In the Media

If you are interested in how perennial grasses can be part of a sustainable transformation in Midwestern agriculture you will find this brief article fascinating.

Authors Stephen John (Agricultural Watershed Istitute) and Gregory McIsaac discuss how the American Midwest can move from a landscape dominated by row crop production to "multifunctional agriculture" featuring biomass crops.

Multifunctional Agriculture: A New Paradigm of Mixed Cropping [Solutions Journal 8(1)66-76 Jan. 2017] is available online at http://ow.ly/VOqB30cEEAU @SolutionsMag.

Lancaster Farming shared "Grad Students Hope to Reduce Poultry’s Impact on Bay Water." (5/12/17)

It might be possible for producers to create a carbon-neutral production system where poultry bedding would be grown on farm and then harvested for use in the farm's broiler houses.

Penn State graduate student Erica Rogers' early results suggest that by following some new practices poultry producers could lower the impact of poultry raising on the Chesapeake Bay.

Learn more about this study on bedding alternatives including switchgrass, miscanthus, and willow here.

Our USDA-NIFA AFRI CAP colleagues at New Bio have released a new fact sheet, Bipolaris Leaf Spot on Switchgrass: Bipolaris species.

The author is Kittikun Songsomboon with co-authors Dr. J. Hansen and Dr. G. Bergstrom, Dr. D. Viands (College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Cornell University). The fact sheet details the symptoms and signs, life cycle, and management strategies for the disease Bipolaris infection.

Access the fact sheet here.

CenUSA Bioenergy's Extension and Outreach Objective has just released a flyer/infographic detailing the work and important results generated by our research and Extension/Outreach teams since August 2011, and yes it's an impressive summary available here.

CenUSA collaborator D.K. Lee, in a study funded by the Department of Crop Sciences at U of I and the Energy Biosciences Institute says:

“We have shown that farmers can grow corn as a companion crop with switchgrass to generate revenue in the establishment year,” [...]  “The following year, switchgrass emerges early like other perennial grasses starting from crowns.” 

Learn more about corn and switchgrass and their potential for positive co-existance in "Earn cash by establishing switchgrass."

In August 2016, CenUSA Boenergy had the opportunity to participate in the International Biochar Initiative conference held August 22-26, 2016 at Oregon State University in Corvallis. As part of the event we prepared a 2016 Biochar Flyer highlighting CenUSA's work with biochar. You can check out the flyer here.

Congratulations to Iowa State's "Climate Change, Mitigation, and Adaptation in Corn-Based Cropping Systems" team for being honored by the USDA for their transdisciplinary research, extension, and education projects in nine states to identify strategies to make corn production climate resilient.

Learn more about this award here and learn more about this great project . 

CenUSA has been working for several years with Renmatix and we are very pleased to see this major announcement:

Renmatix Secures $14M Investment from Bill Gates and Total, the Global Energy Major, In Concert with Signing of 1 Million Ton Cellulosic Sugar License

Learn more here.

Sometimes people just have enough. The truly motivated take pen to paper which is just what CenUSA Co-Project Director and Director of Iowa State University's Bioeconomy Institute Robert Brown has done.

In an op-ed piece in the Des Moines Register (8/31), Biofuels are worse than gasoline? Creative accounting leads to claim, Brown takes to task those who would claim that conventional gasoline is less environmentally harmful than biofuels.

Is switchgrass a potential feed source for cattle? CenUSA has been investigating the potential of switchgrass as cattle feeding supplement and now we see that our northern neighbors are up to the same thing.

Ontario (Canada) farmers Kees and Yvonne Van Esveld have been experimenting with switchgrass as ration supplement in the dairy operation. You can learn more her in this brief article from the Ontario Farmer.

CenUSA's switchgrass and cattle resources include:

• "Energizing Cows: Potential Market for Switchgrass" (BLADES Newsletter)

   

   

Is increased biomass production What do we need to know about increased biomass production?

As production of bioproducts and biofuels from agricultural biomass becomes increasingly popular as part of the solution towards to a lower carbon world, scientists must develop a greater understanding of the effects of increased biomas planting.

