Primitive biofuel

By Felicia Willis, Associate Editor, Pulp & Paper magazine, RISI

ATLANTA, June 9, 2008 (RISI) - In the June 1978 issue of Pulp & Paper, there was an article titled, "High-energy fuel from bark can be substituted for coal, natural gas." The article featured Bio-Solar Research & Development Corporation and then president Rudy Gunnerman. Gunnerman explains the process the company started of turning organic wastes into pellets that burn like coal or gas, and can be substituted for natural gas – at prices that are a great deal cheaper than coal or gas. The name of the manmade fuel is Woodex, and in 1978 – it was considered a first of its kind, as biofuels go.

Producing alternative fuel is much of what is occurring now in 2008. The biofuel boom is prevalent, and many companies are searching for options other than petroleum fuel. The process to produce Woodex by converting organic materials into usable fuel starts with the biomass being pulverized then dried to about 20% moisture content. It is then compressed at extremely high heat pressures. Friction produces the heat of about 325° F to 350° F. The heat works with the pressure to rearrange the fiber's molecules to make more of the carbon available for burning. When that process is completed, the result is instant coal. Gunnerman commented in the article that the plant, which produced this fuel, consumed about 12% of the energy it produces to run itself. That left 88% of the energy in the organic material available in Woodex. The first plant used Douglas fir bark to make Woodex. The name combined "wood" with the Latin "ex," which means "from." So Woodex is a fuel "from wood."

Woodex, at that time, could have been considered a super fuel because as noted in the article, the production process is simple, and it uses inexpensive, off-the-shelf equipment. It was receiving positive reviews, even before it had been on the market long. Early users reported they saved money by burning it. Western State Hospital in Steilacoom, WA, gave details of a savings of about $60,000/yr in fuel costs by switching from coal to Woodex, and eliminating the need to install $20,000 worth of pollution controls because Woodex burned cleaner than coal.

Unfortunately, all good ideas don't always pan out. In 1983, Bio-Solar and Gunnerman were trying to avoid bankruptcy. The Small Business Administration was preparing to sell the fuel/pellet manufacturing equipment if Gunnerman did not pay off a $23,000 debt. Gunnerman eventually paid the debt, then announced that he had a 25 year contract to sell electricity produced by his fuel pellets to Pacific Power and Light Co.

Where is he now?

Rudy Gunnerman is now the chairman and CEO of SulphCo, Inc., a company that develops a technology designed to use high power ultrasound to alter naturally occurring molecular structures in hydrocarbons, which are the predominant molecular components of crude oil and crude oil fractions. The company recently announced that Gunnerman received the Businessman of the Year Award from The Business Advisory Council of the National Republican Congressional Committee.