Right now biodiesel is capturing widespread interest. Duane Johnson, an independent consultant with many years of experience in the biodiesel and biofuel markets, said that even though the biodiesel market appears slow right now, “We are seeing a tremendous interest in biofuels.”
Biodiesel, made from oilseed stock, is made to replace all or part of diesel fuel needs. On the other hand, ethanol, made from corn, is designed to replace all or part of gasoline needs.
Johnson explained that there is a difference between biodiesel and biofuel.
Biofuels include biodiesel, ethanol, and “diesel and jet fuel from biomass sources.” Biofuel replacement for jet fuels are made from the same oilseed stock as biodiesel, but biofuels are refined a bit differently. There are a few more steps in their processing and no oxygen is left in the final fuel product.
Johnson said that currently the military has contracted to use biofuel in military engines, including their jet engines. Just this year they have contracted with Great Plains Oil and Exploration and with Sustainable Oil to take delivery on a total of more than 700,000 gallons of biofuels.
“The testing has all been done now,” said Johnson, and the results have been very positive. He expects that, within a year consumers will see biofuels being used in commercial planes as well as military jets.
“Right now these renewable oil companies are putting a lot of focus on biofuels,” said Johnson. They have contracts in place and the market will only continue to grow, he said. That news should be encouraging to producers. “Military contracts are very good. They are long-term and stable.”
The military contracts mean that there is a tremendous need for additional acres of oilseed stock. “Biofuel can be made out any oilseed stock from soybeans to canola to camelina; but the preference for the military is camelina. They can get a much lower pour point with that,” he said.
Johnson explained that the pour point is point at which the fuel turns from a pourable liquid to a gel.
A lower pour point means it easily stays in liquid form and doesn't gel or thicken with cold conditions. That is important when flying a jet, he explained. “You don't want it turning solid at 30,000 feet.” Because of that, camelina acres are especially needed.
Howard Haines, with the Montana Department of Environmental Quality Renewable Energy and Air Quality Section, said that a good fuel that won't gel in the cold winters of the Northern Plains is important in tractors and vehicles, too.
The Montana Department of Environ-mental Quality, in partnership with the Dawson Community College, Montana Farmers Union, and the Montana Agricultural Experiment Station, along with seven other organizations, is hosting the Oilseed and Biodiesel Production Workshop in Glendive, Mont., on Tuesday, Dec. 8.
Haines stressed that anyone interested in learning more about biofuels should try to attend the workshop. Furthermore, those who register before Dec. 2 will receive all workshop materials and the lunch for free. After that date, the fee is $20.
At the workshops, they bring in expert speakers on the subject and also tailor the information to the local area.
One of the reasons for that area-specific information goes back to the pour point Johnson mentioned. When you make biodiesel from local oilseed stocks, the cold-flow issues are not so bad, said Haines.
If you begin to import biodiesel made from crops grown in other areas of the country you could run into winter flow problems.
Crops that are suited to the specific area produce a fuel that is better suited to that specific area.
That specific-area influence may be one reason why Johnson is excited about local communities getting on board and building community processing plants.
These small but local plants would provide jobs, contract with local growers for seedstock, press the seeds, produce the fuel, sell it or trade it back to the producers, sell the extra to the locals, and have the nutritious meal by-products to sell for feed or to till into the soil to improve the nutrient value of the local lands.
“If we can roll this into making fuels for us on the farms then those producers become independent of petroleum companies and that would be a huge benefit for everybody,” said Johnson.
“I think biofuel has a great future. I think what we will see is it continue to grow until we have a multitude of centralized processing facility. Doing it yourself on the farm is not economical, but doing it at a community or county or even a regional level makes a lot of sense for everyone.”
Haines agrees there is a promising future with biodiesel even though the market is sluggish right now.
That is because of lower petroleum oil prices but oil will go up and when that happens, locally produced fuel will continue to look better, he said.
He also mentioned that federal standards will cause the oilseed market to continue to grow.
“With the renewable fuel standards increasing, biofuels will be the law of the land. Initially the renewable fuel standard was to replace increases in fuel use with a renewable, non-petroleum fuel. The current renewable fuel standard is to be using 1.85 billion gallons of biodiesel fuel by the year 2015. That's only five years away,” Haines said. “By then 5 percent of all commercial diesel fuels will need to be a biomass derived diesel fuel. Some may use B20, others B2, but the overall number means they must be 5 percent biomass derived biodiesel.”
Whether or not a producer wants to take advantage of the coming laws and grow oilseed crops as a primary crop depends on their individual situation, Haines explained. It may not be right for them. That is why they need to come to the workshop.
Haines did say all producers should at least consider oilseed stock as a rotation crop. Studies at MSU showed that when farmers planted an oilseed crop in their rotation then pulled it out and planted grain the following year, their grain production increased 10 to 15 percent.
That is because the oilseed crops use and add different nutrients to the soil, break the disease and weed cycles, and help loosen the soils in a different manner allowing for better air and water penetration, according to MSU.
For more information on the biofuel and biodiesel industry, plan to attend the Oilseed and Biodiesel Production Work-shop on Tuesday, Dec. 8.
Copyright © 2009 The Prairie Star