The journal article Biogeochemical Research Priorities for Sustainable Biofuel and Bioenergy Feedstock Production in the Americas*, looks at the gaps in research on biogeochemical processes and ecosystem sustainability related to biomass production.

The full journal publication is available free of charge here. A summary is available from Biofuels Digest.

* Environmental Management
December 2015, Volume 56, Issue 6, pp 1330–1355 DOI: 10.1007/s00267-015-0536-7

From Biomass Magazine comes a story about using biomass to generate electricity in the UK, "ElectraTherm generates biomass power in the UK."

The biofeedstock is wood chips. Could this fly with perennial grass pellets?

The USDA will be accepting new applications for incentive funding to farmers and foresters who grow nad harvest biomass for sustainable energy and biobased products. Enrollment takes place from MAy 23 - June 6, 2016.

Learn more in this announcement from the Farm Service Agency.

Congratulation to our Minnesota Extension Master Gardener / Citizen Scientists  for their "Search for Excellence in Consumer or Commercial Horticulture-Minnesota" award from the National Association of County Agricultural Agents!

Preliminary results show biochar had some beneficial effect on certain crop performance in poor (low nutrient) soils, and informally, volunteers observed biochar-amended soils were less compacted.

You can learn more about the work of our Master Gardener/Citizen Scientists at:

• University of Minnesota Extension Master Gardener Biochar Research Summary (4:15 video) https://vimeo.com/album/3825290/video/111655127
• Extension Master Gardener's CenUSA Biochar Demonstration Gardens: Is biochar a good soil amendment for home gardens? (2014 ) https://cenusa.iastate.edu/files/2014_cenusa_master_gardener_final_report_.pdf

CenUSA collaborator Akwasi Boateng and his ARS Sustainable Biofuels and Coproducts Unit at the Eastern Regional Research Center in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania is hard at work advancing the potential of biomass as a feedstock in the production of bio-oil. Learn more in Bringing up Better Biofuel.

Our USDA-NIFA colleagues at NewBio have made us aware of a new USDA funded opportunity for Ag producers. According to NewBio, "Up to $44 million will be made available to farmers, ranchers and businesses through the USDA Value-Added Producer Grant program."

The funding focuses on assisting "[...] viable Independent Producers, Agricultural Producer Groups, Farmer and Rancher Cooperatives, and Majority-Controlled Producer-Based Businesses in starting or expanding value-added activities related to the processing and/or marketing of Value-Added Agricultural Products.

The application deadline is July 1, 2016. Electronic applications are permitted via  http://www.grants.gov only, and must be received before midnight Eastern Time, June 24, 2016.  Find out more via the Fed. Reg. website.

Lignin has been seen as a bioeconomy problem for a long time. Now, it looks like some young scientists at the University of Tennessee and Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education have come up with a new way to commercialize lignin.

Learn about this exciting new approach in Student Startup Turning Heads by Utilizing Biofuel Waste for Good.

As article in Biofuels Digest touts the work of Department of Energy Oak Ridge National Laboratory scientists who are helping to crack the 'lignin barrier' currently hampering increased biofuels production.

ORNL researchers say they have made a "better thermoplastic" by taking out the styrene and using lignin instead. Learn all about this new thermoplastic called ABL, short for acrylonitrile butadiene in "ORNL researchers invent tougher plastic with 50 percent renewable content."

Note: We will be featuring an article in our June BLADES newsletter on the commercial potential of lignin. 

From the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC) comes the news that an assistant research specialist has found a way to potentially improve the process of producing fuel from switchgrass and other forms of cellulosic biomass using yeast.

From the University of Wisconsin's College of Agricultural and Life Sciences comes a story about lignin and its potential to provide value and not barriers. See what scientists at the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center are up to in "The Future, Unzipped."

Influential bioeconomy publication Biofuels Digest has named CenUSA research partner Renmatix as the #7 most important 'capital raiser" in the 2015 bioeconomy market. Learn more about Renmatix's success here. 

The entire article is available here.

