Posted February 5, 2010

Dow Water and Process Solutions will be exhibiting at its first National Biodiesel Conference, where it will launch its new Ambersep BD19DRY fuel polishing resin that can help producers pass the cold soak filtration test.

This is an expansion of the biodiesel product line that Dow acquired from Rohm and Haas in 2009. "Dow is committed to the biodiesel industry," said Alfred Schultz, senior scientist with Dow Water and Process Solutions. "We've expanded our biodiesel products to include increased purification and catalysis services, which can help biodiesel producers reduce their costs by 20 cents to 30 cents per gallon."

Dow's solid catalyst FFA esterification technology can process 36 feedstocks, opening the possibility for producers to utilize inputs that are considerably low quality. "There's a correlation between free fatty acid content and cost," Schultz said. "The higher the FFA content, the lower the cost."

Entering the biodiesel industry at a tumultuous time for the industry, Dow said it saw an opportunity in helping the biodiesel industry with products that could buffer the volatility of raw materials costs. "Feedstock costs are 80 percent to 90 percent of a biodiesel producer's overall expense," Schultz said. "Our products can help with the ebb and flow of market costs and maintain a more firm price range for producers."

Dow Water and Process Solutions will be exhibiting its biodiesel process solutions at booth 1005 at the NBC, which starts Sunday, Feb. 7, in Grapevine, Texas.