As demand for renewable energy is increasing rapidly, the market for biomass pellets is expected to continue to grow in the near future. Most of the new raw materials that are discussed for pellet production have one thing in common; the production costs will increase compared to using traditional raw materials such as sawdust and planer shavings. The aim of this thesis is to investigate to what degree increased use of new raw materials for pellet production will affect the general pellet prices in Sweden and to survey what plans Swedish pellet producers have concerning new raw materials. To investigate the raw material situation of the Swedish pellet producers an industry survey was performed. Literature studies were also made on previous research in the subject field. Calculations of the production costs for pellets were done for the raw materials sawdust, wet sawmill chips and energy wood respectively.                 New raw materials are already used by the large-scale pellet producers in Sweden. It is mainly the large-scale producers that have started to use new raw materials such as energy wood, wet sawmill chips and dry chips. Around 65% of the respondents of the survey were planning for new raw materials. Most commonly planned for was energy wood. Most of the pellet producers in the survey were planning for raw materials that give high quality pellets. The minimum price for pellets is in the long run set by the production costs. The raw material costs are the most important part of the production costs and according to results from the survey they also affect the pellet prices most. For pellets made of sawdust the raw material costs were typically 2/3 of the total production costs in 2009. In calculations of production costs, wet sawmill chips resulted in a decreased cost by 4% compared to sawdust, mainly because of less expensive raw material. Energy wood also resulted in decreased production costs by 4% compared to sawdust, assuming that the thermal energy needed for drying could be entirely produced with the bark from the debarking process. Both energy wood and wet sawmill chips could hence decrease the production costs and thereby the price for pellets. Even though there is a much greater maximum pellet production potential for wet sawmill chips than for sawdust the amounts of available raw material will, among other factors, depend on the development in the pulp industry.

The world of energy is changing. With rising energy costs and concerns over the supply of energy materials, more research is being conducted into alternative sources of fuel and microalgae is one of the sources being researched, although much research had been conducted on it as a part of the Aquatic Species Program from the 1970s to the early 1990s. With the emergence of microalgae as a source of alternative energy, the need for an economic analysis of microalgae has arisen. This research studies the economic feasibility of the design and operation of a microalgae production facility in two Texas locations (Pecos and Corpus Christi) and in southeastern New Mexico using a stochastic simulation model. It examines the production levels needed for the facility to be profitable and also some facility designs necessary for that profitability. It also measures several annual financial indicators so that potential investors have some estimates of the future profitability of the microalgae industry. The results show that for microalgae to become a viable commercial operation, production must be improved beyond the current levels and the levels suggested by the literature. Production needs to be at least 0.8 g/L/day with 40 percent oil content and 24 inches of water depth. Production must be improved through increasing growth rates and oil contents at greater water depths. Production can be improved through nutrient and carbon dioxide usage, two elements that are being heavily researched. Water usage will become a major focus because of the limited resources and the quantities necessary to operate a commercial-scale facility. With the necessary improvements in technology and research, microalgae could prove to be a viable source of alternative energy.

Electrocoagulation was compared to centrifugation at pilot scale for harvesting Nannochloris oculata and Nannochloropsis salina for biodiesel production. The pilot scale testing is a proof of concept and no optimization was conducted. Testing used the KASELCO commercial electrocoagulation system. The KASELCO electrocoagulation system successfully coagulated microalgae in laboratory testing. Aluminum and stainless steel electrodes successfully recovered algae in laboratory testing. Electricity consumed was lowest using aluminum electrodes in laboratory testing, but inconsistently coagulated microalgae at the pilot scale. Stainless steel electrodes consistently recovered algae and were selected as the primary electrode to treat microalgae at the pilot scale. Scaling power settings to pilot testing using laboratory data was successful following KASELCO’s proprietary guidelines. The KASELCO electrocoagulation system showed an electrical reduction in pilot scale operational cost for harvesting. Economic analysis using the Algae Income Simulation Model concluded that the KASELCO electrocoagulation system increase net present value of a commercial algae farm by $56,139,609 using a discount factor of 0.04. The KASELCO electrocoagulation system was calculated to use 26 kWh/ton at a commercial algae farm. However, cultivation and extraction processes are energy intensive, resulting in minimal electrical savings for the algae farm. The increase in net present value reduced production costs at the algae farm by 1%. The probability of success for the microalgae farm was zero for all scenarios analyzed. While a reduction in capital and operational costs were observed, several improvements, including harvesting using electrocoagulation, in cultivation, extraction, and conversion are necessary for economic success for biodiesel production using algae farms.

