Blue Flint Ethanol
Encyclopedia
Blue Flint Ethanol is an bioethanol
producing company and a production plant with a same name, located in Underwood
, North Dakota
approximately 50 miles (80.5 km) north of Bismarck
. The plant is unique in the fact that rather than burning fuels, such as coal
or natural gas
to drive the production process, waste heat from electrical
generation at the Coal Creek Station
is used. The US$100 million dollar plant is capable of processing 18 million bushel
s (460,000 metric tons) of corn
to produce 50 million gallon
s (190 million liters) of ethanol each year, and is estimated to have a net annual economic impact of $160 million on the North Dakota economy, as well as the creation of approximately 40 new jobs to run the plant. In addition to producing ethanol the plant will also produce dry distillers grains, a byproduct of the distillation process which is used as animal feed. Of the 18 million bushels of corn used each year for feedstock, the majority will be grown in southeast North Dakota and brought in via rail, with the remaining one third being produced locally. In 2006 the Blue Flint Ethanol project was awarded the Project of the Year Award by Governor John Hoeven
.
coal it burns as fuel, improving its efficiency, however 60% of the steam's heat energy was still being lost. In 2005 Headwaters Incorporated
, in conjunction with Great River Energy
, announced their plans for the construction of an ethanol production facility collocated with the Coal Creek Power plant. The plant will be majority owned by Headwaters who will manage the construction and plant operations, with GRE owning a minority share of the plant. Construction of the facility took place during 2006 with ethanol production beginning in February 2007.
to utilize waste heat for ethanol production, other plants are starting to pursue similar strategies. Great River Energy
is also building a 62 megawatt baseload (37 megawatt peaking capacity) coal-fired boiler in Spiritwood
, North Dakota which will produce both electricity, malt
, and 100 million U.S. gallons (380 million liters) of ethanol yearly. Additionally a 20 megawatt plant in Goodland, Kansas
will produce electricity, ethanol, and biodiesel
.
Ethanol fuel
Ethanol fuel is ethanol , the same type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages. It is most often used as a motor fuel, mainly as a biofuel additive for gasoline. World ethanol production for transport fuel tripled between 2000 and 2007 from 17 billion to more than 52 billion litres...
producing company and a production plant with a same name, located in Underwood
Underwood, North Dakota
As of the census of 2000, there were 812 people, 323 households, and 229 families residing in the city. The population density was 910.8 people per square mile . There were 381 housing units at an average density of 427.3 per square mile . The racial makeup of the city was 96.80% White, 1.11%...
, North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
approximately 50 miles (80.5 km) north of Bismarck
Bismarck, North Dakota
Bismarck is the capital of the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Burleigh County. It is the second most populous city in North Dakota after Fargo. The city's population was 61,272 at the 2010 census, while its metropolitan population was 108,779...
. The plant is unique in the fact that rather than burning fuels, such as coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
or natural gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
to drive the production process, waste heat from electrical
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
generation at the Coal Creek Station
Coal Creek Station
Coal Creek Station is the largest power plant in the U.S. state of North Dakota. Located at near the Missouri River between Underwood, North Dakota and Washburn, North Dakota, it is the largest lignite-fired electricity plant in North Dakota...
is used. The US$100 million dollar plant is capable of processing 18 million bushel
Bushel
A bushel is an imperial and U.S. customary unit of dry volume, equivalent in each of these systems to 4 pecks or 8 gallons. It is used for volumes of dry commodities , most often in agriculture...
s (460,000 metric tons) of corn
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
to produce 50 million gallon
Gallon
The gallon is a measure of volume. Historically it has had many different definitions, but there are three definitions in current use: the imperial gallon which is used in the United Kingdom and semi-officially within Canada, the United States liquid gallon and the lesser used United States dry...
s (190 million liters) of ethanol each year, and is estimated to have a net annual economic impact of $160 million on the North Dakota economy, as well as the creation of approximately 40 new jobs to run the plant. In addition to producing ethanol the plant will also produce dry distillers grains, a byproduct of the distillation process which is used as animal feed. Of the 18 million bushels of corn used each year for feedstock, the majority will be grown in southeast North Dakota and brought in via rail, with the remaining one third being produced locally. In 2006 the Blue Flint Ethanol project was awarded the Project of the Year Award by Governor John Hoeven
John Hoeven
John Henry Hoeven III is the junior United States Senator from North Dakota. He is a member of the North Dakota Republican Party. He is expected to become the state's senior senator when Kent Conrad retires from the Senate in January 2013.Hoeven served as the 31st Governor of North Dakota,...
