CO₂ from Ethanol Plants

Companies that recover CO₂ from ethanol fermentation fall into three groups: gas majors that contract offtake from large plants, liquefaction operators co-located at ethanol sites, and independent capture operators building purification capacity at biogenic sources. CleanCycleCarbon is an independent capture operator. Fermentation CO₂ leaves the process highly concentrated, which is why ethanol became the backbone of US merchant supply in the first place.

Ethanol fermentation plants are the single largest source of merchant CO₂ in the United States, accounting for roughly 30-40% of total supply. The process is efficient: for every gallon of ethanol produced, approximately 6.3 pounds of high-purity CO₂ is generated as a byproduct.

But dependence on ethanol-sourced CO₂ creates structural risk. Ethanol production is seasonal (following the corn harvest), geographically concentrated (overwhelmingly in the Midwest), and economically sensitive (tied to fuel demand, corn prices, and Renewable Fuel Standard mandates). When ethanol production dips, CO₂ supply drops with it, and buyers across the country feel the impact.

The 2022 CO₂ shortage was partly caused by seasonal ethanol plant shutdowns coinciding with other supply disruptions. The market had no buffer because it was too concentrated.

From ethanol CO₂ to beverage carbonation

Most ethanol plants do not sell beverage grade CO₂ themselves. The raw fermentation stream is captured, liquefied, and purified by a gas partner, then tested against the ISBT specification, 99.9% minimum purity with limits on more than 20 trace contaminants, before it can touch a drink. The purification step, not the source, is what makes CO₂ beverage grade.

CleanCycleCarbon applies that same discipline to biogenic streams. Its cryogenic process is designed to take a raw CO₂ stream, whether from fermentation or biogas upgrading, to FDA-registered, beverage grade quality with a certificate of analysis behind every batch.

CleanCycleCarbon is not trying to replace ethanol as a CO₂ source. Ethanol plants will remain a critical part of the supply chain. Instead, we are building complementary capacity from different feedstocks in different geographies, so the market is less vulnerable to single-source disruptions.

Our proprietary cryogenic process captures CO₂ from renewable natural gas upgraders, dairy biogas digesters, landfill gas facilities, and other industrial sources. These sources operate year-round, are distributed across the country, and their CO₂ output is not tied to corn economics.

The result is a more resilient, more geographically diverse domestic CO₂ supply chain that complements ethanol-sourced CO₂ instead of depending on it.