Station Conversion, Dong Energy

Location Fredericia, DenmarkEngineer/builder B&W VollundPrimary fuel Wood chipsBoiler type B&W Vollund fl uidized bed

Nameplate thermal capacity 280 MWth

Heat end use District heatGovernment incentives/grants N/AGroundbreaking date September 2014Start-up date Early 2017The contract with B&W Vollund was signed in Q2.

Snow Timber Pellets, Snowbelt Hardwoods

Location Hurley, WisconsinDesign/builder Bliss, Hamer, OrionExport port N/AExport location N/APellet Grade ResidentialAnnual Capacity 12,000-15,000 tonsFeedstock HardwoodGroundbreaking date September 2014Startup date November 2014Construction and startup went very smoothly and and pellets are being shipped.

Mendota Bioenergy, LLC - Demo Plant

Location Tranquility, CaliforniaDesign/builder N/AProcess technology ProprietaryBiofuel/biochemical product(s) EthanolFeedstock Energy beetsProduction capacity 1 MMgyType of RINs N/ACoproducts Biomethane, electricity, liquid fertilizerGroundbreaking date 2014Start-up date 2015Equipment is being installed with startup expected during Q1 2015.

Lanzatech Freedom Pines Biorefi nery LLC

Location Soperton, GeorgiaDesign/builder N/AProcess technology Proprietary thermochemical pathwayBiofuel/biochemical product(s) Ethanol and possibly butadiene, jet fuelFeedstock Woody biomassProduction capacity 2 MMgyType of RINs N/ACoproducts Char/ashGroundbreaking date 2014Start-up date 2015A gasifi er will produce syngas for ethanol fermentation in this former Range Fuels facility.

Biomass Power Pellets Biogas Thermal Advanced Biofuel

Abengoa Bioenergy Biomass of Kansas LLC, Abengoa Bioenergy

Location Hugoton, KansasDesign/builder Abengoa Bioenergy New TechnologiesProcess technology Proprietary processBiofuel/biochemical product(s) Cellulosic ethanolFeedstock Corn stover, wheat straw, switchgrassProduction capacity 25 MMgyType of RINs D3Coproducts 21 MW of biomass power Groundbreaking date September 2011Start-up date Power: January 2014, Fuel: October 2014Solids from the ethanol process are used to generate 21 MW of electricity.

Project Genesis, Cool Planet Energy Systems

Location Alexandria, LouisianaDesign/builder N/AProcess technology Cool Planet proprietaryBiofuel/biochemical product(s) Renewable gasoline blendstockFeedstock Yellow pine waste, forest byproductsProduction capacity 5-10 MMgyType of RINs D3 and/or D7 cellulosic biofuel RINSCoproducts BiocharGroundbreaking date August 2014Start-up date Late 2015-early 2016Earthwork is complete and construction bids are being received for a start construction in early 2015.

Snow Timber PelletsPHOTO: SNOW TIMBER PELLETS

ProjectComplete

ProjectComplete

ProjectComplete


Noblehurst Green Energy

Location Linwood, New YorkEngineer/Builder EnviTec BiogasSubstrate(s) Dairy manure, FOG, grocery waste, dairy effl uentDigester type Complete mix followed by a plug-fl ow systemCHP? Yes

Biogas production capacity 36.8 CFM

Biogas end use Electrical generationPower capacity .44 MWGroundbreaking date 2014Start-up date Q1 2015USDA Rural Development’s Rural Energy for America Program awarded the project $494,520.

Cheyenne Biogas Power Plant

Location Cheyenne, WyomingEngineer/Builder Microsoft, Siemens, FuelCell EnergySubstrate(s) Municipal sewageDigester type ThermophilicGas cleaning technology N/A

Biogas production capacity 178 CFM

Biogas end use Fuel cell to produce electricity and combusted to produce process heat

Power capacity .3MWGroundbreaking date 2013Start-up date November 2014This is a Microsoft pilot project employing a molten carbonate fuel cell to power a mobile data center.

CONSTRUCTION UPDATE¦

Cheyenne Biogas Power PlantPHOTO: SIEMENS

Noblehurst Green EnergyPHOTO: NOBLEHURST FARMS INC.

ProjectComplete

Roeslein Alternative Energy of Missouri LLC, Roeslein Alternative Energy LLC

Location Northern MissouriEngineer/Builder Roeslein Alternative Energy LLCSubstrate(s) Hog manure

Digester type/technology Lagoon style, fl oating impermeable cover

Gas cleaning technology Molecular sieve/PSA

Biogas production capacity 2 million-plus MM Btu/year

Biogas end use CNG and LNG

Power capacity N/AGroundbreaking date May 2014Start-up date Phase one: June 2015Eight-eight manure lagoons are being covered and fl aring of captured gas began in September.

CRMC Dartmouth Bioenergy Facility – Pilot Phase, CRMC Bioenergy LLC

Location Dartmouth/New Bedford, MassachusettsEngineer/Builder CRMC Bioenergy LLCSubstrate(s) Food wastes, sludge, FOG, liquid or slurried nonhazardous organics

Digester type/technology Continuous feed, wet, mesophilic, 100,000-gallon digester

Gas cleaning technology N/A

Biogas production capacity 30 cubic feet per minute; actual determined by operations

Biogas end use Power production for sale to adjacent LFG-to-energy facility

Power capacity N/AGroundbreaking date November 2013

Start-up date October 2014

Ribbon cutting for pilot facility was held in October. Construction of a full-scale digester will follow.

San Joaquin County, Landfi ll Gas-To-Energy Facility

Location Linden, CaliforniaEngineer/Builder Ameresco Inc.Substrate(s) MSW

Digester type/technology Landfi ll

Gas cleaning technology Regenerative Temperature Swing Adsorption (TSA)

Biogas production capacity 1,700 SCFM

Biogas end use Power production for city of Palo Alto

Power capacity 4.3 MWGroundbreaking date October 2012

Start-up date November 2014

The project utilizes two parallel SRS vessel trains to allow continuous fuel processing and two GE Jenbacher reciprocating engine generators.

Milam Renewable Natural Gas Facility, Waste Management

Location Fairmont City, IllinoisEngineer/Builder Venture Engineering, Icon Mechanical Substrate(s) MSW

Digester type/technology Landfi ll

Gas cleaning technology Membrane CO2 removal, PSA nitrogen removal

Biogas production capacity 3,500 SCFM

Biogas end use Natural gas pipeline

Power capacity N/AGroundbreaking date October 2013

Start-up date November 2014

This is an addition to the existing Milam Landfi ll-Gas-to-Energy facility, which produces 2.4 MW of electricity.

ProjectComplete

ProjectComplete

ProjectComplete

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U.K. Department of En-ergy and Climate Change Sec-retary Edward Davey recently delivered his annual energy statement to Parliament. As part of the statement, Davey said that record investments of £45 billion ($70.99 billion) in electricity generation and networks since 2010 have put the nation on target to meet its future low carbon requirements. The renewables investment includes £6.3 bil-lion specifi cally invested in biomass and bioenergy since 2010.

A report that accompanied the statement indicates the U.K. is expected to invest an additional £5.0 billion to £5.9 billion in biomass energy projects through 2020, supporting up to 14,700

jobs. By that time, the report predicts biomass could provide the equivalent of 10 percent of the nation’s current power supply, which is enough to power approximately 8 million homes. In 2013, biomass and waste accounted for about 4 percent of inland energy consumption in the U.K.

The U.S. EPA released a revised framework for assessing biogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emis-sions from stationary sources in November. The revised framework is undergoing additional public review. The agency has also issued a memo providing regulatory guidance on how the updated framework will impact the Clean Power Plan and Prevention of Signifi cant Deterioration Program.

The memo outlines the EPA’s current thinking with regard to the treatment of biogenic emissions under the CCP and PSD program. Notably, it indi-cates the EPA plans to propose revisions to the PSD rules to include an exemption from the best available control technology (BACT) requirement for GHGs from waste-derived feedstocks and from nonwaste biogenic feedstocks derived from sustainable forest or agricultural practices.

In response to the EPA’s announcements, Biomass Power Association President Bob Cleaves said the agency had never before made such a clear and emphatic endorsement of biomass. Cleaves said EPA is describing waste-derived materials and forest-derived materials as having "minimal or...no net atmospheric contribution of biogenic CO2 emis-sions,” and called the declaration “a very positive and very clear statement.”

UK DECC outlines bioenergy investments in annual statement

EPA releases updated biogenic carbon framework, issues guidance memo

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UK bioenergy investmentsEstimated investment 2010-2013 £6.3 billion Estimated investment 2014-2020 £5-5.9 billion Employment level 2012-2013 up to 14,700Installed capacity (Q2 2014) 4.3 GWUnder construction 0.8 GWAwaiting construction 3.8 GWIn planning 0.5 GWSOURCE: U.K. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE


When the Clean Power Plan, the EPA’s nation-wide carbon reduction plan that sets specifi c emissions targets for each state, was released June 18, the EPA and the Agency’s Science Advisory Board had not yet com-pleted their work on the carbon accounting of biogenic emissions. Important questions regarding how the EPA should model biogenic emissions and thus how biomass power could play a role in reducing overall carbon emis-sions were left unresolved.

As I have said in past columns in Biomass Magazine, biomass energy plays an important role in the mix of energy sources helping to reduce U.S. GHG emis-sions. The White House, the Environmental Protection Agency’s Science Advisory Board, and the international scientifi c community have all recognized that sustain-able biomass can be an important source of low-carbon energy, particularly waste biomass and residues from sustainable forestry management and forest products manufacturing.

These materials provide consistent, baseload, renewable sources of energy and should be given a clear pathway for utilization by the EPA in any rulemaking regarding biogenic emissions. Biomass energy is recog-nized in nearly every state that has a Renewable Port-folio Standard. Failure to adequately credit the carbon mitigation attributes of low-carbon sustainable biomass in the fi nal rule could result in state compliance plans that exclude this clean energy technology, the potential closure of biomass facilities, and a lost opportunity for greater GHG reductions. But, due to an onslaught of litigation from groups opposed to biomass, we have been left on the edge of our seats for the better part of four years to see how the EPA would decide to count biogenic carbon emissions.

