[USDA Global Conference on Agricultural Biofuels: Research and
Economics]{.smallcaps}

**Agricultural production and biomas conversion**

**[Biofuel Feedstock Options and Conversion Platforms for Today and
Tomorrow]{.smallcaps}**

Kevin B. Hicks

Research Leader, Eastern Regional Research Center

USDA-ARS, Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania

www.ars.usda.gov

Biofuels such as ethanol and biodiesel are now being produced and
consumed in limited quantities around the world as renewable substitutes
for petroleum-derived fuels. These \"first generation\" biofuels are
generally produced from readily-convertible (storage) forms of
carbohydrate and fat found in food crops. Valid \"food versus fuel\"
concerns are driving the development of \"second generation\" biofuels
that are produced primarily from \"structural\" (lignocellulosic cell
wall) components of non-food crops. First generation biofuels such as
fuel ethanol from starch or sugar can be produced efficiently today due
to 1) ease of conversion of feedstock and 2) many years of process and
feedstock improvements. Second generation biofuels lack both of these
features today, but through well-coordinated research efforts, will
become more economical in the future.

Two major platforms currently exist for conversion of lignocellulosic
polymers into liquid fuels. The first platform, a biochemical conversion
(BC) platform currently receiving major attention world-wide, relies on
conversion of structural carbohydrate polymers into fermentable sugars
which are then converted by microbial fermentation to \"cellulosic\"
ethanol. The second platform for lignocellulosic conversion is a
thermochemical conversion (TC) platform which uses heat and chemical
catalysts to convert both carbohydrate and lignin polymers to liquid
fuels. Before either platform for production of second generation
biofuels can be economically viable, there must be significant
breakthroughs in feedstock development, production, harvesting,
handling, and transportation. For the BC platform, there must also be
new breakthroughs in feedstock pre-treatment, enzymatic conversion,
fermentative organism development, fermentation, and product recovery.
For the TC platform, breakthroughs are needed in several areas,
including feedstock size reduction, improved reactor design, and
improved catalysts and refining methods to convert syngas or pyrolytic
oils into gasoline or diesel fuels. Since no one can predict which
platform will be most successful in producing second generation biofuels
in the future, it is important that research be conducted in both areas
so that if one fails, there is a contingency platform to pursue.

Due to the global and urgent need to develop viable renewable fuels, it
is imperative that wise choices be made by organizations that will fund
future R&D in this area. Most resources in the U.S. appear to be
focusing on cellulosic ethanol as the most likely candidate for a viable
biofuel for the future. For the reasons outlined above, equal funding
should also be provided for thermochemical process R&D. However, as we
work to make these future technologies economically viable, we must not
lose sight of the more easily obtained advances that could be obtained
from first-generation technologies that have not been fully exploited.
For instance, sweet sorghum has been proposed as an ideal energy crop
that can produce easily converted sugar ***and*** grain as well as large
amounts of cellulosic biomass yet little attention is being devoted to
such feedstocks in the US. A second example is the use of regional
feedstocks such as barley, pearl millet, and field peas. Researchers in
ARS have shown that these feedstocks can be used for the efficient
production of fuel ethanol in regions outside the Corn Belt. A case in
point is use of hull-less barley in the Mid Atlantic states of the US
where the barley can be grown as a winter crop. Winter hull-less barley
is planted in the fall and it serves as an important cover crop, taking
up excess soil nitrates and phosphates which otherwise could leach into
groundwater and water sheds. In the spring, winter barley rapidly
reaches maturity and is harvested early enough to allow sowing and
harvesting of a full crop of soybeans in the same season. In the
following year, corn is raised and then the rotation is repeated,
resulting in sustainable production of 3 crops in two years. In addition
to the extra barley grain produced in this two year rotation, one also
obtains the extra barley straw which can be used for BC or TC conversion
to liquid fuels when those technologies are available. Such cropping
systems, which can lead to greater production of grains and
lignocellulosic biomass, should be considered whenever possible.

Finally, those developing the energy crops of the future should consider
developing crops that deliver more than just cellulose. Even if we could
develop a plant that is 100% cellulose, conversion of this
polysaccharide to ethanol would still be considerably harder and more
expensive than conversion of starch or sugar. Consideration should be
given to development of perennial grains and legumes that could yield
readily converted starch or oil feedstock, as well as easily harvested
straw. Refineries that utilize integrated BC and TC processes could use
such crops to sustainably produce our fuels and coproducts for tomorrow.

[Kevin B. Hicks]{.smallcaps}

Dr. Kevin B. Hicks is a Research Leader at the USDA-Agricultural
Research Service's Eastern Regional Research Center in Wyndmoor, PA
(suburban Philadelphia) where he leads a team of 30 senior and support
scientists and engineers conducting research to develop new uses for
agricultural commodities and byproducts. During the past nineteen years,
as Research Leader of the Crop Conversion Science & Engineering Research
Unit, he has led research to develop new and more efficient processes
for the production of fuel ethanol from corn and barley and to create
new valuable coproducts, such as health-promoting nutraceuticals from
the ethanol production process. Dr. Hicks is the author of more than 100
peer-reviewed and technical publications and 10 patents as well as
numerous presentations to national and international audiences. He is a
co-inventor of patents for the ethanol coproducts "Amaizing Oil"
(cholesterol-lowering oil from corn fiber), "Zeagen" (a gum arabic
substitute made from corn fiber) currently being commercialized by
National Starch and Chemical Co., and many other novel products and
processes. Dr. Hicks has served on the Editorial Board for *Carbohydrate
Research* and the Publications Committee for IFT *(Food Technology* and
*J. Food Sci.*). He has received the following awards for research and
technology transfer: 2007 Industrial Leadership Award from Bryan & Bryan
Inc.; 2006 Best Paper Award for Technology and Engineering, American
Oils Chemists Society/ADM ; 2003 Federal Executive Board Gold Medal for
Excellence in "Private Sector Involvement"; 1999 USDA Outstanding
Technology Transfer Award; 1998 Federal Laboratory Consortium Award for
Excellence in Technology Transfer; 1996 Certificate of Commendation from
The Sugar Association, Inc.; 1989 Horace S. Isbell Award in Carbohydrate
Chemistry; and the 1985 Arthur S. Flemming Scientific Research Award,
Washington DC. Dr. Hicks is an active participant in professional
associations including the AACC, AOCS, EPAC, and the American Chemical
Society's Division of Carbohydrate Chemistry, previously serving as the
Division's Chairman.

