All Knowledge & Insights By Date

On December 28, 2016, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced that six projects had been selected for a funding opportunity of up to $12.9 million titled “Project Definition for Pilot- and Demonstration-Scale Manufacturing of Biofuels, Bioproducts, and Biopower.”  The projects, which revolve around technology development plans for the manufacture of advanced or cellulosic biofuels, bioproducts, refinery-compatible intermediates, and biopower in a pilot- or demonstration-scale...

On December 15, 2016,  the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issued a funding opportunity announcement (FOA) of up to $8 million dollars, subject to appropriations, for innovative technologies that assist in the advancement of algae bioenergy and bioproducts.  The FOA consists of two topic areas, including strain improvement for the development of enhanced algal strains, and algae cultivation biology improvement for the development of increased areal productivity and biofuel yield....

?  U.S. Energy Information Administration , “ EIA Forecasts Continued Biomass-Based Diesel Growth Due to Final 2017 RFS Targets”   ?  Renewable Fuels Association, “DOE Data:  Half of United States Broke Through So-Called “Blend Wall” in 2015”   ?  Corbion, “Corbion and Kraton Receive First European Certification for Biobased Products”   ?  The Lenzing Group, “Lenzing Invests in New TENCEL®...

On October 26, 2016, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced an open meeting of the Biomass Research and Development Technical Advisory Committee via notice in the Federal Register.  This meeting will work to develop advice and guidance promoting the research and development (R&D) of biobased fuels and products.  The agenda for the meeting includes an update on U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) biomass R&D activities, an update on DOE biomass R&D activities, and...

?   North Carolina Biotechnology Center, “$1.87M Grant Lets NCBiotech Lead SE Sorghum Initiative”   ?   AZO Cleantech, “Biofuels Researchers Engineer Plant Lignin and Explain Evolutionary Path”   ?   GreenBiologics, “Green Biologics Announces New Brands for High Purity, Bio-Based Products”   ?   Reuters, “Shell Oil Bids $26 Million for Abengoa's Advanced Biofuel Plant”   ?   University Of Delaware,...

On October 11, 2016, Microvi Biotechnologies Inc. (Microvi) announced that it had been awarded a grant by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for work on new biocatalytic technology that converts the methane and carbon dioxide (CO2) found in biogas into valuable liquid chemicals.  This technology utilizes the biogas created at landfills and wastewater treatment plants that is usually burned off into the atmosphere due to the current burdensome conversion process.  Microvi’s...

BioAmber, "BioAmber Achieves Important Milestone in U.S. DOE Loan Guarantee Process" BusinessWire, "JetBlue Announces One of the Largest Renewable Jet Fuel Purchase Agreements in Aviation History" WSU News, "Researchers Make Breakthrough in Biobased Materials" Times of Malta, "France Bans Plastic Plates, Cups and Cutlery"

On September 14-15, 2016, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) hosted a two-day workshop with lead experts on aviation biofuels exploring opportunities to increase competitiveness of alternative jet fuels. The Alternative Aviation Fuel Workshop was organized in four parallel breakout sessions covering the economic and technical competitiveness, fuel conversion and scale-up, environmental sustainability and life-cycle benefits, and feedstock and product supply chains of lignocellulosic biomass...

On August 10, 2016, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced a $30 million expansion of the U.S.-India Partnership to Advance Clean Energy Research (PACE-R). DOE is partnered with the Indian Ministry of Science and Technology (MST), and both departments are committing $1.5 million annually over the next five years to expand research into smart grid and energy storage technology. U.S. and Indian private sectors will match the government commitments, resulting in a total of $30 million in...

On August 1, 2016, DOE released a Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for $7 million to research fuel and engine co-optimization technologies. Funding will be provided through the Co-Optimization of Fuels and Engines (Co-Optima) initiative, a collaboration between DOE's Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) and Vehicle Technologies Office (VTO), bringing together national laboratories and industry to conduct tandem fuel and engine research, development, and deployment assessments. This...

