Avello Team
Management
Dennis S. Banasiak, Ph.D., President
Founders
Scientific Advisory Board
R. Christopher Williams, Ph.D.
Business Advisory Board
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Management
Matthew P. Kinley
Mr. Kinley has served as Chairman of Avello Bioenergy, Inc. since inception. Mr. Kinley has served as Senior Vice President of Pappajohn Capital Resources, a venture capital firm, and Equity Dynamics, Inc., a financial consulting firm, since 1995. Pappajohn Capital Resources is a venture capital firm primarily focused in the technology and healthcare sectors. Mr. Kinley has been involved in the financing and development of more than 40 companies in the past 15 years. Mr. Kinley served as President and as a director of Healthcare Acquisition Corp. (formerly AMEX:HAQ), a public company, from April 2005 through August 2007. From 1990 through 1995, Mr. Kinley was manager and held various positions at KPMG, focused on tax, audit and merger and acquisition issues. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of several private companies. Mr. Kinley also serves on the College of Business Executive Advisory Board and the Entrepreneurial Center Advisory Board at the University of Northern Iowa. Mr. Kinley received his B.A. in Business, with highest honors, from the University of Northern Iowa in May 1990.
Dennis S. Banasiak, Ph.D.
Dennis Banasiak is a technology based executive with experience in start up, turnaround and growth situations, joint venture formation, and the commercial development of large scale energy projects. He has direct experience in the energy, biotechnology, fermentation, specialty chemical and agricultural chemical industries. Dr. Banasiak was President and CEO of Certis USA, a fermentation based agricultural biotechnology company. Prior to Certis, Dr. Banasiak spent 24 years with Phillips Petroleum Company in various roles which included leading the development of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and Gas-to-Liquids (GTL) projects and establishing an Emerging Fuels Business group focusing on the development of alternative fuels and energy, and leading the start up of a joint venture between subsidiaries of Phillips and Dow Corning to develop environmentally friendly agricultural crop protection products. More recently, Dr. Banasiak recently split his time between the Bioeconomy Institute at Iowa State University and his Bioenergy consulting business. Dr. Banasiak holds a BS in Chemistry from DePaul University and a Ph.D. in Chemistry from Iowa State University.
Founders and Engineering Staff
Jared N. Brown
Jared Brown has over 7 years of specialized experience in biomass fast pyrolysis R&D, product analysis and development, lab and pilot scale systems operation, and technoeconomic modeling. Jared gained valuable hands-on experience with pyrolysis and fluidized bed reactors at the Agricultural Research Service of the USDA, before joining the Center for Sustainable Environmental Technologies (CSET) at Iowa State University. While at CSET as a graduate research assistant, he developed and optimized a novel fast pyrolysis system based on a twin-auger reactor concept. Jared earned his M.S. degree from Iowa State, co-majoring in Mechanical Engineering and Biorenewable Resources and Technology. Jared's B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering is from the University of Texas at San Antonio.
Cody J. Ellens
Cody Ellens is a co-founder of Avello Bioenergy. He has experience with laboratory and pilot scale biomass fast pyrolysis systems, product characterization, biomass handling and preparation. He worked with several agricultural and mechanical engineering firms before obtaining his Master’s degree at Iowa State University working with the Center for Sustainable Environmental Technologies (CSET). For his research, Cody designed, constructed and optimized a novel, free-fall, fast pyrolysis reactor for maximum pyrolysis oil production. He earned his M.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering and Biorenewable Resources and Technology from ISU. His B.S. degree in Engineering is from Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa.
Anthony J. Pollard
Anthony Pollard has gained experience in thermochemical processing through several positions in academic and industrial fields. Anthony worked at the Center for Sustainable Environmental Technologies (CSET) as an undergraduate research assistant, as well as a biomass gasification startup company before taking a graduate research position with CSET. His research at ISU was optimizing pyrolysis oil collection technology which led to the invention of the Avello Bioenergy technology. Anthony earned his B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from ISU, as well as his M.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering and Biorenewable Resources and Technology (BRT).
Scientific Advisory Board
R. Christopher Williams, Ph.D.
R. Christopher (Chris) Williams is Professor of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering, research engineer with the Institute for Transportation (InTrans), director of the Asphalt Materials and Pavements Program, and manager of the asphaltic cement concrete laboratory at Iowa State University. Dr. Williams has published over 100 publications, conference papers and technical reports on asphalt and paving technologies. Dr. Williams has significant experience working with companies, state and federal transportation agencies and administrations, including development of new specifications and large-scale demonstrations. Williams is a recognized leader in research, development and demonstration of non-petroleum based asphalt binders, and is inventor of the Bioasphalt technologies. He is also substantially involved in the development of design and construction specifications of warm mix asphalt technology, recycled asphalt shingles, and the use of high amounts of recycled asphalt pavements; which all include substantial demonstration based paving projects.
Business Advisory Board
Kevin J. Lindemer
Mr. Lindemer has over 25 years of broad-based experience in the international energy industry. Mr. Lindemer has over 8 years experience in the refining and marketing industry and 17 years of experience in energy research and consulting. He has direct industry experience with CHS and Irving Oil. His consulting experience includes 14 years with Cambridge Energy Research Associates where he started the Downstream Oil research and consulting group and with Global Insight where he was the Executive Managing Director of the energy business.
Jerry J. Oliver
Jerry Oliver recently retired from Bechtel where he served for more than 13 years in numerous capacities including overseeing technical issues, project and business development, and operations and business line management in various locations around the world. During his career he also served in various technical, business management and project management capacities for major corporations such as Kennecott Copper, Exxon, SOHIO and British Petroleum. He brings significant experience managing technology centers of excellence, front-end engineering work, estimating, first-of-a-kind complex projects, project development, and technology based businesses.
Doug C. Cameron, Ph.D.
Douglas (Doug) Cameron is a prominent scientist and businessman in the areas of clean technology and sustainable agriculture. Doug has worked has spent much of his career working in the biotechnology field, both on the science and business aspects. Doug was a professor of chemical engineering at the University of Wisconsin, Madison from 1986 through 2000, where he taught biochemical engineering and established a leading research laboratory in the areas of metabolic engineering and bioprocess technology. Doug worked at Cargill, Inc. from 1998 through mid-2006, where he built and led Cargill’s corporate biotechnology research group, and also spearheaded the company’s biotech activities in China. From 2006-2008, Doug was the chief scientific officer at Khosla Ventures. As chief scientific officer, he led technical due diligence for many of the firm’s clean technology investments, served on the board of directors for Gevo, LS9, Mascoma, Segetis, Lanzatech, Kior and Draths, and also held senior management roles in several of these companies, serving as acting CEO of Gevo, LS9 and Segetis. Doug continues to serve on the Scientific Advisory Boards of Mascoma, Segetis and Draths. Doug is currently the Managing Director of Alberti Advisors, which he founded in 2010 as a venture advisory and assistance firm focused on opportunities and challenges at the intersection of clean technology and agriculture.
