In the Media

From the Iowa State University Agronomy Department Newsletter

SSSA Soil Scientist Research Award
David Laird (CenUSA CO-Project Director) has been named the 2017 Soil Science Society Association's Soil Scientist Research award recipient. He will be recognized during the annual meeting in Tampa in October 2017.

Over more than 30 years of professional activity, each area of his work has substantially advanced fundamental principles in soil science and has laid a foundation for subsequent efforts of other scientists. 

Abandoned strip mine sites may loose their eyesore status if our colleagues at NEWBio — the Northeast Woody/Warm-season Bioenergy Consortium are right about switchgrass.

Read "Research focuses on reclaiming strip-mine sites for biofuel crop production" (Penn State News 5/23) and learn more about Marvin Hall's work with switchgrass as a better way of restoring land that had previously been both deep mined and strip mined.

CenUSA CO-PD Jason Hill (Obj. 4 - System Performance) and his team have announced the availability of "InMAP: Intervention model for air pollution: Health Impacts of Air Pollution: A Tool to 
Understand the Consequences." The work was partially funded by CenUSA.

Links to the paper, published in the journal PLOS ONE and a page describing its capabilities are available at:

Article: http://z.umn.edu/inmapplos

Description: http://z.umn.edu/inmap

The future may well include annuals and perennials in a beneficially mixed landscape. According the "Meet the Plant that is Bridging Renewable Energy, Rural Development, and Environmental Benefits*" the central US may soon see perennial and annual crops supporting each other in a vibrant landscape.

The US DOE has also included a short video "Bioenergy in a multifunctional landscape" available here.

*Article and video originally published by the U.S. Department of Energy in the public domain.

For switchgrass to make inroads as a viable ag product it has to solve someone's problem. Erosion control may be a problem that switchgrass is well suited to helping solve in the American Midwest.

Lear more in "Is Switchgrass the Answer?" available here.

CenUSA Bioenergy has released its latest quarterly report covering research and extension/outreach activities between February 1, 2016 to April 30, 2016. Learn what our federally-funded (USDA-NIFA) project has been up to.

This report covers the activities of each of our ten objectives, including our Commercialization Objective.

Bioeconomy stalwart Biofuels Digest has launched a new publication, the NUU Digest. One of their first articles focuses on a CenUSA favorite, biochar. You can find the article, An Overview of the current Biochar and Activated Carbon Markets at http://biofuelsdigest.com/nuudigest/2016/10/11/an-overview-of-the-current-biochar-and-activated-carbon-markets/.

The USDA has just released a report with the data on how much the biobased products industry is contributing to the U.S. economy.

Iin 2014, the total was $393 billion in value added to the economy and 4.223 million jobs. The multiplier effect of the activity show that for every 1,000 jobs in the biobased industry supported 1,760 additional jobs in other parts of the economy. The article adds perspective on what this means to the overall economy and is a quick and informative read.

Learn more at from Biofuels Digest.

The Flooding in Iowa Project is a series of web-based videos designed to educate local officials and the general public about floodplains, flood risks, and basic floodplain management principles.  The videos are divided into five categories: Introduction to the NFIP, Understanding Flooding, Floodplain Mapping, Floodplain Regulation, and Flood Insurance.  The tabs located on the top of this web page take you to each of these categories where you will find the related videos and participant materials.  

Use this three minute video to familiarize yourself with the navigation of the website, website features, and the resources provided through the Flooding in Iowa Project.

Biochar 2016: August 22-25, 2016, Oregon State University, Corvallis

Learn more about CenUSA and Biochar

Experience the Synergy
Over the last several years, researchers have helped open up many promising avenues for biochar market development in North America. Likewise, many entrepreneurs and small business owners have made investments to develop commercial markets. With so much research being published on biochar (over 5000 publications in 2015 alone!), there is a need to bring together these two groups to share information, lessons learned, and to solicit ideas on the pathway forward for biochar commercial development. The US Biochar Initiative and Sustainable Obtainable Solutions aims to bring together stakeholders in the applied biochar research community and the private sector to further biochar market development.

