2009: A Year in Waste

When it comes to energy there’s just something fascinating about waste products. Sure, the material’s almost always gross, but the idea of using garbage that would otherwise lay in piles or puddles makes great economic and environmental sense. Vancouver, for example, has plans to build six new waste-to-energy plants, dealing with the problems of residential garbage burning and reduced landfill capacity in one fell swoop.

So, in the spirit of sifting through piles for the best and brightest ideas, here’s a review of some of the icky, useful subjects that Flow waded through in 2009.

Banana peels

As it turns out, banana peels aren’t just for slapstick anymore. Like other cellulosic materials, bananas’ fibrous peels aren’t worth eating, which makes them a perfect source of biomass. The skins and leaves are mashed into a pulp and mixed with saw dust, which eventually hardens into bricks that can be burned as fuel.

Mountain pine beetle-killed wood

With mountain pine beetles spreading as fast as warmer winters will let them, the amount of wood destroyed by their infestation is growing. But while wood that’s been chomped on by the beetle’s larvae is useless as building material, it can still be packed into dense pellets for use as fuel. In fact, British Columbia has already integrated these wood pellets into its energy strategy through the BC Bioenergy Strategy.

Lumber mills

There are several ways to use the waste from lumber mills to create biofuels, from extract sugars from waste wood that can eventually be refined into ethanol, to the less tested bio-butanol, which has a more difficult refining process. Either way, in a country where “timber” is practically as important a phrase as “hello,” there’s no sense in letting wood waste go, well, to waste.

Manure

Manure, droppings or plain ol’ poop: call it what you will, but in the right hands the brown stuff is practically golden. Stories about the use of animal droppings as a fuel source were always cropping up in 2009, from a German town using its cows’ manure to produce biogas to chicken droppings as a source of heat to burning the methane from pig manure to produce electricity, no source is to smelly to be useful.

Shrimp shells

It takes a catalytic agent to turn biomass like canola oil into viable biofuel. As it turns out, an ideal source for that catalyst might be the chitinous shells of shrimp, which can not only increase the efficiency of biofuel production but, unlike other catalysts, is reusable. Hand it to researchers in Wuhan, China for turning a cocktail appetizer into a cleaner source of energy.

Finnish fish

All right, they don’t technically have to Finnish fish, but scientists in Finland are looking at the possibilities of fish waste in biodiesel. Between using fish’s chopped-off bits as an energy source or oceanic pollution, which would you choose?

Coffee grounds

Have you ever spilled a hot drink and watched a dark stain ruin the page you’d been reading? As it turns out, coffee’s (or tea’s) staining power can actually work to your advantage in a refillable ink cartridge fed by old grounds.

Shrimp shells

Food and fuel meet again; shrimp shells increase the efficiency of bio-fuel production.

The conventional method of turning soybean or canola oil into valuable fuels requires a single-use catalyst like sodium hydroxide that needs to be neutralized by lots of water. Despite making a “greener” fuel than gasoline, all this polluted water isn’t doing anybody any favours.

Scientists in Wuhan, China have done what they always knew makes a dish better- they have added shrimp. Not only is shrimp a cleaner catalyst, but it can be reused, and is much more efficient at rendering plant oil into bio-fuel.

The shrimp shells are composed mainly of chitin. That’s significant, because it’s a material that when heated, becomes very porous. That makes the process much faster. In only three hours, 89 per cent of the batch can been successfully converted.

The researchers at Hua Zhong Agriculture University heated the shrimp shells beforehand, making a framework material that is then mixed with potassium fluoride. The goal was to find an environmentally friendly way to make an environmentally friendly fuel.

Certainly the scientists were happy with the result. By adding shrimp shells to the process, there is less waste and pollution, less energy required due to its efficiency and no wasted water to neutralize. Additionally, there is less cost associated with this method, as the shrimp shell catalyst can be used again, and shrimp are cheap to acquire. The results are a sustainable process and a cleaner fuel.

That’s a deliciously good solution for all.

Funding for green diesel research

You’ve seen the commercials, and heard the popular wisdom – hybrid cars are hip now, and a cornerstone of the future.  Soon, all cars will be hybrids – right?

If that’s the case, why is Ming Zheng focusing on diesel engines? With some help – namely, a $1.4 million grant – from the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the University of Windsor researcher wants to find a way to increase the fuel efficiency of diesel – while decreasing its emissions.

Zheng believes biofuels and biodiesels derived from plant and animal sources are the way of the future. He wants to free us from relying on fossil fuels altogether.  Hybrids still require some gasoline; biodiesel engines would not.  Zheng figures diesel-based hybrids may even trump them all.

Currently, however, the university is using this $1.4 million grant primarily to focus on ways to make conventional diesel burn cleaner. It’s already a more energy-efficient option; diesel’s big advantage is fuel efficiency.

However, as demand increases, so does price.  This was demonstrated in April 2008, when in some places diesel prices topped that of gasoline.  This impacted shipping costs worldwide, and drove up the prices consumers paid for imported goods.

