ZeaChem, Pursuing The Dream Of Ethanol From Wood Chips, Faces First Large Scale Test
The political classes chattered about cellulosic ethanol after President Bush's 2006 State of the Union address. Bush used that speech to raise the profile of fuels made from ordinary biomass like wood chips, cornstalks, or sugarcane, making it sound like a potential key to the U.S. strategy to break the addiction to foreign oil.
Four years later, no one has yet come close to fulfilling this vision of making cellulosic ethanol in a large-scale way that makes the planet greener, and generates major cash. But one of the interesting early attempts is advancing inside a small lab operated by ZeaChem in Menlo Park, CA. The company, headquartered in Lakewood, CO, will undergo a critical test over the coming year at a $50 million facility along the banks of the Columbia River in Boardman, OR.
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