February Webinars for the AIChE Forest Bioproducts Division: (1) The Future of Ethanol and (2) Liquid Fuels from Pyrolysis



Two Webinars in Feb. 2010 from AIChE's Forest Bioproducts Division

The Forest Bioproducts Division has begun offering a series of Webinars on topics of interest to the Division. These Webinars will supplement the technical information we provide at the Annual Meeting and help us serve members throughout the year. We offered webinars in February 2010, described in more detail below: (1) Dr. Jim Fredrick of the National Bioenergy Center at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory speaking on the future of ethanol and alternative transportion fuels, and (2) Nikolaus Schwaiger from the University of Graz speaking about his research in pyrolysis for the production of liquid fuels. Both were outstanding. Note: these webinars have already taken place, making it too late to register. Recorded content will soon be available from AIChE on Demand at AIChE.org for members of the Institute.

Advancing Beyond Ethanol: Future Supply, Demands, and Technology Development for Alternative Transportation Fuels

Join us for a Webinar on February 18

Advancing Beyond Ethanol: Future Supply, Demands, and Technology Development for Alternative Transportation Fuels

W. J. (Jim) Frederick, Jr.
Thermochemical Platform Program Manager
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Abstract
The world of transportation as we know it will undergo great change over the next 30 to 40 years. Much of this change will be governed by the availability of energy resources to power automobiles, trains, and planes. Much will be dictated by the willingness of populations to allocate excessive energy resources to individual transportation demands. An increasing world population, together with increasing expectations of improving quality of life and concomitant increasing demands for resources, will move increasingly precious resources such as energy to the center of public debate.

What is path forward with liquid fuels for transportation? Even if we are driving mainly electric cars in the future, there will be a transition period of 20-25 years as gasoline- or diesel-fueled cars are phased out. Trains may eventually provide much of the long-haul transport for people and freight, but intermediate distance transport will require liquid fuels. It is difficult to find alternatives to jet fuels for aviation. Will ocean-going vessels be nuclear or diesel powered?

The objective of this webinar is to provide participants with an overview of liquid fuels for transportation, their prodution technologies, and the tradeoffs among them. During this webinar we will explore some of the alternative technologies for liquid transportation fuels over the next several decades. What role will ethanol continue to play? What are “advanced” biofuels? How will they be produced, and from what feedstock? Will they be compatible with existing vehicles? What will they cost? Will they be sustainable?

Title:		Advancing Beyond Ethanol: Future Supply, Demands, and Technology Development for Alternative Transportation Fuels

Date:		Thursday, February 18, 2010

Time:		2:00 PM - 3:00 PM CST

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista

Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer

Bio for Dr. William J. (Jim) Frederick, Jr.

Jim is Thermochemical Platform Program Manager in the National Bioenergy Center at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, Colorado.

Jim joined NREL in September, 2008 as Thermochemical Platform Program Manager for the National Bioenergy Center. Prior to joining NREL, he was Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology, and Director of IPST, one of the five major research institutes at Georgia Tech. Earlier he held the CEI Professorship in Green Chemistry at Chalmers University of Technology (Sweden), was Professor and Head of Chemical Engineering at Oregon State University, Visiting Professor of Chemical Engineering at Åbo Akademi University (Finland) and held industrial positions with Weyerhaeuser Company and General Motors.

His research and industrial experience over past 37 years has focused mainly on chemicals and energy from biomass-containing industrial residues, emphasizing pyrolysis and gasification research and technology development for the past 16 years. He is author or co-author of two books and more than 140 technical papers. Jim has received AIChE’s Forest Products Division Award in 1998, a Visiting Professor award, from Monash University (Australia) in 2000, and the TAPPI Engineering Division’s Engineering Division Technical Award & Beloit Prize in 2008. He was elected TAPPI Fellow in 2007.

Jim received his B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in Chemical Engineering from the University of Maine.

A personal note: Jim maintains a close relationship with education through his son Bill (a 4th year medical student at UC Davis), his daughter Anna (a sophomore at Golden HS), and Erika (an 8th grader at The Manning School).

Liquid Products of Liquid Phase Pyrolysis: An AIChE Forest Bioproducts Webinar

Join us for a Webinar on February 10

LIQUID PRODUCTS OF LIQUID PHASE-PYROLYSIS
Nikolaus Schwaiger (1), Verena Mertlitz (1), Peter Pucher (2), Edgar Ahn (2), and Matthäus Siebenhofer(1).

