Metabolic engineering of cyanobacteria for ethanol production

Source: Energy and Environmental Science, vol.2 (2009)
"Development of renewable energy is rapidly being embraced by our society and industry to achieve the nation's economic growth goals and to help address the world's energy and global warming crises. Currently most of the bioethanol production is from the fermentation of agricultural crops and residues. There is much debate concerning the cost effectiveness and energy efficiency of such biomass based ethanol production processes. Here, we report the creation of a Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 strain that can photoautotrophically convert CO2 to bioethanol.

Catalytic gasification of algae in supercritical water for biofuel production and carbon capture

Source: Energy and Environmental Science, vol.2 (2009)
"There has been growing concern about the way cultivating biomass for the production of agro-biofuels competes with food production. To avoid this competition biomass production for biofuels will, in the long term, have to be completely decoupled from food production. This is where microalgae have enormous potential. Here we propose a novel process based on microalgae cultivation using dilute fossil CO2 emissions and the conversion of the algal biomass through a catalytic hydrothermal process."

Greenhouse gas sequestration by algae: energy and greenhouse gas life cycle studies

Source: CSIRO
"This paper assesses the greenhouse gas, costs and energy balance on a life cycle basis for algae grown in salt water ponds and used to produce biodiesel and electricity. Under the conditions described and data assumed in the paper, it is shown that it is possible to produce algal biodiesel at less cost and with a substantial greenhouse gas and energy balance advantage over fossil diesel."

Smart choices for biofuels

Source: WorldWatch Institute/Sierra Club
"Worldwide, efforts to replace oil with biofuels are at a critical juncture. Double-digit growth in ethanol and biodiesel use during the past three years has contributed to a rapid increase in food, feed grain, and soybean prices, as well as a sharp environmental backlash. Evidence is building that the biofuels industry is creating a host of ecological problems while failing to deliver real reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. Demand for biofuels is also creating global pressure for carbon-emitting deforestation and land conversion, as food and fuel compete for scarce resources."

Climate change and health costs of air emissions from biofuels and gasoline

source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 106,no.6 (Feb.2009)
"A new study from the University of Minnesota finds that biofuel made from corn can be as harmful to the environment as gasoline, and that the combined costs to climate-change and health exceed that of gas. The study notes that the environmental impacts of energy use can impose large costs on society. It quantifies and monetizes the life-cycle climate-change and health effects of greenhouse gas (GHG) and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) emissions from gasoline, corn ethanol, and cellulosic ethanol."

Australian bioenergy roadmap

Source: Clean Energy Council
"The biomass resource appraisal carried out as part of the development of the Roadmap (i.e.stages 1 – 3 of the project delivery process)confirmed that Australia has an abundance of economically viable and accessible biomass resources for stationary energy production. The resource appraisal also determined that the technologies required to realise the potential of this resource are largely proven and based on established practices either locally or overseas. The full range of biomass resources including agricultural related wastes, energy crops, landfill
gas, sewage gas, sugarcane, urban biomass (including urban timber wastes), and woodrelated wastes was considered in the biomass resource appraisal."

Carbon payback times for crop-based biofuel expansion in the tropics

Source: Environmental Research Letters, 3, 2008.
"Biofuels from land-rich tropical countries may help displace foreign petroleum imports for many industrialized nations, providing a possible solution to the twin challenges of energy security and climate change. But concern is mounting that crop-based biofuels will increase net greenhouse gas emissions if feedstocks are produced by expanding agricultural lands. Here we quantify the `carbon payback time' for a range of biofuel crop expansion pathways in the tropics. We use a new, geographically detailed database of crop locations and yields, along with updated vegetation and soil biomass estimates, to provide carbon payback estimates that are more regionally specific than those in previous studies. Using this cropland database, we also estimate carbon payback times under different scenarios of future crop yields, biofuel technologies, and petroleum sources. Under current conditions, the expansion of biofuels into productive tropical ecosystems will always lead to net carbon emissions for decades to centuries, while expanding into degraded or already cultivated land will provide almost immediate carbon savings. Future crop yield improvements and technology advances, coupled with unconventional petroleum supplies, will increase biofuel carbon offsets, but clearing carbon-rich land still requires several decades or more for carbon payback. No foreseeable changes in agricultural or energy technology will be able to achieve meaningful carbon benefits if crop-based biofuels are produced at the expense of tropical forests."

Increasing feedstock production for biofuels

Source: Biomass Research and Development Initiative
"The goal of this report is to inform research recommendations to address the constraints surrounding availability of biomass feedstocks. To meet this goal, an economic assessment, which links to an analysis of the consequences for greenhouse gas emissions and sustainability, has been developed that encompasses feedstock production from agriculture and forestry sources. The boundaries of the analysis—a domestic focus on feedstocks and up to the farmgate or forest roadside—circumscribe the fi ndings. Uncertainty about the conversion of feedstocks to biofuels, transportation of both, international effects, and consideration of displaced petroleum fuels are beyond the scope of this study."

Ethanol and biodiesel

Source: NSW Parliamentary Library Research Service
"Biofuels are fuels made from renewable biological feedstocks, either crops or waste. There are two main biofuels with commercial prospects in Australia: ethanol and biodiesel. These biofuels currently comprise less than 0.4% of the Australian automotive gasoline market. This briefing paper outlines the current use of ethanol and biodiesel fuels in Australia, and NSW specificially, and the factors driving the use of biofuels in the future."

