Colusa Biomass to Build 10-Million-Gallon Cellulosic Ethanol Plant; Rice Straw the Feedstock
21 August 2006
Colusa Biomass Energy Corporation has selected a 15-acre site within the Colusa Industrial Park (Colusa, California) for a 10-million-gallon per year cellulosic ethanol plant. Colusa expects to commission the plant in the fourth quarter of 2007.
Colusa will use approximately 120,000 tons per year of waste rice straw as the feedstock for the plant, which is located in a prime rice-producing area of the Sacramento Valley. The area—which produces about 18% of the rice grown in the United States—produces approximately 1.3 million tons of waste rice straw residue annually.
Colusa will produce ethanol, silica/sodium oxide and lignin from the waste biomass, including the waste rice straw, waste rice hulls and other cellulosics. Silica/sodium oxide is a widely used ingredient with applications in the paper industry, by detergent and soap producers and for the production of gels, catalysts and zeolytes.
The Colusa process ferments both 5-carbon and 6-carbon sugars to ethanol using an existing closed-loop fermentation system employing genetically-engineered thermophilic bacteria—Bacillus stearothermophilus—developed by Agrol, Ltd. in the UK. Colusa developed its own set of physical and chemical treatments to release the sugars from the lignocellulosic material for fermentation.
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Here is one interesting thought, many plants take up metals in their roots. Besides heavy metal contamination remediation, precious metals may be recovered in similar fashion. In a syngas xTL process, the minerals are recovered during the gasification process.
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___On a side note, OTEC (and a similar process run via waste heat or solar energy production) may also recover elements. Though it is mostly Na And Cl, there are other minerals like magnesium, uranium, and gold. The resultant freshwater may be used for algae oil/biomass production or other human uses.
Posted by: allen Z | 21 August 2006 at 06:42 PM
This is good news. They used to burn the rice straw and it caused air pollution. Nice to see they are putting it to good use. I would have gone for gasification, to get the lignin energy though.
Posted by: SJC | 21 August 2006 at 09:13 PM
So could they burn the left over waste to produce some of the energy required to run the facility?
It's great to see some cellulosic plants poping up that are more than just pilot projects.
Posted by: Tripp | 22 August 2006 at 12:45 PM
FYI
Posted by: sheila and dave | 28 August 2006 at 09:08 AM
i am planning to set up ethanol production using rice straw.
please let me know to what extent you would help me setting a plant having capacity 100,000 lit/day
early reply is requested
narinder m paracer
Posted by: PARACER BIO-ENERGIES | 23 March 2008 at 11:52 PM
i am planning to set up ethanol production using rice straw.
please let me know to what extent you would help me setting a plant having capacity 100,000 lit/day
early reply is requested
narinder m paracer
Posted by: PARACER BIO-ENERGIES | 23 March 2008 at 11:53 PM