Consolidated bioprocessing, a process in which cellulase production, substrate hydrolysis, and fermentation occur simultaneously, offers the potential for lower biofuel production costs than traditional approaches and is an economically attractive near-term goal for fermentative production of ethanol and/or hydrogen (H2) as biofuels. Current yields fall short of theoretical maxima, vary considerably between species, and are influenced by the highly branched metabolic pathways utilized by fermentative organisms. For fermentative ethanol/ H2 production to become practical, yields must be increased either through intelligent species selection, a manipulation of culture conditions, or via the implementation of rational metabolic engineering strategies. A comparative genomics approach amoungst select members of the Firmicutes, Euryarchaeota, and Thermotogae was used to identify genes relevent to ethanol and H2 production. Growth, end-product synthesis, enzyme activities and the associated transcription of select genes were studied in the cellulolytic anaerobe, Clostridium thermocellum ATCC 27405, during batch fermentation of cellobiose to determine the effect of elevated N2 and H2 sparging on end-product distribution. The absence of genes encoding acetaldehyde dehydrogenase and bifunctional acetaldehyde/alcohol dehydrogenase (AdhE) correlates with elevated H2 yields and low ethanol production. The type(s) of encoded hydrogenases appear to have minimal impact on H2 production in organisms that do not encode ethanologenic pathways, however, they do influence reduced end-product yields in those that do. We also find that while gas sparging can be used to effectively shift carbon and electron flow, the observed shifts at the pyruvate branch-point are likely principally influenced by the availability of reduced electron carriers (NAD, NADP, ferredoxin) and thermodynamic considerations. Finally, both electrotransformation and conjugative plasmid protocols were developed and evaluated for thermophilic species C. thermocellum and Thermoanaerobacter pseudethanolicus 39E, and the mesophilic bacterium, Clostridium termitidis CT1112. The efficiency of transformation for C. thermocellum strain ATCC 27405 is consistently low whereas transformation frequencies were ~100-fold higher in C. termitidis. Observed frequencies of plasmid transfer, via conjugation, were similar in both C. thermocellum and C. termitidis suggesting the transfer of single stranded DNA may circumvent aggressive restriction methylation systems.

Consolidated bioprocessing, a process in which cellulase production, substrate hydrolysis, and fermentation occur simultaneously, offers the potential for lower biofuel production costs than traditional approaches and is an economically attractive near-term goal for fermentative production of ethanol and/or hydrogen (H2) as biofuels. Current yields fall short of theoretical maxima, vary considerably between species, and are influenced by the highly branched metabolic pathways utilized by fermentative organisms. For fermentative ethanol/ H2 production to become practical, yields must be increased either through intelligent species selection, a manipulation of culture conditions, or via the implementation of rational metabolic engineering strategies. A comparative genomics approach amoungst select members of the Firmicutes, Euryarchaeota, and Thermotogae was used to identify genes relevent to ethanol and H2 production. Growth, end-product synthesis, enzyme activities and the associated transcription of select genes were studied in the cellulolytic anaerobe, Clostridium thermocellum ATCC 27405, during batch fermentation of cellobiose to determine the effect of elevated N2 and H2 sparging on end-product distribution. The absence of genes encoding acetaldehyde dehydrogenase and bifunctional acetaldehyde/alcohol dehydrogenase (AdhE) correlates with elevated H2 yields and low ethanol production. The type(s) of encoded hydrogenases appear to have minimal impact on H2 production in organisms that do not encode ethanologenic pathways, however, they do influence reduced end-product yields in those that do. We also find that while gas sparging can be used to effectively shift carbon and electron flow, the observed shifts at the pyruvate branch-point are likely principally influenced by the availability of reduced electron carriers (NAD, NADP, ferredoxin) and thermodynamic considerations. Finally, both electrotransformation and conjugative plasmid protocols were developed and evaluated for thermophilic species C. thermocellum and Thermoanaerobacter pseudethanolicus 39E, and the mesophilic bacterium, Clostridium termitidis CT1112. The efficiency of transformation for C. thermocellum strain ATCC 27405 is consistently low whereas transformation frequencies were ~100-fold higher in C. termitidis. Observed frequencies of plasmid transfer, via conjugation, were similar in both C. thermocellum and C. termitidis suggesting the transfer of single stranded DNA may circumvent aggressive restriction methylation systems.