The new year is for learning. Maybe you will learn something new in this article from the Renewable Energy Network, "17 Answers for Your Burning Questions About Biofuels, Renewable Chemicals, Biomass and More." Read the full article here.

The article provides a definition for "marginal land," a topic dear to CenUSA Bioenergy. 

We are excited to learn that switchgrass has a higher calling even beyond our CenUSA vision. In fact, this hearty perennial may have a positive impact on the development of future crops.

Understanding how microbes promote prairie grasses to grow in nutrient-deficient, marginal soils could have an impact on developing forage and crops, according to researchers at The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, the University of California-Berkeley and the University of Oklahoma.

Read more in "Switchgrass key to future plant hardiness?". The AGRI-VIEW article is freely available here.

The University of Northern Iowa's Tallgrass Prairie Center recently concluded the Prairie Power Project and has released the final project report. 

The project studied biomass production of four different native species seed mixes over three different soil types on non-prime agricultural land on a production scale over 5 years. Additionally, wildlife habitat and soil carbon sequestration were studied at the site, and in 2012 all of the material was harvested, processed, and test burned in the Cedar Falls Utilities power plant.

Information about the project and the final report are available on the project website at:  http://www.tallgrassprairiecenter.org/prairie-energy/prairie-power-project-final-report-and-brochure.

Have biofuels been overhyped? Yes, says CenUSA co-project director Robert Brown:

“Advanced biofuels were overhyped in 2007. They weren’t ready, but government policy and venture capitalists pushed for immediate commercialization instead of the kind of R&D that would have brought the technology to maturity.”

But in Brown's assessment, Brown sees a brighter future for biofuels. You can read the full story in  "The Fits and Starts of Biofuel" [12/17/15, Laboratory Equipment.

http://www.laboratoryequipment.com/articles/2015/12/fits-and-starts-biofuel

Can bioenergy crops add value to the landscape? This question needs to be answered as nations increase their biomass to energy portfolio and the risk of climate change induced flooding grows.

Attempting to provide some early answers the British government has released "Energy crops and floodplain flows." The report concludes:

"In certain locations, new energy crop plantations could potentially provide a flood risk management function, an economic return and additional environmental benefits."

You can read the summary or the full report.

CenUSA's Outreach and Extension Team, with the assistance of Co-Project Director Rob Mitchell, has released a new brochure "Guidelines to Growing Perennial Grasses for Biofuel and Bioproducts."

The three-page illustrated brochure provides succinct information to producers on:

• Perennial Grass Options for the Midwest
• Perennial Grass Benefits
• Key Perennial Management Strategies

The brochure also provides tips on how to reliably establish and successfully manage warm-season grasses.

Iowa Energy Center honors Jay Staker

Jay Staker Earlier has always been a force within CenUSA's Extension and Outreach team so we are not surprised he is being honored by the Iowa Energy Center.

As part of the Energy Center's Iowa Energy Summit proceedings, Jay received an Impact Award along with professors Laura Jarboe (Chemical and Biological Engineering), Dr. Sri Sritharan (Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering). The awards are given to Energy Center grantees that exemplify the Center's mission to support economic development, environmental sustainability, and social well-being for Iowans.

The Iowa Energy Center had this to say about Jay:

"Staker, the State Science and Technology Fair of Iowa board chair, is also the interim director for Iowa Space Grant Consortium. Staker received the 2015 Impact Award from the Iowa Energy Center for his passion and dedication in helping the next generation of Iowa scientists. He was a science teacher for over twenty years and has been with Iowa State Extension for over a decade. While conducting his life’s work, Staker always wondered if there were better ways to help children learn science. He strives to find better methods for teachers, ways to support educators, and most importantly, he tries to find ways for children to actually do science, not just hear about it."

To learn more about Jay's contributions to CenUSA via the C6 BioFarm game and app, click here.

Curious about how corn stover might affect ag markets? Check out this Farm Futures online article "How biofuel from corn stover could impact grain markets".

Want to go deep? Read the full research article "Development of Corn Stover Biofuel: Impacts on Corn and Soybean Markets and Crop Rotation" online for free at http://www.ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/sar/article/view/54396/28954

CenUSA is hosting a Photo Contest!