Luckily, we no longer have to wonder. Nov. 19, the Agency released the Revised Framework for Assessing Biogenic CO2 Emissions from Stationary Sources and its accompanying memorandum to states from acting assistant administrator McCabe. Together, the Frame-work and the EPA’s implementation of it support a clear, science-based approach that provides regulatory certainty while deferring important policy implementa-tion to the states.

Dec. 1, BPA fi led comments with the EPA on the CPP, which can be found on our website. While the big

picture—that the EPA recognizes the value of biomass as a renewable energy source that should contribute to the nationwide reduction of carbon emissions—is very positive, there are still questions that we need answered.

We welcome the EPA’s determination that waste-derived materials, biogas and forest-derived industrial by-products are “likely to have minimal or no net atmospheric contributions of biogenic CO2 emissions, or even reduce such impacts, when compared with an alternate fate of disposal.” We have asked the EPA to clarify in the fi nal plan that nonforestry cellulosic materials—like urban wood, wood-derived construction and demolition debris, and railroad ties—be specifi cally included in the defi nition of “waste-derived feedstocks” since these organic materials do not cause land use changes and do not deplete carbon stocks.

Also, regarding the EPA’s decision to include in the plan “sustainably derived” forest-derived feedstocks, we urge the EPA to recognize that for decades, states have managed their forests using sustainable land manage-ment practices. Existing state laws promote and protect healthy forests, and the plan should recognize that the EPA does not have the expertise or resources to set or enforce sustainability standards.

Finally, we encourage the EPA to clearly state that biomass power plants that use feedstocks covered by the McCabe Memorandum are exempt from regulation under the Clean Power Plan. To the contrary, biomass power from renewable and sustainable feedstocks should be encouraged as a compliance tool under Sec-tion 111(d).

All in all, the news from the EPA is a good sign for the biomass industry. After waiting several years for the revised framework, this document, along with the memo to states encouraging the counting of biomass in the Clean Power Plan, are a great way to kick off 2015, and a new, more stable, chapter for biomass.

Author: Bob CleavesPresident and CEO, Biomass Power Association

www.biomasspowerassociation.com [email protected]

EPA’s Biogenic Carbon Framework: A New Chapter For Biomass

POWER¦

BY BOB CLEAVES


Tuning A Power Station's Turbine HeartSteam turbine generators are reliable machines, but require surveillance to remain problem-free and keep electricity pumping. BY KATIE FLETCHER

GLOBAL SERVICE NETWORK: Siemens Power Service can deliver maintenance and repair on-site or using its extensive factory network with major repair facilities in six countries. This SST-300, 50 MW industrial steam turbine at the Nuremberg, Germany. The SST-300 series provides geared drive to a 1,500 to 12,000 rpm generator.


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Many power plants use steam to generate electricity, and many of them still use fossil fuels to heat water for steam. The electricity is produced when the steam fl ows over a series of aerodynamic turbine blades,

rotating a turbine which activates a generator. Biomass-fueled power plants, whether an energy-from-waste (EfW) or a wood-fi red facility, are increasingly producing renewable energy using turbine generators.

Essentially, from a turbine-generator (TG) point of view, there is no difference between the maintenance at either an EfW or wood-fi red biomass power plant. “With the steam turbine genera-tor set, or turboset, there are no differences between maintenance operations for waste-to-energy (WTE) facilities and wood-fi red biomass plants,” says Hanno Garbe, senior sales manager for steam turbine units at Siemens Energy.

Covanta Energy Corp., a power producing company with steam turbines at both installations, agrees. “Both energy from waste and biomass combustors generate live steam to drive the tur-bine,” says Frank Miller, vice president of maintenance technology at Covanta.

Covanta owns and operates 45 EfW facilities around the world including facilities in Canada, Italy and China. Currently, the com-pany has four operating wood-fi red biomass facilities, 115 boiler installations, fi ve of which are woody biomass fi red, and 59 tur-bine generators, fi ve running on biomass. “Covanta is the largest EfW operator in the world and produces power for approximately one million homes annually,” Miller says. This equates to 20 million tons of solid waste being processed into 9 billion pounds of steam, which is sold to a variety of industries.

Covanta has a wide variety of sizes, styles and manufacturers; nine steam turbine makes and 11 generator manufacturers.

Siemens is one provider of steam turbines for various biomass fuel types. Siemens Turbine generator sets have been deployed in over 93 biomass-fueled plants in the past decade. “Our fl eet of steam turbines is currently comprised of more than 200 turbines at waste-to-energy facilities and biomass power plants all over the world. The most installations are in Europe, Asia and the U.S.,” says Thorsten Scheller, Siemens’ head of business development and product management for service of industrial steam turbines.

Siemens steam turbines range from 75 kW up to 250 MW, and can be used with many biomass boilers. Stoker boilers and fl uidized bed combustion boilers are the two most common technologies used to combust biomass, according to Siemens. Feedstock char-acteristics are used to determine which boiler is appropriate for the plant. Siemens also can supply steam turbines with auxiliary equipment, such as a generator, a condenser system, monitoring and control systems, power transmission equipment and others.

GE Power and Water is another large provider of steam tur-bines. It has produced more than 530 GW of steam turbine capac-ity in more than 6,000 installed units since the beginning of the 20th century. The product line features high performance impulse technology with multiple feed water heater design confi gurations, integral cover buckets, brush seals and abradable coatings, im-proved diaphragm nozzle construction and others.

Inspections and Overhauls Predictive, not reactive maintenance is required to reduce

forced outages and shorten planned outages, which can be extend-ed for unforeseen repairs, according to Turbine Generator Mainte-nance Inc. The focus should be on prediction and prevention, not just on inspection and repairs. Covanta requires preventive main-tenance (PM) tasks daily, weekly and quarterly that do not inter-rupt normal operations, as well as an annual safety system trip test. “Typically all PM work is done in-house with specialty vendors for lube oil analysis and vibration analysis, thermography, etc.,” Miller says.

TGM is a provider of turbine generator services that includes inspections, assessments, overhauls, consulting, engineering and more. The company can perform turnkey inspections on steam tur-bines for most all original equipment manufacturers (OEM), ser-vicing the entire generator unit: controls, auxiliaries, gearboxes and generator, as well as steam path components. One of its services is a Running Condition Assessment program that can reduce un-scheduled outages, identify future repairs, shorten planned outages through contingency planning and increase the overall reliability of the equipment. TGM uses a grading system to review previous testing reports. The generator reliability assessment and diagnostic evaluation algorithm arrives at a letter grade representing the gen-erator’s condition. TGM uses these assessments to work with plant management to develop an ongoing multiyear outage plan. TGM has serviced both Siemens and GE units among many others.

Siemens, GE and Covanta also have their own maintenance programs in place to avoid unscheduled and unwanted downtime. Maintenance on steam turbine generator sets can be divided into inspections and overhauls. Inspections are aimed at assuring prop-er functioning of all systems, whereas partial or full overhauls are conducted to inspect the status of the components and exchange wear and tear parts, and accordingly repair damages at an early oc-casion. “As some of the defects can only be determined during the dismantling of the turboset, periodic major overhauls are strongly recommended,” Scheller says.

One of the problems that can occur with the units is associated with the age of steam turbines and the end-of-life of some compo-nents. “For example, a common problem in steam turbines with 20

¦POWER

to 25 years of operation is stress corrosion cracking,” Miller says. “This occurs at highly stressed locations on the turbine rotor.”

Another example is gearbox speed reducers, which require gear set replacement due to fatigue fracturing of gear teeth. “Covanta has inspection programs to identify indications for both of these poten-tial issues in order to repair or replace proactively,” Miller says.

Siemens provides periodic inspections every 12,500 equivalent operating hours (EOH), partial overhauls every 25,000 EOH and major overhauls every 50,000 EOH. “Based on our continuous de-velopment, such as our advanced monitoring capabilities, Siemens can offer extended times between major overhauls under a long term program,” Scheller says. “The basis is a close partnership be-tween Siemens and its customers, performing regular monitoring of the turbosets, thereby being in a position to closely monitor and assess any adverse behavior.”

The program gives Siemens the ability to make instant recom-mendations, and the maintenance cycles can be extended, giving signifi cant rise in reliability and availability while at the same time lowering maintenance costs, Scheller says.

Covanta has a TG outage plan, which requires a major over-haul—full turbine steam path inspection, repairs and generator fi eld removal—every seven years, for approximately 20 days. The plan also calls for a minor TG safety and controls system overhaul every three to four years approximately fi ve days long, Miller says. “Major overhauls are done primarily to address machine integrity

and performance effi ciency,” he says. “Covanta performs about 15 TG outages a year including major and minor overhauls.”

Miller adds that the company uses a combination of resources to accomplish all maintenance-related activities. “Covanta Mainte-nance Technology, which is our in-house group, has both turbine and electrical/generator fi eld specialists that specify work and work alongside overhaul contractors and OEM support as required dur-ing the outages.”

Manufacturing for Maximum RuntimeGE has a technical advisory services team to ensure proper

assembly and placing of parts into service. Siemens equips steam turbines with electronic control and protection systems to protect against adverse operation. The company also offers a service con-cept to ease and optimize the maintenance for their power pro-ducer customers, Garbe says. “Combining our customers’ opera-tional knowledge with our in-depth OEM engineering knowledge, Siemens aims to maximize the availability and reliability of their machines,” Scheller says.

Remote troubleshooting, in case of an event, is also offered by Siemens, in which it can analyze the large amounts of data collected on the rotating equipment. This monitoring plays a key role in over-all maintenance and long-term, problem-free operations. Covanta specifi cally tracks the TG monitor bearing temperature, lube oil pressures, supply temperature and drain temperature, turbine axial

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POWER¦

position indicators, local temperature of the exhaust hood, electri-cal status of generator output, voltage and MW, etc. “There are also process and steam condition monitoring and controls on the boiler supply side and the condensing side as well,” Miller says.

A steam turbine generator usually has the following scope: steam turbine, generator, gearbox, if applicable, oil system, elec-tronic control and protection system. “In addition, if required, we also offer water-cooled condensers, as well as enhanced monitoring and control systems, power transmission and distribution equip-ment and process control,” Garbe says. “The extended scope can increase the turnover or enhance the reliability.”

