Class notes from 10\19\2010 by Bridget Sexauer

Hoby Douglass of General Biodies= el

Lives in a van down by the river and has a sweet mustache
His company has two main objectives:

Waste collection (from restaurants and malls…= ;)
biofuel conversion

· = Biggest export is to China but <= span class=3DSpellE>Hobie here disagrees with the energy required to expo= rt it overseas just for cheap feedstock

Marketing position #1: low carbon fuel

Electricity is great if you ignore the environmental effects
Electricity is really cheap and hard to compete wit= h
A byproduct of biofuel = is glycerin which can be used in the cosmetics industry in the future once they are able to purify it to meet quality specifications
They sold their glycerin to an anaerobic digester up north, if they can get $1 M reactor? or som= ething they can further process that glycerin and sell it.<= /li>

GreenPartner program member

Microsoft is testing biodiesel in fleet vehicles, started with B5 (shuttle connector vans)<= /p>

· = Omg no one told me Tom Selleck = was speaking today

Stan Barns = Bioalgene, CEO and founder of

They look at third generation of more of algae (biodiesel being second generation)
Strategic program is to grow more algae, raise $20 million to begin 10 sites with industrial partners
Algae can be selectively chosen so it is not necess= ary to genetically modify them
Like Al Gore, algae grow fast and get real fat (…? direct quote, I think)
Can fly biofuels in pla= nes, this type is 2% lighter AND 2% more powerful wow, Boeing is interested…

600MW coal fired power plant in Boardman, Oregon
Let them clean up coal exhaust= Took exhaust and fed it to algae to make fuel
They gave them a plot with a lake which was gravity= fed with cow poo
convert 50m tons CO2 to ?? tons of jet fuel
Cement manufacturers heat limestone to get lyme for cement which gives CO2 byproduct, so th= ey can use their algae to clean that up too

Algae is a toxic problem in some areas (toxic bloom= s) which is hard to get rid of so they offer the solution of capturing th= at algae and making fuel out of it
They just require a pond to grow the algae in, CO2 emissions which is abundant in most processing facilities as exhaust, and the end product is a usable fuel. Everyone wins!
Legislation tightens their scrutiny on these busine= sses which is good for these guys because they offer a way to make use of t= heir exhaust without them having to change anything about what they do, kind of a passive way to be environmentally proactive but it’s cool because it’s hugely beneficial to everyone.

Questi= ons

· These businesses are largely legislation driven; they work on= the fact that pressures exist on industry to be more environmentally conscious = and that they offer a solution for them. If that pressure did not exist, there would be no incentive to collaborate with these guys.

· There are still businesses that charge to pick up oil from restaurants! Hoby does it for free. “It’s like an asteroid landed and no one knows about it”

· Hoby: He’s not interested until Microsoft tells him he’s interested, now Microsoft’s tell= ing him he’s interested. (on reluctance of food service guy)

· Hoby: Once you know, you can’t unknow. B= rilliant. Don’t feign ignorance people

· Its better to have that relationship with the small busines= ses, it has intrinsic value, we own that relationship. (on why they still cater to the small guys)

· What they are trying to do here is change the model with wha= t is a waste product. The stuff we throw away bounces back and affects the water and air. Almost all waste is a resource that just hasn’t = been thought of yet. It’s good business.

· Low sulfur diesel isn’t as good for engines as full sulfur, and biodiesel barely has any so to composi= te for that well it doesn’t have a direct replacement but biodiesel is a cleanser so your engine is sparkly clean when you open up. Biodiesel = is basically exactly like a clean pore strip but instead of for your face it’s for your filthy engine.

· Algae has all the ingredients of petroleum plus proteins and other crap which is why it is best to make in l= arge quantities so those byproducts can be sold.

· How much does your business depe= nd on legislation? Hoby: if all Americans knew that we give tax credits/breaks to the exxons etc they would be = more upset….. let’s not build a business that’s based on taxpayer credit, let’s build a business that is self sustaining and if we get a tax credit let’s call ourselves lucky= .

· What is the value of carbon credits and how sensitive are we= to it? American value $4/ton, euro is $14/ton. Credits are a small element, they don’t build their business model o= n non self sustaining factors. Hoby: RIN 5c-50c =3D administrative hassle t= hat is a silly pretend thing.

· What is the projected yield for algae fuel? 500M tons = CO2 =3D 100M tons. DOE to replace half of fuel consum= ption with alternative fuels by 2016.

· Many fleets have been mandated to replace a percentage of fu= el with renewables, which is a result of legislati= ve action. This includes ferries.

· “Energy lobbyists have so much influence when compared to little gnats like us.R= 21; – Hoby <3

· Energy lobbyists =3D devil<= /o:p>

· Seed stock = vs feed stock? Google it.

· Take away: we are now in the inf= ancy of alternative fuel integration into the grid and into our cars. Now = is the time to hop on, start a business in alternative fuels, work for a compa= ny, be a scientist and develop these technologies further, invent new ways to convert/derive/use these technologies.

· We are going to run out of petroleum. The sky is blu= e.

· Europeans don’t like GMO’s but we may need to delve into that but we won’t do it unl= ess we can get organisms that are not toxic or pose any kind of threat to their environments.

· What are some important issues that students should look at? &nb= sp; = “LCA!!” (life cycle analysis) – Stan, “I mak= e a difference!” – Hoby, “I don’t actually live in a van down by the river” - Hoby