1: Graz University of Technology; Institut für Thermische Verfahrenstechnik und Umwelttechnik, Graz. Austria

2: BDI-BioDiesel International AG; Grambach, Austria

ABSTRACT
Ligno-cellulosic feed is expected to contribute significantly to production of liquefied combustibles in future, because of the quantity and the variety of feed material. Therefore the pyrolytic degradation properties of wood and its building blocks glucose and cellulose were investigated.

The process was carried out in a semi-batch reaction vessel under isothermal conditions at a temperature of T = 623 K and at ambient pressure. For optimum heat transfer the pyrolysis process was carried out in liquid carrier phase. Gaseous products as well as condensibles were removed on top of the reaction vessel. Condensation temperature was T = 20 °C. After recording flux and composition the gaseous phase was incinerated in a flare. The condensed products were analysed by GC-MS and NMR spectroscopy as well as elementary analysis.

The product yield was determined. Liquid CHO-products and water formed during pyrolytic degradation were evaluated for several feed materials. All biomasses generate nearly the same amount of liquid CHO-products, while the water quantity differs. Because of lignin content wood generates the least water fraction, whereas the mono-sugar glucose shows a high tendency of water formation.

The yield was examined for selected products generated by liquid-phase pyrolysis. Wood, with about 40% cellulose, shows different reaction paths than cellulose and glucose monomer. Degradation of cellulose is seemingly controlled by cleavage plus dehydration, while ligno-cellulosic feed leads to formation of methoxy-substituted phenols. Moreover wood degrades to acetic acid, whereas cellulose and glucose forms just traces of it.

Contact: nikolaus.schwaiger at tugraz.at

Title:		Liquid Products of Liquid Phase Pyrolysis: An AIChE Forest Bioproducts Webinar

Date:		Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Time:		10:00 AM - 11:00 AM CST

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista

Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer

Bio for Nikolaus Schwaiger

Nikolaus Schwaiger is a doctoral student doing his Ph.D. studies at the Graz University of Technology at the Institute of Chemical Engineering and Environmental Technology. His work is sponsored by BDI-BioDiesel International AG. He has also studied at the Université de Rennes in Rennes, France as part of an ERASMUS stay. He has a degree from the Technical University Graz in Technical Chemistry and Chemical Engineering. In 2009 he completed a diploma thesis for BDI-BioDiesel International. Other work experience includes Sappi Austria, Gratkorn, where he was production operator. He was a member of the EnzyMoto Racing Team for the German ChemCar competition. Nikolaus has a black belt in judo and enjoys ski touring, mountaineering, fishing, and waterskiing.

First Webinar: Dr. Stuart, March 11

Biorefinery 101: Maximizing Benefits and Minimizing Risks Associated with Implementing the Forest Biorefinery

Join us for a Webinar on March 11

Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/307990682

Biorefinery 101: Maximizing Benefits and Minimizing Risks
Associated with Implementing the Forest Biorefinery

Paul Stuart
NSERC Environmental Design Engineering Chair
Department of Chemical Engineering, Ecole Polytechnique - Montreal

Abstract
There is little argument over whether the North American forest industry is in crisis. The corporate strategy for many forestry companies in recent years has centered on company mergers and continuous belt tightening. Merger activity has undoubtedly been critical, however it is clear that alone, it is not enough – a new business model is essential. The North American forestry industry has begun to discuss the need for “transformative changes”, where one possibility for this change is the so-called forest biorefinery. This presentation will outline an implementation strategy being considered by some forestry companies for producing “green” chemical products through the implementation of emerging biorefinery technologies, some of the risks facing these companies, and how they might systematically analyze opportunities using systems engineering techniques in order to mitigate the risk. A systematic design strategy for the biorefinery is outlined, underlining an approach which emphasizes a long-term sustainable approach.