Garbe says, the steam turbine generator sets are designed to last as long as possible; for example, the root-clamping design and screws have 50,000 maintenance-free operating hours and the over-all components are designed for a lifetime of at least 200,000 op-erating hours.

When manufacturing the components for a turbine, certain measures are undertaken to ensure the highest quality of the design properties. Some measures include ultrasonic inspections, magnetic particle tests, dimensional checks, and run out measurement and testing of components separately, such as oil unit or full-test run of the core turbine.

High-quality design properties are needed because, as Siemens says, the heart of virtually every EfW plant is a steam turbine gen-erating electrical power out of the heat from the combustion of

waste. A steam turbine is the key to harnessing energy from waste. Covanta’s largest facility, Covanta Fairfax Inc., processes more

than 3,000 tons of MSW per day. Without its two condensing steam turbine generators, the facility would not be able to sell over 80 MW of renewable energy to Dominion Virginia Power Co. Likewise, two of Siemens’ SST-110 steam turbines would not have the ca-pacity to produce 11.5 MW of electricity in Linköping, Sweden, at the Gärstad waste incineration plant operated by Tekniska Verken, where a total of 420,000 tons of sorted waste per year is inciner-ated for energy recovery.

Steam turbine generators can utilize various fuel sources to generate electricity. As more are installed in the renewable energy sector, maintenance programs are essential to ensure limited sched-uled downtime and avoid the unscheduled downtime altogether. As steam turbine generators are the heart of EfW facilities, it is the job of manufacturers, power producers and technicians alike to keep electricity fl owing from them.

Author: Katie FletcherStaff Writer, Biomass Magazine

701-738-4920 kfl [email protected]

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PelletNews

In late October, Rentech Inc. an-nounced the startup of its Atikokan wood pellet facility. Commissioning and startup of the Wawa facility was expected to begin before the end of the year. All major equip-ment at the Wawa facility was in place in October, and certain critical items, including the drying system, bark furnace and both log cranes were commissioned and opera-tional at that time.

“I’m pleased to reach this important milestone at the Atikokan facility. Our Canadian team has done a superb job

managing the construction of Rentech’s fi rst two pellet plants, through one of the worst winters on record. We are excited about beginning operations and bringing jobs back to these communities,” said Sean Ebnet, senior vice president of Rentech’s wood fi ber business.

Rentech noted delays in deliveries by certain vendors prolonged construction and startup of the two Canadian plants. The fi rst shipment of pellets to Drax is expected to occur during the second quarter.

The Georgia Southern University Herty Advanced Materials Development Center in Savannah, Georgia, U.S. Endow-ment for Forestry and Communities, and the USDA Forest Service Forest Products Laboratory in Madison, Wisconsin, recently announced the launch of the Consortium for Advanced Wood-to-Energy Solutions. The consortium’s goal is to spearhead development of commercially viable, advanced wood-to-energy products that can be produced from low-value trees and forest residues that can compromise forest health and increase the frequency of wildfi res.

AWES’s initial focus will be on tor-refaction. “Our initial work will center on determining the commercial viability of torrefaction—the ‘roasting’ of wood in a low-oxygen environment—to create an energy-dense product that can more easily be shipped, stored and used to produce renewable energy,” said Alexander Koukou-las, president and CEO of Herty.

According to information released by Georgia Southern University, founding partners will seek the participation of public and private institutions in the consortium.

Rentech announces startup of Canadian pellet mills

Wood-to-energy consortium launches


Converting old pulverized coal power plants to use advanced solid biofuels rather than coal provides a ready-to-go solution for compliance with states’ renew-able portfolio standards (RPS). The strategy delivers low-carbon and low-cost electricity that will also satisfy the EPA’s proposed carbon policy under section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act and the Clean Power Plan. This strategy is the lowest-cost pathway to compliance and provides a renewable solution without the intermittency of wind and solar. The strategy does not cost jobs. In fact the strategy creates new jobs.

Most coal fi red power stations are pulverized coal plants. Those plants convey coal into pulverizing ma-chines that crush the coal into a fi ne powder. That powder is pneumatically conveyed from the pulverizers to the burners. The burners are mounted in the sidewalls of the power boiler. The coal dust is blown into the burners and combusts very rapidly; almost like a liquid fuel.

Two years ago, the concept of using pulverized wood pellets in large coal fi red power stations to completely replace coal was unproven. That has changed with three large power plants proving that using pellets in power stations not only works, but allows the power station to consistently and reliably generate the same amount of elec-tricity as they did with coal (Drax in the UK and Ontario Power Generation’s plants in Atikokan and Thunder Bay Ontario). There is no derating of the power plant. Just as many megawatts can be generated from the renewable low-carbon fuel as from coal.

Although the EPA’s carbon policy that would incen-tivize high carbon emitting power generators to mitigate their CO2 emissions is a few years from implementation, 27 U.S. states do have renewable portfolio standards (RPS). 11 other states have variants on RPS. RPS goals apply to 55 percent of retail electricity production in the US. The RPS systems provide incentives to the generators by issu-ing renewable energy certifi cates (RECs) for each MWh generated from renewable sources. RECs are traded in the open markets and have values ranging from a few dollars to over $50 per REC.

The pathway to that lowest-cost renewable power for RPS and EPA section 111(d) compliance that also has the benefi ts of being available on demand (dispatchable) or continuously (baseload) is via the conversion of older pulverized coal power plants into updated facilities that run on advanced solid biofuels.

Thermal generating stations that can be switched on as needed can complement the wind and solar component of the renewable low-carbon power portfolio. Every MW of wind or solar power needs a MW of thermal generation (or hydro where available) to keep the grid balanced when the wind is not blowing and the sun is not shining.

Converting from pulverized coal to advanced solid biofuel will have a signifi cant positive net job impact in the fuel supply chain. The typical argument against renewable power solutions such as wind and solar is that they will re-sult in a higher electricity price placing a drag on economic growth. Wind and solar generation results in signifi cantly higher power prices than power generated from plants converted to use pellets; and wind and solar are a genera-tion pathway that requires no labor for fuel provisioning.

The best solution for new renewable power genera-tion that has baseload and peaking characteristics is the conversion of older pulverized coal plants from coal to renewable low-carbon advanced solid biofuel. When there is a carbon policy in the U.S., the converted plants will already satisfy low-carbon requirements. For every MWhe not generated by coal, on average, about 1400 pounds of CO2 is not emitted. For a 500MW power station, that adds up to about 3,000,000 tons per year.

Wood pellet supply chains are well-established. The quantity of power that can be generated is limited to the sustainable quantities of renewable woody biomass. How-ever, within that sustainability boundary, a signifi cant pro-portion of older pulverized coal plants can be converted.

Many new pellet manufacturing projects could be developed if the demand were to increase. There is no shortage of sustainable feedstock in the fi ber baskets of the U.S. and Canada.

This is a strategy that does not need R&D, does not need massive subsidies, and does not need any signifi cant infrastructure investment. The fuel supply chain is already well-established

Pellets offer a low cost, low carbon, reliable, ready to deploy, renewable solution to our peaking and base load power demand that will result in the creation of more jobs than any other power generation technology.

Author: William StraussPresident, Future Metrics

[email protected]

Transitioning from Pulverized Coal to Pulverized Pellets

PELLET¦

BY WILLIAM STRAUSS


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INCREASED PRODUCTION AND PROTECTION: The Pacifi c BioEnergy facility in Prince George, British Columbia, has been operational since 1994, and was rebuilt and expanded in 2007, and again in 2010 to 350,000 metric tons capacity. Pacifi c BioEnergy and other pellet producers in British Columbia are spearheading an initiative to work together and share best practices on how to best manage dust at their facilities to reduce the risk of fi res and explosions. PHOTO: SPLASH MEDIA GROUP


PELLET¦

As the pellet-making industry grows, more emphasis is being placed on mitigating and managing the potential for dust-generated fires and explosions.BY KATIE FLETCHER

Dust that accumulates at wood pellet plants during the production process can end up being a fuel source itself, fueling un-wanted fi res or explosions. This potential

hazard makes effective dust management an inte-gral part of wood pellet manufacturing. “Essentially we are taking a woody product, reducing its particle size and drying it into its most combustible form, and then densifying it afterward,” says Shawn Bells, general manager with Pacifi c BioEnergy. “So with regard to what we do, we’re probably doing the ex-act opposite of what you are supposed to be do-ing—we are creating a fuel—so then we have to deal with it.”

Producers recognize the nature of their opera-tion can produce hazards. “We started really getting serious about dust about 10 years ago,” says Stephen Faehner, president and CEO of American Wood Fi-bers. “Then OSHA became focused on dust control and management. That’s, I think, when it height-ened everyone’s awareness.”

It is the combustible nature of dust at pellet plants that makes it a hazard. Combustible dusts (CD) are defi ned by OSHA as fi ne particles that present an explosion hazard when suspended in air in certain conditions. Organizations like OSHA help the industry manage and enforce safety, and some organizations that cater to the pellet industry are beginning to step up compliance standards and

Combustible Dust an Explosive Issue


Primary Protection: Combustible dust can be found in every step of the pellet-making process. These are the primary fi lters for the pelletizing line at Drax's Morehouse BioEnergy site in Bastrop, Louisiana. PHOTO: BRUCE LIVESAY, WESTERN PNEUMATICS INC.

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standardize protocol. The International Standards Organization has launched an effort, under the direction of Working Group 4 of ISO/TC238, to develop glob-al standards for numerous components of commercial, industrial and small-scale pellet production. Topics to be addressed include not only prevention, detection, suppression and management of fi res and explosions, but also safe handling and storage, analysis of spontaneous heat gen-eration and analysis of off-gassing prod-ucts. Another example of the effort is WorkSafeBC’s new dust policies in British Columbia, Canada. Separate explosions in early 2012 that destroyed two sawmills and resulted in four deaths and 42 injured workers at Burns Lake and Prince George, British Columbia, spurred the organiza-tion to prepare a review and action plan that outlines plans for an agency restruc-turing and reviews mitigation of safety hazards from dust at sawmills and wood manufacturing facilities. “We crafted a policy that speaks to the responsibilities of employers, workers and supervisors

with respect to the management and con-trol of combustible dust,” says Al John-son, vice president of prevention services with WorkSafeBC.

