7:30 am - 8:30 am |
Breakfast
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7:30 am - 1:30 pm |
Expo Open
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8:30 am - 10:00 am |
Concurrent Tracks
Track 1: Production and Operations
Reviewing the Continuing Effort to Develop Yeast Strains Capable of Increasing Plant Efficiency and Overall Yield
Read Description
The economic rewards for even modest yield gains from improved yeasts has catalyzed the continuous work in strains optimized for ethanol production. This panel features presentations on a wide variety of strain traits including those that are enzyme expressing or are more tolerant of higher temperatures, pH or organic acid concentrations. The industry’s tight margin environment mandates that plant teams stay informed on the latest advancements in yeast strains and are prepared to capture those opportunities when they become available in the marketplace.
Moderator: Maha Dakar, Senior R&D Process Engineer, KATZEN International Inc.
- Matt Richards, Director of Application Technology, Lallemand Biofuels & Distilled Spirits
Advanced Yeasts: Continuing Innovation in Response to Producer Requirements
- Mickel Jansen, Senior Scientist Fermentation, DSM Bio-based Products & Services
Same Corn, More Value: Industrially Proven Yeast Technology
- Ananda Nanjundaswamy, Assistant Professor, Alcorn State University
Unraveling Yeast Transcriptomics: A Novel Strategy in Deciphering the Biochemical Basis for Biofuel Production
- Caroline Peres, Principal Scientist, DuPont Industrial Biosciences
Combining Assets: A New GA-Producing, Low Side-Products, High Yield Yeast
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Track 1: Production and Operations
Managing Plant Energy Requirements with Decreased Overall Carbon Intensities Top of Mind
Read Description
By itself, California’s commitment to a Low Carbon Fuel Standard put driving down the carbon intensity of their plant on the radar of many plant management teams. The continued momentum for low carbon fuel markets in neighboring Oregon and British Columbia has only accelerated this interest. Savvy management teams know that reimagining plant energy requirements is an obvious place to begin. Presentations in this panel will get producers thinking about their power and heat requirements and the carbon-reduced options commercially available to meet them now.
Moderator: Donna Funk, Principal, K-Coe Isom LLP
- Ben Root, Process Engineer, Saola Energy LLC
The Argument for Adding a Steam Let-Down Turbine to Take Advantage of LCFS Incentives
- Bernie Hoffman, CEO, TotalGen Services
An Evolving Industry Picking Up Steam
- Jim Ramm, Director of Engineering, EcoEngineers
On-site Energy Management
- Shrikant Rathi, General Manager, PRAJ Industries Limited
Maximize Your Margins with Carbon Intensity Reduction of Your Ethanol Plants
- Bill Schafer, CEO, Energy Integration Inc.
Supercharging the Fuel of the Future
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Track 2: Leadership and Financial Management
Building a Plant Culture that will Attract and Retain Top Talent
Read Description
The importance of a motivated team to an organization is so well agreed upon it has become cliché. Nevertheless, developing and maintaining an energized and positive work environment vexes many management teams. The presenters in this panel assert the key to avoiding the production-sapping impact of low motivation and employee turnover is to build a team that feels empowered to make critical decisions, inspired by managers who trust in their abilities and are allowed to share in the plant’s overall success.
Moderator: Robert White, Vice President, Industry Relations, Renewable Fuels Association
- Janice Fairbairn, Marketing Manager, Wired Within
Avoiding the Pitfalls of Leadership
- Nicole Sullivan, Consultant, Organizational Effectiveness, FCC Services Inc.
Effective Hiring Practices
- Danielle McCormick, Principal, Talent Advisor, K-Coe Isom LLP
The Power of a Cohesive Culture
- Esther Homandberg, Talent Optimization Manager, Bion Analytical
Effective Communication: Who Needs It?
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Track 4: Cleaning and Plant Maintenance
Taming the Two-Headed Monster: Deploying Best-in-Class CIP Strategies to Eliminate Organic and Inorganic Fouling Deposits
Read Description
Clean-in-place approaches are widespread throughout the industry to control the build-up of organic and inorganic deposits throughout the production environment and inhibit bacterial outbreaks. This panel makes it clear that while the practice is widespread, there is plenty to indicate that the industry isn’t satisfied that the process has been perfected. Populated by talks that look closely at the alternative approaches that have shown early promise, the discussion promises to give maintenance teams some new CIP approaches to consider.
