Beta Analytic - Bioethanol Testing

Beta Analytic - World Leader in ASTM D6866

ASTM D6866 is able to determine the renewable carbon content of any type of material, whether it is in solid, liquid or gas form.

Billions of gallons of ethanol are produced annually both from Renewable (BIO-ETHANOL) and petroleum (SYNTHETIC ETHANOL) resources. The two are chemically indistinguishable. As the Renewable Fuels Standard of January 2006 moves forward, distinguishing between the two is necessary and practical for three reasons.

Identify the origin of ethanol for source and tax accounting purposes.
In the case of mixtures, identify the quantity of bio-ethanol in the blend.
Uphold the integrity of the Renewable Fuels Standard with regard to its intent to apply solely to BIOETHANOL.

ASTM Method D6866 is the US government approved method for determining the renewable/biobased content of natural range materials, including ethanol additives, bio-diesel additives and biobased products. The method is used routinely by the USDA in the identification of biobased products and is applied without modification for the identification and quantification of bio-ethanol.

Identifying the origin of ethanol serves five significant purposes.

Provides a means to use domestically derived synthetic ethanol to meet quotas and demands rather than imported ethanol.
Protects the interests of bio-mass producers and investors investing in bio-ethanol production.
Provides a means to ensure imported ethanol claimed to be bio-ethanol is correctly and honestly cited.
Deters fraud or otherwise dishonest representation of ethanol as bio-ethanol for the purposes of tax credits.
Provides a single number reference (using ASTM D6866) to be added to accounting requirements associated with the tax credits, distribution, and utilization, and consumption of bio-ethanol.

Of particular concern for the bio-ethanol industry is synthetic ethanol produced from fossil fuels. Synthetic ethanol produced from fossil fuels is chemically indistinguishable from renewable ethanol produced from bio-mass.¹ Only ASTM D6866 can make that distinction.

Protecting the interests of bio-mass producers and investors investing in bio-ethanol production is paramount to the success of the domestic ethanol economy. Most industry leaders in this sector are unaware that synthetic ethanol is readily available from domestic and foreign petroleum producers. Although synthetic ethanol is chemically indistinguishable from bio-ethanol, it can be directly distinguished using ASTM Method D6866.

The graph below shows the amount of synthetic ethanol produced by the world's largest synthetic ethanol producers.

1. Dijs, Ivo J; van der Windt, Eric; Kaihola, Lauri; van der Borg, Klaas. QUANTITATIVE DETERMINATION BY 14C ANALYSIS OF THE BIOLOGICAL COMPONENT IN FUELS. RADIOCARBON, Vol 48, Nr 3, 2006, p 315-323.