**Early bird extended to July 29th! – Register now to take advantage of discounted rates!

The DOE's billion ton report is a huge driver for the bioeconomy. Lear all about the 2016 report from Biofuels Digest here. We would love to hear your thoughts on the report on our Twitter account @CenUSABioenergy.

Update: A fully "interactive" copy of the report is available here.

June 28, 2016 - CenUSA updates Switchgrass Production Tool.

We have updated our Switchgrass Decision Tool. Click here to access the latest version (6/28/16) of the Tool Worksheet.

To learn more about To Grow or not to Grow: A Tool for Comparing Returns to Switchgrass for Bioenergy with Annual Crops and CRP click here

This tool is intended to give producers a guide to understanding best management practices for switchgrass production and also to compare the expected returns to switchgrass production with several alternative land uses. 

The tool uses a worksheet format to allow producers to:

• Calculate Production Estimates
• Compare Per-Acre Net Returns

rom the USDA comes the news of $21 million in new funding to support the development of regional systems in sustainable bioenergy and biobased products, and education and training for the next generation of scientists.

The goal is to expand availability of renewable, sustainable goods and energy. This funding is available through the USDA's Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI). The initiative is authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill and administered by USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA).

For the 2016 fiscal year, the AFRI Sustainable Bioenergy and Bioproducts challenge area is soliciting applications that focus on the following priorities:

• Regional Bioenergy Coordinated Agricultural Projects (CAPs), which support the production and delivery of regionally-appropriate sustainable biomass feedstocks for bioenergy and bioproducts. While the focus of CAPs will be on feedstocks, competitive proposals must present the feedstock development and production in the context of comprehensive regional sustainable bioenergy and bioproducts supply chain systems.
• Investing in America's scientific corps: Preparing a new generation of students, faculty, and a workforce for emerging opportunities in bioenergy, bioproducts, and the bioeconomy

Letters of intent are required by July 14, 2016, and the closing date for this opportunity is September 22, 2016.  Application deadlines vary by program area.

Read find the full funding opportunity announcement here. 

Biochar has always been a big part of the CenUSA vision so we jumped at the opportunity to co-sponsor Biochar 2016: The Synergy of Science and Industry: Biochar’s Connection to Ecology, Soil, Food, and Energy.

The event is being put on by the US Biochar Initiative and Sustainable Obtainable Solutions and will be held in Corvallis, Oregon August 22-25, 2016.

Who should attend: are you a biochar producer, farmer, forester, policy maker, industry professional,  entrepreneur, student or interested citizen? Then this event is for you.

Learn more in the conference flyer or register here.

The end of the semester is not always roses, sometimes you have to so goodbye and good luck.

CenUSA has had the good fortune of having excellent interns from Iowa State's Greenlee College of Journalism to help us with our BLADES newsletter and social media outlets. This year we have to say thanks, goodbye and good luck to Ali Lenger and Jake Miller. Ali and Jake did an excellent job of helping us publicize CenUSA's work in the emerging bioeconomy and we were lucky to have them as part of our team.

We asked Jake and Ali to share some of the wisdom they acquired while with us to share with students who in their footsteps as journalism/public relations interns. Here is their story:

• Checking in with CenUSA - Jake Miller
• Checking in with CenUSA - Ali Lenger

The May edition of our BLADES newsletter is available. We have articles featuring:

• Lignin - Is there a market?
• CenUSA's own pioneering woman in agriculture
• Switchgrass safety
• Genera Energy

Catch these stories an more here

Biofuels industry media heavyweight Biofuels Digest featured CenUSA collaborator Renmatix today.

The story features 16 slides that focus on just how this technology licensor sees its clients capturing the bio-based sugar market in Fast & Flexible: The Digest's 2016 Multi-Slide Guide to Renmatix.  

CenUSA has been working with Renmatix since 2015 to bring perennial grasses into the Renmatix value equation. You can find out more about Renmatix in these CenUSA produced materials:

• Energy Company Total Makes Investment in Renmatix
• Case Study: Renmatix Processes Biomass into Sugars for Industrial Use

CenUSA's Extension Objective in collaboration with eXtension has released it's first commercialization case study.

