(Published Wednesday, May 16, 2007 11:20:19 AM CST)
A d v e r t i s e m e n t
By Carla McCann Gazette staff
MILTON-United Ethanol is getting a partner at its Eastside Industrial Park community of buildings.
EPCO Carbon Dioxide Products, which is headquartered in Monroe, La., will build a carbon dioxide recovery system that includes a 40-by-140-foot building, a tower and two 10,000- to 20,000-gallon storage tanks on the 51-acre site.
The city council approved a conditional-use permit Tuesday for the new business. The city plan commission had unanimously approved the request May 7.
In January, when the partnership between United Ethanol and EPCO was announced, Tom Gannon, vice president of EPCO's sales and marketing department, said the new operation should be operating by December and add from 15 to 20 new trucking jobs to the community.
"CO2 is very, very safe," Gannon said. "It's not toxic."
The new $60 million ethanol plant started operating in March.
EPCO will produce up to 250 tons daily of liquefied carbon dioxide, which is a byproduct of fermenting corn. Carbon dioxide is a gas that becomes liquid under refrigeration and pressure, Gannon said.
EPCO will capture gas that otherwise would be released into the atmosphere, he said.
The liquid will be stored on site and then transported by semitrailer trucks, Gannon said.
EPCO operates 10 other carbon dioxide production plants, including one in Monroe, and it has two other plants under construction.
Carbon dioxide is used in the carbonation of soft drinks, freezing of food products and treatment of alkaline water. It also is used in the recovery of oil from wells and in the refrigeration needed to transport food products to market.
