One of the few places in the United States where E85 is making any significant retail headway is Minnesota. Of course the fact that a lot of corn is grown and processed there and the region has more E85 pumps than anywhere is in the country helps. In July of this year gasoline sales in the state were down nine percent compared to the same month in 2007. At the same time, E85 sales jumped 16 percent. Of course a closer look at the numbers reveals that it's not a simple transition from gas to ethanol. The total amount of fuel used was down significantly due in part to high prices. Gasoline sales dropped by 21 million gallons to 211,982,582 gallons. Even with the increase in ethanol sales, drivers only consumed about 2.5 million gallons of the biofuel. Minnesota currently has about 350 E85 stations, out of about 1,600 nationwide.

[Source: American Lung Association of Minnesota]

By 2015, everyone using diesel fuel in Minnesota will have a blend consisting of at least 20 percent biofuel thanks to a new law that was just passed. Governor Tim Pawlenty signed a bill this week that will increase the current 2 percent bio blend requirement to 5 percent in May 2009. In 2012 it doubles to 10 percent and doubles again 2015.

One of the concerns with using higher biodiesel blends has been the lack of a standard for anything greater than B5. Most new diesel vehicles are already certified for operation with B5 and Chrysler ships new diesel vehicles from its factories with that blend in the tank. A standard for B20 fuels is expected to be ratified by an SAE committee within the next few months. Once that standard is in place most carmakers have already said they will test and certify their diesel engines for use with the new fuel.

The Minnesota legislation also encourages the development of non-food based biodiesel feedstocks by requiring that at least five percent of the state's biodiesel comes from sources such as algae, tallow and waste oils.

[Source: National Biodiesel Board]

Legislators in Minnesota have introduced bills in the State House and Senate that would have the state adopt California's emissions standards. These California rules, which also include limits on carbon dioxide emissions, have been adopted by at least a dozen other states. The limits on greenhouse gas emissions are currently the subject of a lawsuit by California and other states against the EPA, which denied California's waiver request for the regulations.

The odd thing in Minnesota is that corn growers and ethanol producers have jumped into the fray against the proposals. There doesn't actually appear to be anything in the proposed legislation that would specifically harm the E85 market. However, the ethanol lobby is teaming up with the automakers who are obviously opposed to the California rules. It appears that the only way that this actually affects Team Ethanol is if the CO₂ limits hurt sales of larger cars and full-size trucks which comprise the bulk of currently available flex-fuel vehicles. If truck sales are limited by de facto fuel economy requirements, than at least in the short term, E85-capable vehicle sales will suffer. Perhaps the ethanol side should be pushing the auto industry to make more of their vehicles E85 ready instead of fighting clean air rules.

[Source: MinnPost, via The Truth About Cars]

AllSAFE, a group representing manufacturers of outdoor power equipment, marine manufacturers, small engine manufacturers as well as motorcycle and automobile manufacturers is warning us about E20. The group released a note stating that it might not be advisable to use mid-level ethanol blends, such as E20, with non-modified engines.

Currently, the EPA only allows a 10 percent maximum blend in "standard" gasoline (E10) at the pump. However the State of Minnesota and the Renewable Fuels Association released recently a feasibility study on upping that to a 20 percent blend in the state.

According to AllSAFE, more testing is needed to determine if E20 is really compatible for engines not originally designed for this fuel, as well as potential harm to catalysts, higher emissions and premature engine failure. AllSAFE also said that up to 240 million conventional vehicles and 100 million small engine products could be potentially affected by these blends. Only flexible fueled vehicles (FFVs) are designed, certified and warranted for use with ethanol blends greater than E10.

[Source: AllSAFE]

Over on the GMnext blog, Coleman Jones has posted a response to the recent push to go from E10 to E20 at regular gas pumps in Minnesota. Jones is the Manger of Biofuels Implementation at GM Powertrain. While GM has obviously been a huge proponent of the expanded use of ethanol, they are reluctant to endorse this move toward E20. Their concern has to do with durability over the long term. Vehicles sold as E85 capable have already gone through all the durability testing necessary to ensure that the engines, including the fuel system and exhaust system, will survive the long-term use of E20 and higher concentrations of ethanol. Non flex-fuel engines haven't gone through this kind of rigorous testing and a one year test of 40 vehicles isn't considered sufficient.

[Source: GMnext]

The Governor of Minnesota, Tim Pawlenty, wants to see the nominal amount of ethanol in regular gasoline blends increased from 10 percent (pretty much the national standard) to 20 percent and Pawlenty's office released a report this week in support of that idea. Researchers at University of Minnesota and Minnesota State University conducted a study evaluating the performance of forty pairs of vehicles that were operated on E0 (i.e., biofuel-free gasoline) and E20 fuels. They found no statistical difference in the performance of cars over the 13-month study period. Based on this study, the researchers are declaring that blending twenty percent alcohol into pump gasoline won't cause any problems.

Carmakers disagree however, claiming that anything beyond a ten percent blend could cause problems for cars in the field due to corrosion. The cars tested in the study were relatively new and recent model cars would likely have few, if any, problems running on E20. The issue lies in the fact that with close to 300 million cars on the road in the U.S. now, and a median age of nine and a half years, half of those cars are over a decade old. Most of those cars very likely will have issues with E20. There is also the issue of whether we should be pushing harder for more widespread use of ethanol until cellulosic sources become commercially available. I'll leave that argument for another time. None of this however is likely to stymie any politician promoting the products of his state.