The case study features CenUSA commercialization collaborator Renmatix and its patented technology for cost-effective production of industrial sugars from cellulosic biomass including perennial grasses.

Click here to read "Renmatix Processes Biomass into Sugars for Industrial Use".

Congratulations to our NEWBio  colleagues at Penn State University on their recent first harvest of 34 acres of fast-growing shrub willow from a Penn State demonstration field. You can learn more in the article "Experimental biomass harvest a step toward sustainable, biofuels-powered future." Click here to read the entire article.

Can switchgrass production aid in the fight to improve water quality? Yes, according to a new study by the Argonne National Laboratory and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO). 

You can learn more about the study, "Identifying and Mitigating Potential Nutrient and Sediment Hot Spots under a Future Scenario in the Missouri River Basin" here, or view the entire press release or head into the weeds and get a copy of the entire report.

New research from Iowa State University shows significant portions of Iowa farmland consistently produce yields that fall short of the cost of the inputs required to grow crops. It may make more sense to change how those unprofitable acres are used, according to ISU agronomists.

CenUSA has been interested in the concept of "marginal land" since the inception of our project as our vision calls for production of perennial grasses on land that is marginal for row crop production.

You can learn more about Dr. Brandes ' work here and in this short video.

inBiofuels Digest (1/21) has a story on the US Navy's efforts to 'green the fleet' in The Great Green Fleet Sails. There are a number of interesting take aways to the story, but getting costs down by a factor of 13 really caught our eye!

CenUSA collaborator Emily Heaton's work with the University of Iowa has been prominently featured in a guest editorial, "Iowa is a place for climate leadership" in the Cedar Rapids Gazette (12/27/15).

Johnathan Hladik, the Rural Policy Director at the Center for Rural Affairs (http://www.cfra.org) discusses the work being done at the University of Iowa to introduce miscanthus as a source of energy for the University's power plant. Emily Heaton, an assistant professor of Agronomy at Iowa State University and a member of CenUSA's Sustainable Feedstock Production Systems objective  has been heavily involved in the University of Iowa's project.

You can learn more here.

Is there some biochar in the BLT's future? 

According to this latest report on the ever-growing uses for biochar, the ubiquitous by-product of pyrolysis can "have considerable advantages for greenhouse tomato growers".

The report "Closing the Loop: Use of Biochar Produced from Tomato Crop Green waste as a Substrate for Soilless,  Hydroponic Tomato Production" is available on the ASHS HortScience electronic journal web site: http://hortsci.ashspublications.org/content/50/10/1572.abstract

Learn what Iowa State University's BioCentury Research Farm can do for industrial clients and researchers in this recent article: ​BCRF's Biomass Preparation Services are in High Demand.

CenUSA Bioenergy has released a new switchgrass cost production tool for producers.*

To Grow or not to Grow: A Tool for Comparing Returns to Switchgrass for Bioenergy with Annual Crops and CRP

This tool is intended to give producers a guide to understanding best management practices for switchgrass production and also to compare the expected returns to switchgrass production with several alternative land uses. 

The tool is made up of two files, a Tool Instruction Guide (pdf) and the Tool Worksheet (Excel Worksheet).

The tool uses a worksheet format to allow producers to:

• Calculate Production Estimates
• Compare Per-Acre Net Returns

The tool is a collaborative effort by CenUSA's Keri Jacobs, Rob Mitchell and Chad Hart.

CenUSA is pleased to announce that Aaron Shane, freshman in Ag and Bio Engineering at Iowa State University is the grand prize winner ($50) of our November 2015 Harvest Month Photo Contest. Aaron's photo, Dusk at Catherine's narrowly beat out runner-up Tennessee State University professor Jason de  Koff's photo.

We want to thank everyone who participated in our contest for their support of the CenUSA vision.

Harvest Month Photo Contest Winner

Catherine's at Dusk - Aaron Shane

Harvest Month Photo Contest Runner Up

Harvet Eve - Jason de Koff

From Kacey Birchmmier a  fourth-generation farm woman in central comes the article "Iowa Perennials Have Potential In Low-Productive Land." (Agriculture.com 11/30). Click here for the full article.

