Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) has been successfully testing a breakthrough biofuel at its headquarters in Mountain View, Calif. The biofuel, made by California-based Cool Planet Energy Systems, is produced using a “carbon negative” process that actually removes carbon from the atmosphere during the course of production. (more…)

A host of startup companies are pursuing new technologies that they claim will soon lead to large-scale commercialization of biofuels made from algae. But questions remain about the viability and environmental benefits of what its developers are calling “green crude.” (more…)

The rapid expansion of palm oil plantations in the world’s tropical regions, particularly Indonesian Borneo, is becoming an increasingly significant source of global carbon emissions, a new study says.

Writing in the journal Nature Climate Change, researchers from Stanford and Yale universities project that the continued expansion of plantations will add more than 558 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (more…)

From using vegetable oil and animal fats to trees and grasses as new sources of energy, biofuels are continuing to gain attention due to current oil prices and concern for energy security. As energy is produced from carbon fixation in these biofuels, scientists are experimenting with other types of renewable sources as mediums. The latest research endeavor? Creating jet fuel from seawater. (more…)

Following up on the last blog post about AirBus’s vision of a sustainable future for aviation, we hear that German airline Lufthansa has entered a partnership with Algae.Tec to build a large-scale algae-based jet fuel production facility in Europe.

The agreement is the first step in a long-term cooperation to produce aviation kerosene from crude algae on an industrial scale. (more…)

Biofuels are mostly produced from grains such as corn. In recent years, various types of wild grasses and other crops have been looked at to produce biofuels, but have yet to break through in a big way. A new study by the United States Department of Agriculture has uncovered a potential breakthrough candidate for biofuel expansion. It is sorghum, a (more…)

The U.S. Navy this week held military exercises in the Pacific Ocean that used an expensive blend of biofuels and conventional fuels to power 71 aircraft and three warships, part of an ongoing effort by the Navy to develop alternative fuels for its global operations.

The so-called “Great Green Fleet” initiative is a top (more…)

What is green? What is a viable economic alternative? What is reasonable and will do more bad than good? Welcome to Biofuels. Two scientists are challenging the currently accepted norms of biofuel production. A commentary published today in GCB Bioenergy reveals that calculations of greenhouse gas (GHGs) (more…)

A U.S.-based company that used genetic engineering to develop a technology to convert sugar into biofuel has announced that it will stop producing the fuel, at least temporarily, because the process simply isn’t profitable.

Amyris, a San Francisco firm that also produces (more…)

When it comes to navigating the advanced biofuels’ winding pathway to commercialization, no company is faring better than Solazyme. Whether delivering biojet fuel for commercial flights or producing hundreds of thousands of gallons of advanced fuels to help the U.S. Navy launch its Green Strike Force in 2016, Solazyme has been on a marketing tear. (more…)