[Source: USA Today, Via The Truth About Cars]

The fallout from that Science report that was highly critical of biofuels continues. In Minnesota, a state known for its ethanol support, a total of $1.5 million in biofuel grant funds have been "temporarily suspended" thanks to the negative information that came out in the report. The grants were from two soybean growers' groups - the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association and the Minnesota Soybean Research and Promotion Council - and were destined for biofuel researchers at the University of Minnesota. The groups now want to meet with school officials, including Allen Levine, the dean of the College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences, before moving forward with handing out the money. Are they cutting the funds for good, or is this just a temporary halt before ethanol promoters get their PR lined up again? Thanks to Bob from ALAMN for the tip. Note: the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association is a partner in ALAMN.

[Source: MNSpeak]

There has been talk of a continental U.S. ethanol pipeline before. Back in 2006, Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Richard Lugar (R-IN) proposed legislation on the issue, but it didn't get very far. The idea didn't die, though. This past week, Magellan Midstream Partners and Buckeye Partners announced that the two companies would begin thinking about building a 1,700-mile pipeline across half the continent to bring ethanol from the corn states of Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota and South Dakota to Pennsylvania and New York. The idea, the companies said, is to bring up to 10 million gallons of the biofuel "safely and efficiently" to the Northeast every day. How much would this cost? The companies estimate $3 billion and "several years," but more details will be forthcoming after Magellan and Buckeye Partners finish a feasibility study later this year. For his part, Senator Harkin is still very much in favor of a pipeline.

UPDATE: Forgot to mention this pipeline story as well.

[Source: Magellan]

There is a movement in Minnesota right now that is looking to the EPA for approval to adopt a 20 percent ethanol blend as a replacement for standard fare gasoline. This has prompted the American Motorcyclist Association to question whether or not the effects of running higher ethanol ratios in motorcycle engines might pose the risk of inadvertently damage the engine. They wonder if sufficient testing has been done to assure that there will be no problems. While the AMA is focusing solely on motorcycles, the question would apply to any internal combustion engines which were not designed to be used with an alcohol fuel. As you may be aware, certain rubber components inside an engine might not be compatible with alcohol, and certain metal components might also be a concern.

This would be a concern outside the state of Minnesota as well, because when one state gets a waiver, others are free to follow suit. This is why California's more stringent emissions requirements have been adopted in other states as well. Currently, gasoline sold to consumers can contain up to 10 percent ethanol.

[Source: The American Motorcyclist Association]

The Minnesota Senate has passed their state's Renewable Energy Standard requiring Minnesota utilities to generate a minimum 25 percent of their electricity renewably by 2025. Xcel Energy is to jump the gun and aim for 30 percent renewable generation by 2020. There is a back door clause however which allows the Public Utilities Commission to modify the standard in relation to a particular utility if it determines that electricity prices will significantly increase or reliability would decrease if the implementation proceeded.

A Renewable Energy Credits Trading System will also be created within twelve months so that companies who are exceeding their renewable targets can trade additional credits to others that are under performing.

Analysis: We have a similar trading scheme in Australia called, remarkably enough, Renewable Energy Credits or just RECs. RECs can be created by residential solar hot water systems, photovoltaic installations, hydro, wind, or other forms of renewable energy generation. It's a great way to encourage excess production of renewable energy because you can always trade away what you don't need. The way we generate our electricity is going to become increasingly important with the movement towards PHEVs and EVs.

Related:

• How about a garage covered in wind turbines with solar windows?
• Cheap solar power poised to undercut oil and gas by half
• Fluorescents to replace incandescents Down Under

[Source: Clean Edge]

A University of Minnesota team is celebrating a fourth-place finish in the World Solar Rally held last month in Taiwan.

Nicknamed Borealis III, the car ran fourth out of 10 teams. Winning was a team from Japan followed by two Taiwanese teams.

Team leader Patrick O'Connor says the vehicle was just as fast as the competition but tires and an occasional gremlin hampered a winning effort. The 3-day race had timed and untimed segments, including drives through traffic.

The Minnesota car was capable of 85mph sprints while the winner topped 100mph.

The university team will start work on a new car soon.

[Source: MNDaily.com]

National Biodiesel Board executive director Joe Jobe told Illinois Farm Bureau directors that biodiesel production in 2006 should be 150 million gallons, double the 2005 amount. The catch is that this biodiesel has to be quality stuff, man. Low-quality fuel, like the thing in Minnesota with poor quality biodiesel, could discourage consumers from embracing the fuel as heartily as they otherwise would.
This just makes sense. The alternative fuel market is getting pretty crowded, with hybrids and electric vehicles often targeting the same demographic. Any perceived or real weakness in a technology or fuel choice could have lasting effect on the market. Glad there a National Biodiesel Board to tell us these things. [Source: Illinois Farm Bureau. Thanks to Joel A]

The St. Paul Pioneer Express (through the Great Lakes Pollution Prevention Roundtable) we discover that there could be a political fight brewing between the governor of Minnesota, Tim Pawlenty, and President Bush. Bush recently criticized local governments for requiring different blends of biofuels in different parts of the country, which raises gas prices and makes distribution more difficult. Minnesota has been requiring 10 percent ethanol blend in its fuel since 1997. Pawlenty said yesterday that Minnesotans would “fight ferociously” if the federal government tries to limit ethanol blends and that instead of criticizing local governments for taking the lead, the President should work for a national standard of at least E10. [Source: St. Paul Pioneer Express via GLPPR]

Twincities.com has up an AP mini-story on city busses in St. Paul and Minneapolis that will soon be running on a little bit of biodiesel added to their diesel fuel. The busses will start using B5 this summer. Minnesota state law requires all diesel fuel sold in the state to be at least B2, so the Metro Transit should be applauded for exceeding the legal limit. While one government official says there has been no negative impact of the fuel on the busses engines, it does get awfully cold in Minnesota so it’s unlikely we’ll see the percentage of biodiesel, which gels in cold temperatures, used in the busses grow too high any time soon. [Source: TwinCities.com, Photo from AOL Hometown]