DuPont Danisco bio fuel demonstration facility goes on stream
01 Feb 2010
The DuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol demonstration facility to turn corncobs and switchgrass into energy went on stream in Vonore, Tennessee, last week, becoming one of the world's first cellulosic ethanol demonstration facilities.
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| New facility turns corncobs and switchgrass into energy |
''The world should be watching Tennessee,'' said Joe Skurla, president and CEO, DuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol. ''Here in Vonore, DuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol and Genera Energy are well ahead of the curve on developing the entire value chain from feedstock to production. We delivered on our promise to investors, customers and the industry by initiating start-up at the end of last year and are on track to provide the industry with investment-grade packages that meet demands for low-cost, scalability and sustainability.''
The plant's completion and production start up represent a major achievement for the DuPont Danisco joint venture, Tennessee's Biofuels Initiative and for the cellulosic ethanol industry, which is under federal mandate to deliver 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel by 2022, of which 16 billion gallons must come from cellulosic sources.
University of Tennessee's Biofuels Initiative, established a bio energy crop research and production basis for the rapidly growing industry and attracted second-generation biofuels leader DuPont Danisco Cellulosic Ethanol to participate as an industrial partner in the development of the cellulosic ethanol biorefinery. The University of Tennessee Biofuels Initiative (UTBI), with the support of Genera Energy, is establishing a supply chain for fuel development.
The 74,000-square-foot plant is now producing ethanol and will deliver low-cost, fully-integrated technology for commercial production of ethanol from agricultural residue and bioenergy crops, including corncobs and switchgrass.