BioMASS update Lignin for saLe Two Canadian ventures have begun selling lignin for research and develop-ment purposes. British Columbia-based Lignol Energy Corporation is selling tonnage quantities of high-performance lignin (HPL) to development partners for industrial production trials. Its pilot-scale biorefinery and inventory of HPL position it as a supplier to companies looking to incorporate the renewable material in their product lines, says president and CEO Ross MacLachlan. This is a signifi-cant step in developing a commercial biorefinery to produce HPL and cellulosic ethanol, he says. In Ontario, partners FPInnovations, the Centre for Research and Innovation in the Bio Economy, Natural Resources Canada, and AbitibiBowater are produc-ing the first batches of operational lignin for Canadian researchers. The partners are developing an evaluation centre in Thunder Bay, Ontario, for black liquor Pine beetLe on the move A FPInnovations employees Lou Morrow (left) and Peter Holt-Hindle (right) examine a lignin reaction vessel in the demonstration plant at AbitibiBowater’s Thunder Bay, Ontario, facility. and lignin byproducts of the pulping pro-cess at AbitibiBowater’s nearby kraft pulp mill. The lignin demonstration plant ties directly into the black liquor stream and will produce up to 100 kg/day of lignin when fully operational. Lignin can be used as a renewable alternative to many petroleum-derived substances such as fuels, resins, rubber additives, thermoplastic blends, and nutra-and pharmaceuticals. lberta researchers have determined that mountain pine beetle is using jack pine as a host. The beetle was suspected to be invading hybrid tree spe-cies in addition to its usual host, lodgepole pine. However, DNA testing indicated that the beetle and associated blue-stain fungus are invading pure jack pine. “Our research team used molecular markers to conclusively show that the latest pine species to be at-tacked are indeed jack pine,” says lead researcher Catherine Cull-ingham. This has raised concerns that the beetle could move further east across the boreal forest, as jack pine ranges east from Alberta all the way to the Maritimes. Canadian BIOMASS 5
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