American Biodiesel news

By JEFF MORELAND


FREDERICK, Md. — The race is on for a cleaner, more efficient and renewable source for energy, and it has been for some time. A Frederick-based group is one of the latest in the nation to enter the race, and it met Tuesday, Nov. 29 to discuss the steps necessary to bring a biodiesel plant and soybean crushing facility to the area.
Jeremy and Robert Butz have been in the soybean processing business for more than 10 years, and they spoke briefly, along with representatives from other areas of the industry, about what a plant could do for the area, and how it would operate.

Robert Butz said soybean farmers have seen a drop in profits, and will likely continue to do so. He pointed out trends that say farmers will lose money again this year, the largest impact will be felt by the smaller farmers.
“The small farmer with no storage for his beans is losing because he has to sell at a lower price rather than store his beans and sell them later (when prices may be higher),” he said.

Butz explained the “soybean basis,” which is the difference in price farmers receive for their beans in comparison with the price being paid on the Chicago Exchange Board. He said the current basis is minus 54 in central Maryland, meaning the farmers in the area are losing an average of 54 cents per bushel to the cash price quoted at the Chicago Board of Trade.
“When you hear farmers say, ‘We are losing 50 cents on our soybeans,’ that is absolutely true,” Robert Butz said.

The building of a soybean crushing facility and biodiesel plant in Frederick would offer farmers an alternative for their beans. Jeremy Butz talked about how the crushing facility works and how soybean meal would be produced, as well as how the oil would be extracted from the beans. He gave a presentation showing photos of the crushing facility, and stressed the smaller size of it in comparison to the grain storage on most larger farms.
“The grain facility, size-wise, dwarfs the bean plant,” Jeremy Butz said.

He said a plant in the Frederick area would likely process around200 tons of soybeans per day while operating three to four production lines. He added that a plant would be friendly to its neighbors, giving off no emissions.
Jeremy Butz pointed out a few interesting facts about soybeans and the products that come from them. He said a gallon of soybean oil weighs seven pounds, and 1.0-1.2 gallons of the oil comes from each bushel of beans. In addition, 50 to 51 pounds of soybean meal can be produced from a bushel of beans. He said soybeans are not the only crop that could be used in the plant, and other food stocks could be processed, possibly leading to other crops becoming popular in Maryland in the future.

“We can squeeze oil out of just about anything,” he added.
As for biodiesel, the refinery process for the fuel begins in the crushing facility with a process called degumming. It is a necessary step in removing gum from the oil after it has been extruded from the beans, then the gum is returned to the meal, reducing it as waste and adding to the meal. Jeremy Butz said 3 percent of oil is gums, and the other 97 percent is oil. A market does exist for the gum, but he stressed that it can be returned to the meal.

“I can’t emphasize enough that this is a natural process,” Jeremy Butz said. “We would build this to food-grade standards as well.” He added that organic products would also be an option for those interested in organic meal and other products.
Susanne Zilberfarb with the Maryland Soybean Board talked about biodiesel in comparison to petroleum diesel, and stressed the safety issues and the environmental benefits of soydiesel. She said biodiesel has a lesser risk of explosion since its flash point is 260 degrees Farenheit, opposed to the 150-degree flash point of petroleum diesel. Biodiesel is also safer in transportation, and she pointed out that no special requirements exist for transporting pure biodiesel.

“It (biodiesel) is combustible, but not flammable,” she said. “It doesn’t have to be placarded for transportation.”
While many people have heard of biodiesel, or even the generic term “soydiesel,” Zilberfarb said that term has no technical definition. Biodiesel, on the other hand, is defined as meeting ASTM D-6751 standards from the American Society of Testing and Materials.

Efficiency is another strong point of biodiesel, and it outweighs petroleum diesel greatly, according to numbers Zilberfarb presented. She said every unit of energy used to produce biodiesel produces 3.2 units of energy in return. Conversely, petroleum diesel provides a return of only .88 units of energy for every one unit used to produce it. She said biodiesel is produced with no smells or high pressure, and no heat is required. Biodiesel production also gives off no smells or emissions, according to Zilberfarb.
As plans begin to get off the ground for a plant in Frederick, others around the area are springing up as well. A location in Clayton, Del., is currently under construction, and others are listed as proposed sites in Pennsylvania. The states with the most plants currently are Texas with eight and California with four plants in operation.

If constructed as planned, the Frederick plant would be the only of its kind in the region, bringing in raw soybeans and sending out refined biodiesel.
Jeremy Butz said a feasibility study is the next step in the plans to determine how, and even if, a plant would fit into the area. Butz said the expected cost for this study is around $50,000. Funds are currently being sought to cover the cost of the study, and from there, the future of biodiesel in Frederick will be determined.

Zilberfarb indicated that the Maryland Soybean Board does not have the funds available to assist in this study.