AMES, Iowa -- The growth of the ethanol industry in Iowa and around the world is bringing new challenges and opportunities for investors and managers of ethanol plants. Iowa has 13 fully operational ethanol facilities, and several more that are in the construction or planning phases.
Currently, ethanol facilities are designed to process corn starch using a fermentation process. The non-starch portion of the corn passes through the fermentation process and results in dried distillers grains and solubles (DDGs), which are used as feed ingredients in beef, dairy, swine and poultry rations. However, new technologies are being developed and proven that can lead to higher value products and increased profits for investors.
Robert Brown, Director of the Office of Biorenewables Programs at Iowa State University (ISU), says that rapid expansion of the corn ethanol industry represents some interesting challenges. If the demand for ethanol outpaces the demand for DDGs, growth of the industry might stall.
“The production of value-added products from DDGs will be key to future profitability of the corn ethanol industry,” Brown predicts. Brown leads a team of researchers at ISU that is exploring methods and technologies to produce value-added products from DDGs. According to Brown, DDGs are a complex mixture of protein, fiber, carbohydrate and oil, which is not efficiently used even by cattle to produce animal protein. Brown and his colleagues are exploring ways to completely convert DDGs into value-add products.
The team, which includes scientists and engineers from ISU and South Dakota State University, first removes economically recoverable oils and proteins from the DDGs. The high fiber byproduct that remains is gasified to a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen known as syngas, which is then fermented by purple non-sulfur bacteria to biobased polymers and additional hydrogen.
In addition to work being conducted at ISU and other universities in the United States, companies such as Abengoa, VeraSun and ICM, are developing technologies for DDGs and even technologies that break up corn at the “front end” of the ethanol process which will eliminate DDGs altogether. The fiber and germ (oil) portion of the corn can then be converted to high-value products. Representatives from these companies will be describing their research and development efforts during the upcoming 2005 Biobased Industry Outlook Conference in Ames, on Aug. 29-30. The representatives will also be discussing partnership opportunities and the future of biobased products and the bioeconomy.
The conference, Growing the Bioeconomy: Planting Ideas, Cultivating Partnerships, and Harvesting Progress, will focus on providing information for individuals and groups interested in business opportunities in the area of renewable energy and biobased products.
The conference features several internationally known keynote speakers. Participants will have the opportunity to share ideas, strategies and new technologies to promote the expansion and diversification of existing biobased businesses. Breakout sessions will provide information about new technologies and strategies for manufacturing biobased chemicals and fuels, as well as funding options for research and development, commercialization and marketing.
For more information about Brown’s DDGs research, visit the Office of Biorenewables Programs Web site at http://www.biorenew.iastate.edu/. To learn more about the 2005 Biobased Industry Outlook Conference, visit http://www.valuechains.org/bewg/Conf2005/.
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