abstract: Research in microbial biofuels has dramatically increased over the last decade. The bulk of this research has focused on increasing the production yields of cyanobacteria and algal cells and improving extraction processes. However, there has been little to no research on the potential impact of viruses on the yields of these phototrophic microbes for biofuel production. Viruses have the potential to significantly reduce microbial populations and limit their growth rates. It is therefore important to understand how viruses affect phototrophic microbes and the prevalence of these viruses in the environment. For this study, phototrophic microbes were grown in glass bioreactors, under continuous light and aeration. Detection and quantification of viruses of both environmental and laboratory microbial strains were measured through the use of a plaque assay. Plates were incubated at 25º C under continuous direct florescent light. Several environmental samples were taken from Tempe Town Lake (Tempe, AZ) and all the samples tested positive for viruses. Virus free phototrophic microbes were obtained from plaque assay plates by using a sterile loop to scoop up a virus free portion of the microbial lawn and transferred into a new bioreactor. Isolated cells were confirmed virus free through subsequent plaque assays. Viruses were detected from the bench scale bioreactors of Cyanobacteria Synechocystis PCC 6803 and the environmental samples. Viruses were consistently present through subsequent passage in fresh cultures; demonstrating viral contamination can be a chronic problem. In addition TEM was performed to examine presence or viral attachment to cyanobacterial cells and to characterize viral particles morphology. Electron micrographs obtained confirmed viral attachment and that the viruses detected were all of a similar size and shape. Particle sizes were measured to be approximately 50-60 nm. Cell reduction was observed as a decrease in optical density, with a transition from a dark green to a yellow green color for the cultures. Phototrophic microbial viruses were demonstrated to persist in the natural environment and to cause a reduction in algal populations in the bioreactors. Therefore it is likely that viruses could have a significant impact on microbial biofuel production by limiting the yields of production ponds. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Civil and Environmental Engineering 2014

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Biological & Agricultural Engineering / Donghai Wang / Among potential alternative liquid fuels, bioethanol is the widest utilized transportation fuels and mainly made from grains. Cellulosic biofuels provide environmental benefits not available from grain or sugar-based biofuels and are considered as a solid foundation to meet transportation fuels needs in a low-carbon economy, albeit with electrified vehicles and other technical advances. The objective of this research was to develop and optimize various bioprocessing units to boost cellulosic bioethanol titers and yields in order to accelerate the commercialization of cellulosic bioethanol production. The results showed high-solids biomass bioconversion (12%, w/v) was inefficient in the laboratory rotary shaker. However, a horizontal reactor with good mixing was effective for high solids loading (20%, w/v), yielding 75 g/L of glucose. To achieve the minimal economical ethanol distillation requirement of 40 g/L, integrated bioprocesses were conducted to boost ethanol titers and yields through co-fermentation of starchy grain and cellulosic biomass. The maximum ethanol concentration (68.7 g/L) was achieved at the corn flour and hydrothermal-treated corn stover ratio of 12:12 using raw starch granular enzyme with the ethanol yield of 86.0%. Co-fermentation of starchy substrate with hydrolysate liquor from saccharified biomass was able to significantly enhance ethanol concentration and reduce energy cost for distillation without sacrificing ethanol yields. These results indicated integration of first and second generation ethanol production could significantly accelerate the commercialization of cellulosic biofuel production. Novel technology, modified simultaneous saccharification and fermentation, was firstly established to enhance ethanol titers and yields, which achieved high ethanol titers of 72.3 g/L at high biomass loadings of 30% (w/v) with 70.0% ethanol yield.

Os biocombustíveis são produzidos de acordo a conjunturas do mercado de petróleo e das commodities agrícolas, e são inseridos na esfera produtiva dos derivados de petróleo através de incentivos governamentais. O objetivo do trabalho foi analisar a relação entre os setores de biocombustíveis, alimentos e petróleo recorrendo ao referencial teórico sobre renda dos recursos naturais e ao método histórico. Na primeira etapa foram identificados vasos comunicantes entre os preços do petróleo e de algumas commodities agrícolas, observando que o excedente criado com o petróleo influencia os preços das commodities agrícolas e, a partir do processo de financeirização desta esfera, os comercializadores oligopsônicos de alimentos podem extrair um excedente dos proprietários da terra. Na segunda etapa foram analisados os programas brasileiros. Foi observado que no caso do biodiesel a criação de rendas diferenciais a partir da produção de matérias primas da agricultura familiar fica restringida. A obtenção deste tipo de rendas depende do preço de mercado dos óleos vegetais provenientes da agricultura capitalista e de acordo aos incentivos formulados para o PNPB ainda não se configura um mercado de referência que permita escolher o mercado de energia sendo preferível auferir a renda da terra no mercado de óleos vegetais para alimentação. Análise comparativa revelou com significância estatística que os preços dos óleos