In this article from Biomass Magazine, Building Sustainable Cellulosic Biofuel Portfolios (10/24), author Rajdeep Golecha discusses how switchgrass can be used to diversify a cellulosic bioenergy portfolio.

As CenUSA pursues its vision of increased perennials on the Midwestern landscape, we are mindful of the role women will play in the new bioeconomy. The USDA has created a series of infographics that highlights the contributions of women in ag in state-by-state infographics. Learn more in: New WomenInAg Infographics Show Impact of Women in Agriculture in Every State.

In "Stems, Sticks Seen Driving Biofuel’s Next Expansion" (9/17), Ag Web discusses the future of biofuels as moving away from food crop-based biofeedstocks to a more 'stems and sticks' approach. The article suggests that a big expansion of this sector of the ag/bioeconomy is poised for takeoff after 2020. 

CenUSA Bioenergy Advisory Board member Bryan Mellage has had his article "Rethinking our Gas Tank" republished in the August 2015 issue of Prairie Fire. The article provides a native Midwesterner's view of where we have been and can go with biofuels and bioenergy.

From Midwest Energy News (8/25/15), "The power of willow and switchgrass: Scientists, farmers team up on bioenergy experiment." Learn more about the Argonne National Lab's work with producers to prove the worth of biomass crops.

AHB "POPLAR FOR BIOFUELS" SUMMER FIELD TOURS     CenUSA sister project Advanced Hardwood Biofuels Northwest is hosting opportunities for interested parties to meet with members of their research team at their  "Poplar for Biofuels" demonstration sites in August September, and October 2015   Join extension professionals, policy makers, researchers, and environmental professionals, in learning about the latest biofuel and biochemical developments in the Pacific Northwest. Lunch will be provided.

Topics to be discussed include:

♦   Growing hybrid poplar as a short rotation woody energy crop
♦   Sustainable production and environmental impacts on soil, water, and wildlife
♦   Best areas to develop biofuel and biochemical industries
♦   Biomass production tour highlighting operational and research poplar plots

WHEN
August 17 | 10:30am - 1:00pm | Pilchuck Demonstration Site | Stanwood, Washington
September 15 | 12:00pm - 3:00pm | Jefferson Demonstration Site | Jefferson, Oregon
October 21, 2015 | 12:00pm - 3:00pm | Clarksburg Demonstration Site | Clarksburg, California

RSVP: 
Click here to register for the Pilchuck Tour
Click here to register for the Jefferson Tour
Click here to register for the Clarksburg Tour

Or contact Betsy Fradd at WUS Extension bfradd@wsu.edu, 253-241-5043

CenUSA and an award-winning commercial film. What could they possibly have in common? Turns out more than you might know.

Biofuels Digest has given Robert Brown, CenUSA co-project director and head of Iowa State University's Bioeconomy Institute a new title —the "Godfatha of Pyrolysis." 

The article, The Pyromaniax, Class of 2015: The Top 10 Pyrolysis projects in renewable fuels (Aug. 4) provides an excellent overview of the "pyro backstory" as well as the current state of pyrolysis commercialization both in the US and globally. Most important of all, it bestows that remarkable title on Dr. Brown!

CenUSA collaborator Emily Heaton is breaking new ground with her work on dedicated energy crops. You can learn more about Heaton's work in the article "Heaton is studying Miscanthus and other dedicated energy crops" published in AgriNews (July 13). See why Heaton thinks "Since the 1930s soybean production has exploded, and I think there's a chance for energy crops to do the same."

CenUSA's Mike Casler is featured in an article looking at multiple traits to improve switchgrass.

Ethanol Producer Magazine (6/22/15) takes a look at how to move switchgrass from an "excellent biofuel production candidate" to a profitable source of biomass in "Researchers look at multiple traits to improve switchgrass." According to Dr. Casler: "After we achieve the yield and conversion goals, switchgrass could be a significant component of biomass crop grown east of the Rocky Mountains,.. We think we can achieve those goals by 2025."

