Growing Biofuels

Interesting piece in Technology Review about a German company called Choren Industries that's found a way to use conventional agricultural waste to make biodiesel using the Fischer-Tropsch process. Previously, there were problems using such material because it tended to create tars that clogged the processing pipeline. By using a high-temperature preprocess, this eliminates that problem. Their calculations show that the process is better at re-using atmospheric carbon than conventional biodiesel, though the final result is a bit pricey at $3.10 a gallon.