Questions and Comments
We will do our best to have this Biomass Program Web site provide the relevant information that you are looking for and to organize the site to make that information easy to find. We certainly recognize, however, that we cannot anticipate all of your questions and that there may also be times that you want to talk to a real person. There are a number of other excellent resources available relevant to biomass; several are described below.
Hotlines
Topical Searches
Energy Data
Current Biomass Production and Use
State and Regional Programs
Inventors
Funding
Biomass Plant Design and Construction
The DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center and its National Alternative Fuels Hotline have a wealth of information about alternative fuels and alternative fuel vehicles, as well as knowledgeable resource people to answer your questions. In addition to Web access, the Hotline can be reached by email or telephone (800-423-1363 from U.S.).
Similarly, the DOE Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Web site and EERE Information Center are the first place to look for general renewable energy information. EERE Info Center provides a wide range of publications about biofuels and other renewable energy technologies. You may also contact them by telephone 1-877-EERE-INF (1-877-337-3463).
The EERE Web site also includes a topical search vehicle for both Web sites and publications on renewable energy technologies. The bioenergy topical search provides an excellent categorization of biomass subject matter and links to a wide range of Web pages and publications from that categorization.
For statistics and forecasts of transportation fuel and other energy production and use, the official source is the DOE Energy Information Administration (EIA). The EIA information center can also be contacted by e-mail or 202-586-8800.
This Biomass Program Web site focuses on advanced technology for making sugar and thermochemical platform chemicals from lignocellulosic biomass to build future biorefinery industries, because that is the focus of Biomass Program research. For information about the current use and production of biofuels and biomass power, a good place to start is the State Energy Alternatives Web site, a joint effort of the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Network and the National Conference of State Legislatures.
For more detailed information about the current U.S. biomass industry, you can contact the Biotechnology Industry Organization, the Renewable Fuels Association, a trade association for the fuel ethanol industry, the National Biodiesel Board, a trade association for the biodiesel industry, and the Integrated Waste Services Association and Pellet Fuels Institute, two trade associations for the biomass power industry.
The Regional Biomass Energy Program (RBEP), is a set of five regional offices working to facilitate expanded use of biomass resources for biomass projects within their areas. The RBEPs and the state contacts they work with are excellent sources of information about current and potential biofuels and biopower projects in your area.
As a government research program, the Biomass Program cannot evaluate inventions from outside parties or help find funding for bioenergy projects. The Program does conduct a lot of its own work through subcontracts to outside researchers, but these are selected on the basis of response to formal solicitations. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory does have an outstanding program for working with entrepreneurs, that you might find helpful. One excellent resource for inventors is the United Inventors Association and its local affiliates. Also the DOE Inventions & Innovations Program provides financial assistance for development of energy saving technologies and projects. Don't forget to do your homework. You can search the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Web site to see what similar inventions have already been patented and get information about seeking your own patent.
Biomass Program solicitations are not the only source of biomass research funding. A good place to start for finding out about solicitations from other government bioenergy programs is the interagency Biomass Research and Development Web site. Your regional representatives and state energy office contacts are excellent resources for exploring assistance available for promoting bioenergy projects in your area. The Clean Cities Program also has an excellent "financial opportunities" resource page. The DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy State Energy Program provides funding to state agencies that can be used for biomass projects.
As a government laboratory, we cannot really recommend any particular companies to help with biomass projects. A good place to start, however, is with the members of the industry trade associations. For ethanol, look at the associate members of the membership/links list of the Renewable Fuels Association. Also, BBI International publishes an Ethanol Plant Development Handbook, which, in addition to discussing considerations for building an ethanol plant, includes a listing of providers for the ethanol industry. For cellulosic ethanol, you might get some ideas from descriptions of our commercialization and stakeholder partners. For Biodiesel, check the "related links" page of the National Biodiesel Board. For waste-to-energy, check the members of the Integrated Waste Services Association.
If you could not find the biomass information you were looking for on this Web site or have other questions about biomass, please e-mail us and we will do our best to help or to point you in the right direction if we don't have an answer. Please be patient, it may take a week or two, but we will get back to you with whatever help we can provide. We would also be glad to have your comments on this Web site, particularly:
- any features or links that are not working
- navigation that is difficult
- additional features or topics you would like to see.
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