Making Fuel from Forages

Ryan Lock(in for the Hawaiian vacationing) Robert Kallenbach

Division of Plant Sciences

The epitome of forage based fuels

A more sophisticated model

E3 Biofuels, Shawnee, KS

Biomass Sugar PlatformPre-distillation

Biomass

Digest with Detergent Solution

Cell Contents

(Protein, Starch, Sugars, Organic Acids,

Pectin)

Hemicellulose, Cellulose and

Lignin

Digest with Acid

Hemicellulose

Ferment with Enzyme

Fructans and Glucose

Cellulose and Lignin

Ferment with Cellulase

Glucose

Lignin

Agriculture has some decisions to make

• Energy independence• Value added crops

– Competition for commodities– Interesting times for Price discovery

• My background is old school– Cattle/forages/feedCRP acres show promise as a buffer (Average $50/acre,

currently)

Remember when…?

For every action…a reaction

Recent Biofuel research at Mizzou

• Switchgrass– Cooperative project with 8 other states

• Cool-season CRP and CRP renovation with legumes and Switchgrass– Cooperative project with 4 other states

Big challenges require teamwork

Latitudinal and Longitudinal Adaptation of Switchgrass Populations

M. D. Caslera,*, K. P. Vogelb, C. M. Taliaferroc, N. J. Ehlked, J. D. Berdahle, E. C. Brummerf, R. L. Kallenbachg, C. P. Westh and R. B. Mitchellb

Crop Sci 47:2249-2260 (2007)

MU Switchgrass data

Take home messages:

Not all varieties of switchgrass are created equal

A variety should not be grown more than 1 hardiness zone away from its ancestral origin

Cave-in-Rock most widely adapted to migration

Switchgrass dominated warm-season mixture, OK

Tall wheatgrass dominated cool-season mixture with legume, MT

Switchgrass dominated warm-season mixture, ND

Switchgrass dominated warm-season mixture with legume, KA

Tall fescue dominated cool-season mixture with two-cut system, MO

MU cool-season CRP data

• Yields not tremendous• Next logical step – Integrate Switchgrass to beef up yields– legumes to provide N• Yellow sweetclover• Switchgrass• Binary mixture• w/without glyphosate to establish

MU cool-season CRP data

Challenges• Production– Mandates

– Approx. 16 Billion gallons of ethanol from biomass– At 100 gallons per ton conversion efficiency = 160

Million tons of biomass needed– At an ave. yield of 5 t/a we need 32 million acres – A typical 50 Million gallon/yr plant would need

500,000 tons of cellulosic materials – about 1 million big round bales

Year Billion gallons2013 16.52015 20.52020 30.02022 36.0

Challenges• Transport – about 4 times higher for biomass than grains

– Corn 44 lb/ft3

– Biomass 10 to 12 lb/ft3

• Storage - where do you keep 1 million bales without having them deteriorate?

• Outside storage helps?

Enough to fill Memorial Stadium level full with bales 5 times

Challenges• Economic benefit to producers –

– Current prices for a great deal of biomass greater as forage than fuel– Most cellulosic models built on $35-45/ton feedstock– Higher fuel prices would improve feedstock value

• Fertilizer costs for N-P-K– $40/T for cool-season crp– $25/T for switchgrass

• Organic matter– losses from removing crop residues– gains under crp w/switchgrass (2.4 and 4 Mg/ha)– N rate dependant (Lee et al., Agron. J. 99:462–468 (2007)).

Challenges

• Risk management– Can you hedge these commodities?

Hedging?

Hedging?

Hedging?

Summary

• Find 3 million acres to grow corn on• Ensure CRP acres can provide enough

cellulosic material• Figure out how to supply CRP with N from

legumes