On August 2, 2016, DOE announced up to $11.3 million in funding to support the development of biomass-to-hydrocarbon biofuels conversion pathways. Three projects will receive the funding under MEGA-BIO: Bioproducts to Enable Biofuels to produce high-value bioproducts as well as economically competitive biofuels. The projects selected to receive this funding are: The Dow Chemical Company, working with LanzaTech and Northwestern University, to develop a process to convert biomass-derived synthetic...

On August 8, 2016, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced an open meeting of the Biomass Research and Development Technical Advisory Committee in the Federal Register. The purpose of the meeting is to develop advice and guidance promoting research and development (R&D) for biofuel and bioproducts production. A tentative agenda includes: Update on U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Biomass R&D Activities   Update on DOE, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy...

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) announced on July 29, 2016, that federal agencies released a white paper describing the collective federal vision for the emerging and innovative solutions needed to realize the Nanotechnology-Inspired Grand Challenge for Future Computing announced in October 2015.  The white paper, a collaboration by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), National Science Foundation (NSF), Department of Defense (DOD), National...

On July 25, 2016, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) published a notice in the Federal Register soliciting applications for Biorefinery, Renewable Chemical, and Biobased Product Manufacturing Assistance Program (the Program) funding. The Program provides guaranteed loans for projects developing, constructing, or retrofitting commercial scale biorefineries and biobased product manufacturing facilities. The developments must use eligible technology, including new commercial scale processing and...

Last week, DOE released the 2016 Billion-Ton Report: Advancing Domestic Resources for a Thriving Bioeconomy, Volume 1: Economic Availability of Feedstocks (BT16). Jonathan Male, Director of the Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO), introduced the report, stating: While bioenergy currently is the greatest single source of renewable energy in the United States, there are still economic and technological barriers that limit efforts to mobilize biomass resources for more biofuels, biopower, and...

On July 14, 2016, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), announced $15 million in funding for three projects that will work to improve algal biomass yields to reduce production costs of algae-based biofuels and bioproducts. The projects include Global Algae Innovations (San Diego, California), Algenol Biotech LLC (Ft. Myers, Florida), and MicroBio Engineering, Inc. (San Luis Obispo, California). These projects will coordinate algae strain improvements through harvesting, dewatering, and downstream...

On June 22, 2016, DOE released the detailed agenda for the Biotechnology for Clean Vehicles: Harnessing Synthetic Biology To Enable Next-Generation Biomaterials And Biofuels session at the Sustainable Transportation Summit. The session is hosted by DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) and will focus on how novel biomaterials and renewable fuels can be used to improve vehicle efficiency and sustainability. The session will also discus the role of synthetic biology in...

On June 21, 2016, DOE announced an upcoming deadline for comments to the Quadrennial Energy Review (QER) - An Integrated Study of the Electricity System. QER was created via a Presidential Memorandum in January of 2014 to enable the federal government to translate policy goals into analysis-based actions. The QER Task Force is now asking for all energy stakeholders to comment with ideas and advice for the future of the U.S. electricity system. Public comments are due on July 1, 2016, and may be...

On June 21, 2016, DOE announced the 23 projects that were selected for Phase II funding through the Small Business Innovation and Research (SBIR) program. Each SBIR award is for $1 million over the next two years, and helps small businesses advance concepts that improve manufacturing processes, boost efficiency of buildings, increase transportation sustainability, and generate renewable electricity. Phase II winners include: Forest Concepts, LLC, for a low energy rotary shear for sub-millimeter...

On June 23, 2016, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) requested proposals for "Reducing EMbodied energy And Decreasing Emissions (REMADE) in Materials Manufacturing." This funding opportunity is for the development of technologies that reduce life-cycle energy consumption and carbon emissions associated with the production and processing of industrial-scale materials. Up to $70 million is available through REMADE through 2020 with key focus areas including, but not limited to: Information...