Switchgrass is expected to be the main feedstock for cellulosic ethanol, a new type of alternative fuel made from breaking down the woody bits of plants. The energy law signed by President George W. Bush last month mandates a five-fold increase in ethanol blending by 2022, and some of that fuel is required to come from cellulosic sources.
Switchgrass, which used to grow naturally across wide swaths of the United States, can be grown on marginal crop land using far fewer energy-intensive inputs like fertilizer than corn needs. And since it does not double as a feed crop, it will not lead to higher grain prices.
http://uk.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUKN0851690320080108
[New Golden Globe category - use of the word 'Switchgrass' in an article. DrC]
Note: http://uk.reuters.com/a...
Switchgrass Fuel Yields Bountiful Energy: Study
Posted on Tuesday, January 08 at 16:42 by drcalebContributed By
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<a href="http://www.eap.mcgill.ca/magrack/SF/Summer%2094%20C.htm">http://www.eap.mcgill.ca/magrack/SF/Summer%2094%20C.htm</a><br />
"10.9 oven dried tonnes per hectare" <br />
Hemp<br />
<a href="http://mojo.calyx.net/~olsen/HEMP/IHA/iha02107.html">http://mojo.calyx.net/~olsen/HEMP/IHA/iha02107.html</a><br />
"17 t/ha of stem dry matter"<br />
<br />
Mixed spedies efficacy<br />
<a href="http://www.farmandranchguide.com/articles/2007/04/13/ag_news/regional_news/region02.txt">http://www.farmandranchguide.com/articles/2007/04/13/ag_news/regional_news/region02.txt</a><br />
"Pure switchgrass stands may not be best for ethanol<br />
According to Hill, their study found that mixtures of 16 native prairie species produced 238 percent more energy on average than a single prairie species such as switchgrass and as an added bonus, the stands made up of the plant mixtures removed large amounts of carbon dioxide from the air and stored it in the soil, but that the single species stands did not."<br />
<p>---<br>"When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change." <br />
-Max Planck<br />
<br />
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The preceding comment deals with mature subject matter, however immaturely presented. Viewer discretion is advised.
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"When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change."
-Max Planck