vegetais tendem a ser superiores aos dos fósseis equivalentes. Os resultados da pesquisa permitem concluir que as tentativas de viabilizar o biodiesel: a) na década de 1970 careceram de articulações políticas para superar as dificuldades impostas pelas condições de mercado, em comparação com o etanol; b) na retomada dos anos 2000, apesar da intensa articulação institucional e dos incentivos, permanecem as dificuldades decorrentes da limitada escala de produção da matéria prima e da natureza dos mercados de óleos vegetais e o preço regulador definido pelo dos fósseis equivalentes. No caso do álcool, a instrumentalização do Estado por parte das elites, permitiu a criação de incentivos, principalmente a favor dos produtores de açúcar e/ou álcool durante várias décadas, até conseguir a opção de obter rendas absolutas e diferenciais nos dois mercados. As condições de mercado criadas por esta articulação permitiu criar um preço regulador para o etanol baseado, inicialmente, no mercado do açúcar e depois no mercado de derivados do petróleo. A pesquisa demonstra que o álcool combustível no Brasil criou, através dos incentivos governamentais, capacidade de reprodução com alta produtividade / custos baixos e balanço energético favorável. Sua permanência é devida à frota de flex-fuel lançada em 2003. Apesar das articulações institucionais o etanol combustível não se autonomizou e permanece vinculado ao comportamento dos preços reguladores determinados pela esfera dos combustíveis fósseis. / Biofuels are produced according to conjunctures of the agricultural commodities and oil markets and are inserted into the productive sphere of oil products through government incentives. The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between the biofuel, food and oil sectors using the theoretical framework on rent of natural resources and the historical method. In a first step communicating vessels between oil prices and some agricultural commodities were identified. The surplus created in the oil sector is influences the prices of agricultural commodities and from process of financialisation of this sphere, the traders oligopsony can extract surplus from landowners. In the second step the Brazilian programs were analyzed. Creating differential rent in biodiesel production with raw materials from family farming is quite restricted. Obtaining this type of rent depends on the market price for vegetable oils from capitalist agriculture. Incentives formulated according to PNPB not yet sufficient to prefer the energy market instead of obtaining land rent in alternative markets for the vegetable oils. Statistically significant comparative analysis revealed that vegetable oil prices tend to be higher than the equivalent fossil oils. The results allow to conclude that attempts to make biodiesel production viable: a) in 1970´s lacked political alliances to overcome the difficulties imposed by market conditions , compared with ethanol; b ) in the resumption of the 2000s, despite of intense articulation and institutional incentives, difficulties remain, arising from the limited scale of production of the raw material as well as from the nature of markets of vegetable oils and their regulating price defined by equivalent fossil oil . In the case of ethanol, the instrumentalization of the State by elites, enabled the creation of incentives, especially for producers of sugar and/or ethanol, during several decades, until building up the option to obtain absolute and differential rents in both markets. Market conditions created by this articulation allowed enabled the establishment of regulating price for ethanol based initially on the sugar market and eventually on the oil market. This research shows that ethanol fuel in Brazil created, through the governmental incentives, reproduction capacity with high productivity / low costs and favorable energy balance. Their permanence is due to the flex-fuel automobiles launched in 2003. Despite the institutional linkages ethanol fuel did not become autonomous and its remains linked to the behavior of prices determined by the regulatory sphere of fossil fuels.

Os biocombustíveis são produzidos de acordo a conjunturas do mercado de petróleo e das commodities agrícolas, e são inseridos na esfera produtiva dos derivados de petróleo através de incentivos governamentais. O objetivo do trabalho foi analisar a relação entre os setores de biocombustíveis, alimentos e petróleo recorrendo ao referencial teórico sobre renda dos recursos naturais e ao método histórico. Na primeira etapa foram identificados vasos comunicantes entre os preços do petróleo e de algumas commodities agrícolas, observando que o excedente criado com o petróleo influencia os preços das commodities agrícolas e, a partir do processo de financeirização desta esfera, os comercializadores oligopsônicos de alimentos podem extrair um excedente dos proprietários da terra. Na segunda etapa foram analisados os programas brasileiros. Foi observado que no caso do biodiesel a criação de rendas diferenciais a partir da produção de matérias primas da agricultura familiar fica restringida. A obtenção deste tipo de rendas depende do preço de mercado dos óleos vegetais provenientes da agricultura capitalista e de acordo aos incentivos formulados para o PNPB ainda não se configura um mercado de referência que permita escolher o mercado de energia sendo preferível auferir a renda da terra no mercado de óleos vegetais para alimentação. Análise comparativa revelou com significância estatística que os preços dos óleos vegetais tendem a ser superiores aos dos fósseis equivalentes. Os resultados da pesquisa permitem concluir que as tentativas de viabilizar o biodiesel: a) na década de 1970 careceram de articulações políticas para superar as dificuldades impostas pelas condições de mercado, em comparação com o etanol; b) na