Moderator: Matt Thompson, Associate Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine
- Mark Altier, RD&E Program Leader, Ecolab Inc.
Ecolab: Total Plant Cleaning and Sanitizing Programs, Partnerships, and Technologies
- Stephanie Schmidt, Plant Chemist & Process Analyst, Badger State Ethanol LLC
Removing Caustic from Front-End CIPing: A Plant's Experience
- Michael Raab, Lead Technologist, Suez Water Technologies & Solutions
Enhanced One Step CIP Solutions Approved for Animal Food
- Dennis Bayrock, Global Director Fermentation Research Lactrol, Phibro Ethanol Performance Group
Improper CIP Management and Persistent Bacterial Contaminations
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Track 5: Advanced Biofuels Conference
The Technologies Achieving Commercial Scale Today that will Deliver the Biofuels and Biochemicals of Tomorrow
Read Description
Taken together the presentations that populate this panel articulate just how widely the advanced biofuels industry is casting its gaze with regard to feedstocks and conversion approaches. The panel kicks off with a look at glucose production at existing ethanol plants, but then leaves the established corn conversion complex behind to look at the cellulosic components of feedstocks like municipal solid waste (MSW) and the lignin fractions found in abundance within the world’s pulp, paper and forest products sector.
Moderator: Shannon Gustafson, Senior Director of Operations & Programming, American Coalition for Ethanol
- Neal Jakel, Vice President, Strategy & Technology, Fluid Quip Technologies, LLC
Industrial Glucose: Bridging the Biochemical Gap
- David McConnell, Vice President Business Development-NA, Enerkem Inc.
From Trash to Advanced Biofuels: The Technology Behind the First-Ever Waste-to-Biofuels Facility
- Ed De Jong, VP of Development, Avantium Technologies
Dawn Technology™: Superior Lignocellulosic Fractionation Technology for 2G Bioethanol
- Radhakrishnan Srinivasan, Founder, Weighty Corn LLC
Fiber Separation from Corn Flour using Sieving and Air Classification: Its First Commercial Scale Implementation
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10:00 am - 10:30 am |
Refreshment Break in the Expo
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10:30 am - Noon |
Concurrent Tracks
Track 1: Production and Operations
Deploying Cutting Edge Yeast Health Strategies to Maximize Plant Fermentations
Read Description
Cultivating the perfect conditions inside of plant fermenters to maximize yeast propagation is a perpetual goal for ethanol plant teams, but one that comes with some expense. Periods of tight profit margins often drive plants to scrutinize the necessity of all expenditures, including those tied to increasing yield. The presentations in this panel will look to answer the hard questions about the cost benefits of antimicrobial inputs, process water cooling, yeast nutrients and added air into propagation. This panel promises an unvarnished look at the relative return on investment for the industry’s leading yeast health and fermentation enhancement strategies.
Moderator: Lisa Gibson, Managing Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine
- Jenny Forbes, Vice President Products & Services, Phibro Ethanol Performance Group
Narrow Margins: Running Lean without Sacrificing Yield
- Ryan Brock, Technical Services Manager, Lallemand Biofuels & Distilled Spirits
Air to Yeast Props: Analyzing the Value and Cost of Adding Air into Propagation
- Celia Payen, Scientist II, DuPont Industrial Biosciences
Does Your Yeast Have What It Takes? Combining Old and New Tricks to Deliver Robust Yeast to the Biofuel Industry
- Peter Krasucki, General Manager, FermAxiom
Manufacturing of Optimal Yeast Inoculum for Ethanol Fermentation using HDYC Technology Platform
- Amanda Moser, Senior Scientist, Novozymes North America
"Smart" Fermentation Achieved through Optimal Enzyme and Yeast Pairings
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Track 1: Production and Operations
The Options Available to Ethanol Producers for Bacterial Control and Strategies to Ensure Their Efficient Use
Read Description
Bacterial infection is inevitable in ethanol production but peppered throughout the presentations in this panel are warnings of the risk to plant yields that comes along with passive acceptance of this reality. Instead, the presentations in this panel will remind producers of financial cost of even those infections producers might regard as routine or expected. The panel also makes room for presentations on both the responsible use of available antibiotics and the alternative treatment option afforded by hop cones.
