U.S Fuel Corp. (fka USFF)

[techjunkie]

Ethanol from Coal and Wastes

That Oak Ridge area of Roane County may also be the site of a new, huge ethanol-generating plant, if federal loan guarantees can be secured for about $20 million of its start-up costs.

The company with the technology patents to produce ethanol from coal and from waste products, including garbage, paper and plastics, has the support of Congressman Zach Wamp. It’s in his district that the cleaned-up K-31 uranium enrichment building resides in what’s called Heritage Center, with more than a million square feet available under one roof. It also got a favorable review earlier this week from Sen. Lamar Alexander, who reiterated the notion that the United States is “the Saudi Arabia of coal” and extolled the process’ potential to produce a cleaner, more usable energy form in ethanol.

The timing of the loan-guarantee request, with gasoline prices spiking, would appear to be excellent, and the efficient production of ethanol from coal resources could eventually provide up to half of U.S. gasoline consumption, according to company projections. That may be optimistic, but another plus to the process the company offers is that it does not involve any burning and is non-polluting.

http://www.metropulse.com/articles/2006/16_18/commentary.shtml