.
History
The Coal Creek power station which provides the thermal input to the process began construction in 1974, becoming fully operational for electricity production in 1980. The power plant had already been using heat from some of the steam to dry the ligniteLignite
Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, or Rosebud coal by Northern Pacific Railroad,is a soft brown fuel with characteristics that put it somewhere between coal and peat...
coal it burns as fuel, improving its efficiency, however 60% of the steam's heat energy was still being lost. In 2005 Headwaters Incorporated
Headwaters Incorporated
Headwaters Inc , provides products, technologies, and services to construction materials, coal combustion products, and alternative energy industries in the United States....
, in conjunction with Great River Energy
Great River Energy
Great River Energy is an electric transmission and generation cooperative in the U.S. state of Minnesota; it is the state's second largest electric utility, based on generating capacity, and the fifth largest generation and transmission cooperative in the U.S. in terms of assets...
, announced their plans for the construction of an ethanol production facility collocated with the Coal Creek Power plant. The plant will be majority owned by Headwaters who will manage the construction and plant operations, with GRE owning a minority share of the plant. Construction of the facility took place during 2006 with ethanol production beginning in February 2007.
Similar facilities
Although the Blue Flint Ethanol plant is the first in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to utilize waste heat for ethanol production, other plants are starting to pursue similar strategies. Great River Energy
Great River Energy
Great River Energy is an electric transmission and generation cooperative in the U.S. state of Minnesota; it is the state's second largest electric utility, based on generating capacity, and the fifth largest generation and transmission cooperative in the U.S. in terms of assets...
is also building a 62 megawatt baseload (37 megawatt peaking capacity) coal-fired boiler in Spiritwood
Spiritwood Lake, North Dakota
As of the census of 2000, there were 72 people, 31 households, and 23 families residing in the city. The population density was 66.5 people per square mile . There were 63 housing units at an average density of 58.2 per square mile...
, North Dakota which will produce both electricity, malt
Malt
Malt is germinated cereal grains that have been dried in a process known as "malting". The grains are made to germinate by soaking in water, and are then halted from germinating further by drying with hot air...
, and 100 million U.S. gallons (380 million liters) of ethanol yearly. Additionally a 20 megawatt plant in Goodland, Kansas
Goodland, Kansas
Goodland is a city in and the county seat of Sherman County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 4,489.-History:...
will produce electricity, ethanol, and biodiesel
Biodiesel
Biodiesel refers to a vegetable oil- or animal fat-based diesel fuel consisting of long-chain alkyl esters. Biodiesel is typically made by chemically reacting lipids with an alcohol....
.
See also
- CogenerationCogenerationCogeneration is the use of a heat engine or a power station to simultaneously generate both electricity and useful heat....
- commonly referred to as combined heat and power (CHP) - Ethanol fuel in the United StatesEthanol fuel in the United StatesThe United States became the world's largest producer of ethanol fuel in 2005. The U.S. produced 13.2 billion U.S. liquid gallons of ethanol fuel in 2010, and together with Brazil, accounted for 88% of that year's global production...
- Ethanol fermentationEthanol fermentationEthanol fermentation, also referred to as alcoholic fermentation, is a biological process in which sugars such as glucose, fructose, and sucrose are converted into cellular energy and thereby produce ethanol and carbon dioxide as metabolic waste products...
- Corn ethanolCorn ethanolCorn ethanol is ethanol produced from corn as a biomass through industrial fermentation, chemical processing and distillation. Corn is the main feedstock used for producing ethanol fuel in the United States and it is mainly used as an oxygenate to gasoline in the form of low-level blends, and to a...
- Cellulosic ethanolCellulosic ethanolCellulosic ethanol is a biofuel produced from wood, grasses, or the non-edible parts of plants.It is a type of biofuel produced from lignocellulose, a structural material that comprises much of the mass of plants. Lignocellulose is composed mainly of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin...
- BiofuelBiofuelBiofuel is a type of fuel whose energy is derived from biological carbon fixation. Biofuels include fuels derived from biomass conversion, as well as solid biomass, liquid fuels and various biogases...