You can follow Kacey on Twitter - @KaceyBirchmier.

It's always good to know what the important people think. That's why we asked county ag agents/extension professionals what they think about growingperennial grasses for biomass. See what they told us in this report from our project evaluator Sorrel Brown.

The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports that the University of Iowa is well on its way to achieve its goal of 4o percent renewable energy use by 2020. Learn all the details in the article "University of Iowa ramps up use of biomass fuel" (11/17/15)

Learn what CenUSA economists Chad Hart, Keri Jacobs and F.John Hay have to say about the challenges to producers in the short term in this November 6th article "Switchgrass Could Be A Top Biofuel Crop, But It Faces Challenges" from the Yankton Daily Press & Dakotan.

Our sister USDA-NIFA Bioenergy CAP Advanced Hardwood Biofuels Northwest (Washington state) has released a new video released by which explains how cellulosic ethanol is being used in the Pacific Northwest by the  sustainable hardwood bioproducts and biofuels industry. AHB believes that one day cellulosic biofuels from hardwood could be a cheap fuel produced from locally sourced poplar trees, a better alternative to the region that “importing” corn-based ethanol..

http://www.biofuelsdigest.com/bdigest/2015/11/04/advanced-hardwood-biofuels-northwest-releases-new-video-on-cellulosic-biofuel/

SeeNews reports that University of Texas researcher Tom Juenger-and his team have secured two grants totaling $15 Million to study how switchgrass can become a sustainable source of biofuel in the changing climate environment. The grants include $11 million in DOE funding and additional $4 million in NSF funding. Learn more at https://renewables.seenews.com/news/view?url=498361.

From the University of Iowa news service comes "Bravo to biomass: UI study shows using oat hulls for power has considerable benefits to the environment and human health." (9/24/15). The article provides interesting info on the co-firing of biomass (oat hulls) in the University of Iowa's coal boiler systems, including significant public health benefits.

The US Dept. of Energy has awarded Michigan State University $5 million to learn how biofuel crops acquire nitrogen with a goal to reduce fertilizer use on marginal lands. Learn more in "Grant to help increase biofuel yield while limiting fertilizer use."

The Iowa City Press Citizen describes the University of Iowa's efforts to use biomass from miscanthus as part of its overall push towards reducing its fossil fuel footprint in "UI ramps up biofuel efforts" (8/26/15). 

CenUSA Bioenergy's sister project IBSS has released a Guidebook for the Sustainable Production Practices of Switchgrass in the Southeastern U.S.

Biomass Magazine reports that Genera Energy has launched a free biomass crop planning app. ( Genera Energy launches unique biomass crop planning app, (Aug. 6, 2015).

 The app, known as Biomass is available on both the Apple and Google Play app stores. According to Genera "the Biomass app was developed to serve as a practical, easy-to-use mobile crop planning and learning tool for biomass farmers and landowners."

If you are a bioenergy fan and have not heard about the USDA-ARS FarmBio3 project you need to remedy that hole in your portfolio.      

FarmBio3 has a research summary. Exploring On-Farm Pyrolysis Processing of Biofuels available on the eXtension Farm Energy site that will give you the current low down on how "how on-farm processing could be part of a decentralized system of biorefineries located in villages, which are efficiently supplied with bio-oil from feedstocks grown and processed on surrounding farms."

FarmBio3 is part of the research effort from our colleagues at NewBioProject. Kwesi Boateng who is part of both CenUSA Bioenergy and the NewBioProject is pushing the envelope on where this exciting distributed technology can go.

CenUSA's fellow NIFA-AFRI CAP colleagues Advance Hardwood Biofuels Northwest tell their story in "Poplar-Based Bioethanol Production Awaits Spike In Price Of Crude" (7/1715) 

The article is an excellent review of the opportunities and pitfalls surrounding the use of poplar as a biofeedstock. You can read the article here

CenUSA Bioenergy commercialization partner Renmatix has received a 2015 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge award. The award recognizes individuals and firms who "for  innovative solutions that “reduce the use of energy, hazardous chemicals and water, while cutting manufacturing costs and sparking investments."