Moderator: Tim Portz, Program Developer, BBI International
- Stacey Campbell, Ethanol Technical Services Manager, BetaTec Hop Products Inc.
A Natural Solution for Antimicrobials
- Cam Fowler, Senior Director Applied Services, Phibro Ethanol Performance Group
Yield Thieves: Understanding the Impact from Bacterial Contamination
- Jennifer Starner, Research Scientist, U.S. Water
Investigating the Effectiveness of Antibiotic Combinations Utilized in Fuel Ethanol Production
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Track 2: Leadership and Financial Management
How to Make Informed Decisions about New Technology Deployments and Ensure They Deliver on Their Promised Value
Read Description
This discussion will begin with a presentation that gives plant leadership teams a framework for making more of strategic planning meetings and retreats. The discussion then pivots and looks more specifically at the tools available to plant management teams to make decisions about new technology deployments and the oversight approaches that guarantee they get built on time and within budget. Teams that have felt paralyzed by capital investment at their facility will appreciate this multi-disciplined look at the best practices in strategizing, deciding and ultimately seeing a project through to commissioning.
Moderator: Justin Mentele, Principal, Manufacturing & Biofuels Group, K-Coe Isom LLP
- Connie Lindstrom, Senior Biofuels Analyst, Christianson PLLP
Keys to Effective Strategic Planning for Directors and Executives
- Nick Lurty, Principal Consultant, n2 Solutions
Strategic Innovation: Real Options Valuation Framework for Technology Readiness
- Douglas Rivers, Project Director, Lee Enterprises Consulting
Strategic Due Diligence for New Technology Applications
- Tiffany Trottman, Business Development Manager, Nelson Baker Biotech
Tools for Managing & Contracting Your Capital Projects
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Track 3: Coproducts and Product Diversification
Practical Approaches for Deriving Maximum Value from Plant Distillers Grains Streams
Read Description
Coproduct revenues have often meant the difference between black or red ink on plant profit-and-loss statements. Their importance to producers cannot be overstated and it should come as no surprise that producers are eager to derive even more value from coproduct streams, including distillers grains. Attention will be given in this panel to the continuing efforts to innovate pathways that allow producers to diversify into higher value feed products, including high purity protein. The panel will also feature an exhaustive study conducted on the lack of antimicrobial residues in distillers grains taken from a broad swath of the ethanol fleet.
Moderator: Kyle Althoff, President, Equinox
- Keith Jakel, Sales & Marketing Lead, Fluid Quip Technologies LLC
Planning for a Modular/Stepped Approach to Protein Production in an Ethanol Facility
- Fernando Boscariol, Engineering Superintendent, Dedini S/A Industrias De Base
Corn Ethanol Production in Flexible Plants and Integration with Animal Protein Production
- Ryan Mass, Feed Business Manager, ICM Inc.
A Method of Selecting New Animal Nutrition Technologies
- Dennis Bayrock, Global Director Fermentation Research Lactrol, Phibro Ethanol Performance Group
Risk Assessment of Antibiotic Residues in DDGS and Animal-Derived Foods
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Track 4: Cleaning and Plant Maintenance
Strategies for Making Your Overall Plant Maintenance Program Both Predictive and Proactive
Read Description
Performing maintenance on a predictable schedule is certainly preferable to managing through an unplanned maintenance event and unscheduled downtime. This panel is loaded with presentations that make this desired plant maintenance state more tangible and achievable for plant maintenance teams. The discussion begins with the economic argument for a predictive maintenance program, moves into a presentation about best practices in plant shutdowns and concludes with a look at harnessing the power of artificial intelligence to gain greater visibility into tomorrow’s maintenance needs.
Moderator: Shannon Gustafson, Senior Director of Operations & Programming, American Coalition for Ethanol
- Paul Mordorski, Biofuels Sector Lead, Merjent Inc.
Facility Maintenance + Environmental Compliance = Cost Savings
- Kristen Gordon, Director, Aftermarket Services, ICM Inc.
