BIOMASS HUB

According to Agricultural consulting firm ProExporter Network, the EPA is betting that cellulosic diesel, not cellulosic ethanol, will make up the lion’s share of the advanced biofuel mandated in its RFS2 regulations.

Cellulosic diesel, mainly distillate derived from the Fischer-Tropsch (FT) process, may reach 11.08 billion gallons relying heavily on corn stover and dedicated perennials such as switchgrass.  FT, the technology pathway for “gas-to-liquids” (GTL) and “biomass-to- liquids” (BTL) production, is the process of using catalysts, heat, and pressure to turn synthetic gas into clean liquids that have the advantages of very high cetane and zero sulfur.  Despite its green reputation, FT has a checkered past and was used by the Axis Powers during World War II and then further developed by the Apartheid government of South Africa in response to international trade embargoes.

EPA defines cellulosic diesel as “a diesel fuel product produced from cellulosic feedstocks that meet the 60% GHG threshold” and says that it could qualify either as “cellulosic biofuel” or “biomass-based diesel.”  The RPS originally provided a large carve out for cellulosic ethanol.  EPA has since pared back its 2010 cellulosic biofuel blending obligation to just 6.5 million gallons, down from 100 million gallons as originally proposed.  However, advanced biofuel, which includes cellulosic biofuel as well as biomass-based diesel, must reach 21 billion gallons by the year 2022.