You can learn more about the award here.

About Renmatix
Renmatix is the leading technology licensor for the conversion of biomass into cellulosic sugar, an enabling feedstock for petroleum alternatives used in the global biochemical and biofuels markets. The company's proprietary Plantrose® process challenges conventional sugar economics by cheaply converting cellulosic biomass – from wood waste to agricultural residue – into useful, cost-effective sugars. Renmatix's supercritical hydrolysis technology deconstructs non-food biomass an order of magnitude faster than other processes and enhances its cost advantage by using no significant consumables. www.renmatix.com.

According to Farm Futures Magazine, what's old may just be new. The article "Researchers integrate biofuels, food on farms" (July 9) describes the work of Argonne National Lab researchers in the a central Illinois watershed as they work with local producers to improve farm bottom line and positive environmental returns.

The researchers conclusions to date —"The key is a "multifunctional landscape" where resources are "allocated efficiently and crops are situated in their ideal soil and landscape position, ... For example, planting bioenergy crops like willows or switchgrass in rows where commodity crops are challenged - that provides an energy feedstock while also limiting fertilizer runoff into waterways." —sound a bit likes the farms of yore.

Learn more about the project “Multifunctional landscapes: Site characterization and field-scale design to incorporate biomass production into an agricultural system” from Farm Futures or from the project's latest journal article "Multifunctional landscapes: Site characterization and field-scale design to incorporate biomass production into an agricultural system". 

The Great Lakes Bioenergy Center has released a study looking at how 'second gen' perennial biofuel crops such as switchgrass and other perennial grasses use water and affect overall Midwestern rainfall balance. The researchers conclude that in a humid Midwestern climate with well-drained soils, perennial use water at roughly the same rate as corn.

More information is available from Biofuels Digest Researchers say perennial crops could use same water as corn in Upper Midwest (7/6/15) and from the Great Lakes Bioenergy Center -  Perennial biofuel crops use water at levels similar to corn.

Chad Martin, CenUSA Collaborator and Purdue University renewable energy extension specialist presented an Overview of Wind, Solar and Energy Efficiency at the 2015 Energy Expo at the Batesville Middle School. Martin discussed the potential for biomass energy, including switchgrass to help power the Midwest. To learn more  read Renewable Energy Resources in the Batesville Herald Tribune (June 26, 2015).

The USDA has released a new report of great interest to individuals nad businesses interested in growing a sustainable bioeconomy. The report, An Economic Impact Analysis of the U.S. Biobased Products Industry A Report to the Congress of the United States of America was prepared for the U. S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) BioPreferred® program and the US Congress. Click here for the full text. More information is available here.

The report is a follow-up to the October 2014 report, Why Biobased? Opportunities in the Emerging Bioeconomy prepared for USDA.

The report  seeks to answer the six following important questions regarding the contributions of the biobased products industry in the US: 

(i) the quantity of biobased products sold; 

(ii) the value of the biobased products; 

(iii) the quantity of jobs created; 

(iv) the quantity of petroleum displaced; 

(v) other environmental benefits; and 

(vi) areas in which the use or manufacturing of biobased products could be more effectively used, including identifying any technical and economic obstacles and recommending how those obstacles can be

The USDA is proposing to open up its loan guarantee program to manufacturers who use biomass to make products. Learn about this potentially historic opportunity for the producers of plant based biomass from the New York Times in "USDA Program Promotes Products Such as Plant-Based Bottles." 

Things are heating up in the pyrolysis world (all puns intended)! CenUSA's co-project director and director of Iowa State University Bioeconomy Institute Robert Brown outlines the plans for a pilot plant that will use a fast pyrolysis process to convert biomass into bio-oil and biochar. Learn more about this exciting development in "PILOT PLANT SLATED FOR A FAST-PYROLYSIS PROCESS THAT CONVERTS BIOMASS INTO FUELS" from the current issue of Chemical Engineering magazine.