Best Practices for a Successful Plant Shutdown
- Carson Merkwan, Business Development, Direct Automation LLC
Artificial Intelligence and IIoT for Predictive Maintenance – for Managers, Tech’s and Engineers
- Doug Robey, Vice President, Maintenance Training & Reliability, GP Strategies
Implementing a Living Reliability Program for Sustained Operational Excellence
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Noon - 1:30 pm |
Lunch in the Expo
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1:30 pm |
Exhibitor Move-Out |
1:30 pm - 3:00 pm |
Concurrent Tracks
Track 1: Production and Operations
Creating the Optimal Environment in Plant Fermentation Tanks to Maximize Ethanol Yield
Read Description
While plant professionals understand stressed yeast populations curtail overall ethanol yield, operational discipline is required to establish and maintain the optimal fermentation environment. This panel will begin with a look at the use of a common shake flask and the new tools available to help producers leverage this simple piece of equipment for a better look at what is happening in their fermentation tanks. The discussion then moves on to quickly identifying when and why a fermenter may be in a stressed condition and concludes with a presentation on the best practices in nitrogen supplementation.
Moderator: Dennis Bayrock, Global Director Fermentation Research Lactrol, Phibro Ethanol Performance Group
- Amanda Hildebrand, Scientist Grain Applications, DuPont Industrial Biosciences
A Comprehensive Approach to Fermentation Scale-Down
- Jayne Kalbfleisch, Technical Development Manager, Lallemand Biofuels & Distilled Spirits
Recognizing and Remediation of Stressed Fermentations
- Pedro Peña, Lab & R&D Director, CTE Global Inc.
A Comprehensive Approach to Nitrogen Optimization for More Efficient Fermentation
- Patrick Mandulak, Product Application Scientist, Novozymes North America
Utilizing Enzymatic and Operational Synergies to Access Difficult Starch and Maximize Ethanol Yield
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Track 1: Production and Operations
Eyes and Ears: Innovative Approaches to Data Management and Its Use in Real-Time Plant Control
Read Description
The challenge for producers has now moved well beyond capturing crucial operational and financial data to making sense of it all and using effectively to guide their decision-making process. The first presentation will look at the value of configuring financial data in new ways so that human minds can see new things within it. The discussion then turns to a review of the tools available to plant teams to capture and analyze the sea of operational data that is so vast it can’t be considered without the aid of well-designed process control systems.
Moderator: Ron Kotrba, Editor, Biodiesel Magazine
- Donna Funk, Principal, K-Coe Isom LLP
How to Use the Data You Already Have to Make Different Decisions
- Hank Brittain, Director of Optimization & Advanced Control, OpX Control Inc.
Plant-wide Advanced Control for Ethanol Plants in Your DCS
- Jonas Norinder, Process Automation Digitalization Manager, Siemens Industry Inc.
Digitalization in the Ethanol Industry
- Evan Almberg, Analyst, HRST Inc.
Using Plant Operating Data and Thermal Modeling to Assess HRSG and Boiler Performance
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Track 1: Production and Operations
Minding Your Stack: Keep Plant Emissions in Tight Alignment with Air Permits
Read Description
Plant professionals charged with keeping their plants in compliance with their permitted emissions limits will appreciate this panel’s two-pronged look at both monitoring and control. The discussion opens with a presentation that will help operators make sense of the testing options available to them and when to deploy each. The discussion will then move on to the leading technologies in VOC capture and destruction before concluding with a presentation on a plant confronted with an underperforming dust collection system that led to the development of a custom filter bag that shows great potential.
Moderator: Katie Hill Brandt, Senior Analyst, Merjent Inc.
- Jordan Laster, Vice President Analytical Services, Alliance Source Testing
Methods to Know: VOC Compliance
- John McDowell, Sales Engineer, EISENMANN Corporation
Current Trends of Air Pollution Control in the Ethanol Market
- Zeke Babcock, Strategic Account Manager, Donaldson Torit
Innovative Dust Collection: Do More with Less Using Advanced Filtration Technology
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Track 3: Coproducts and Product Diversification
Catching Up with Fractionation Technologies that Aim to Simultaneously Diversify Plant Revenue Streams and Increase the Captured Value of Inbound Corn
Read Description
Producers have long known that they were delivering non-fermentable components of inbound corn into their fermenters. These components were captured later downstream, and the inefficiencies were tolerated in the process. Still, the concept of refining inbound corn in such a way that only the starch fraction was targeted for fermentation continues to hold great intrigue and promise. This panel features a presentation on the commercial scale deployment of a dry-fractionation approach as well as a biological approach to adding value to coproduct streams.
