Trial Crops for Making Biofuels To Be Grown At UMass Amherst and on Pioneer Valley Farms This Summer
June 27, 2008
| Contact: | Stephen Herbert 413/545-2250 |
AMHERST, Mass. – Researchers from the University of Massachusetts Amherst are planting crops that can be used to make biofuels on land in the Pioneer Valley that is not suitable for food production. The project is a cooperative effort between UMass Amherst, UMass Extension and several state agencies, seeking to develop a sustainable fuel crop in Massachusetts.
Crop trials will be managed by the UMass Amherst department of plant, soil and insect sciences under the direction of research professors Stephen Herbert and Om Parkash, and weed extension specialist Randall Prostak.
State agencies involved with the project include the Executive Office of Energy & Environmental Affairs (EOEEA), the Massachusetts Division of Energy Resources (DOER), the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MTC) and the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR).
Crops will be grown at the UMass Amherst Research and Education Center trial crop farm in Deerfield, and at eight privately owned farms in the Pioneer Valley. Including private farms in the project will provide the researchers with information on how the crops fare in different locations and soil types, and interest local farmers in growing biofuels crops.
One of the plants to be tested is switchgrass, a prairie native that produces large amounts of cellulose − the tough part of plants that is used to make cellulosic biofuels. Switchgrass requires little in the way of pesticides and fertilizers, making it inexpensive to grow. According to Herbert, switchgrass can produce five to nine tons of plant material, or biomass, per acre in a single growing season after being established. This translates into more than 400 gallons per acre of biofuels, similar to the amount produced by corn grain.
“Switchgrass is a good biofuels crop, since it is a perennial that lasts 10 to 15 years after first seeding. It can also be burned directly, or turned into pellets for producing heat and electricity,” says Herbert. “Another advantage is that it can be managed like a hay crop, so Massachusetts farmers already have the equipment and experience to harvest switchgrass.”
Other plants included in the study are the Mediterranean herb crambe and nontraditional biomass feedstocks such as weeds growing on abandoned fields. Crambe is an annual plant that has to be seeded each year, and like switchgrass it can grow on marginal agricultural land, with minimal amounts of fertilizer and water.
“Crambe produces seeds that contain oil, which is ideal for producing biodiesel, just like other vegetable oils,” says Parkash. “It also produces a significant amount of some cellulosic biomass, and is a rich source of erucic acid, used to make biodegradable plastics and lubricants. After removing the oils, crambe seed meal has a high protein content, and has been approved by the USDA for blending with some animal feed. Crambe seed meal can also be used as an organic fertilizer and insect fumigant, but the full potential of this plant needs to be explored.”
Growing the plants will allow the researchers to determine exactly how much care they require and how expensive it is to grow and harvest them. Samples of the plants will be taken at the end of the growing season to determine how much biomass is produced per acre and how much oil or cellulose is produced.
“These are key factors in determining whether these crops can be used to make biofuels at a reasonable price, since producing biofuels has to be competitive with traditional petroleum products, and other crops that farmers could grow,” says Herbert.
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