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specialgreen · Posted: Sun Feb 05, 2006 6:20 pm Post subject: switchgrass E-85

I'm wondering how folks here feel about switchgrass ethanol: environmental potential, production potential, etc.

What would the US look like if we decided to push switchgrass?

Revision · Joined: 14 Sep 2005 Posts: 194 Location: Carol Stream, IL

There were numbers somewhere, but wasn't there a very LOT of switchgrass required to make a gallon of ethanol? edit: found it. (50 gallons per dry ton see article from 2005) Also there seems to be some question of specialization of cellulose ethanol refineries. The problem seems to be that cellulose conversion is very specific. Only certain types of plant matter can be processed by a plant at a time. If a plant were all switchgrass, it would have a difficult time changing over to say wood pulp.

Here is the article I found that discribes this issue.

I see switchgrass plants as having the same trouble as getting the country to start running E85. Not enough cars and not enough E85 pumps. Kind of the chicken or the egg dilemma. Not enough switchgrass and no real large scale plants.

There seems to be more potential with the new corn hybrid they are testing with the new type ethanol plant that recovers corn oil for biodiesel AND sugars for ethanol. Plus if they can get the plant also running cellulose conversion on corn stover/stalks, that would be ideal.

The problem is still that even with the new hybrid high yield corn, it won't be enough to supply the needs of the US. What I see happening is corn staying a mainstay in the midwest. And more cellulose plants popping up everywhere else where there is raw plant material available in great quantities. What will need to happen next is a technology breakthough. Either a bioengineered bacteria or plant that produces alcohol directly as a byproduct in large quantities or an engineered fast growing algae that can be quicly harvest as even more algae grows further down the line.

We might see some interesting innovations in the meantime. Kelp farms, algae ponds, glass algae towers that filter smoke stacks.

ethanol1 · Joined: 22 Feb 2006 Posts: 1 Location: MN

Utilizing the destructive ability of termites to create ethanol is opening new doors to ethanol production and making using switch grass an even more attractive option. In the future, Agricultural waste could be converted into Ethanol using bacteria. See article here http://www.ethanolforums.com/viewtopic.php?t=54
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Ethan
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