As part of the policy for employers, WorkSafeBC expects them to undertake a risk assessment to account for all of the potential risks and unique aspects at their particular mill. After the risk assessment, employers need to create a dust manage-ment and control program based on the assessment’s results. “That program then needs to be implemented and all of the workforce needs to be trained in that pro-gram,” Johnson says. “So that when we come knocking on their door doing an inspection, and we ask for their program, they can demonstrate that they have a written program.”

Additionally, the Wood Pellet Associ-ation of Canada and all of its British Co-lumbia member mills have agreed to work with the BC Forest Safety Council to cre-ate a combustible dust audit tool custom-ized for pellet mill operations. “This has basically helped mature the rest of the pel-

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let industry by relying on the strengths of the larger producers to share the standards, the protocols, give them this inspection that they can use to ensure that their systems are safe and up to the standard of the rest of the industry,” Bells says.

The pellet industry is evolving, and so are dust management practices and the regulations and standards that accompany them. Equipment vendors are also onboard. “It is apparent that there is more focus on the dust collection and safety systems and devices within the pellet manufacturing fa-cilities,” says Andy Clarke, vice president of sales at Clarke’s Sheet Metal Inc. “The basic concepts have remained the same, however, there have been advancements with regard to energy effi ciency and advancements aimed at reducing downtime and increasing safety.”

Elements of ExplosionsThere are many important factors when

considering the explosivity of CD includ-ing size, shape, moisture and environment. The industry refers to the dust explosion

pentagon when illustrating the mix of com-ponents that need to be present to cause explosions or fi res. The fi ve elements of the pentagon include fuel, ignition source, dis-persion, confi nement and oxygen. Remov-ing any one of these elements can prevent an explosion, but not necessarily a fi re.

Dust is present with other elements of explosions in every stage of the pellet-making process in both internal systems and external environments. Although pro-ducers can’t see what happens in the pipes and machines of the internal system, “what we do know is those internal systems have four elements of that explosion pentagon present,” says Scott Bax, senior vice presi-dent of operations with Pinnacle Renew-able Energy Inc. “Really, the only thing you are missing at any given time is an ignition source. As a result, there is a tremendous amount of energy from all pellet producers to have very good systems.”

The external environment comes down to whether dust is present and can be dis-persed. Few systems at plants are perfectly sealed, so dust can accumulate on places

like ducts, shafts, cable trays or other places where a small amount of dust is leaking. “What is required is a management system; it should measure the rate of dust accu-mulation and link that to a rigorous clean-up schedule and program to minimize the presence of dust,” Bax says.

The National Fire Protection Associa-tion creates standards and guidelines for the pellet industry to follow. “As pellet produc-ers, and, in general, the entire wood indus-try, we have a better understanding of the issue of combustible dust and that is paying off,” Bax says.

The NFPA provides the guideline of one-eighth of an inch over 5 percent of the area accumulating dust to meet the mini-mum explosible concentration. They defi ne the size of defl agrable wood dust as .5 mm or less with a moisture content of less than 25 percent. “Mill practices on equipment operation and safety is continually infl u-enced by the NFPA and OSHA, and we are continually working to comply with these changing standards,” says Bruce Livesay, vice president of marketing and owner of

A Safe Distance: A baghouse with spark detection and abort gates are located over 100 feet away at an American Wood Fibers pellet plant. PHOTO: AMERICAN WOOD FIBERS


Western Pneumatics Inc. “Knowledge of continued process and safety regulations make it our responsibility to pass this knowledge to our customers.”

Managing the MessInformation shared at a joint WPAC

and WorkSafeBC combustible dust work-shop held over the summer of 2014 dis-cussed components of how to manage CD at pellet plants. Areas to improve a dust management program include a risk assessment process, implementation of controls, regularly scheduled inspections, thorough investigation of all incidents so as to prevent recurrence, education, train-ing and supervision, program audit and review, a corrective action process and re-cords and statistics to identify trends.

WorkSafeBC works with fi ve compa-nies operating 10 wood pellet mills to im-prove dust management programs, Pacifi c BioEnergy and Pinnacle are two. “Work-SafeBC’s done a very good job helping us with the education piece,” Bax says.

Employee training is regarded as es-sential moving forward. “A big one, prob-ably our biggest one, is continuing to empower employees to understand com-bustible dust and report on any dust-relat-ed issues anywhere they believe there is a concentration of dust,” Bax says.

Equipment manufactures and ven-dors also take part in educating. “We train our customers how our equipment oper-ates and how it should be maintained,” Livesay says. “Documentation is created to substantiate initial operating perfor-mance and periodic checks confi rm the proper operation of our systems. We also perform inspections and critiques of sys-tems which have been in operation for years and require upgrading.”

Designing for DustBuilding design and engineering con-

trols are also impactful factors in dust management. Some pellet producers say this is the sustainable management prac-tice. “The long-term solution to keeping your plant clean is not cleanup,” Bells says.

“It’s meant to be an interim step until you have all the engineering, design, all of the steps necessary to keep the dust contained and keep it from spilling out of the pro-cess.”

Various equipment features can help fugitive dust from accumulating. Hav-ing round metal ducting, and monitoring overhead beams, ducting, electrical cable trays, lighting fi xtures and more is im-portant, as these are prime locations for fugitive dust to linger. Sonic air fans can help prevent dust from accumulating in el-evated areas that can be diffi cult to reach, Bax says. Other equipment Pinnacle has for dust mitigation includes NFPA com-pliant vacuums that are antistatic, as well as wireless temperature sensors in pellet-izers, among other equipment.

Western Pneumatics works with 12 large pellet plants, including dryer and pollution abatement systems for Green Circle, Georgia Biomass, German Pellets and Sega Biofuels, to name a few instal-lations. “We developed new lines of dust collection fi lters and they have been re-ceived well for hammermill air-assist, cooler aspiration, dry fi ber and pellet silo aspiration and truck and rail load-out aspi-ration,” Livesay says. “We also provide the high pressure pneumatic systems to move fi nes and dust from one end of the plant to the other.”

Dryers use wet precipitators and rap-id thermal oxidizers to handle and clean large volumes of air before it is discharged into the atmosphere, according to Livesay.

Abort gates are one piece of equip-ment that exhaust hazardous air fl ow from the ducting. The gates are activated from spark detection system sensors. A spark detection system itself is primarily used as a fi re prevention method in dust collectors by detecting and extinguishing sparks and embers. Sparks can be caused by various things such as a dull tool, dam-aged fan bearings or an overheated motor.

There is equipment to manage the fuel and ignition elements of the dust explosion pentagon, but elements like oxygen and confi nement are inevitable.

¦PELLET


“So you try to focus on eliminating the fuel and minimizing ignition sources,” Bax says. “Those are the two items you have the most control over.”

The Combustible Challenge “There’s a dust focus,” Faehner says.

“The challenge is trying to change a lot of the culture in the wood products industry.”

He adds that almost everyone in the business is focused on manufacturing, and they’re certainly focused on safety, but at the end of the day they have to produce the goods. “With that in mind you have situa-tions where people are driven to produce, produce, produce and they’re reluctant to either stop and fi x a dust source—the dust is coming from somewhere—or to be mindful that you must have good housekeeping.”

Although the industry is taking dust se-riously, organizations like WorkSafeBC, with a health and safety focus, hope it can become embedded into the overall day-to-day man-agement of the facility. “We’re trying to in-tegrate the safe management of wood dust into their overall operation culturally, if you

will, so they just naturally see it as something they need to manage on a day-in-day-out ba-sis,” Johnson says.

Johnson went on to say, stepping up the focus on health and safety is part and parcel of WorkSafeBC’s goal for pellet mill owners to maintain sustainable compliance in dust control management.

The standards take work to maintain for producers. “We have heightened our aware-ness and increased our focus to go from a very, very tidy facility to a spotless facility, and that’s a challenge because we are still at the stage where we’re still implementing more engineering to deal with some of the point source spillage issues,” Bells says.

Equipment design and system design is more technical than ever as dust control systems now involve many more safeguards, according to Livesay. “Existing mills will be challenged to improve dust control and once the dust is collected to install, equipment which will keep personnel safe and minimize the chance for fi res or explosions,” he says.

Producers agree that one of the best paths forward is collaboration among in-

dustries dealing with CD issues. “The next evolution is a better understanding of where other organizations have been able to effec-tively manage dust and develop best practic-es, so focusing on improving collaboration within the pellet industry, within the forest products industry, and then even broader with payoff,” Bax says.

The work being done with CD stan-dards in BC is just one example of how the industry is working to mitigate the fi ne par-ticle byproduct of pellet production from becoming a source of fuel itself. “As the regulator, we’re working closely with the pel-let mills in the province and they’re working closely with us,” Johnson says. “A lot of work has been done, we see that, to effectively strengthen their programs around managing combustible dust in the pellet mill facilities. I think a little more work can be done, but the indications are positive that they’re moving in that direction.”

Author: Katie FletcherStaff Writer, Biomass Magazine

701-738-4920 kfl [email protected]

Keeping it Clean: Circulating fans by AFE are designed to knock down dust from accumulating on ledges and hard-to-reach spaces to avoid potential combustible dust hazards at American Wood Fibers' pellet plants. PHOTO: AMERICAN WOOD FIBERS


ThermalNews

The Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation has awarded Bridger Bowl Ski Resort in Bozeman $20,000 to support the installation of a $50,000 wood boiler.

The cordwood boiler system will run on beetle-killed timber and wood cut for slope maintenance and forest management on the ski hill. Bridger Bowl will use the Austrian-based Frol-ing FHG-Lambda Turbo 3000 boiler to heat the ski resort’s operations and maintenance shop through radiant fl oor heating that was already in place.

According to Randy Elliott, general manager at Bridger Bowl Ski Area, the boiler should produce about 170,000 Btu and has a 600-gallon-pressurized heat and water storage system. He said the reason this boiler and storage system was selected is that it burns cleanly with a 90-percent effi ciency rating. Elliott hypothesizes the installation will pay for itself within about fi ve years.

