Wisconsin Bio Industry Alliance

Ethanol can help in these struggling economic times. In addition to ending our dependence on foreign oil and improving the environment, ethanol is good for local economies. Here are some facts:

• In the United States, the ethanol industry has created more than 147,000 jobs.[Source: January 2005 Report from LECG]
• The nine ethanol plants in Wisconsin employ nearly 400 employees.
• A typical 40 million gallon ethanol plant:
  - Generates a one-time boost of $71 million to the local economy
  - Creates 33 full-time jobs at the plant
  - Creates 120 jobs throughout the local economy, such as construction
  - Increases household income for the community by $6.7 million [Source: Nebraska Public Power District, Employment and Other Economic Impacts Associated with the Construction of an Ethanol Production Facility, January 2005]

The New North Inc., an 18-county regional economic development organization in Northeast Wisconsin, has commissioned a two-part study about the economic development opportunities associated with producing cellulosic ethanol in the region. Here are a few facts about the project:

• Phase one of the study details the availability of forest products in the region. The results have recently been released and are available for download here.
• Phase two will address topics like harvest techniques and pricing strategies.
• The study aims to attract development by showing that Northeast Wisconsin has the necessary resources for successful cellulosic ethanol production.

Biodiesel, a renewable fuel that can be used in any diesel engine, runs cleaner than regular diesel and helps to improve air quality. Here are some facts:

• Carbon dioxide outputs are reduced by 43,000 pounds per year when using biodiesel instead of petroleum diesel, according to a Propel, Inc. study.

• Particulate matter is reduced by 78% when substituting biodiesel for petroleum diesel.

• Carbon monoxide, a leading contributor in the formation of smog, is reduced by 50% when using biodiesel, according to the Southwest Research Institute.

The American Coalition for Ethanol will be holding a conference on August 11-13 at Milwaukee’s Midwest Airlines Center.  Among other things, the event will include:

• Updates from political officials and about legislation
• Updates on corn and cellulose technologies, and E15 and higher blends
• A keynote address from Dallas Tonsager, Under Secretary for Rural Development at the U.S. Department of Agriculture

Provided below is the text from a recent UW-Madison news release about new funding for plant cell wall imaging and sustainability research.

MADISON – The Department of Energy (DOE) Great Lakes Bioenergy Research has received $8.099 million in new funding from the U.S. Department of Energy through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to provide crucial support for plant cell wall imaging and sustainability research.

The Office of Biological and Environmental Research (BER) of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science has allocated $4.099 million in Recovery Act funds for GLBRC plant cell wall imaging technology and DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) is providing $4 million in funding to enhance and accelerate GLBRC sustainability research.

“These funds will be used to provide a new experimental core facility and computational resources to analyze and alter the structure of plant cell walls, the polymer-complex that provides the sugars for cellulosic biofuels,” says Tim Donohue, GLBRC director and University of Wisconsin-Madison bacteriology professor. “The new magnetic imaging and associated computational resources will allow new, high-throughput approaches that are crucial for teams across GLBRC.”

The new imaging platform provides a 2D NMR “fingerprint” of everything in the wall and will enable the development of chemometric methods which can inform research on optimal feedstock selection, help predict biomass conversion efficiencies, and aid in pretreatment and process optimization, says John Ralph, a UW-Madison biochemistry professor who leads GLBRC’s plant biomass research group.

“With this new analytical capacity, ‘whole-cell-wall NMR profiling’ is intended to become an integral part of the plant and preprocessing workflows,” says Ralph.

The 2D NMR fingerprint could ultimately aid analysis of cell wall composition by teams seeking to improve the properties of biomass plants, allow GLBRC to develop new assays for deconstruction of plant cell walls, provide methods for analyzing the composition of feedstocks used as substrates for biological or chemical conversion into fuels, and monitor the cell wall composition of sustainable biomass species from field studies.

“A portion of the funds will also provide new capabilities for existing NMR instruments, which will provide the flexibility to examine the most recalcitrant of samples,” says Ralph.

Donohue adds, “While this resource will initially be unique to GLBRC, we are committed to identifying resources to make it available for all the DOE Bioenergy Research Centers and external collaborators. This technology was not only a dream when the application for funding was submitted, it was not even a validated approach when GLBRC started in 2007. The Recovery Act funding allows us to move rapidly and deploy a new, state of the art, approach to the cellulosic biofuels portfolio of GLBRC and other DOE-funded centers.”

GLBRC scientists are studying the environmental benefits and consequences of alternative biofuel crops, and DOE EERE funds will be used to provide additional information on carbon cycling, water quality, and greenhouse gas emissions. Funds will also be used to enhance modeling activities, which require massively parallel computing in order to integrate satellite imagery and land use information into mathematical models of biofuel production for the entire U.S. These models, based on experimental field results, will allow researchers and decision makers to ask “what if” questions about different kinds of biofuel crops in different kinds of landscapes.

“Quantitative models, together with the underlying field research, will allow us to design biofuel cropping systems that are both profitable and environmentally sustainable,” says Michigan State University crop and soil sciences professor Phil Robertson, who leads GLBRC sustainability research.

“We need to ensure that the crops we’ll be using for cellulosic energy really contribute to climate stabilization and cleaner air and water, as well as provide biodiversity benefits such as habitat for birds and beneficial insects. Recovery Act funding will allow us to make better decisions sooner.”
- Margaret Broeren, 608-890-2168

Sold by all U.S. vehicle manufacturers, flex fuel vehicles (FFVs) are capable of operating on blends of ethanol up to E85, or 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline.  Wisconsin drivers looking for E85 for their FFVs can fill up at over 100 stations in the state.  Here are a few facts:

• There are currently 130 fuel stations in Wisconsin that offer E85, with at least six more stations coming soon.
• To find E85 fuel stations in your area, you can visit http://www.afdc.energy.gov/afdc/locator/stations/route/.