retomada dos anos 2000, apesar da intensa articulação institucional e dos incentivos, permanecem as dificuldades decorrentes da limitada escala de produção da matéria prima e da natureza dos mercados de óleos vegetais e o preço regulador definido pelo dos fósseis equivalentes. No caso do álcool, a instrumentalização do Estado por parte das elites, permitiu a criação de incentivos, principalmente a favor dos produtores de açúcar e/ou álcool durante várias décadas, até conseguir a opção de obter rendas absolutas e diferenciais nos dois mercados. As condições de mercado criadas por esta articulação permitiu criar um preço regulador para o etanol baseado, inicialmente, no mercado do açúcar e depois no mercado de derivados do petróleo. A pesquisa demonstra que o álcool combustível no Brasil criou, através dos incentivos governamentais, capacidade de reprodução com alta produtividade / custos baixos e balanço energético favorável. Sua permanência é devida à frota de flex-fuel lançada em 2003. Apesar das articulações institucionais o etanol combustível não se autonomizou e permanece vinculado ao comportamento dos preços reguladores determinados pela esfera dos combustíveis fósseis. / Biofuels are produced according to conjunctures of the agricultural commodities and oil markets and are inserted into the productive sphere of oil products through government incentives. The aim of this study was to analyze the relationship between the biofuel, food and oil sectors using the theoretical framework on rent of natural resources and the historical method. In a first step communicating vessels between oil prices and some agricultural commodities were identified. The surplus created in the oil sector is influences the prices of agricultural commodities and from process of financialisation of this sphere, the traders oligopsony can extract surplus from landowners. In the second step the Brazilian programs were analyzed. Creating differential rent in biodiesel production with raw materials from family farming is quite restricted. Obtaining this type of rent depends on the market price for vegetable oils from capitalist agriculture. Incentives formulated according to PNPB not yet sufficient to prefer the energy market instead of obtaining land rent in alternative markets for the vegetable oils. Statistically significant comparative analysis revealed that vegetable oil prices tend to be higher than the equivalent fossil oils. The results allow to conclude that attempts to make biodiesel production viable: a) in 1970´s lacked political alliances to overcome the difficulties imposed by market conditions , compared with ethanol; b ) in the resumption of the 2000s, despite of intense articulation and institutional incentives, difficulties remain, arising from the limited scale of production of the raw material as well as from the nature of markets of vegetable oils and their regulating price defined by equivalent fossil oil . In the case of ethanol, the instrumentalization of the State by elites, enabled the creation of incentives, especially for producers of sugar and/or ethanol, during several decades, until building up the option to obtain absolute and differential rents in both markets. Market conditions created by this articulation allowed enabled the establishment of regulating price for ethanol based initially on the sugar market and eventually on the oil market. This research shows that ethanol fuel in Brazil created, through the governmental incentives, reproduction capacity with high productivity / low costs and favorable energy balance. Their permanence is due to the flex-fuel automobiles launched in 2003. Despite the institutional linkages ethanol fuel did not become autonomous and its remains linked to the behavior of prices determined by the regulatory sphere of fossil fuels.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work / Laszlo Kulcsar / This dissertation examines the discourse of biofuels development in Kansas as promoted by rural growth machines. Corn-based ethanol production capacity and use in the United States has grown exponentially between 2000 and 2009, culminating with the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act’s 36 billion gallon Renewable Fuels Standard 2. At the national level, biofuels development is promoted by the media as important to national goals such as energy/national security, economic growth, and environmental improvement. Examination of the biofuels discourse employed content analysis of newspaper articles as well as in-depth individual interviews and focus groups. The analysis revealed that rural growth machines created an ethanol discourse similar to the one promoted at national level, but with an almost exclusive emphasis on the economic development frame. The rural growth machine’s ideological hegemony promoting ethanol development in the region was maintained through their power of creating and disseminating information. For the issue of biofuels development in Kansas, the analyzed newspapers played both conduit and contributor roles, as newspaper coverage strongly supported the interests of growth machines when the subject was local economic growth opportunities. Members of the rural growth machines set an exclusive and one-sided discourse to legitimate their pro-growth activities and to portray the ethanol development projects as corresponding with the wider good of these communities. Because of dwindling demographic and economic bases as well as scarce natural resources, local political and economic elites approached the issue of growth form a standpoint of hegemony. They promoted growth to carry out their own political and economic agenda while there was a strong desire among the residents for almost any type of economic development. This might explain the weak opposition to the actions of the growth machine in these rural settings.