Author Archive: Jim Lane

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Responding to Trump with a Rebel Yell: the new economies of Pittsburgh and Paris and Paris and Paris

Responding to Trump with a Rebel Yell: the new economies of Pittsburgh and Paris and Paris and Paris

June 4, 2017 |

Last November, Donald J. Trump was elected president by the voters of Paris. Paris, PA, that is. It’s a suburb of Pittsburgh, as it happens. Of “I was elected by voters of Pittsburgh, not Paris,” fame.  Where Pittsburgh mayor Bill Peduto joined the mayors of more than 175 cities in a rebel yell that has […]

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President Trump pulls US out of Paris Climate Treaty: “We’re getting out”

President Trump pulls US out of Paris Climate Treaty: “We’re getting out”

June 1, 2017 |

In Washington, President Trump said that he would withdraw the US from the Paris Climate Treaty signed by President Obama last year. The move leaves the US as one of three countries that are opposing the Paris Agreement — the others are Syria and Nicaragua. The President denounced the Climate Treaty for its “draconian terms” […]

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Makin’ Money in Muddy Waters with a Magic Molecule

Makin’ Money in Muddy Waters with a Magic Molecule

June 1, 2017 |

In Wisconsin, James Dumesic and his cohort of biomagicians revealed that they have trained up gamma valerolactone (GVL) into a solvent that converts biomass into three viable products, in one step — the platform chemical furfural, a dissolving pulp that can be spun into textile fibers and a highly pure lignin that makes battery anodes […]

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Renewable jet fuel’s progress: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Gevo’s ATJ

Renewable jet fuel’s progress: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to Gevo’s ATJ

June 1, 2017 |

Alcohol-to-jet. Several are working on it – Byogy, for example, and Vertimass, Virent and LanzaTech. But Gevo has been working through the rigorous ASTM process for six years, which includes extensive engine testing and data analysis by all of the major original equipment manufacturers to establish the specification for this drop in fuel. Once approved, this […]

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Transforming eco-product performance and accessibility: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to DuPont and biomaterials

Transforming eco-product performance and accessibility: The Digest’s 2017 Multi-Slide Guide to DuPont and biomaterials

May 31, 2017 |

DuPont has developed a multi-part strategy to deliver new technologies to the growing biofuels and chemicals markets market. The strategy includes: (1) improving existing ethanol production through differentiated agriculture seed products and crop protection solutions as well as through improved bioprocessing aids and enzymes that allow animals to get the most out of valuable ethanol co-products; […]

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Burn better, cook faster, save $$: the quest for an efficient African cookstove

Burn better, cook faster, save $$: the quest for an efficient African cookstove

May 31, 2017 |

By 2050, Africa will need 2.9 billion tons of wood per year to provide cooking fuel for its population, and according to the FAO it will require 771 million hectares of woody biomass cultivation to support that demand, and Africa only has 649 million hectares of forest if no one cuts any down in the […]

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ExxonMobil’s owners revolt against management over climate change transparency

ExxonMobil’s owners revolt against management over climate change transparency

May 31, 2017 |

In a stunning result in Dallas, ExxonMobil shareholders revolted against management over the company’s climate change policy, as investors holding 62.3% of the company’s shares called on the company to reveal the impact of climate change policy on the company’s operations.  The company’s management vigorously opposed the non-binding measure, saying that it already conducts sufficient […]

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Carbon dioxide from flue gas v. Concentrated by-product chemical sources; and the impact of distribution costs on economic feasibility

Carbon dioxide from flue gas v. Concentrated by-product chemical sources; and the impact of distribution costs on economic feasibility

May 31, 2017 |

By Sam A. Rushing, Special to The Digest At this time, it could be a great opportunity for the right source to take a look at the possibilities of making money with CO2 production and distribution on their own; or even reevaluate the current production / supply arrangement with a current gas company supplier, before […]

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Anellotech Confidential: Pilot running, new mystery investor as catpyro begins to scale

Anellotech Confidential: Pilot running, new mystery investor as catpyro begins to scale

May 31, 2017 |

In New York, Anellotech and IFPEN/Axens engineers completed a successful continuous performance test of the TCat-8 pilot plant as part of unit commissioning in Silsbee, Texas. The test involved continuous injection of MinFree woody biomass feedstock and production of BTX and other valuable chemical by-products. The primary objectives of the test were met by demonstrating […]

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Natural alternatives to rubber: The Digest’s Multi-Slide Guide to novel, US-based rubber-producing crops

Natural alternatives to rubber: The Digest’s Multi-Slide Guide to novel, US-based rubber-producing crops

May 30, 2017 |

  The US can support rubber/energy crops the size of corn or soybean with hundreds of thousands of new jobs, says Katrina Cornish of the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center, and the need is pressing, she notes, because world rubber demand is expected to grow from 12 million tons in 2014 to 30 million […]

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