The DNR also awarded grants to sup-port wood energy projects at Troy Public Schools and SmartLam Technologies Group.

Capital Regional Development Council has been awarded a $250,000 grant from the U.S. Forest Service to support the development of a wood-fi red district heating system in Clare-mont, New Hampshire. The project is being developed by New Hampshire-based HotZero and will connect build-ings in the community’s downtown district to the wood-fi red system. Par-ticipating building owners are expected to realize signifi cant savings in heating costs without the need to use scarce capital and building space to install sepa-rate biomass systems.

The grant dollars will be used to complete engineering for the project. It is expected that the fi rst phases of the district heating system will be opera-tional in late 2015. Initially, the project will focus on the Opera Square section of downtown, but is designed to scale-up over time to connect other sections of the city.

Bridger Bowl Ski Resort to install biomass boiler State grant supports wood-fired district heating project in NH

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Montana beetle impactMountain pine beetle (in million acres)

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2000 0.04 0.102001 0.11 0.222002 0.25 0.402003 0.29 0.442004 0.45 0.672005 0.75 1.082006 0.79 0.922007 0.73 0.842008 1.77 1.832009 3.49 3.572010 2.06 2.092011 0.97 0.992012 0.63 0.642013 0.52 0.55SOURCE: U.S. Forest Service


THERMAL¦

I recently attended a wood stove conference and was so impressed with what leadership looked like from the Environmental Protection Agency. Administrator Gina McCarthy attended in person and brought high-level aides who stayed for two days. She gave a rousing speech about building coalitions, making stove research a top priority and how the EPA is funding six universities to do some of that research.

The EPA is now leading a research effort that will deliver practical results to a wide range of stakeholders. They are conducting trusted independent research not just on reducing emissions but also on improving the energy effi ciency of stoves. In the near future, the EPA will be translating these results into the fi eld, by bringing innovative, consumer-driven stove technologies to homes.

By now you have guessed that this was not a domestic wood stove conference, but an international wood cook-stove conference. Neither the EPA administrator nor its number two has ever attended the far larger domestic heat-ing stove conventions. Even junior EPA staff sometimes can’t get funding approved to attend. But funding to attend cookstove events does not appear to be a problem.

The goals of the domestic heat stove and international cookstove communities are the same: to develop and deploy cleaner and more effi cient stoves to reduce the health risks of wood smoke and use a renewable resource more spar-ingly. Both communities also need to create demand for more advanced stoves so that consumers don’t just keep using their older models.

Perhaps most importantly, the heat stove and cook-stove communities need aggressive outreach and education efforts so that the advanced stoves are used properly. In both cases, the technical design of stoves is only half the battle. The other half is how they are used in the hands of consumers.

I have no issue with the amount of EPA time and resources being spent to try and solve such a pressing in-ternational problem. Nearly 3 billion people use traditional wood cookstoves or open fi res to cook on. In the U.S., there are only 12 million homes that heat with wood, and more than 99% are effectively vented to the outside. What is vexing is that there is such a stark difference between how a similar domestic issue is being treated. Domestic wood stoves seem to have a far lower priority, certainly based on the amount of time top brass at EPA appear to spend on it. Domestic wood stoves are a group of appliances that EPA

is trying to regulate, but there is no discernible vision and leadership from EPA about what role really clean wood and pellet stoves could play in our energy future.

In contrast, the EPA has no regulatory role in the international cookstove arena, but provides real leadership, vision and coalition building. The international effort to en-courage cleaner cookstove use in developing countries can be a noble, almost altruistic program like the Peace Corps. It certainly can be tempting to focus on other people’s prob-lems instead of facing our own.

One reason the international cookstove movement is such a high profi le issue at both EPA and the State Depart-ment is that Secretary Hilary Clinton adopted it as an issue that she felt deserved much more attention. We agree with her. But when will a cabinet level offi cial feel that domestic wood heating is a both a problem and an opportunity that deserves much more attention?

If Secretary Clinton becomes president, there could be an opening to focus more on improving wood stove emissions and effi ciency in the United States as she really understands the health impact of wood smoke and the importance of access to affordable fuel for households. If a Republican is elected in 2016, there also could be an opening, as wood and pellet heat is a mainstream rural issue that is often overlooked by the liberal democrats pushing residential renewable energy policy. Democrats have tended to focus on subsidies for a wealthier urban and suburban demographic to adopt solar panels.

There may be other arenas where the U.S. is putting more effort into an international issue than into a similar domestic one. This may be a case where there is lower hang-ing fruit internationally because the air quality and sustain-ability issues are far, far worse than they are here. It is true that U.S. leadership can make a real difference. Regardless, the stark contrast between the EPA’s approach to address-ing domestic and international stoves is something that this administration needs to change. A good start would be for top EPA offi cials to attend the next wood stove conven-tion in Nashville, Tennessee in March. Bridging the divide between cooking and heating technologies will produce dividends for both communities—and for the EPA.

Author: John AckerlyPresident, Alliance for Green Heat

[email protected]

What EPA Leadership Looks LikeBY JOHN ACKERLY


Biomass boilers equipped with auto-matic ash extraction systems typi-cally include the following:

• Internal ash extraction: Consists of one or more augers that move the ash from the combustion chamber into an ash pan or an external ash auger.

• External ash extraction: Consists of one or more ash augers that collect ash from the internal ash augers that empty into a self-contained ash bin.

• Fire tube pneumatic cleaning: Con-sists of a manifold of hoses or pipes that automatically send a blast of compressed air through fi re tubes, which are located on the last pass of a three-pass biomass boiler sys-tem. This is also commonly known as the boiler's “tube nest.”

If a biomass boiler is equipped with the above components, a daily walk-through of the boiler room is all that is necessary. On average, a boiler operator will spend 10 to 30 minutes inspecting the boiler, making sure the combustion levels and fl ue gas tempera-tures are within the boilers set points. Main-tenance times will vary based on the size of boiler, fuel type, and rate of consumption.

Biomass boilers without automatic ash extraction systems will need to be shut down more frequently to be serviced manually. The increased cost of maintaining the boiler

¦THERMAL

CONTRIBUTION Preventative Maintenance Protocols For Commercial Biomass BoilersBiomass boilers, much like fossil fuel boilers, carry a maintenance schedule that needs to be performed on a regular basis. Newer biomass boilers are becoming easier to operate and maintain because of the automated control of fuel delivery, combustion, and ash extraction. BY GRANT GAGNER

ASSURING A LONG LIFE: The Woodmaster CS-300, capable of producing 1 million Btu per hour, is very capable of a service life that rivals its fossil fuel-fi red cousins as long as appliance owners perform basic, regular maintenance.

The claims and statements made in this article belong exclusively to the author(s) and do not necessarily refl ect the views of Biomass Magazine or its advertisers. All questions pertaining to this article should be directed to the author(s).


and work load will directly result in re-duced fuel savings and job performance.

Biomass boilers equipped with au-tomatic ash extraction and tube cleaning will increase the boiler performance, ef-fi ciency, and lifespan. It is important to keep the fi re tubes clean of ash to obtain the best effi ciency possible. Once ash starts to settle in the tubes it insulates the heat transfer, thus, sending the heat up the exhaust rather than exchanging it into the boiler water.

With proper maintenance of a bio-mass boiler, the life span will be compa-rable to a fossil fuel boiler system. The internal combustion parts will last longer and the boiler will consume less fuel. It is important to check with the boiler manu-facturer or owner’s manual to follow their suggested maintenance schedule.

While the manufacturer will have maintenance schedules listed for each of their boiler models, it is also important to work with a local representative to cre-ate a service agreement. Regular checks by a certifi ed service representative will increase the performance of the boiler. Service representatives are trained to run diagnostics on biomass boiler systems. They will recommend adjustments to op-timize boiler performance, creating years of trouble-free operation and signifi cant fuel savings.

Author: : Grant GagnerSales Manager, Woodmaster

[email protected]

THERMAL¦

MONTHLY MAINTENANCE MUSTS: A monthly inspection of the working parts of the fi re pot, the secondary air nozzles (on left) and the stoker auger are recommended.

WeeklyCheck for ash buildup in the fi rebox, clean if necessaryCheck ash cyclones and ash bins, empty if necessaryCheck fuel levels in bulk hoppers

Check exhaust stack temperaturesCheck boiler alarm system and all control functions

MonthlyCheck boilers combustion chamber, ceramics and fi repotCheck all sensors on boilerCheck the fuel augers on the supply at the boiler, clean or empty if necessaryCheck ash bins, empty if necessary

YearlyCheck measurement of combustion values and adjustment at start upCheck for wear on augers, conveyors and any other moving partsCheck components such as gear boxes, grease if necessaryClean out fi repot and airways of ash

Check for wear on ceramics

Inspect all motors and sensors


BiogasNews

Novus Pacifi c LLC is developing a $20 million bioenergy project at the Port of Morrow in Boardman, Oregon. The project is expected to break ground soon, once the fi nancing package is complete. Once operational, the plant is expected to produce biogas, organic fertilizer and clean water.

Novus Energy has been testing its trademarked Novus Bio-Catalytic system on a mobile, 50-foot semi-trailer-mounted dem-onstration plant. According to Jeff Zierdt, vice president of process operations with Novus, the company determined now is the time to move forward with a full-scale plant.

The company’s NBC process differs from traditional anaerobic digestion (AD) systems in that it requires only about four days to convert waste to biogas instead of around 20 like other AD operations. The 1 MMgy anaerobic digester will consume 442,000 tons of waste per year, broken down into about 120 tons of onion waste a day and approximately 275 tons of potato waste solids from a local fry plant. An ad-ditional 10,000 gallons of manure per day will be added to the mix from a local dairy farm.

Waste Management recently announced the opening of a unique landfi ll gas project that is creating pipeline-ready natural gas from the biomethane produced at its Milam Landfi ll in Fairmont City, Illinois. Starting in December, the renewable methane was injected into the Ameren Illinois pipeline for withdrawal at other locations, including some WM facilities.

The Milam Renewable Natural Gas Facility is designed to process approximately 3,500 standard cubic feet per minute of incoming landfi ll gas. That equates to the volume of fuel needed to power approxi-mately 200 Waste Management CNG col-lection trucks each day, and represents more than 5 percent of the natural gas that is used in WM’s entire CNG fl eet per day.