That may have been more than just an anomaly.  But reports show that demand for diesel has been experiencing much more growth than comparable demand than gasoline.  It’s a global phenomenon, but particularly in Europe, where diesel-running cars are incredibly popular.

Perhaps Zheng, telling us to jump on the diesel bandwagon, has the right idea.

Pulp and Paper Biofuel

Lumber mills may soon be doing double duty.

It turns out wood chips and tree matter not useful for paper production might be useful in other ways. Specifically, they might be used in creating a biofuel – which could turn out to be an even better bet than corn-based ethanol.

Bio-butanol is a little harder to produce than ethanol. But it’s easier to transport, as it doesn’t corrode pipes. It can be used in an ordinary car engine, without the modifications required for ethanol. Its energy content is higher and is easier to combine with gasoline.

Perhaps best of all, it would not affect the food supply. It may, however, drive up the demand and cost for lumber and paper products, and therefore increase logging. Fine for loggers, bad for conservation.

The current model is to use existing paper mills to extract sugars from wood that otherwise goes to waste. These are then refined into biofuels. Mills in Sweden have been producing ethanol this way for a few years, but the Old Town Fuel & Fiber Mill in Maine believes bio-butanol is even better.

The government of Nova Scotia has allocated $20 million to the Minas Basin Pulp and Power Company Ltd. in Hantsport, to produce electricity from “forest byproducts,” and expand in order to produce biodiesel from plastics.

Even the federal government is offering a maximum of $1 billion to mills that use by-products to create energy, if they invest in improving their energy efficiency. Now that’s funding that does double duty.

Eco-friendly schools

This fall, kids going back to school will be learning a lot about a certain colour: green.  In many places in Ontario, kids will be starting their day by climbing onto green buses.

They’re still yellow, don’t worry all you traditionalists.  But inside, they’re actually “green.”

Student Transportation of Canada (STC) has announced plans to increase their fleet of “green” buses to 900 biofueled vehicles. Already a leader in biofuel transportation, STC is intent on reducing their carbon emissions and shrinking their carbon footprints.

The green doesn’t stop once the children get to school.

In some lucky places, the kids are greeted upon their arrival with school gardens designed by Evergreen, a non-profit organization. They help create a garden that is both attractive for play, but also teaches them about plant growth and food production.

In Hamilton, a design for a new Catholic school will include solar panels, a green roof, rain-water toilets, outdoor classroom, and light systems that self-adjust based on the amount of sun. It will be the only LEED-certified school in the area.

Apart from the prestigious LEED-status, the Seeds Foundation has been recognizing schools for their green efforts for 30 years. Schools are rewarded for taking on projects as simple as recycling in the classroom, and litter clean-up days.

Designations are based on the number of projects completed, from Green status for 100 projects, to Earth School status with 1000 projects, and beyond.

With everyday exposure to things like recycling, awareness of greenhouse gas, and environmental clubs, students walk away with the tools to make smart and Earth-friendly decisions later on.

Eco-friendly Ottawa

Ottawa, being the capital, naturally aspires to being a leader among Canadian cities.

Good leadership means not just being a good role model, but also the first to try new ideas and pave the way for greener possibilities. With the addition of a bike-share program, and the country’s first ever Ethanol gas station, they’re doing just that.

The Public Bike System has two stations in downtown Ottawa, and two in Gatineau, sharing a total of 50 bikes for its trial launch period. In the future, they hope to have as many as 500 bikes available for users in the National Capital Region.

A $3 user fee applies.  Users swipe their credit cards, and are given a code to unlock a bike. The first half hour is free, but to encourage a quick turnaround, additional charges apply after 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, for one month, ethanol will be offered at a Shell station on Merivale road. It’s actually blend of 1/10 ethanol and 9/10 regular gas, and will not cost extra. This may seem like a small change, but for its developer, Iogen, it’s a milestone.

Since the ‘70s, Iogen has been working on a cellulostic biofuel. That means it uses plant material – husks and stalks rather then the edible corn itself – thereby not affecting food sources. Based in Ottawa, local farmers supply Iogen the material.

Is it working? Many government vehicles already use Iogen’s locally produced ethanol, in mixes as great as 85 per cent ethanol. That said, both the bikes and the ethanol are trial versions. They’ll determine public interest and ascertain feasibility.

However, with good consumer response, they may return in full force.

Ethanol regulations

There are 12 ethanol producers in Canada spanning the country from the Prairie Provinces to Quebec. Doesn’t sound like very many, does it? Maybe not, but these companies are responsible for the production of 1390 million litres a year (MMly) of ethanol. 

From the corn-based ethanol plants in Ontario to the wheat and corn plants in the Prairies, the diversity of raw material reflects the availability of local materials. The smallest of the country’s producers, the Iogen Corporation located in Ottawa produces a mere 2 MMly. The country’s largest producer of ethanol is GreenField, whose four plants in Ontario and Quebec produce a total of 496 MMly. 

