The National Science & Technology Awards Conference was held by the CPC Central Committee and the State Council in Beijing in February 14, 2012. President Hu Jintao, premier Wen Jiabao, Li Changchun, Li Keqiang and other CPC and state leaders attended the conference. Liu Yandong, Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and State Councilor, announced the “State Council’s Decision on the annual National Science & Technology Awards for 2011”. Yue Guojun, Executive Director and Vice President of China Agri, and the General Manager of Biochemical and Biofuel Division, won the National Science & Technology Progress Award (Second class) as the main contributor on a project related to a technology and engineering application for tapioca-based non-grain fuel ethanol. The project was co-developed by Guangxi COFCO Bio-Energy Co., Ltd. and Tianjin University, with key contributors including Yue Guojun, Jiang Yong, Li Bei, Liu Shuhai, and Ren Lianbin, etc.
 

The leadership of China has made the decision to make the development of renewable energy a strategic priority of the country’s development. Bio-energy, one of the most promising forms of renewable energy, is crucial to the development of the energy complex in China, protection of the environment, and promotion of agricultural development. In his project, Yue Guojun develops a complete set of highly advanced technology around tapioca-based non-grain fuel ethanol production. The patented technology has been implemented in several programs and has helped to significantly upgrade the technologies used in the traditional ethanol production industry. For example, a demonstration project producing an annual 200,000 tons of tapioca-based non-grain fuel ethanol has provided a total of over RMB 1.3 billion to local farmers to date. The effective reduction in emissions of hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides from car exhausts is already helping to reap remarkable social benefits.