Biofuel Breakdown: Algae, Biomass, Waste

Written by Jeff St. John

Everyone's heard of making fuel from biomass, but how about from hazardous waste?

That's the plan from Tinton Falls, N.J.-based ForeverGreen Enterprises and Celebration, Fla.-based International Power Group Ltd., which this week announced a joint venture to build a $227 million plant in Indiana that will turn industrial, chemical and medical waste into methanol and hydrogen.

By late 2010, the LaFontaine, Ind., plant will process up to 750 tons of waste into ethanol, biodiesel and electricity, the companies announced.

ForeverGreen, which will own 75 percent of the plant, will contribute its technology to break down the waste to the molecular level.

The International Power Group, which will own 25 percent of the plant, will provide technology to convert the heat generated by the plant into energy, which will in turn help power the plant.

The companies also said they expect more plants to come, but gave no specifics. Aside from the biofuel plant, ForeverGreen also is raising money for a $100 million plant to make hydrogen from waste.

Meanwhile, Ensyn Corp. and UOP LLC, a Honeywell International Inc. (HON) subsidiary, on Wednesday announced they're also forming a joint venture.

The venture, expected to be finalized in the fourth quarter of this year, plans to develop technology and equipment to convert forest and agricultural wastes to pyrolysis oil, also known as bio-oil, a tar-like substance that can be burned for power and heating applications. Advocates hope bio-oil, currently used in food additives, could replace some petroleum products.

The joint venture plans to use Ensyn's "rapid thermal-processing" technology, which the company claims can convert biomass to liquid in less than two seconds, to convert the waste to bio-oil. Using bio-oil to make transportation fuel requires further synthesis, and the two companies said they plan to research "next-generation" technologies to commercialize this process as well.

Not all biofuel companies are content to use waste.