USDA to Hold Stakeholder Forum on the Biorefinery, Renewable Chemical, and Biobased Product Manufacturing Assistance Program

When: 
July 16, 2015, 12:30 – 2:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time

Where: 
To participate via the webinar, please go to: https://www.webcaster4.com/Webcast/Page/789/9401

WASHINGTON – The USDA Biorefinery, Renewable Chemical, and Biobased Product Manufacturing Assistance Program provides loan guarantees of up to $250 million to construct or retrofit biorefineries to produce advanced biofuels and renewable chemicals. Assistance is also available to eligible biobased facilities that convert biobased outputs from refineries into commercial-scale end-user products. USDA is holding a national stakeholder forum to discuss changes to the program under the 2014 Farm Bill.

What: 
A national stakeholder forum to announce the new Biorefinery, Renewable Chemical, and Biobased Product Manufacturing Assistance Program (Section 9003), expanding opportunities in renewable chemical and biobased product manufacturing, and application processing and program improvements.

Who: 
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack
Rural Business-Cooperative Service Administrator Lillian Salerno
USDA Energy Division program experts, and program partners and stakeholders

From our friends at eXtension Farm Energy, a new webinar: Agronomic and Environmental Uses of Biochar

July 17 at 1:30 p.m. (central); 2:30 (eastern); 12:30 (mountain); 11:30 am (pacific)

Interest in the use of biochar has skyrocketed in the past year. The use of manure for generating biochar is being intensively explored as a way to address nutrient loading and renewable energy.

How Do I Participate?

A new study available without charge in the journal PLOS ONE explains what until know how been considered a hydrological mystery −biochar's "seemingly contradictory ability to make clay soils drain faster and sandy soils drain slower." (1).

Looking for the condensed version? Agrinews has published an excellent synopsis. 

(1) "Study: Biochar alters water flow to improve sand, clay" http://agrinews-pubs.com/Content/News/MoneyNews/Article/Study-Biochar-alters-water-flow-to-improve-sand-clay-/8/27/12083#sthash.fx6HbMBj.uxfs&st_refDomain=t.co&st_refQuery=/TVX5CEcefE

Biofuels News for the (Euro) Masses

Biofuels Digest (6/29/15) tells the story of a new pubic focused website www.BiofuelsforEurope.eu. The website launched on June 29th is quite interactive and is intended to provide the interested public with summaries of "the latest science on key biofuels issues using fact-based, understandable information."

Click here to read the article in Biofuels Digest or go straight to the website.

The US Department of Energy has released a webpage that highlights "6 New things happening with biofuels" click here and learn more these exciting developments:

1. Biofuels are getting a lot cheaper
2. The hardest part is getting easier
3. There's an algae surfboard
4. Robots are going to improve the plants used to make fuel
5. You can test your biofuels knowledge online
6. You can view improvements yourself

Of course, at CenUSA we are not waiting for robot technology. We are sending out scientists today and every day to promote our vision of creating a Midwestern regional system for producing advanced transportation fuels and bioproducts derived from perennial grasses grown on land that is either unsuitable or marginal for row crop production. 

'It's all in the traits' says CenUSA and USDA-ARS geneticist and feedstock developer Mike Casler. Learn more about Mike's work in "Better switchgrass, better biofuel"

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.

USDA Announces Restart of Biomass Crop Assistance Program for Renewable Energy

The USDA announced (June 1) that producers, ranchers and forest landowners interested in growing and harvesting biomass for renewable energy will be able for incentives this summer as part of the Biomass Crop Assistance Program. BCAP provides financial assistance to establish and maintain new crops of energy biomass, or who harvest and deliver forest or agricultural residues to a qualifying energy facility. Learn more here.

Harvest Public Media takes a look at the promise of the next generation of biofuels in "Next Generation Fuels Stuck In Neutral." The article which also contains an audio segment is available here. 

According to the Chatham Daily news, switchgrass may well be the new 'darling' in Ontario farming. ("Ontario farmers being pointed to wheat straw alternatives").

In the face of rising wheat straw shortages, Ontario's farmers are exploring the use of switchgrass for animal bedding for feed. Lear more here.