Future biofuels for Australia

Source: RIRDC
"This report provides an outline of the current state-of-the-art conversion of lignocellulosic (the major natural polymer components of plants and wood) materials to second generation biofuels. Rural industries, local, state and federal governments, policy makers, first generation biofuels producers, investment bodies, communities and the general public can all benefit from this information. Concise yet thorough summaries of lignocellulosics to biofuels are difficult to come by and the information presented in this report has been gleaned from a wide variety of sources. It is the aim of this report to provide an overview of the second generation biofuels field in an Australian context and to describe the barriers to wider adoption of these biofuels."

Understanding land use change and U.S. ethanol expansion

Source:Renewable Fuels Association
"The amount of agricultural land required to produce 15 billion gallons of grain ethanol in the United States by 2015, as required by the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA), is likely to be less than 1 percent of total world cropland, according to a new report released today by the Renewable Fuels Association. According to the report, “Understanding Land Use Change and U.S. Ethanol Expansion,” gains in agricultural productivity, coupled with the contribution of feed produced as an ethanol co-product, are expected to significantly mitigate the need for conversion of non-agricultural lands to support expanded U.S. biofuels production."

Biofuels for transport: a roadmap for development in Australia

source: Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering
"The key finding of this report is that biofuels, both bioethanol (a petroleum substitute) and biodiesel (a diesel fuel substitute) have useful roles to play as Australian transport fuels and can contribute to greenhouse gas mitigation and energy security. While so-described Generation 1 biofuels are limited by competition for scarce resources with food production, Generation 2 biofuels, using prolific but lower-value resources, hold significant promise although production costs remain high with ill-defined conversion pathways. Focused RD &D, essential for eventual technological success and commercial outcomes, relies upon the improved financing, coordination and management of leading Australian RD &D facilities and people, as well as the establishment of productive linkages with international RD&D efforts. It is recommended that a Biofuels Institute be established."

Future biofuels for Australia

Source: RIRDC
"This report provides an outline of the current state-of-the-art conversion of lignocellulosic (the major natural polymer components of plants and wood) materials to second generation biofuels. Rural industries, local, state and federal governments, policy makers, first generation biofuels producers, investment bodies, communities and the general public can all benefit from this information. Concise yet thorough summaries of lignocellulosics to biofuels are difficult to come by and the information presented in this report has been gleaned from a wide variety of sources. It is the aim of this report to provide an overview of the second generation biofuels field in an Australian context and to describe the barriers to wider adoption of these biofuels. It builds on RIRDC reports published in 2007 that covered many aspects of current biofuel production and demonstrated the need for new sources of biomass to satisfy a larger scale of biofuel production."

The state of food and agriculture 2008

Source: FAO
"The State of Food and Agriculture 2008 explores the implications of the recent rapid growth in production of biofuels based on agricultural commodities. The boom in liquid biofuels has been largely driven by policies in developed countries in support of climate-change mitigation, energy security and agricultural development. The growing demand for agricultural commodities for the production of biofuels is having significant repercussions on agricultural markets, and concerns are mounting over their negative impact on the food security of millions of people across the world. At the same time, the environmental impacts of biofuels are also coming under closer scrutiny."

Review of the indirect effects of biofuels

Source: UK RFA
"The UK Govt has agreed to slow down its push to increase the use of biofuels for road transport following advice from its Renewable Fuels Agency. The UK's renewable transport fuel obligation (RTFO) came into force earlier this year. The new law requires biofuels to make up 2.5% by volume of road transport fuel sales in the UK, increasing by 1.25% a year to reach 5% by 2010-11."

Are biofuels sustainable?: the EU perspective

"On 21 January 2008 the UK Government's Environmental Audit Committee (EAC)published its report on the inquiry 'Are biofuels sustainable?'. Their short answer,which has since been echoed by a wave of media coverage and environmental group campaigning, was a resounding 'No'. This review argues against this conclusion. Globally, the
development of an efficient biofuels industry is an environmental and economic imperative and the UK should leverage its capabilities in life sciences, energy and process industries to help meet this challenge.
The EU is right to promote 'sustainable' biofuels through the Renewable Energy Directive, provided that sustainability criteria are implemented effectively and applied consistently." in, Biotechnology for biofuels, V.1, no.9 (2008)

The downsize of domestic substition of oils and biofuels: will Brazil catch the Dutch disease

"In response to oil price rises and carbon emission concerns, policies promoting increased ethanol usage in gasoline blends are being implemented by many countries, including major energy users such as USA, EU and Japan. As a result, Brazil, as the largest ethanol producer and exporter in the world, can expect growing foreign demand for ethanol exports. Also, the introduction of flex-fuel vehicles in Brazil is causing domestic sales of ethanol to increase steadily. In this paper, we investigate the regional and industrial economic consequences of rapid growth in Brazilian ethanol consumption and exports."

Sustainable biofuels: prospects and challenges

"The working group convened by the Royal Society concluded that biofuels have a potentially useful role in tackling the issues of climate change and energy supply. However, important opportunities to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from biofuels, and to ensure wider environmental and social benefits, may be missed with existing policy frameworks and targets".

The economic effects of an ethanol mandate

"High oil prices, increased reliance on imported oil, and environmental concerns have led to calls for mandating the blending of domestically-produced ethanol with petrol (‘fuel ethanol’). "

Ethanol: train wreck ahead?

This article looks at the consequences of the rush to implement corn-based ethanol policies in the U.S., in Issues in Science and Technology, Fall 2007.