Mascoma teams with Chevron to turn ethanol byproduct into diesel and jet fuel

Mascoma teams with Chevron to turn ethanol byproduct into diesel and jet fuel Soon after announcing funding for Soane Energy —a company working to clean up its oil extraction projects — Chevron released news that it will partner (PDF) with biofuel maker Mascoma to turn lignin, a byproduct of ethanol production, into diesel and jet fuel. If the technology takes hold, it could nearly double the productivity and efficiency of ethanol plants. This is important, considering the national emphasis on ethanol derived from agricultural sources like corn and other feedstocks. Critics of ethanol says that the process used to make it is just as dirty and wasteful as using gasoline. With Mascoma’s technology, bioefuel producers may be able to change their minds.

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ever smell a ethanol plant?