MAY 30, 2000 - 

Sugar as a common automotive fuel is one step closer to reality, thanks to a $33,836 state grant that will enable Central Michigan University (CMU) to continue research on producing ethanol from sugar beet pulp.

The matching grant was presented through the Michigan Department of Consumer & Industry Services (CIS) Energy Resources Division. This is the second grant for CMU for continued research on sugar beet pulp conversion to ethanol. CIS awarded the university a $14,000 grant in 1998.

CIS Director Kathleen Wilbur said, "Ethanol has many benefits for Michigan. Production of ethanol from sugar beet pulp has the potential to reduce current production costs, enabling ethanol to better compete with gasoline. Not to mention the fact ethanol is domestically produced, which keeps profits in our communities, provides employment opportunities and reduces our dependency on foreign oil."

The grant will be used to optimize the amount of ethanol that can be produced from sugar beet pulp. The pulp will be supplied by Monitor Sugar Company in Bay City, Michigan, which produces over 60,000 tons of beet pulp annually. The project will focus on producing enzymes versus using expensive, commercially available enzymes for the conversion of sugar beet pulp to ethanol.

"This project will not only bring us one step closer to lower costing ethanol, but will also create an additional market for the large quantities of sugar beet pulp produced in concentrated areas of Michigan," said Wilbur. "It is a win-win situation because ethanol burns cleaner than gasoline and utilizes waste products from a variety of Michigan industries."

For more information, contact Central Michigan University Professor Dr. Joy Doran at 517.774.7585 or Jan Patrick in the CIS Energy Resources Division at 517.241.6153.

Read more Michigan Department of Consumer & Industry Services press releases.