Why is this important? 

Recent government regulations are requiring refiners to include at least 5 per cent ethanol in their gasoline by September 2010. This 5-per-cent increase would create a market for approximately two billion litres of ethanol annually, a substantially higher volume than what Canada is currently churning out. 

Building new plants and creating jobs sounds great, but there’s a catch: ethanol can be as ‘dirty’ as gasoline. The biofuel industry has been highly controversial because deforestation and increased land cultivation are causing increased greenhouse gas emissions. 

All Canadian producers use natural gas in their production process, which cause fewer emissions than coal-fired ethanol, which actually creates 34 per cent more emissions per gallon of fuel than gasoline producers over a 30-year period. 

The Canadian government claims that grain-based biofuels can reduce emissions by 40 per cent compared to gasoline. But Natural Resources Canada’s calculations do not include indirect land use emissions. 

Over the longer term, as the one-time impacts of greater land cultivation fade, it is estimated that corn ethanol using natural gas will produce 16 per cent fewer emissions than gasoline. 

So is it worth it? Only time will tell.

Potato biofuel

Ah, the noble potato. Famous for feeding the Irish, as the perfect complement to hamburgers, and a word Vice President Dan Quayle couldn’t spell. 

Now, it may assume another aspect of fame – as fuel. You’ve heard of PEI’s Cavendish Farms – it’s one of the continent’s largest French fry producers. Recently, Cavendish officially opened a new biogas plant at its main potato processing plant. There’s nothing revolutionary here. The process is relatively simple. The plant will take waste from the production of fries – water and solid – and compost it. That’s it. The composting process creates energy, which will be used at the plant. 

That may not sound like a big deal, but it adds up in a hurry – and we’re talking about quite a lot of potatoes. When fully operational, the biofuel plant will reduce overall greenhouse gas emissions by up to 35 per cent. 

Potatoes are potentially a lucrative source of biofuel. Corn has been the biofuel crop of choice, for two reasons. First, it’s energy-rich; and second, corn is abundant. However, as biofuel gained in popularity, it created a problem: a lack of corn to actually eat. 

Two years ago, a study at North Carolina State University found an alternative: potatoes. Specifically, the researchers thought sweet potatoes most promising, but “regular” potatoes – like the ones they turn into French fries – are no less viable.

The natural place to start, of course, is a potato processing plant.

Going bananas for biofuel…peeling away at sustainability

What is yellow on the inside and green on the outside? A banana dressed up as a cucumber.

That may be a lame joke, but these days bananas really are dressing up green. Rotting banana skins are the latest additions to the growing list of raw sources for biofuel.

The banana biofuel has been most successful in countries across Africa where bananas are commonly grown and where cheaper alternate fuel sources are essential for survival, leaving no room for monkeying around.

According to scientists, every ton of bananas produces approximately ten tons of waste, made up of skins, leaves and stems.

Waste not, want not. The skins and leaves are now being mashed into a pulp, and then mixed with saw dust. The banana skins act like a glue, effectively binding the other materials together. Formed by hand or moulded into a brick using a press, the liquid can be squeezed out, producing an entirely different type of banana bread.

After two weeks baking in the sun, the briquettes become dried fuel that can be lit, used for heat or to make a cup of tea.

Other attempts at creating fuel sources in Africa have never succeeded since they were either too expensive or did not take local needs into consideration.

This simple and accessible solution may reduce wood consumption as a primary energy source, helping deforestation concerns in banana-producing countries like Rwanda, Tanzania and Burundi.

As you can imagine, everyone is going bananas over the idea.

Algae air

Did the Wright Brothers ever picture a future where we would be flying around in jets fuelled by seaweed? Probably not.

One of the very first test flights using a 50 percent blend of algae biofuel to power a Continental Boeing 737-800 proved that anything is possible. Just like the Wright Brothers first flight, this was also an innovation.

Not only was it the first flight by a U.S. carrier to use an alternative fuel source, but it was also the first in the world to use a twin-engine commercial aircraft to test a biofuel blend. A series of tests was conducted during the 90-minute flight and the airplane passed with flying colours. Airlines hope to be using biofuels by the year 2014.

But is algae a viable alternative? Absolutely.

Work is being done to create algae farms that will produce thousands of gallons of biofuel at a rate that exceeds current biofuel projects. Solix Biofuels in Colorado, for example, has raised $15.5 million in capital and will soon begin with a five-acre plot to produce “biocrude.’’ That will in turn be shipped to an oil refinery in place of crude oil.

So far, soybeans have so been the main source of biodiesel in the United States and yield about 50 to 70 gallons per acre. Solix has already achieved production of 1,500 gallons an acre of algae per year, with expected yields of 2,500 to 3,000 gallons an acre per year.

Soon, travellers everywhere could be flying the friendly skies…with seaweed.

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