The U.S. Department of Energy Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) has achieved a significant milestone in decreasing the minimum fuel selling price (MFSP) of drop-in biofuels.
July 26, 2022
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Josh Messner
Josh Messner is a technology manager with the Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) Systems Development & Integration Program at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Josh is active in BETO’s efforts in biofuels for national laboratories process development units and the utilization of high-performance computing strategies to reduce scale-up risk.
Josh is the primary manager for BETO’s maritime biofuels portfolio and represented DOE at Singapore Maritime Week where DOE teamed with over 15 government and industry partners to foster partnerships and collaborate on clean energy solutions aimed at achieving net zero-emissions in the maritime sector by 2050. Josh received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering with an interdisciplinary study in biotechnology from Colorado State University.
The U.S. Department of Energy Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) has achieved a significant milestone in decreasing the minimum fuel selling price (MFSP) of drop-in biofuels, which are fuels made from biomass and other waste carbon sources, and that are compatible with existing petroleum fuel infrastructure and conventional vehicles. BETO partnered with T2C-Energy, LLC (T2C) to validate pilot-scale production of drop-in biofuels with a price of $3 per gallon of gas equivalent (GGE) and at least 60% lower greenhouse gas emissions than petroleum, using T2C’s TRIFTS® process.
The TRIFTS process converts anaerobic digestor produced biogas (or landfill gas) to liquid transportation fuels. TRIFTS has allowed drop-in renewable diesel fuel to reach a MFSP of $2.91/GGE without the use of credits from the U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard, California Low Carbon Fuels Standard, or other carbon credits while reducing GHG emissions by 130% when compared to traditional petroleum diesel fuel.
T2C and BETO have previously partnered on projects that have been key to advancing bioenergy technology to its current state. Previous BETO-funded Small Business Innovation Research awards allowed T2C to advance their technology to pilot scale, which was critical to reaching this important biofuel milestone. The T2C process has been thoroughly tested at the pilot scale since 2018 and uses both carbon dioxide and methane portions of biogas, using nearly 100% of biogas components as a feedstock to produce fuel. This technical achievement was verified by an independent engineering firm.
BETO’s efforts to reduce the price of drop-in biofuels is part of the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s larger strategy for reducing emissions transportation across all modes.
Mr. Josh Messner is a technology manager with the Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and holds a Project Management Professional certification.
