Making alternative fuels from trash sounds like something out of Back to the Future, in which Doc Brown powered his DeLorean with a tiny container of Mister Fusion. But Coskata, which opened a bio-based ethanol test manufacturing plant in Madison (county) on Oct. 18, is confident that it can eventually use waste to produce millions of gallons of ethanol a year, perhaps for under $1 a gallon. And its adding more engineers to its 12-person staff to test the process.
Wes Bolsen, Coskatas chief marketing officer, says over a dozen people are already working at Coskatas semi-commercial facility. “Most are either engineers or microbiologists,” he reports by e-mail, “and were looking to hire other local chemical engineers with plant operations experience.”
Coskatas innovation: no more need for corn. If it contains carbon, Coskata can make ethanol from it. The firm, co-located with Westinghouse Plasma on the Westinghouse Electric site off I-70 in Westmoreland County, makes cellulosic ethanol from biomass (grasses and wood), agricultural and municipal wastes, and other materials.
Ethanol producers took a hit last year, when corn prices surged as gasoline prices fell. But with several powerful investors and plasma torch technology, Coskata is poised to prosper. It has partnered with Westinghouse Plasma, now a division of Alter NRG. Investors include General Motors, venture capital company Khosla Ventures (founded by Sun Microsystems founder Vinod Khosla), and investment giant The Blackstone Group. The $30 million bio-refinery was built entirely with private funds, Coskata said.
Source: Wes Bolsen, Coskata
Writer: Chris OToole
Photo: Coskata Engineer Mike Sura works on the seed train at Coskata’s semi-commercial feedstock flexible ethanol facility