Prairie to Pump Switch to switchgrass By RUSSELL RAY World Staff Writer 9/24/2006
Program support manager Bob Gonzales attends to switchgrass in the greenhouses at the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation in Ardmore. Noble Foundation scientists are studying switchgrass for its biofuel potential. Switchgrass also can be used for grazing livestock.
Oklahoma fertile ground for developing, growing noncorn ethanol feedstock Switchgrass, a prairie grass that grows naturally throughout Oklahoma, could be pivotal in the nation's transition to ethanol -- an emerging substitute for gasoline.
Most ethanol is made from corn, but the government's goal of replacing 30 percent of U.S. petroleum consumption with ethanol cannot be achieved with corn alone, Oklahoma researchers and politicians say.
Commercial production of cellulosic ethanol -- ethanol made from biomass such as switchgrass -- will be required to meet the government's goal, said Joe Bouton, a geneticist who specializes in switchgrass development for the Noble Foundation in Ardmore.
"It's going to take 1 billion tons of biomass to hit that target," Bouton said.
Switchgrass potential Using Oklahoma switchgrass as a feedstock for fuel makes sense because the output could be huge, said Oklahoma Energy Secretary David Fleischaker.
Oklahoma has 34 million acres of crop and pasture land, Fleischaker said. If just half of that land was used to grow high-yielding switchgrass for ethanol production, Oklahoma could produce the equivalent of 1.3 million barrels of oil a day, rivaling the output of some members of OPEC.
"It represents an enormous opportunity for rural Oklahoma," Fleischaker said.
What's more, it could help America kick its addiction to oil.
Campaign for subsidies But Oklahoma officials are facing a major obstacle in jump-starting this new industry.
Oklahoma farmers won't plant the switchgrass until a market develops, and the refiners won't invest in biorefineries until they have an available feedstock.
"You have a chicken-and-egg problem," Fleischaker said.
To overcome this dilemma, Oklahoma officials are pushing for federal subsidies to encourage farmers to grow dedicated energy crops such as switchgrass.
"The 2007 farm bill needs to address this issue by incentivizing -- through cash payments -- our farmers and ranchers to assume the risk and begin growing this crop," Fleischaker said. "That will jump-start this entire industry."
More energy efficient Switchgrass, a low-maintenance grass that can grow up to 12 feet tall, is abundant in Oklahoma and other Great Plains states.
In addition, ethanol made from switchgrass is far more energy-efficient than corn ethanol. That's because it takes far less energy to produce a gallon of switchgrass-based ethanol versus a gallon of corn-based ethanol.
For every unit of energy put into the production of corn ethanol, 1.3 units are put back out. The energy output for switchgrass-based ethanol is three to five units for every one unit put in, Bouton said.
Switchgrass is more energy-efficient because it doesn't require nearly as much water and fossil fuel-based fertilizer as corn.
"It's one of the most efficient biomass producing crops," Bouton said. "The whole state of Oklahoma is capable of making switchgrass."
A new breed of switchgrass Yields of Oklahoma switchgrass average about five to six dry tons per acre.
Bouton, however, has already developed a higher yielding variety of switchgrass suited for southern Oklahoma and northern Texas.
"This new variety has been yielding about 25 percent higher than that," Bouton said. "It's tailor-made for this region."
The new variety is expected to hit the marketplace in two to three years, Bouton said.
Through genetic manipulation, Bouton hopes to develop a switchgrass seed capable of yielding as much as 15 tons per acre.
Bouton also is working to reduce the amount of lignin in switchgrass. Lignin is the substance that gives switchgrass its strength to stand tall. But it is a hindrance to ethanol production because it prevents the cellulose in switchgrass from being converted into the sugar needed to make ethanol.
"Lignin is like a polymer that seals off the cellulose from being fermented and broken down," Bouton said. "We don't want to eliminate all the lignin, but we do need to reduce it to where microbes can attack it."
Commercial production of switchgrass-based ethanol is just a few years away, said Ray Huhnke, a biosystems and agricultural engineering professor at Oklahoma State University.
OSU researchers have been developing a gasification process for converting switchgrass into ethanol. The process should be in place at a commercial ethanol plant within five years, Huhnke said.
"We hope to have a pilot plant online with industry support within two years," he said. "We're not tied only to switchgrass. We have the opportunity to gasify a wide range of feedstocks."
Industry, government pushing ethanol Last year, Congress passed an energy bill that aims to double the use of ethanol in gasoline to 7.5 billion gallons a year by 2012.
Ethanol was given another huge boost earlier this year when U.S. automakers announced plans to double the production of "flex-fuel" vehicles that can run on E85 fuel, a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline.
The march toward ethanol is being driven by high oil prices and increasing competition for the world's finite supply of crude, Fleischaker said.
"They're putting 30,000 cars a month on the streets of Beijing," he said.
Subsidizing ethanol production is a troubling notion for most people, but paying a subsidy is far more preferable than buying more oil from hostile nations, Fleischaker said.
Oklahoma and its biomass resources could play a starring role in the battle against high energy prices and growing dependence on foreign crude, he said.
"We have all the necessary ingredients to become a center for biorefining," Fleischaker said.
Consumer Reports weighs in with study Ethanol is a few cents cheaper than gasoline on per gallon basis. But ethanol isn't as powerful as gasoline, gallon for gallon.
That means motorists using E85 can't go as far as they could if they were using regular gasoline. As a result, they have to buy more E85 fuel.
So, is E85 cheaper than gasoline?
According to Consumer Reports, E85 will cost motorists more money than gasoline. The magazine's conclusion was based on a series of tests involving Chevrolet's 2007 flex-fuel Tahoe model and interviews with more than 50 experts.
Running on E85, the Tahoe's fuel mileage was 27 percent lower than gasoline, Consumer Reports found. On a full tank of E85, the Tahoe's driving range was 300 miles, down from about 440 on gasoline.
About switchgrass Switchgrass, a low-maintenance grass that can grow up to 12 feet tall, is abundant in Oklahoma and other Great Plains states.
In addition, ethanol made from switchgrass is far more energy efficient than corn ethanol.
That’s because it takes far less energy to produce a gallon of switchgrass-based ethanol versus a gallon of corn-based ethanol.
For every unit of energy put into the production of corn ethanol, 1.3 units are put back out. The energy output for switchgrass-based ethanol is three to five units for every one unit put in.
Switchgrass is more energy efficient because it doesn’t require nearly as much water and fossil fuelbased fertilizer as corn.