Title:		Biorefinery 101: Maximizing Benefits and Minimizing Risks Associated with Implementing the Forest Biorefinery

Date:		Thursday, March 11, 2010

Time:		10:00 AM - 11:00 AM CST

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista

Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer

Biosketch for Dr. Paul Stuart

Paul is a Professor in the Chemical Engineering Department at École Polytechnique of the University of Montréal, where he has been Chairholder of an NSERC Environmental Design Engineering Chair entitled Process Integration in the Pulp & Paper Industry (www.pulp-paper.ca) since 2000. Prior to joining academia, Paul worked in process design consulting as Company Associate and Manager of Process Engineering at Beak Consultants Limited, as Partner and Manager of Environmental Services at Simons Environmental Group, and as Director of Process and Environmental Engineering Group at H.A. Simons Limited in Montreal (later AMEC). Prior to working in the consulting field, he received his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from McGill University. Paul is a past President of the Canadian Society of Chemical Engineering (CSChE), past Vice-Chair of the Canadian Design Engineering Network (CDEN), serves on Canada’s National Advisory Board on Energy S&T (NABEST), and is Principal Consultant for his one-man consulting company, Processys Inc.

Second Webinar: Dr. Zhu, March 18

Advances in Biofuels from Forest Products: SPORL, a Sulfite Pretreatment Technology for Woody Biomass Conversion

Join us for a Webinar on March 18

Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar seat now at:
https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/552717363

Advances in Biofuels from Forest Products: SPORL, a Sulfite Pretreatment Technology for Woody Biomass Conversion

Dr. Junyong Zhu
Scientific Team Leader
USDA Forest Products Laboratory
Madison, WI

Abstract
There is little argument over whether the North American forest industry is in crisis. The corporate strategy for many forestry companies in recent years has centered on company mergers and continuous belt tightening. Merger activity has undoubtedly been critical, however it is clear that alone, it is not enough -- a new business model is essential. The North American forestry industry has begun to discuss the need for "transformative changes", where one possibility for this change is the so-called forest biorefinery. This presentation will outline an implementation strategy being considered by some forestry companies for producing "green" chemical products through the implementation of emerging biorefinery technologies, some of the risks facing these companies, and how they might systematically analyze opportunities using systems engineering techniques in order to mitigate the risk. A systematic design strategy for the biorefinery is outlined, underlining an approach which emphasizes a long-term sustainable approach.

Title:		Advances in Biofuels from Forest Products: SPORL, a Sulfite Pretreatment Technology for Woody Biomass Conversion

Date:		Thursday, March 18, 2010

Time:		2:00 PM - 3:00 PM CDT

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista

Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer

Biosketch for Dr. J.Y. Zhu

Junyong Zhu, Ph.D
Scientific Team Leader
USDA Forest Products Laboratory
One Gifford Pinchot Dr.
Madison, WI 53726

Dr. Junyong Zhu joined the U.S. Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory (FPL), Madison, Wisconsin, in February, 2003 as a Project Leader and later as the Scientific Team Leader to lead a group of scientists and supporting staff engaging research in fiber and chemical sciences related to wood fiber and cellulosic ethanol production. Currently, he also holds an adjunct Professorship at the Dept. of Biological Systems Engineering of the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Before his appointment at the Forest Products Laboratory, Dr. Zhu was a faculty member at the Institute of Paper Science and Technology (IPST, now Part of Georgia Institute of Technology), Atlanta, GA, for about 10 years, where he was an Assistant Professor first and promoted to Associate Professor in 1999. He advised more than a dozen of graduate students to successful completion of their doctorate and masters degrees. He also directed about a dozen post doctoral research fellows and international visiting scholars.

Dr. Zhu research expertise is the area of woody biomass processing for fiber, biofuel, and chemicals, fiber resources and properties. Currently, his research is focused on biomass pretreatment for biochemical conversion, nanoscale phenomena and activities associated with enzyme access to lignocellulose, feedstock and substrate characterization, fiber and nano-cellulose production.

He is a Technical Editor of TAPPI Journal, member of the Editorial Board for BioResources, J. Biobased Materials and Bioenergy. He has published about 100 referred articles and delivered about 100 presentations at various national and international conferences. He is also a co-inventor of 10 inventions. Dr. Zhu has served on many scientific panels. In 2006, he was invited by the Canadian Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) as an international expert for the Site Visiting and Review Panel of a Collaborative Research and Development program. Currently, he is a panel member of the State of Wisconsin Research Forum for the Focus on Energy Environmental and Economic Research and Development Program.

Dr. Zhu received his Ph.D in Engineering from the University of California, Irvine, in 1991.


	Curator: Jeff Lindsay, Contact: Last Updated: Oct. 18, 2008 URL: "http://www.forest-products.org/webinar.html"