Military, Government Increase Investment in Algae Fuels

(Associated Press, October 27, 2010) The forest green algae bubbling in a stainless steel fermenting tank in a suburban warehouse may look like primordial pond scum, but it is a promising new source of domestically produced fuels being tested on the nation’s jets and warships. In a laboratory just a few steps away from the warehouse, white-coated scientists for a company called Solazyme are changing the genetic makeup of algae to construct a new generation of fuels. These “bioengineered” algae are placed into tanks, where they get fat on sugar beets, switch grass or a host of other plants. The sun’s energy, which is stored in the plants, is transformed by the hungry algae into oil, which can be refined into jet fuel, bio-diesel, cooking oil or even cosmetics. While it may sound far-fetched, the U.S. Navy in September ordered more than 150,000 gallons of ship and jet fuel from Solazyme and the company received a $21.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy last year to build a new refinery in Riverside, Penn., to help push production to commercial levels.  Click here to read more…

EPA and Federal Partners Promote Sustainable Manufacturing

(EPA, October 21, 2010) The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) yesterday joined the Department of Commerce, the Department of Energy, the Department of Labor, and the Small Business Administration in the signing of a memorandum of understanding promoting the Economy, Energy, and Environment Initiative (E3). E3 projects are local public-private partnerships driven by communities to coordinate and strategically target federal and state resources to assist local businesses in becoming more efficient, competitive and sustainable.  “E3 is a model for collaboration among manufacturers, utilities, local government and federal resources enabling economic growth and job creation in communities by making manufacturing more energy efficient and cost effective and improving its environmental performance,” said Steve Owens, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention. “Every dollar saved on energy, materials, and cleaning up pollution means more money to invest in our workforce and a better quality of life for our citizens.”  Click here to read more…

DOE, BOEMRE and NOAA Announce Nearly $5 Million for Joint Environmental Research Projects to Advance Ocean Renewable Energy

(DOE, October 26, 2010) – The Department of Energy (DOE), Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE), and the Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) today announced eight joint research awards totaling nearly $5 million to support the responsible siting and permitting of offshore wind energy facilities and ocean energy generated from waves, tides, currents and thermal gradients.  This critical research will address key information gaps regarding the potential environmental effects of renewable ocean energy.  This collaborative, interagency effort will help lay the foundation for a clean, renewable offshore energy industry that will diversify our nation’s energy mix, enhance our energy security, create American manufacturing jobs, and reduce carbon emissions.  Click here to read more…

Alion Awarded EPA Contract Valued At Up To $72 Million To Conduct Research On Human Pollutant Exposures

(Marketwire, October 12, 2010) Alion Science and Technology, an employee-owned technology solutions company, was awarded a five-year task-order from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), worth a maximum of $72 million, to continue its work providing research support to assess exposure to atmospheric pollutants and other materials that have the potential to cause adverse human health effects. Alion supports EPA’s Office of Research and Development by assisting with the conduct of research that characterizes human pollutant exposures across a broad spectrum. Our subcontractor RTI International is a key partner in this effort. Results will be applied to practical efforts related to air quality measurement, pollution control and homeland security.  Click here to read more…

Tate & Lyle PLC New Commercial and Food Innovation Centre in Chicago

(Tate & Lyle PLC, October 19, 2010) – Tate & Lyle PLC (“Tate & Lyle”) announces today that it is to establish a new Commercial and Food Innovation Centre in Chicago, Illinois.  In May 2010, Tate & Lyle announced the implementation of a new global organizational structure as part of its clear intention to focus, fix and grow its business. The establishment of this new Centre, bringing Tate & Lyle’s innovation group and specialty food ingredients business in North America together in a new, state-of-the-art facility in Chicago, with enhanced access to customers, represents the next logical step in the development of this new structure.  The new Centre will be the global headquarters of Tate & Lyle’s Innovation and Commercial Development group and the regional headquarters for the Specialty Food Ingredients business in North America. The Centre will also act as the base for those US employees with global responsibilities and, accordingly, the President of the Bulk Ingredients global business unit, and his support staff, will be located there. These groups are all currently located in Decatur, Illinois, and, therefore, employees from these groups in due course will be relocating to Chicago. In total, approximately 160 positions will be located in the new Centre.  Click here to read more…