Moderator: Jeff Cafmeyer, Sr. Research Scientist, Battelle
- Joe Fitzgerald, Founder, Shockwave LLC
Commercializing New Dry-Fractionation Technology for the Bio-Conversion Industry
- Steve Hartig, Vice President of Technology Development, ICM Inc.
ICM’s Vision for the Next Generation Biorefinery
- John Kwik, President, Fluid Quip Technologies LLC
Ethanol Plant to Biorefinery: Proven Diversification Today
- Jaclyn DeMartini, Scientist, DuPont Industrial Biosciences
Maximizing Value from Every Corn Kernel
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Track 4: Cleaning and Plant Maintenance
Your Plant’s Beating Heart: The Critical Importance of Staying Abreast of Innovation in Pump Technologies
Read Description
Ethanol plants move millions of gallons of flowable material through their process each year, relying on dozens of pumps deployed throughout the plant to do the work. The vital nature of the function they perform paired with the conditions into which they are typically deployed requires that maintenance teams systematically anticipate and plan for their refurbishment or replacement. Presenters in this panel will go beyond the normal fare of pump maintenance programs and urge attendees to see pumps as a promising pathway to increasing overall plant efficiency while reducing key input expenses.
Moderator: Jamey Cline, Business Development, Christianson PLLP
- Paul Yaple, Regional Manager, A.R. Wilfley & Sons Inc.
Special Duplex Stainless Steel Pumps Improved Wear and Corrosion Increasing Five to Six Fold Service Life in Ethanol Operations
- Brett Burbage, Regional Technical Manager, ProFlow Pumping Solutions
Eliminating Leaks When Pumping Your Valuable Ethanol
- Jared Gabel, Dosing & Disinfection Product Manager, Grundfos Pumps Corporation
The Advantages of Stepper Motor Design in Chemical Feed Pumps
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3:00 pm - 3:30 pm |
Refreshment Break
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3:30 pm - 5:00 pm |
Concurrent Tracks
Track 1: Production and Operations
Assessing the Continuing Innovations Available to Producers for Ethanol and Coproduct Dewatering
Read Description
This panel will outline the growing list of options available to producers to remove water from their process at two important waypoints: after distillation and from distiller’s grains streams. Dehydration is a process bottleneck which has inspired its fair share of innovation and process rethinking. This panel allows producers to perform a side-by-side analysis of molecular sieves, emerging membrane technologies and centrifuges and determine whether their own facility is due for an improved, more efficient dehydration approach.
Moderator: Paul Kamp, Vice President – Business Development North America, Whitefox Technologies
- Mark Binns, Technical Business Director, Hengye Inc.
Analytical Approach to Sieve Bed Cycle Times to Maximize Performance While Protecting the Sieve Beads and Equipment
- Sean Tierney, North American Business Manager, Elgin Separation Solutions
Centrifuge Dewatering, Operations and Maintenance
- Mike Garza, Senior Manager, Process Engineering, ICM Inc.
Ethanol Dehydration and Energy Savings with ZEBREX™ Membrane Technology
- Virginia Andrade, Process Engineering Manager, Whitefox Technologies Limited
Maintaining Profitability in Tight Market Conditions: How Membranes Improve Margins whilst Reducing Carbon Emissions
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Track 1: Production and Operations
Instrument Flying for Ethanol Producers: Utilizing Analytical Tools to Determine the Efficacy of New Production Approaches
Read Description
Conducting effective and informative plant trials is vital to any plant team hoping to leverage the industry’s incredible innovation for increased profitability at their plant. The presentations in this panel make it clear that producers have a deep toolbox to assist them in conducting effective trials more efficiently and more rapidly. Presenters will offer discussions about new spectrometers designed specifically with ethanol plants in mind, new thinking in analytical approaches and conclude with a presentation on the potential for predictive modeling software.
