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Alliant part of new ethanol plant technology
By RYAN BRINKS, TIMES-REPUBLICAN
POSTED: December 19, 2007
In the midst of a cooling ethanol industry, Alliant Energy announced last week its partnership in a new biomass-fueled steam technology that has cut an ethanol plant’s energy consumption in half.
By recycling ethanol residue and by-products back into the steam production cycle as fuel, the process can cut operating costs by more than 50 percent and reduce emissions.
“With ethanol prices lower than they’ve been in recent years and capital costs required for expanding or building new plants soaring, producers are looking for ways to operate more efficiently and reduce costs,” said Tom Aller, president of Alliant’s Interstate Power & Light Company, in a press release. “This technology is the answer to being a low-cost ethanol producer in today’s competitive marketplace.”
The technology is AE&E-Von Roll’s fluidized bed reactor technology, and both IPL and mechanical contracting firm Harris Companies are co-patent holders. Further, FCStone Carbon, LLC has joined them to provide marketing and arrange financing options for ethanol producers interested in it.
As ethanol production has more than doubled in the past eight years, energy balance is a key issue, according to Alliant. This technology will help producers reduce energy consumption while increasing the efficiencies of ethanol production.
Energy costs for a typical 50-million-gallon-per-year ethanol plant represent approximately 20 percent of its total annual operating costs, Alliant said. For every gallon of ethanol produced, 29 cents is spent on natural gas and four cents is spent on electricity.
“We see this as another risk mitigation and cost reduction tool that we can bring to the industry,” said Mike Knobbe, president of FCStone Carbon. “Our objective is to help develop and commercialize technologies that enable our customers to improve efficiencies, reduce their environmental impact and capture green house gas emissions credits, which we can market on their behalf.”
The process was first implemented in the United States at Winnebago, Minn.’s Corn Plus Cooperative and satisfies up to 100 percent of the plant’s need for process steam, resulting in the reduction of total plant natural gas consumption of more than 52 percent. Other ethanol plants are currently considering the technology.
For more information, call Alliant at 800-373-1303, ext. 786-4320 or e-mail salesupportCID@alliantenergy.com
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Contact Ryan Brinks at 641-753-6611 or rbrinks@timesrepublican.com
By recycling ethanol residue and by-products back into the steam production cycle as fuel, the process can cut operating costs by more than 50 percent and reduce emissions.
“With ethanol prices lower than they’ve been in recent years and capital costs required for expanding or building new plants soaring, producers are looking for ways to operate more efficiently and reduce costs,” said Tom Aller, president of Alliant’s Interstate Power & Light Company, in a press release. “This technology is the answer to being a low-cost ethanol producer in today’s competitive marketplace.”
The technology is AE&E-Von Roll’s fluidized bed reactor technology, and both IPL and mechanical contracting firm Harris Companies are co-patent holders. Further, FCStone Carbon, LLC has joined them to provide marketing and arrange financing options for ethanol producers interested in it.
As ethanol production has more than doubled in the past eight years, energy balance is a key issue, according to Alliant. This technology will help producers reduce energy consumption while increasing the efficiencies of ethanol production.
Energy costs for a typical 50-million-gallon-per-year ethanol plant represent approximately 20 percent of its total annual operating costs, Alliant said. For every gallon of ethanol produced, 29 cents is spent on natural gas and four cents is spent on electricity.
“We see this as another risk mitigation and cost reduction tool that we can bring to the industry,” said Mike Knobbe, president of FCStone Carbon. “Our objective is to help develop and commercialize technologies that enable our customers to improve efficiencies, reduce their environmental impact and capture green house gas emissions credits, which we can market on their behalf.”
The process was first implemented in the United States at Winnebago, Minn.’s Corn Plus Cooperative and satisfies up to 100 percent of the plant’s need for process steam, resulting in the reduction of total plant natural gas consumption of more than 52 percent. Other ethanol plants are currently considering the technology.
For more information, call Alliant at 800-373-1303, ext. 786-4320 or e-mail salesupportCID@alliantenergy.com
———
Contact Ryan Brinks at 641-753-6611 or rbrinks@timesrepublican.com
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