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Squeezing more ethanol from a bushel of corn is one way for an ethanol producer to stay on top of his game. California-based OptiSwitch Technology has developed a process that could increase ethanol production by 5 percent or more, using high-power silicon switches to apply voltage to the cell walls of the corn kernel.

Although the sugarcane-based ethanol industry is booming in Brazil, only a handful of companies are developing processing plants in the U.S., where market conditions in most parts of the country can’t support them. A few projects are poised to thrive in unique pockets of the country, but the crop’s real potential will rely upon the commercialization of cellulosic technologies.

The success of the dry-mill ethanol production process means that in the near future, the ethanol industry could produce more distillers grains than the domestic livestock feed market and the fledgling export market will bear. Distillers dried grains with solubles is already considered by many to be an undervalued co-product of ethanol production. How will the ethanol industry expand the market and how will they move it all from here to there?

Ethanol is an environmentally friendly fuel, especially compared with petroleum-based fuels, but that doesn’t mean there are no environmental risks involved in the production process. For a variety of reasons, environmental insurance should be considered when determining how best to protect a company’s investment.

Genencor shares an inside view of the ethanol process, with a focus on optimizing enzyme use.

If a tree falls in the Amazon should American biofuels be held responsible?

Big Food’s sustained assault on biofuels has spurred the industry to take a new, more assertive stance.

The ethanol industry’s declaration of energy independence for the U.S. is leading producers to generate more energy from an acre of corn.

The ethanol industry faced steep challenges in 2008 as corn prices touched record highs. 2009 is providing a fresh start and the possibility of a return to normalcy.

The ethanol industry was hit hard in 2008 with a steep rise in corn prices. However, the episode should provide a risk management advantage in 2009.

Tracking the Renewable Identification Numbers required by the renewable fuels standard is a daunting task. The first full year of the system provided experience that will pay off in the future.