Honeywell to automate Flambeau River diesel plant in Wisconsin

PHOENIX, Oct. 26, 2009 (PRNewswire-FirstCall) - Honeywell today announced that Flambeau River Biofuels (FRB) has selected it to supply and integrate all automation equipment for the largest second-generation "green diesel" plant in the United States. The plant - located in Park Falls, Wis., and expected to be operational by 2012 - will produce energy, transportation fuels and chemicals from renewable biomass resources. Specifically, the plant will process 1,000 dry tons per day of woody biomass from bark, sawdust and residue typically burned after forest harvesting.

Serving as the integrated-main automation contractor (I-MAC), Honeywell will design all automation and control components to reduce risk, shorten the project schedule, and enable a smooth startup and reliable operation. Honeywell will also supply integrated solutions spanning the automation landscape from wireless instrumentation to building controls. This project includes the distributed control, safety technology, terminal automation, process technology, process simulation and optimization applications.

"We chose Honeywell because our past experiences with the company have shown it's the only automation expert with a big enough scope of supply for a project of this size and complexity," said Bob Byrne, president of Flambeau River Biofuels. "But more than just providing the technology, Honeywell has the expertise to integrate these subsystems together to create a safer, more efficient and more reliable plant. Those three areas will be critical to making this plant into a world-class facility."

The plant is expected to produce 10-million gallons annually of wax typically produced from fossil fuels, and 8 million gallons of green diesel to be used as the blend stock in transportation and aviation fuels. The process also produces heat that will be used to generate steam and electricity for the co-located FRB paper mill, making the mill fossil fuel independent.

"Across the globe, we are working hard toward realizing a more energy efficient and environmentally safe world, and new facilities such as Flambeau River Biofuels will be key to meeting these objectives," said Norm Gilsdorf, president of Honeywell Process Solutions. "There truly is no time to waste when it comes to bringing new facilities like this online. The goal of Honeywell's I-MAC approach is to get a plant up and running as quickly and safely as possible while giving manufacturers the tools they need to keep it running smoothly and profitably."