The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports on how perennial powerhouse miscanthus grown at the local airport will provide biomass for power at the University of Iowa. Read the full article here. 

​CenUSA commercial partner Renmatix accelerates commercial progress with acquisition of former Mascoma production unit

CenUSA commercial partner Renmatix announced today that it has acquired existing assets of the former Mascoma corporation’s 56,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Rome, NY. The new Feedstock Processing Facility (FPF) is dedicated to the first step in conversion to cellulosic sugar (from different types of biomass materials) utilizing proprietary Plantrose® process conditions.

The FPF opened officially on April 20, 2015, as the third U.S. location for Renmatix. This move creates a secure supply for Renmatix and its development partners at the IPC in Kennesaw, GA., where the second step in production of Plantro® sugars is performed.

Learn more here. 

Clearing the way for a more sustainable method of asphalt production, Chris Williams and Robert Brown (Iowa State University College of Engineering) and their research team have been awarded a paten

According to the National Research Council the United States is on the verge of a major industrial breakout in biobased chemical. Read the story in Biofuels Digest (April 6).

The NRC's full report is available here. Be sure and download the FREE PDF version. 

At CenUSA we are part of a larger research effort, the USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture's bioenergy "Coordinated Agricultural Projects" (CAPs).* One of our fellow CAPs is Northwest Advanced Renewables Alliance (NARA). NARA has created a series of webinars specifically aimed at educators to acquaint the with environmental sustainability research. You can learn more about these webinars and access them here.

*Learn more about all six CAPs by clicking here. 

Check out this article from the Department of Energy, Five Harvesting Technologies are Making Biofuels More Competitive in the Marketplace, for the latest on cost-saving biofeedstock harvest technologies. The article is supplemented with infographics and includes information specific to harvesting switchgrass. 

To access the article, click here

The International Biochar Initiative has produced a short and very well produced video: "Coffee and Biochar" that is well worth a look. Click here to view the video.

The Hill has published, in its Congress Blog the parable "Managing Carbon Like Coffee Cups" by Robert Brown CenUSA Co-PI and Director of the Bioeconomy Institute at Iowa State University. In the parable Dr. Brown discusses the important role that bioenergy can play in limiting carbon dioxide accumulation in the earth's athmosphere.

The article is accompanied by a cartoon drawn by Stefanie Dao, and Iowa State University graduate student in studio arts.

Biomass Magazine says "Expanded cellulosic fuel pathways have led to a surge of biogas-based fuel credits, and producers are taking advantage of a significant boost to project economics."

Learn more here.

From the Wilkes-Barre, PA Times Leader comes: "A mix of ideas for a common goal." The article discusses the Second Annual Community Conservation Mixer." We are happy to see switchgrass mentioned in the mix. 

Does your town have community conversations on conservation? Is this a good idea?

The controversy surrounding the recent working paper issued by the World Resource Institute (Searchinger and Heimlich) continues to generate response from the biofuel and bioeconomy sector. Read the latest from Biofuels Digest and Brent Erickson (Executive VP, Biotechnology Industry Organization) "Why Tim Searchinger Is Dead Wrong About Biofuels and Land Use." 

Biomass Magazine is featuring the new Natural Resources Defense Council new biofuels sustainability scorecard in "NRDC publishes airline sustainability scorecard" (2/13/15) 

Learn more at Aviation Biofuel Sustainability Scorecards (full report)

Another day and another use for switchgrass. Mohawk has developed eco-friendly carpet fiber SmartStrand. You can learn more about this in "Rise of the machine-made area rugs" (Furniture Today).

CenUSA's Robert Brown ranked #70 in Biofuel Digest's top 125 people in the advanced bioeconomy. Click here to learn more.

CenUSA Coproject Directors David Laird and Robert Brown are featured in "How crop waste could become carbon-negative energy" in the Jan. 27, 2015 issue of Midwest Energy News. Click here for the article. 

What factors influence farmers' thoughts about change? The article "The difficult art of communicating climate change to farmers" sheds some light on how to approach farmers when change is part of the conversations.