CenUSA's fellow USDA-NIFA grantees at NARA have teamed up with Alaska Airlines to fly on aviation fuel made from forest "residuals." NARA has been working with commercial partner Gevo to produce the fuel. You can learn more in this article form BioFuels Disgest: Alaska Airlines to fly on wood-based aviation biofuels next year.

Learn more about Washington State University led NARA here.

The Journal of Soil and Water Conservation has published an article by CenUSA project members Pam Porter, Rob Mitchell and Ken Moore. The article "Reducing hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico: Reimagining a more resilient agricultural landscape on the Mississippi River Watershed" is available free online here.

The US DOE has just released a fact sheet, Green Jobs in the US that explains how  the emerging bioeconomy, along with many other benefits, is creating new employment in the US. 

From our norther neighbors in Ontario comes the article, "Livestock Bedding offers markets for miscanthus, switchgrass growers." Read what AgInnovation Ontario has to say about this potential market.

Aloterra and World Centric have announced they are jointly developing and marketing a new line of certified compostable foodservice items made from Miscanthus plant fiber. The goal to replace foam and plastic items which currently dominate the food system. Learn more in this article from Biomass Magazine, Aloterra announces foodservice ware line made from miscanthus.

The really cool takeaway...the miscanthus will be grown on land that is marginal for food crop production.

The Newton Daily News has featured the new CenUSA supported video game C6

Learn more about what CenUSA collaborator Jay Staker and his team are up to in "ISU video game shows what it’s like to farm" (Jason W. Brooks, Newton Daily News, April 28, 2015.

The latest copy of our BLADES newsletter has hit the virtual streets. Click here to read our April issue and these informative stories:

• Toward progress on nutrient management
• Chevrolet and Ducks Unlimited pair up for grasslands
• Switchgrass: Better bedding for broilers? 
• CenUSA releases first-ever decision support tool for switchgrass
• The California carbon offset market: directing the changing landscape
• Managing carbon like coffee cups

A new study by University of Wisonconsin Madison researchers  Tyler Lark, J. Meghan Salmon and Holly Gibbs. used high resolution satellite imagery to document  significant loss of carbon-storing natural lands as land is converted into carbon-emitting biofuel croplands. Read the article here. 

The full study is available in the journal Environmental Research Letters.

According to the Great Lakes Biological Research Center “Switchgrass is a promising biofuel feedstock and represents a kind of halfway point between agronomic intensification and ecological intensification,” says GLBRC doctoral researcher David Duncan.

Learn more at  "Toward Ecological Intensification One Prairie Grass a a Time."

Learn how Iowa high school student Eric Koehlmoos went from his basement lab in Paulina, Iowa to the White House. It's a switchgrass and biofuel story that will make you feel a little more confident in the future. Click here for more info.

For biofuels and bioproducts to achieve commercial success there have to be means to achieve commercialization of lignin. From Biomass Magazine (3/5/15) comes news of a conceptual breakthrough. Learn more at "NREL refines method to convert lignin to nylon precursor." 

There is some exciting news in the bioenergy world this morning and it involves our research/commercialization partner Renmatix and the French energy giant Total, SA. You can also learn more in an article from Biofuels Digest in the article "Total makes play in cellulosic sugars, invests in Renmatix, inks JDA".

CenUSA's commercial partner, Renmatix is featured in today's Biofuels Digest 5-Minute Guide. Read the guide. 

IowaNow reports that University of Iowa researchers have found that switchgrass can help remove PCBs from contaminated soils. Learn more in the article "UI engineers find switchgrass removes PCBs from soils." 

For more information read the research team's paper “Enhanced polychlorinated biphenyl removal in a switchgrass rhizosphere by bioaugmentation with Burkholderia xenovorans LB400.”  

In a Biomass Magazine article dated February 3, 2015 Katie Fletcher looks at how grasslands and perennial grasses can serve both conservation roles and as supplemental feedstock for anaerobic digesters. http://www.biomassmagazine.com/articles/11468/grass-to-gas

CenUSA Advisory Board Chair Tom Binder recommends this article, "Synchronized peak-rate years of global resources use." Click here for access.

CenUSA's Jason Hill quoted in New York Times: "New Report Urges Western Governments to Reconsider Reliance on Biofuels"