How has COVID impacted pollution? When history examines the 2020 impact of COVID 19, we believe it will show the pandemic as at least a bit of a mixed blessing. What we believe history will show is that as people flew and drove less, air quality drastically improved. In fact, we see predictions that carbon…
Forest biomaterials are a class of solid materials derived from trees and shrubs. Forest biomaterials are a source of renewable products that offer many benefits in terms of abundance, low density, strength, cost, easily shaped or used and performance. Obvious examples include building products, furniture and paper board, but the list also includes high-tech materials,…
So, what exactly is climate change and what do climate change experts do? Climate change is defined as a change in global or regional climate patterns. It is most pronounced from the mid to late twentieth century and forward and is largely attributed to increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere produced by the…
Renewable Jet Fuel? Having flown the “heavy iron” for more than thirty (30) years, I can state with full confidence that there are only three (3) very important questions pilots have about Jet Fuel: #1. Is it good quality fuel? #2. Do we have enough? #3. How much does it weigh? Everything else is more…
Chemicals from Biomass? A major theme of 21st Century industrial development will be replacement of fossil resources by renewable resources in the production of fuels and chemicals. Due to their massive scale and cost, the rate of displacing fossil facilities will necessarily be evolutionary rather than precipitous. The most likely scenario is that the biorefinery…
By Dr. Gerald Kutney, Lee Enterprises Consulting The 150th anniversary of Confederation on July 1st is a time to reflect upon the country’s achievements; this article covers the evolution of the Canadian biofuel industry – including gaseous, liquid and solid biofuels, and biomass power – from 1867 to 2017. The foundations of the biofuel industry in…
By Gregory T. Benz, Lee Enterprises Consulting Introduction Advanced fermentation processes, both aerobic and anaerobic, have been successful on an industrial scale for quite a long time, producing a wide variety of products. In most of these processes, if any gas has been added, it has been either air or oxygen-enriched air. In the advanced bioeconomy,…
The increasing amount of waste is one of the most demanding problems facing the world, which creates global environmental challenges. Worldwide, 2.12 billion tons of waste are generated annually, and it is expected to rise at the current trend. The most of the trash ends up in landfills emitting harmful pollutants into our air, water,…