“The Milam Renewable Natural Gas Facility is the fi rst facility of its kind we’ve actually built from the ground up,” said Jim Trevathan, executive vice president and chief operating offi cer for WM, although, the facility is the third WM project to con-vert landfi ll gas to natural gas.

Novus Pacific to develop Oregon AD facility

WM produces pipeline quality landfill gas in Illinois

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When it comes to the way we power our homes or fi ll up our vehicles, regardless if one’s motivation is environ-mental stewardship or national security, Americans have known for a long time that the status quo cannot continue. The move to use our resources more wisely, while relying on domestically available resources is universally support-ed. The path to achieving it is less clear.

Until recently, a person wanting to do their part either had to pay a lot of upfront money for residential solar panels, or resort to carpooling. Thankfully, recent techno-logical improvements and policies intended to incentivize biogas production and fuel cell purchases are beginning to have their desired impact. And as the markets for these technologies continue to expand, energy providers are beginning to merge the two in a number of exciting ap-plications.

For those unfamiliar with the technology, fuel cells generate electricity electrochemically, without combus-tion. The process consists of combining hydrogen or a hydrogen-rich fuel, with oxygen.

For the moment, the hydrogen-rich feedstock of choice is understandably natural gas, which has become af-fordable and abundant, thanks to the shale gas revolution. However, some notable projects involving biogas have been placed in service over the years that deserve attention, kudos, and replication.

Bloom Energy, a Silicon Valley fuel cell manufacturer, features six installations where customers contract for biogas, which is directed into natural gas pipelines. Then the fuel cell systems generate electricity on-site for the facility. One of the company’s more visible projects is a 10 MW station that powers Apple Computer’s data center in Maiden, North Carolina. The biogas is produced by a landfi ll about three miles from the data center. Data cen-ters, which are on track to consume 140 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually by 2020 in the United States, are frequent targets for clean energy technologies. The fuel cells at Apple supplement the company’s renewable power plan for the location, which also features a 100-acre 20 MW solar array.

FuelCell Energy, another stationary power manufac-turer, has developed a number of projects that directly utilize biogas to provide heat, power, and sometimes cool-ing for customers. At the San Jose/Santa Clara Water Pol-

lution Control Plant in San Jose, California, a 1.4 MW fuel cell provides electricity and heat to the waste water facility, reducing electricity and natural gas consumption from local utilities. The energy generated is enough to offset the an-nual consumption of 1,400 households.

Like Bloom Energy, FuelCell Energy’s power plants are being employed by technology companies that value strong environmental performance and high-quality, reli-able power. The company recently completed a project in Cheyenne, Wyoming, with Microsoft to build a zero-car-bon data center. With biogas supplied from the Dry Creek municipal wastewater treatment facility, the fuel cell gener-ates more than 300 kW of renewable power, two-thirds of which will power the data center, with the remainder powering the wastewater facility.

Biogas and fuel cells are not just limited to station-ary applications. FuelCell Energy recently completed an advanced demonstration in Fountain Valley, California, on the world’s fi rst trigeneration plant. The project harnesses on-site biogas to produce electricity, heat and hydrogen for use in fuel cell electric vehicles.

While this is the fi rst plant of its kind, the potential is tremendous for sustainable power generation as well as transportation. By one account, installing similar trigenera-tion systems at California’s major waste water treatment plants would generate enough hydrogen to power about 10 percent of all the cars on the state’s roads.

Harnessing biogas in the most effi cient way possible makes sense, and will undoubtedly continue to gain trac-tion. However, the government can play an important role in hastening the transition to these technologies.

Our association continues to advocate for consistent and predictable funding for research and development and advanced demonstration projects. The same assurances should be extended to our tax policies, where appropriate and predictable tax credits should be extended for these technologies.

Policymakers from both parties have generally agreed with these positions, but we must continue to remind it takes smart, predictable policies to get the job done.

Author: Bud DeFlaviisDirector of Government Affairs, Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association

bdefl [email protected]

Biogas and Fuel Cells: A Marriage of Old Ideas, New Technologies

BIOGAS¦

BY BUD DEFLAVIIS


¦BIOGAS

DEPARTMENT

Mitigating Operational RiskAnaerobic Digesters are among the most challenging biomass conversion technologies in the industry. New Jersey-based Natural Systems Utilities is increasingly being tapped to offer its O&M expertise to a growing roster of digester facilities. BY TIM PORTZ

Anaerobic digestion is perhaps the biomass industry’s most malleable technology. Digesters are deployed into a broad array of civil and industrial environments. In fact, anaerobic digesters are deployed in so many different environments

the actual number of operating digesters remains elusive. Anaerobic digesters can be found at breweries large and small, food processing facilities, wastewater treatment plants, waste management facilities, dairies, swine operations, and, increasingly, purpose-built community digesters that accept multiple feedstocks, leveraging their rich organic content to generate renewable power or even a purifi ed biogas that can be used as a vehicle fuel.

This fl exibility brings with it some unique challenges, however.

Because of the unique nature of most digesters and the feedstocks that make them go, there is no uniform approach to successful-ly operating a digester, no set protocols on how to troubleshoot digesters that aren’t performing at anticipated levels. Recognizing this, New Jersey-based Natural Systems Utilities, a sustainable infra-structure development company, has developed an operations and maintenance (O&M) offering into its suite of services.

“It’s the reason we’re in this business,” says Ryan Brandt, ex-ecutive vice president at NSU, noting that the effi cient operation of digester assets has been a challenge for the biogas sector. NSU leveraged a management team with deep experience in wastewater treatment and water reuse strategies to build out its digester offer-

OUTSOURCED OPERATION: The digester built and owned by FCPC Renewable Generation LLC, which is owned by the Forest County Potawatomi Community in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has enlisted Natural Systems Utilities for both operations and maintenance as well as feedstock procurement. The facility accepts a varied mix of food waste streams and its biogas produces enough power to satisfy 1,500 homes.


ing. “How NSU is different is that we are focused on biological wastewater op-erations and our executive management team has signifi cant experience operat-ing those systems,” Brandt says. “NSU senior managers are microbiologists, en-gineers, Ph. D.s and wastewater opera-tors. They are all supported by our tech-nology team led by Eugenio Giraldo, an industry expert in anaerobic digestion.”

The NSU team fi nds itself involved with digester projects in three differ-ent ways. The owners and operators of existing digesters that aren’t achiev-ing operational goals often reach out to NSU to turn the productivity of their digesters around. Additionally, when project developers begin the work of fi -nancing their project, they often receive pushback from lenders and fi nanciers to shore up their operational plan and NSU’s services become a way to mitigate this risk. Finally, NSU works in concert with other parties to fi nance, build, and operate facilities.

Brandt points to the recently com-pleted and commissioned digester at the Forest County Potowatomi Community renewable generation facility in Milwau-kee, Wisconsin, as a practical example of successfully addressing the chal-lenges digesters can present. The nearly $20 million dollar facility, built in 2013 by Miron Construction takes in a diverse mix of food waste streams, creating bio-gas that is used to make electric power. At peak effi ciency, the facility is capable of providing power for 1,500 homes, which is currently sold to WE Energies under a 15-year power purchase agreement. Additionally, captured waste heat is used for water and space heating at the nearby Potawatomi Bingo Casino. The facility attracted numerous industry accolades during its construction and commissioning, but a challenge that remains is making sure the digester operates continually at or even above expected levels of productivity.

“At a facility like this one that brings in a diverse number of feedstocks, what you really need to do, from the operational side, is understand what the characteristics are of the feedstocks that are coming into your facility,” Brandt says. “We look at concocting an entire recipe. We focus on understanding and testing every load that comes into our facility. We make sure we’re not getting a load that’s going to cause an issue with the biology of the system. We

don't want to start injecting waste into our digester that is toxic to our microbiology or requires us to add chemicals to accept the material. For example, some waste streams are quite acidic and they require caustic to be added to balance the pH before adding them to the digester. NSU understands the feedstock characteristics and we blend compatible wastes to naturally buffer our recipe, driving down the use of commodity chemicals required to keep our bugs happy.”

For digester operators, achieving a steady, predictable and constant rate of production is the ultimate goal, and understand-ing the biogas potential of all the feedstocks available to introduce into the digester is an ongoing process. Owners and operators of new digesters often fi nd themselves managing a large volume of diverse feedstocks immediately following commissioning. “When you ramp up a facility, you get a lot of waste and you can start to get a lot of biogas production. The challenge, however, is you start

BIOGAS¦

BEING BILINGUAL: For digesters to get to and remain at expected levels of energy production, its operators must be well-versed in both the mechanical and biological aspects of the facility. Here a worker checks in on the genset at the Forest County Renewable Generation facility.PHOTO: NATURAL SYSTEMS UTILITIES


¦BIOGAS

going up and down with biogas production. Our operators try to attenuate that to arrive at as constant a rate of production as they can, which keeps our microbiology balanced and in check,” Brandt says.

For Brandt, achieving a steady, predict-able level of biogas production reaches far beyond the facility gate. A digester’s perfor-mance and stability are pinned directly to the feedstock procurement engine that owners build to supply the facility. “We have experi-ence not only in operations but in procuring feedstock. We’re doing that in the Milwaukee area; we’re also doing that at our New Jersey facility,” Brandt says. “You have to look at the big picture and try to make this entire fa-cility operate as a full circle and a build a re-ally good, humming infrastructure. NSU be-lieves it is critical for the operator to lead the feedstock procurement process so they can effectively manage the entire process, add-ing, it makes no sense to force incompatible feedstocks into an operation, and the opera-

tor needs to be heavily involved and prefer-ably in charge of this effort. “You’ve got to put a number of pieces together and have the experience, as well, to give you a suc-cessful operations project,” he says. “Those facilities that hire just an operator and are trying to focus solely on operating the facil-ity may do a really good job at operating it, but you really have to have a full-circle un-derstanding of the feedstocks that come in, and what feedstocks can’t, with each unique digestion technology.”

