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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BRASILIA 002066 
 
SIPDIS 
 
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SIPDIS 
 
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SUBJECT: REPORT ON BRAZIL WORKSHOP ON MEASUREMENTS AND STANDARDS FOR 
BIOFUELS 
 
 
BRASILIA 00002066  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (U) Summary: The National Institute of Standards and Technology 
(NIST) co-sponsored with their Brazilian counterpart, the National 
Institute of Metrology, Standardization and Industrial Quality 
(INMETRO), a workshop entitled, "Measurements and Standards for 
Biofuels: Enabling a Transition from Petroleum as Vehicular Energy 
Source" to explore cooperation on metrology and standards for 
biofuels. The Brazilian presentations were illuminating and shed 
some light why the Government of Brazil (GoB) believes a research 
partnership in biofuels is to their advantage. The GoB is seeking a 
globally-accepted international standard in biofuels to facilitate 
trade; partner in scientific research to dispel the myth that 
biofuels corrode engines and pipelines and to develop a method of 
certifying labs globally to ensure that measurements of biofuels are 
based on good science with traceability to national standards. End 
Summary 
 
¶2. (U)The U.S.-Brazil Workshop on Measurements and Standards for 
Biofuels, held September 14-15, 2006, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, was 
the product of two separate bilateral initiatives. Although it was 
agreed to as part of the U.S.-Brazil Commercial Dialogue during 
Secretary Gutierrez and Minister Furlan meeting on June 6, and its 
 
SIPDIS 
importance endorsed in the joint statement issued by the U.S.-Brazil 
Ministerial Level Joint Commission Meeting on Scientific and 
Technological Cooperation, held in Washington, DC, July 21, 2006, an 
important impetus was the Advanced Energy Initiative recently 
launched by President Bush, a plan designed to help the U.S. move 
beyond fossils fuels dependency by expanding the development of 
alternative energy sources. 
 
¶3. (U)The U.S delegation was headed by Dr. Hratch Semerjian, Chief 
Scientist, Office of the Director at NIST and Dr. Willie May, 
Director of NIST's Chemical Science and Technology Laboratory.  The 
13-member U.S. delegation also included 
representatives/presentations from the Organization of American 
States (OAS),Environmental Protection Agency,  Georgia Department of 
Agriculture, NIST and ASTM International, an international standards 
organization, in addition to the ESTH Counselor from U.S. Embassy in 
Brasilia and representatives from Consulates in Rio and Sco Paulo. 
 
 
¶4. (U)INMETRO President Joao Jornada, the host, opened by discussing 
Brazil's outlook on biofuels as it relates to science and 
technology. Jornada said that Brazil's successful use of biofuels 
can be credited, primarily, to their native technology that created 
the flex fuel engines for automobiles. (Brazil's flex fuel cars can 
be run on gasoline, ethanol or ANY combination of the two. Flex fuel 
cars were introduced to the Brazilian public in 2003 and today 
nearly 70 percent of the new passenger cars sold are flex.) 
 
¶5. (U)Jornada said that Brazil wants a global standard for biofuels, 
a prelude to it becoming a commodity. In order to perform the 
measurements related to those standards in secondary laboratories 
and industrial locations throughout Brazil, the GoB would like to 
partner with the U.S. in the production and certification of the 
necessary reference materials. 
 
¶6. (U)Jornada said Brazil would like to overcome the mistaken belief 
by some investors that the use of biofuels in the long term could 
have a corrosive effect on engines, motors and pipelines. The GoB is 
investing in long term studies to produce scientific evidence to the 
contrary. 
 
¶7. (U)The most enlightening Brazilian presentation came from Dr. 
Jose Felix Silva Junior, representative from ethanol-producing giant 
Copersucar and UNICA (Sugar AgroIndustry of Sco Paulo, as he 
highlighted the challenges facing the Brazil's producers today. The 
lack of universal standards heads the list of headaches. As an 
example, he displayed a chart showing that The New York Board of 
Trade, various countries in Europe, the international standards 
organization ASTM and Brazil all have different specifications for 
anhydrous ethanol. This has resulted in the Brazilian producer 
receiving queries from perspective buyers asking for a product he 
cannot produce. 
 
¶8. (U)Another major problem highlighted is the lack of uniform 
 
BRASILIA 00002066  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
methods for ethanol analysis. The Brazilians suggested the 
establishment of a simple measurement system that can be performed 
in almost any laboratory without special equipment and specially 
trained technicians. A uniform method of measuring would have 
prevented a recent problem encountered by the Brazilians, where the 
analysis of the product when shipped was different than the analysis 
at the receiving port, resulting in a refused shipment and 
litigation in London that lasted for years. 
 
¶9. (U)Another important issue discussed is the relevance of the 
items being measured. Therefore definition of relevant measurements 
for determining fuel quality (e.g., calorific value, 
anti-corrosiveness, etc) was identified as an issue for future 
collaboration. Often in a new product standards are transferred from 
another related product with no thought to whether the item being 
measured gives added value. 
 
¶10. (U)INMETRO is working with Brazilian industry to resolve some of 
these issues. New equipment is being purchased and training provided 
at regional laboratories in measurements and the calibration of 
equipment. Further, to prevent an agricultural disease from wiping 
out an entire harvest, the Brazilians are experimenting with 535 
varieties of sugar cane. 
 
¶11. (U)Another interesting presentation focused on the agreements 
Brazil is signing with other countries.  According to Tadeu Aandrade 
from the Canavieira Technology Center, the GoB has signed agreements 
with countries in Africa, South Asia, Central America and the Middle 
East to plant sugar cane in their countries. In one trilateral 
partnership with the UK and South Africa, Brazil will share research 
and technology with South Africa, with the UK standing ready to buy 
all the ethanol South Africa  produces. Research agreements are in 
the works with Angola and Ghana. India is looking to buy sugar mills 
in Brazil. South Korea also wants to buy distilleries in Brazil and 
ship the product to their own country. 
 
¶12. (SBU)Next steps - NIST will discuss internally and with other US 
agencies the areas highlighted as topics for future discussion and 
possible research collaboration. These areas are: review of 
specifications for biofuels and available thermophysical data 
relevant to processing and characterization of biofuels, 
identification of current and new reference methods and certified 
reference materials to improve measurement reliability and critical 
evaluation of the field methods for assessing fuel quality at the 
production site and delivery site. 
 
¶13. (SBU)COMMENT: The GoB would like the U.S. to join in taking the 
lead on laying out the framework for a science-based system of 
measuring and evaluating standards for the numerous varieties of 
biofuels that will eventually emerge on the global market.  Whether 
the biofuel is derived from corn, sugar cane or rapeseed, 
establishment of a science-based system of measurements may prevent 
future problems like those presently encountered in the area of 
GMOs. END COMMENT 
 
SOBEL