• BEST Energies, Inc., Madison/Cashton, Dane/Monroe Counties, $500,000 Grant and $500,000 Loan. This start-up company will use its grant for a two-phase project: 1) to develop technology for recovering corn oil from ethanol production and using this product in its biodiesel facility; and 2) to design and produce efficient ethyl biodiesel products.

• Virent Energies, Inc., Madison, Dane County, $500,000 Grant and $500,000 Loan. Virent Energies, Inc. (Virent) is continuing to develop aqueous phase reforming, an innovative technique for generating biofuels and bioproducts from carbohydrates in biomass. Virent will receive $1 million to design, build, and operate a pilot production plant capable of producing up to 10,000 gallons of gasoline per year.

• Johnson Controls-Saft Advanced Power Solutions LLC, Glendale, Milwaukee County, $500,000 Grant. JCS will use the grant to develop advanced materials, components, and processes for manufacturing lithium-ion batteries for use in hybrid and electric vehicles.

• C5-6 Technologies, Inc., Middleton, Dane County, $350,000 Grant. C5-6 Technologies, Inc. was spun out from Lucigen Corporation in 2006 to develop and commercialize enzymes for biofuel production. It will use its grant to develop a group of novel enzymes designed to significantly increase ethanol yield in current corn ethanol plants.

• Hilbert Biodiesel LLC, Hilbert, Calumet County, $336,000 Loan. Hilbert Biodiesel LLC is a producer of biodiesel fuel. The company will use its loan to produce a high-quality, marketable B100 biodiesel fuel from animal and vegetable waste products.

• Grand Meadow Energies LLC, Stratford, Marathon County, $265,000 Grant. Grand Meadow Energies LLC has developed a system to produce biodiesel fuel from algae and ethanol from whey wastes. The company will use its grant to develop an optimal blend of these feedstocks to produce biodiesel fuel.

• Fuel Makers LLC, Eden, Fond du Lac County, $250,000 Grant. Fuel Makers LLC designs, builds, and manages bio-energy facilities for the production of electricity and liquid fuels. The company will use its grant to establish a research and development facility focused on the conversion of cellulosic and other carbon-based materials into methanol, ethanol, diesel fuel and synthetic gasoline.

• Great Lakes Ag Energy LLC, Fitchburg, $250,000 Grant. Great Lakes Ag Energy LLC has been a green-energy developer and consultant to the biofuels industry since 2005. It will use its grant to perfect the conversion of agricultural residues, byproducts, and wood biomass to nano-porous cellulose for conversion to biofuel.

• Idle Free Systems, Inc., Watertown, Dodge/Jefferson County, $250,000 Grant. Idle Free Systems, Inc. develops and produces innovative technologies to eliminate the need for idling truck engines. The company will use its grant to test and develop its biofuel flow system. The system will permit year-round use of biodiesel fuel in diesel-fueled vehicles.

• Silatronix, Inc., Madison, $243,000 Grant. Silatronix, Inc. is a start-up company founded to develop a novel electrolyte component for use in lithium ion batteries and ultra capacitors. It will use its grant to develop expertise in clean energy engineering and business development to advance the company’s technology platform.

• American Science and Technology Corporation, Wausau, Marathon County, $150,000 Grant. American Science and Technology Corporation is researching the development of vehicular fuels from agricultural and forest products. It will use its grant to research a biorefinery process that can be used in existing pulp and paper manufacturing facilities in Wisconsin.

• Paradigm Sensors LLC, Milwaukee, Milwaukee County, $150,000 Loan. Paradigm Sensors LLC is designing and marketing a hand-held impedance spectroscopy (IS) technology that tests for glycerin, acid, methanol, and blend percentage in biodiesel fuel. The company will use its loan to develop a handheld, biofuel water analyzer in order to test water percentages in biofuels.

Other awards include:

• Advanced Fiberglass Technologies, Wisconsin Rapids, Wood County, $1 million CDBG Loan. Advanced Fiberglass Technologies is one of the Midwest’s largest producers corrosive storage and handling equipment. It will use its loan to expanding its composite manufacturing capacity to produce components for wind energy and methane digester systems. The project could eventually create up to 300 jobs.

• C&D Technologies, Inc., Milwaukee, Milwaukee County, $500,000 Loan. C&D Technologies, Inc. markets systems for the power conversion and storage of electrical power, including industrial batteries and electronics. The company will use its grant to design and develop a large-format, lithium-ion energy storage system for use with wind and solar power generation.

• Orion Energy Systems, Inc., Manitowoc, Manitowoc County, $420,000 Loan. Orion Energy Systems, Inc. designs, manufactures and provides high-performance, energy- efficient lighting systems, controls, and related services for commercial and industrial customers. The company will use its loan to demonstrate the commercial viability and practical value of its solar-energy-harnessing device for lighting industrial facilities.

• Energenecs, Inc., Oconomowoc, Waukesha County, $313,000 Loan. Energenecs, Inc. provides applications engineering, equipment, and field services for water and wastewater treatment and control systems for municipal and industrial customers. The company will use its loan to expand and upgrade the City of Oconomowoc’s wastewater treatment plant. The project will replace the current anaerobic digestion system with a model biogas-to-renewable energy system.

• GreenStone Technologies LLC, Madison, $250,000 Grant. GreenStone Technologies LLC is a start-up company working to develop and commercialize building-integrated, photovoltaic products using solar cell technology, specifically skylights and windows. The company will use its grant to develop a working prototype of a solar window.

• Pabst Engineering and Manufacturing, Inc., Onalaska, La Crosse County, $250,000 Grant. Pabst Engineering and Manufacturing, Inc. intends to produce scalable anaerobic digesters for medium-sized dairy farms. The company will use its grant to develop a prototype bioreactor that should accelerate the digestion process by up to 90 percent.

• SolRayo LLC, Madison, Dane County, $250,000 Grant. SolRayo LLC focuses on new nanotechnology-based materials for energy-storage applications. The company was founded in 2006. It will commercialize a new material that will cut cost and increase the electrical energy storage of ultra-capacitors, making wind and solar energy more practicable for utility use.

• Eaton Corporation, Milwaukee, Milwaukee County, $229,000 Grant. The company will use its grant to develop a power conversion and energy storage system that manages the energy from a renewable source.

• INOV8 International, Inc., La Crosse, La Crosse County, $135,000 Grant. INOV8 International, Inc. manufactures a line of oil furnaces, burners, and heaters that use its patented technology to produce heat and/or hot water from waste oils. The company will use its grant to test and develop a dual-fuel burner that will enable restaurants to use waste vegetable oil as fuel to produce hot water.

• Bio-Energy & Environment LLC, Madison, $100,000 Grant Bioenergy & Environmental LLC provides various services in connection with the design and development of biogas energy and environmental solutions. It will use its grant to help fund both research into algae growth and production variables and the development of a small, prototype “closed reactor” cultivation plant.

• Bio-Products Engineering Corporation, Richland Center, Richland County, $70,000 Grant. Newly formed, Bio-Products Engineering Corporation plans to convert high-strength, volatile fatty acids into methane-rich biogas. The grant will help the company finance part of the conversion at laboratory scale to establish parameters needed to commercialize this promising technology.

• Steinbine Development LLC, Deerfield, Dane County, $55,000. Established in 2007, Steinbine Development LLC develops and manages small hydroelectric plants throughout the country. It is working on an innovative impulse turbine to recover unutilized hydropower resources. It will use its grant to evaluate the turbine’s efficiency and life cycle.