Putting Financiers At EaseAs NSU’s experience and track record

of success continues to grow and activity in the biogas space accelerates, Brandt and his team fi nd themselves being contacted more and more by other developers and owners. There is a strong appetite for digesters in the development and investment commu-nity, driven by the increasingly attractive economics of solid digester projects. One

of the bigger sticking points with many di-gester projects, however, is risk in effective-ly operating a system that is both biological and mechanical. “It’s not enough to just know the equipment and not understand the biology. You have to understand both. That’s where NSU sees a gap in the mar-ket,” Brandt says. The fi nancial community has taken notice and are urging developers seeking fi nancing to look closely at their operational strategy.

“When these projects come up, the developers may actually call us and say, ‘Hey, we’re trying to get fi nanced. We’d like to talk to you about operating the plant so that we can go through our due diligence process and close on fi nancing,” Brandt says. “My sense is there will be more par-ties looking for third-party O&M. I think it’s really being demanded by the fi nance community.”

Once engaged with a project, NSU deploys a strategy of sound facility spe-cifi c hires they can blend with the exper-tise they already have on staff. “When we hire a plant manager, we might be looking at someone that has not just the ability to operate the facility but can he manage the broader operation. They can offer exper-tise on the fi nancial side, managing em-ployees, or overseeing the operations or even having a real hands-on level of expe-rience with the technology,” Brandt offers. “Then we’ll hire the technical staff, maybe someone that is really good with pumps, really good with motors or someone really good with an engine. We’ll have those kind of people on site. Then, we utilize what we call our corporate support, which is a bit like a digester SWAT team. That includes our chief technology offi cer, our director of technical operations, and our regional operations manager. It’s made up of at least three people and those people will be monitoring data from the plant and be in contact with plant personnel on if not a daily basis then certainly on a weekly ba-sis. They’ll make regular site visits and look over everything and make sure everything is operating properly.”

Encouraged by the success they are having helping other projects get fi nanced, NSU is not afraid to develop projects themselves. “And obviously, we see our involvement in our own projects and op-


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peripherals such as blowdown separator surge tanks, and

pressurized make-up

DIGESTER GASNATURAL GASMETHANEBIO GASOILCOALSLUDGEBIOMASSSOLID WASTE

BIOGAS¦

erating those projects as a signifi cant risk mitigant,” says Brandt.

In addition to leveraging the microbi-ology expertise NSU has on staff, the com-pany has developed a software solution to help digester developers, owners and op-erators better predict biogas production before feedstocks are ever brought on site. NSU calls this solution its BOOM model, or Biogas Optimization and Operations Management.

“It’s a software program that we have that basically predicts how much biogas you’re going to be able to provide with a given type of feedstock based upon the chemistry of that feedstock and how far you can start pushing these digesters,” Brandt says.

While engineers are capable of de-signing digesters to hold a given amount of feedstock, no one has really tackled the challenge of connecting that to the feed-stocks that are available and their inherent biogas potential. “What we have is a pre-dictive model that basically is calibrated directly to the site based on the existing chemistry. This is real time,” Brandt says. The end result is that operating teams can strategically target certain waste streams over others, dialing in a digesters feedstock program to maximize its productivity.

The Road AheadNSU continues to refi ne its offer-

ing and sharpens its tools as the company sees a biogas industry poised for continued growth. For Brandt and NSU, the opportu-nities in the industry are likely to continue to be regionalized, at least in the near term. When asked to cite some of the regional differences in market opportunities Brandt says, “In the Midwest, where I’m focused, very little private investment is really done in the municipal wastewater treatment plants. On the East Coast, it’s a very com-mon practice.” This, by no means indicates that NSU doesn’t expect opportunities in the Midwest. “Agricultural anaerobic diges-tion is also an area of continued growth, especially if you start looking at the water-sheds and where do those nutrients go. I don’t see that slowing down too much,” Brandt says.

Of course, without buyers willing to buy biogas-generated power or, increasing-

ly, vehicle fuel, market growth will be slow. “A lot is going to be dependent upon the offtakes. It’s one thing to be able to develop a project and fi nd a feedstock. If you don’t have an offtake or a certainty on the off-take to fi nance these projects, it’s all moot,” Brandt concludes.

While working to shore up market op-portunities and the legislation that affi rms those opportunities are the domain of in-dustry associations, NSU has taken up the yoke of solidifying the foundation of digest-er operation. If industry advocates continue

to have success creating market opportuni-ties for biogas developers, those develop-ers and their fi nance partners now have an O&M resource available that is steadily building a pattern of successful and predict-able operation.

Author: Tim PortzExecutive Editor, Biomass Magazine

[email protected]


AdvancedBiofuelNews

Researchers at Purdue University have demonstrated a new process to convert biomass into liquid fuel. The method could make mobile processing plants possible. A patent application on the concept was fi led in 2008. The research team has now dem-onstrated that the process works in labora-tory experiments, said Rakesh Agrawal, the Winthrop E. Stone Distinguished Professor of Chemical Engineering.

The new method, called fast-hydropy-rolysis-hydrodeoxygenation, works by adding hydrogen into the biomass-processing reactor. Critical to the technology is a new platinum-molybdenum catalyst and design

of the hydropyrolysis reactor system. The new method offers advantages over con-ventional technologies because it produces biofuel from all biomass as opposed to a portion of the biomass such as cellulose or lignin only, Agrawal said.

To complete the reaction, biomass and hydrogen is fed into a high-pressure reactor and subjected to extremely fast heating, rising within a second to more than 900 degrees Fahrenheit. To date, the process has been tested with cellulose and poplar wood, showing that it represents a potentially prac-tical new biofuels technology.

Purdue researchers announce new biofuel processing technology

A public comment pe-riod on the Oregon Clean Fuels Program closed in November. The program, which is similar to California’s Low Carbon Fuels Standard, requires a 10 percent reduction of greenhouse gases from transportation fuels over a 10-year period.

The fi rst phase of the pro-gram was adopted in December 2011. In February, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality was directed to draft rules for the second phase of the program. The comment period on those rules has closed. While the DEQ is moving forward to implement the program, it is currently subject to a statutory sunset date of Dec. 31, 2015. If that sunset date is not removed by the state legislature, the DEQ will be unable

to implement the program after the end of the year.

A wide variety of fuels would be eligible for use under the program, includ-ing biogas-based biofuels, cellulosic fuels, fi rst-generation biofuels, electricity and hydrogen fuels.

Oregon moves forward with Clean Fuels Program

Carbon dioxide reduction requirements2016 0.25%2017 0.50%2018 1.00%2019 1.50%2020 2.50%2021 3.50%2022 5.00%2023 6.50%2024 8.00%2025 and beyond 10.00%SOURCE: Oregon Department of Environmental Quality


The midterm elections have been completed and the American people voted overwhelmingly for change in the United States Senate. In the election to break gridlock in Washington, we saw a clean sweep by the Republican party in all but two races that were considered toss-ups. Even states that had posted signifi cant polling leads for incum-bents, such as Sen. Warner in Virginia, produced cliffhang-ers and were not declared fi nal for days following the elec-tion.

So, what does it mean for biofuels? And, what does it bode for policy efforts in the new Congress beginning in 2015? Many pundits would say “not much,” I disagree.

Already we see signifi cant changes in terms of who will set the agenda and run the individual committees in the Congress. For example, you have a Kentucky Majority Leader, Sen. McConnell, who will set the agenda for the Senate fl oor rather than Harry Reid from Nevada. For the past two years, Sen. Reid was very cautious in terms of allowing votes on a variety of contentious issues. As a direct result, Democratic candidates had a record that was “97 percent in favor with the president” due to the limited number of votes they were able to take, which was a favor-ite, and effective, talking point of Republican challengers. Sen. McConnell has promised a return to regular order. That means lots of votes on lots of potentially contentious issues. It will be interesting to see if he follows through on that pledge given the number of moderate Republicans in his party who will be up for election in 2016. Neverthe-less, if he does allow regular order, then individual senators will have more opportunities to fi re up challenging amend-ments on issues like climate change or water policy, both during consideration in committee and during open debate on the Senate fl oor.

A second major change will occur at the committee level. In my view, the No. 1 changes for the biofuels in-dustry are the demotions of Sen. Boxer, from California, to the minority, and the ascension of Sen. Inhofe, from Oklahoma, as the chairman of the Environment and Pub-lic works committee. Sen. Inhofe has been a frequent and open critic of climate change policy, challenging the basic facts and the validity of the issue itself. As for biofuels, he has been an open critic of corn ethanol for years and will set the agenda on the committee for any actions to consider, including potential reform of the RFS. Given

the fact that several Democrats already wish to reform the RFS, this could create a bipartisan base on which to build compromise legislation.

In the House, we see a change in the leadership for the Republicans with a new Majority Leader, Kevin Mc-Carthy of California, who is a very different fi gure than former Leader Eric Cantor, who was defeated. Addition-ally, Frank Palone from New Jersey is taking the helm as the leader of the Democrat minority on the powerful En-ergy and Commerce Committee. A seat Pallone gained by defeating Nancy Pelosi’s handpicked candidate in a tightly contested vote of the House Democratic Caucus.

Let me conclude by asking what’s on the plate that we ought to be watching? The EPA has kicked the can down the road on the RVO numbers for both 2014 and 2015, until late in 2015. Clearly, this shows a lack of support or clarity by the administration on how to manage the RFS. To me, this situation will raise the likelihood that members of the House or Senate will take up this issue on their own to try to either steady the program or to repeal it.

Tax policy was half a loaf at the end of the year, with a one-year extension granting a reprieve from disaster but resulting in renewed uncertainty. Given all the efforts to move a two-year bill and the conversations around overall tax reform, it’s anyone’s guess what Congress will do with the biofuels tax extenders in 2015. So, be careful betting on 2015 like many of you did in 2014. At the end of the day, there is still much division and contention between the two parties and the rules the Republicans used to block progress (requiring 60 votes to pass even consensus bills) are still in place and will likely to be used by the Democrats. After all, turnabout is fair play.

Therefore, we will have to be engaged, reach out to the new members and build new alliances to preserve and move forward a growing and challenging advanced and cellulosic industry. Finally, we must press the administra-tion to continue to complete new pathways for new com-panies and their fuels, and expedite the fi nal RVOs for the coming year. Buck up, this one is going to be a bit rough.

