Maine Clean Communities’ Biofuels Summit a Success

Showcasing groundbreaking biofuel production, Maine Clean Communities’ (MC2) recent Biofuels Summit was well-attended despite an impending storm. It was also well-received – attendees were pleased with the utility and relevance of the presentations, which represented a range of fuels and technologies including closed-loop biodiesel production, ethyl levulinate, biobutanol and biogas, all being produced in Maine.

Maine Clean Communities Coordinator Steve Linnell opened the Summit, discussing the gap between a much-discussed problem in Maine – high gasoline prices – and the much discussed solution – home weatherization. Given that transportation is such a large part of the problem (in terms of cost, energy independence and greenhouse gas emissions) it needs to be part of the solution, as well. Maine Clean Communities is part of the national Clean Cities network that addresses the transportation problem by promoting alternative fuels and advanced vehicle technology. Since no single alternative is capable of fully replacing petroleum, it is important to develop a diversity of technologies and fuels. Dean Sgouros, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Maine Standard Biofuels in Portland, presented on closed-loop biodiesel production, focusing on the environmental benefits of biodiesel. Maine Standard Biofuels produces biodiesel from waste restaurant grease, utilizing a process that recycles and reuses most of its inputs and byproducts, including methanol and glycerin. With a capacity of one million gallons a year, Maine Standard Biofuels is striving for carbon-neutral, zero-waste production.

Steve Fitzpatrick of Biofine Technology (Gorham, ME) (click here for presentation) discussed levulinic acid, a chemical that can be produced from virtually any type of cellulose and converted into a variety of products. Levulinic acid can be blended with ethanol to produce ethyl levulinate, a versatile biofuel. Unlike most biofuels, ethyl levulinate blends well with either diesel or gasoline. It can also be used as a home-heating fuel. When blended with biodiesel, it lowers the gel temperature, improving biodiesel’s cold weather properties.

Jim St. Pierre of Old Town Fuel and Fiber (Old Town, ME) presented on biobutanol, which the company produces on a pilot scale as a complement to pulp production at a refurbished paper mill. Formerly Red Shield Environmental LLC, Old Town Fuel and Fiber switched its focus from producing ethanol to producing biobiotanol because butanol is safer to handle, can be shipped through existing pipelines and has a higher energy content.

Will Brinton, (click here for presentation), President of the Woods End Laboratories (Mt. Vernon, ME), presented on biogas. Brinton brought cutting edge biogas technology called dry digestion from Germany to Maine, where he is working to perfect it. Dry digestion enables biogas production from 30% solid mixtures as compared to just 3%. This expands production potential, particularly on farms. Woods End Laboratories worked with Rainbow Valley Farm piloting on-farm biogas production. The company also produces biogas in-house on an experimental scale. The output of this process is compost. Biogas is similar to natural gas, but is produced from the anaerobic decomposition of organic waste, such as food scraps or sewage.

State Representative Steve Butterfield (Bangor) kicked off an open discussion with a brief legislative update. Butterfield is an enthusiastic proponent of biofuels and the sponsor of 100% of the biofuel-related bills introduced in the last year. His current bill would require 2% biofuels blended in all home heating oil. Butterfield discussed his frustration with the State Legislature and the general public, which, due to an association with corn ethanol, has prematurely dismissed all biofuels. His three keywords are “renewable, sustainable and affordable” – if it meets those criteria, he supports it.

Maine Clean Communities’ Biofuels Summit revealed some surprising synergies between the speakers and the technologies they represent. Production of ethyl levulinate, for example, could integrate into pulp and paper mills in a way that complements Old Town Fuel and Fiber’s process. Ethyl levulinate can be blended with biodiesel, improving biodiesel’s cold weather properties (after the Summit, Dean Sgouros arranged to get a sample of ethyl levulinate to try it out). With the potential to use byproducts as a feedstock, production of biogas could complement production of the other biofuels.

Maine Clean Communities hopes to continue an energetic discussion on diversifying Maine’s transportation energy. We are collecting ideas for future Summit topics. To suggest ideas or provide feedback, please contact Steve Linnell at slinnell@gpcog.org or Rebecca Lambert at rlambert@gpcog.org