Moderator: Matt Thompson, Associate Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine
- Jonathon Speed, Product and Applications Manager, Keit Spectrometers
The Development and Implementation of a Universal Bioethanol Monitoring Sensor
- Cam Fowler, Senior Director Applied Services, Phibro Ethanol Performance Group
New Approaches to Trials and Product Testing
- Tony Schindler, Regional Application Development Leader – Grain Processing, DuPont Industrial Biosciences
Harvesting the Potential of Plant-wide Modeling in the Ethanol Industry
- Brian Pasbrig, Plant Manager, Show Me Ethanol
Enhancing Profitability and Productivity in Ethanol Plants by Using Predictive Modeling Tools
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Track 2: Leadership and Financial Management
Reviewing Industry Plant Margins and the Options Available to Improve the Profitability of Your Facility
Read Description
In an ethanol market awash in stories of lesser, not greater ethanol use and tight margins, plant teams are hungry to know where their plant stands regarding profitability and the pathways to higher returns from their operation. This discussion offers both. The discussion will begin with a data-rich presentation about the profitability the leaders and laggards of the industry are achieving informed by the industry’s largest benchmarking effort. The discussion will then look at using risk management strategies to lock-in future margins and finish with a discussion about the importance of asking hard questions about the realistic chances of margin improvements promised by new production approaches and technology deployments.
Moderator: Jeff Kistner, President, Flag Leaf Financial Management Inc.
- Chip Whalen, Vice President of Education & Research, Commodity & Ingredient Hedging
Risk Management in a Changing Margin Landscape
- Connie Lindstrom, Senior Biofuels Analyst, Christianson PLLP
Finance Snapshot of the U.S. Ethanol Industry
- Brittany Ferguson, Senior Associate, K-Coe Isom LLP
Increased Efficiency, Increased Profitability?
- Nick Lurty, Principal Consultant, n2 Solutions
Maximizing the ROI of Your Innovation Program |
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Track 4: Cleaning and Plant Maintenance
Mechanical and Biological Considerations for Ensuring Plant Cooling Towers are Operating at Peak Efficiency
Read Description
The ability to create optimal fermentation at ethanol production facilities year-round hinges on the production team’s ability to operate plant cooling towers at great efficiency, especially during the hot and humid dog days of summer. The options available are well understood; new pumps, increased chiller capacity or the addition of new cells or new towers altogether. This discussion dives into the fundamentals of cooling tower operation with the hopes that attendees will walk away better armed to make the right decisions regarding their cooling infrastructure and program moving forward.
Moderator: Tim Portz, Program Developer, BBI International
- Kent Martens, Chief Technical Advisor, Cooling Technology Institute
Cooling Tower Fundamentals
- Jeff Prochaska, Biofuels Industry Technical Consultant, Nalco Water, an Ecolab Company
A Mechanical and Engineering Approach to Optimize Your Cooling Water System
- Andrew Ledlie, Marketing Manager, Solenis LLC
Novel Approach to Monitoring and Controlling Biofilm in Ethanol Cooling Systems Increases Ethanol Production and Reduces Operating Costs
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Track 5: Advanced Biofuels Conference
The First Advanced Biofuel: An Update on Biodiesel Production, Use and Its Likely Market Trajectory
Read Description
In many ways, biodiesel and ethanol have a shared history. Both biofuels were developed to add value to a row crop whose downstream markets weren’t delivering the kinds of returns their growers needed. Both industries owe their initial build-out and rapid early growth to the Renewable Fuel Standard and both are now trying to break out of the confines of their first-generation production approaches and blending rates. This panel offers the audience the program’s best opportunity to catch up not only with the policy status of the biodiesel industry but also the developmental progress of pathways that will deliver the industry’s next gallons.
Moderator: Ron Kotrba, Editor, Biodiesel Magazine
- Julie Jenkins, Research Scientist, Mcgyan Biodiesel LLC
Applying the Continuous Mcgyan® Process for Advanced Biofuel Production Using Commingled Distillers Corn Oil and Sorghum Oil Byproduct Streams
- Dean Camper, CTO, Saola Energy LLC
A Technical and Market Review of Converting Corn Oil to Renewable Diesel at Ethanol Plants
- Matthew Moore, Research Chemist, VFT Inc.
Fiber Reactor Technology
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5:00 pm |
Sessions Conclude |
6:00 pm - 8:30 pm |
NCAA Hall of Champions |
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