Author: Michael McAdamsPresident, Advanced Biofuels Association

[email protected]

Hope vs ChangeBY MICHAEL MCADAMS

ADVANCED BIOFUELS AND CHEMICALS¦


¦ADVANCED BIOFUELS AND CHEMICALS

DOWN THE LINE: Rail cars like these are vital components of any biofuels producer’s production strategy. The inability to move fi nished product away from the plant creates a bottleneck that quickly forces producers into production decisions they’d rather not have to make.



Planning for Rail BottlenecksRail operators promise fewer delays, more transparency, and big capacity investment for the nation’s rail network in 2015. A few seasoned CEOs offer insight on coping with and planning for delays in winter.BY CARLA HARPER

Seventy percent of ethanol producers rely on railroads to ship product, ac-cording to the U.S. Energy Informa-tion Administration. The Rail Road

Performance Measures website, a voluntary site for six major North American freight railroads, showed a 23 percent decrease in av-erage speeds of the common manifest trains (multiple product carriers) from April 2013 to April 2014.

In the April 2 edition of This Week in Petroleum, EIA reported that ethanol stores nationwide dipped 4 million barrels below the average March levels of 20 million barrels. East Coast inventories last March reached 4.5 million barrels, the lowest since EIA began re-cording data in June 2010.

Ethanol plants generally have about fi ve to 10 days of storage capacity, according to several company representatives. When stor-age runs out, there are three choices: shut down, go into an idle mode, or use trucking to move product off site.

Lamberton, Minnesota-based Highwater Ethanol CEO Brian Kletscher says, “I’ve got 10 days of storage. After that, we must shut down, but not for more than about 12 hours at a time.”

According to Kletscher, weather related train delays resulting in nine down days for Highwater at a cost of $1.5 million in lost in-

come last year.“Added cars and crews help, but mother

nature overrules at times, and this must be fac-tored into the bottom line. The key is to have a winter plan in place before the temperatures plunge. You’ve just got to monitor the weath-er systems and know that a delay anywhere along the system will create a domino effect,” says Kletscher.

“Rail delays have our attention, given last year’s experience,” says Mike Jerke, CEO, Guardian Energy Management LLC of Janes-ville, Minnesota. “Our solution is to keep the communication lines open with our market-ers and actively stay ahead of car movements, where things are slowing down or speeding up. You’ve just got to be mindful.”

And to those new cellulosic facilities coming on line, Kletscher says, “If you’re plan’s not working, reach out to your fellow ethanol producers. We’ve been through it.”

Investment And Preparedness

“BNSF is working with our ethanol customers to make sure their products get to their ultimate destination,” wrote Amy Casas, BNSF director of corporate communications, in a statement to Biomass Magazine on Nov. 14.

The statement touted “an industry re-cord capital investment of $4 billion to im-prove our network and expand capacity,


particularly in the Northern region of our network to handle growth.” The investment includes 500 new locomotives as well as 6,000 new employees, representing 13 percent of a 46,000-person workforce. Better communica-tion with customers is also promised.

BNSF posted a Winter Action Plan to its website Oct. 30 with detailed steps taken to keep engines from freezing and prepare for forecasted weather and emergencies. The tactics include increasing mechanical rapid responders by 25 percent, adding 800 new container and trailer spots at key intermodal facilities in the Chicago area, and increasing emergency generators and salt supplies.

Railroad Performance Measures website, which includes weekly statistics for cars on line, train speed, and terminal dwell, reported BNSF manifest train speeds steady since late November 2013, averaging about 19 miles per hour. Unit train speeds are up slightly to 20.8 from a fl uctuation between a low of 17 and high of 22.3. Dwell times have changed little from a year ago November, but are down slightly from 30.8 hours in 2013 to 28.5 this year. That number refl ects the average of all terminals.

BNSF is performing better than last Feb-ruary when its Galesburg, Illinois, terminal, which handles many ethanol cars from Iowa, reached a peak dwell time of 60 hours.

Al-Corn Clean Fuel in Claremont, Min-nesota, sits on the CP line. According to CEO Randall Doyal, the company needs to ship roughly 120 million gallons or about one train a week. It has 250 cars in the fl eet, which is fi ne if the cars are coming back on schedule. “Last winter, we had the railroad saying they were pulling a car, yet we had pictures of the car still sitting in Des Moines, Iowa.”

Doyal predicts seven years at least for the rail carriers to resolve what he sees as an over-committed and under-employed industry. “I think the railroads looked at their book of business a number of years ago and felt right sized.” Then the Bakken shale play opened up and, according to Doyal, “suddenly the rail-roads have more freight than they can shake a stick at. Ethanol took a back seat.”

The winter railroad debacle led RBob Dinneen, Renewable Fuels Association presi-dent, to write a public letter, run in part, April 3, by the Wall Street Journal, to the Associa-tion of American Railroads stating that the “sheer chaos” of the rail system damaged the

ethanol industry by increasing prices that ulti-mately landed on consumers at the gas pump.

EIA reported on its website in April, “Rail congestion, cold weather raise ethanol spot prices,” that spot ethanol prices expand-ed by $1 in March between New York Harbor and Chicago. The spread is usually about 25 cents. The extra 75 cents is attributed to the winter railroad delays.

It further stated that ethanol futures prices suggest that market participants expect short-lived price increases as rail system con-gestion improves and producers increase pro-duction in response to prices.

As of Dec. 4, ethanol prices were at $1.77 per gallon, according to EIA.

3 Winter OptionsAccording to a range of biofuel pro-

ducers, there are only three options when delays back up storage—shut down, idle mode, or trucking.

Pipelines would be the safest, most ef-fi cient means to cover the open distances to major ports but Doyal says, “We’d need to move 10 times the volume to make the costs feasible.”

Eagle Ford Shale, an online oil in-dustry market report, indicated a coming bottleneck back in 2011 stating, “We need more pipelines delivering crude in the Gulf Coast. We don’t have capacity, so oil marketers resort to railroad agreements.”

Trucking is limited due to costs as well as crude delivery demands. Only short hauls make sense for the trucking option.

Kletscher points out that the best plans made by railroads and ethanol pro-ducers alike can always be foiled by weath-er. Every operation has contingency and emergency plans that involve slowing or even shutting down, depending on man-agement’s calculus of the alternative costs.

Plans like those of Highwater Etha-nol, Al-Corn and the cellulosic producers all include avoiding shut downs. “The key is to fi rst have a plan. Run through it pe-riodically. Think today about worst cases and talk to your board about the costs,” Kletcher says.

“The issue with ethanol is a high wa-ter concentration. We use water for cool-ing plus the mash has a high water con-centration. It’s better to not shut down,” Doyal says. Water in the lines must be kept

¦ADVANCED BIOFUELS AND CHEMICALS


warm in order to keep the distillation pro-cess going and the pipes from freezing.

“It’s all about logistics, whether a rail car is delayed or a truck tips over. We ship out by rail on a short line, so product can go either direction,” says Patrick Gruber, CEO of ad-vanced biofuels maker Gevo based in Engle-wood, Colorado.

Getting important inputs in can also factor during extreme weather delays. “We slowed down due to an inability to get natural gas delivered over excessive cold,” Jerke says.

Taking realistic stock of what the railroad can honestly accomplish is part of the plan too. When trains are running on schedule, a smaller leased railcar fl eet works for ethanol producers, but when they are not, issues arise. Al-Corn, according to Doyal, only needs 250 cars in its fl eet, if the cars are coming back every fi ve days or less as promised by the rail-road. What the railroad called a “virtual pipe-line,” didn’t perform under extreme weather conditions and increased crude oil produc-tion.

Government InterventionComplaints of rate increases and unfair

preference to the oil industry got the attention of legislators and federal regulators.

John Thune, R-N.D., Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, and John D. Rockefeller IV, D-W.V., Com-merce Committee chairman, introduced the STB Reauthorization Act of 2014 in Septem-ber. The bill will “…increase effi ciency of the Surface Transportation Board by changing internal processes and increasing timeliness of STB decisions to improve U.S. rail service,” according to a press release.

In October, the Surface Transportation Board initiated new weekly reporting require-ments for all Class I carriers in order to “better understand performance across the entire net-work.” The data, which is not much different from the existing voluntary reporting at the Railroad Performance Measures site, is pub-licly available at www.stb.dot.gov. It includes summary of service in general, average train speeds by type of freight, total car types on line, average dwell time at origin, and more.

Hinging on DistributionDoyal recalls the early ’80s, following the

oil embargo and the big push for energy inde-

pendence, working for small renewable pro-ducers in Portales, New Mexico. “The chem-ist told us the future is cellulose because of its massive availability and low cost to grow. He didn’t foresee the obstacles,” he says. While three celebrated new cellulosic facilities came online this year in the Midwest, with a fourth projected for early 2015, the biofuels industry as a whole remains concerned about the im-pacts of federal policy.

Kent Hoekman, former petroleum engi-neer now with the Desert Research Institute in Nevada, says, “Developing liquid renewable energy is easy. Man’s been converting starch to alcohol for thousands of years.” Even a tech-nology that converts cellulosic feedstock to liquid fuel is now proven. Hoekman reports that what’s hard today is launching a functional industry, from raw material to customer. “The whole thing has to work at cost and scale. You won’t see any mom ‘n pop operations,” claims Hoekman.

Hoekman ticks off the requirements: “feed stock supply chain, technology, infra-structure, transportation, distribution, cus-tomer acceptance, cost, codes and standards, regulations, environmental concerns, and in-vestment. It takes big investment backing and a lot of skill.”

Gruber says transportation and cold weather are the least of his problems. “Unsta-ble and unclear government policy is hurting us because it’s confusing for investors.”

“All ethanol producers have the same weather, transportation and storage prob-lems” Doyal says. “We also share a common concern over the unpredictable stance of EPA toward renewables.”

All the hurdles, much like the original rail-road expansion westward, circle back to inves-tor interest and consumer acceptance, both of which can be very fi ckle. Fortunately, weather forecasts for 2015 are mild, comparatively.

Author: Carla [email protected]

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Documents

January 2015 Biomass Magazine