The U.S. Navy And Biofuels – Part I

By Robert Rapier

(Consumer Energy Report, October 26, 2010) On Tuesday, October 19, 2010 I conducted an interview with Tom Hicks, who is the Deputy Assistant Secretary to the Navy (Energy). The idea for the interview originated from my recent essays on Solazyme (here and here) in which the Navy’s investments in biofuels were discussed. After the Solazyme essays were published, Consumer Energy Report editor Sam Avro contacted the Navy for comment, and they offered to set up an interview with Mr. Hicks.  Sailors assigned to Riverine Group 1 conduct maneuvers aboard Riverine Command Boat (Experimental) (RCB-X) at Naval Station Norfolk. The RCB-X is powered by an alternative fuel blend of 50 percent algae-based and 50 percent NATO F-76 fuels to support the secretary of the Navy’s efforts to reduce total energy consumption on naval ships. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Gregory N. Juday)  I was joined by Sam, and our questions below will be denoted as “RR” or “SA”. Mr. Hick’s responses are “TH”. The goal of the interview was simply to distill down for a general audience what the Navy is trying to accomplish. The interview went on for over 40 minutes, so it will be broken down into multiple parts.government?  Click here to read more…

DOT Solicitations – October 2010

Alternative Aviation Fuels – Funding was provided to the FAA to 1) Accelerate research, development, and deployment of alternative jet fuels; 2) Accelerate alternative fuel qualification/certification; and 3) Quantify emissions and develop life cycle analysis (LCA) for certified alternative fuels.  The specific objectives of the four technical research areas identified in the BAA are: a) Accomplish thorough specification and fit for purpose testing on a quantity of alternative aviation fuel proposed for delivery by the offeror; b) Conduct an alternative jet fuel Quality and Performance Control Study to be used to enable performance and quality standardization and identify alternative jet fuel property trends; c) Conduct a Sustainability Study for alternative jet aviation fuels, to be used as a basis for establishing a future standard procedure; and d) Develop an improved hydroprocessed renewable jet (HRJ) fuel performance and durability R&D and data processing method.  Total Funding: $7.3M. Read more

IARPA Solicitations – October 2010

Signal Location in Complex Environments (SLiCE) Request for Co-Use Information – The Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) is planning to release the Signal Location in Complex Environments (SLiCE) Program Broad Agency Announcement (IARPA-BAA-10-10) in December 2010. This program is classified at the TOP SECRET/ Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) level. In anticipation of this release, all potential bidders are required to provide a response to this notice so that IARPA can establish temporary Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility (SCIF) Co-use Agreements. This temporary co-use will allow potential bidders the ability to receive and prepare responses to this BAA, and will remain in effect throughout the pre-award phase of the program. Read more

Air Force Solicitations – October 2010

Warfighter Interface Technologies Advanced Research Programs (WITARP) – The 711th Human Performance Wing, Human Effectiveness Directorate is soliciting white papers under this announcement for innovative technologies to support the development of Warfighter Interface Technologies Advanced Research Programs (WITARP). The objective of this BAA is to address highly unique and innovative Research & Development (R&D) concept areas in Warfighter Interface Technologies. Proposed work should address the innovative and strategic thought of the 21st century adversaries, and develop new concepts to counter these adversaries with innovative warfighter interface capabilities. The technology research in the BAA will be primarily focused in the following four areas: Battlespace Acoustics; Battlespace Visualizations; Human Role in Autonomous Systems; and Distributed Decision Making. Read more

DoD Solicitations – October 2010

Research and Studies for the Office of the Director, Operational Energy Plans and Programs – The office of the DOEP&P seeks proposals that respond to the following areas of interest: Topic 1) Energy Innovation Partnership Process – Proposals in this topic area should address how the offeror would develop, establish, and execute a process to identify and advance promising technical solutions to operational energy challenges.  Such a process should be able to find mature technology that could be rapidly fielded to support deployed forces engaged in current operations; and Topic 2) Identifying and Capturing Innovation – Proposals in this topic area will address the how an organization would support the DOEPP in maintaining visibility over energy innovations occurring throughout the Department and to share that information across the Department.  The purposes of this effort are to identify the most effective energy innovations, accelerate their adoption throughout the Department, avoid investments to rediscover innovations that are not effective, minimize duplicative investments, and gain insights into enterprise-level energy needs that may be appropriate for further investment. Read more

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