**[Sweet Sorghum: A dryland-adapted, pro-poor bioethanol feedstock
yielding both grain and fuel]{.smallcaps}**[^1]

Belum VS **Reddy**, A Ashok Kumar and P Sanjana Reddy[^2]

International Center for Research in the Semi Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)

www.icrisat.cgiar.org

Nations are investing heavily to increase their energy security and
reduce their fossil-fuel carbon emissions and pollution. But they are
also justifiably concerned that the bioenergy revolution could
marginalize the poor, raise food prices and degrade the environment.
Sweet sorghum (*Sorghum bicolor* L. Moench) can be harvested green or at
maturity to produce grain as well as the stalks for bioethanol
feedstock, thus reducing the food-fuel tradeoff issue. It is adapted to
lower-rainfall tropical environments (approximately 800 mm over a
five-month rainy season) mainly inhabited by poor smallholder farmers.
Breeding research to enhance the competitiveness of this feedstock can
therefore contribute to pro-poor dryland rural development.

The stalks of sweet sorghum harvested just before flowering contain
almost as much sugar as sugarcane (16-23% Brix). When grown to maturity,
stem sugar content declines by about 25% (in moderately early varieties)
but farmers gain added income and food from the grain. Thus it provides
options for both food and biofuel production, and is suitable for
smallholder farmer cultivation on less-favored lands. Besides having
wide adaptability, rapid growth and high sugar accumulation and biomass
production potential, sweet sorghum, is tolerant to drought, water
logging, soil salinity and acidity.

Under socio-economic conditions prevailing in India, the cost of ethanol
production per liter from sweet sorghum juice is competitive with that
of sugar cane molasses, and significantly less than with maize grain as
feedstock. Hybrid seed technology could create a major advance economic
competitiveness, as well as in productivity of both grain and
bioethanol. Like sugarcane, sweet sorghum bioethanol systems also yield
a highly positive net energy balance (Energy output/fossil energy input
estimated at approximately 8), roughly four times higher than for maize
grain as feedstock in the USA.

The biomass based (cellulosic) ethanol production technology helps fight
global warming. Sweet sorghum is an excellent source of biomass as it
yields 30-35 tonnes of biomass per ha in 4-5 months. When harvested
green it is succulent and rich in cellulose (15-25%) and hemicellulose
(35-50%), making it amenable for microbic digestion and fermentation.

Lignin, the non-sugar structural component ranges from 20-30% in cell
wall in sweet sorghum. Brown midrib genotypes have reduced lignin
content (up to 50% less), which helps reduce the cost of enzyme
requirement for converting cellulose to glucose. ICRISAT is focusing on
development of photo and thermo-insensitive sweet sorghum hybrid parents
with high Brix and brown midrib hybrids to facilitate the bioenergy
production using first and second generation ethanol production
technology while ensuring the grain yield potential for food security.
The stillage (main frame of the plant) obtained after crushing the cane
is an excellent animal feed.

In addition to building on the pro-poor characteristics of this crop,
proactive steps need to be taken to engage large numbers of smallholder
farmers in the production and market chain. They must become productive
and economically competitive with alternative large-farm models that
could marginalize them. ICRISAT is researching partnership models by
incubating this technology with Rusni Distillery Ltd., in India.
Subcontracting arrangements provide farmers with credit and assured
price and market, and access to inputs such as fertilizer, hybrid seed
and training supplied by the processor. The model also supports research
to generate a sustained flow of system innovations. The processor
benefits from predictable feedstock costs and reliable feedstock
supply-chain efficiency.

[Belum V. S. Reddy]{.smallcaps}

[Biography]{.smallcaps}

Dr. BELUM VENKATA SUBBA REDDY, Principal Scientist (Breeding), Global
Theme on Crop Improvement, ICRISAT is a leading sorghum breeder with
global recognition. He completed his post graduation with distinction
from IARI, and PhD in Genetics from the University of Minnesota, USA in
1974. After his initial three years working as pigeonpea breeder at
ICRISAT and discovering a genetic male sterility system, he switched
over to sorghum improvement program at ICRISAT.

He has made remarkable achievements in the area of development of high
yielding and bold grain cytoplasmic-nuclear male-sterile (CMS) lines and
restorer parents with resistance to various pests, and diseases in
trait-specific breeding program. He has successfully developed multiple
resistant varieties, trait-specific populations by recurrent selection
methods and RIL populations for identification of molecular markers for
pest resistance. His efforts to improve sweet sorghum cultivars for high
sugar in the stalks and high biomass for use in producing
biofuel-ethanol and also in improving sorghum with less lignin for use
in second-generation lingo-cellulose-based ethanol production technology
are receiving world-wide attention. He has taken keen interest in seed
production of ICRISAT-bred varieties and parental lines of hybrids and
has been very instrumental to provide effective support to sorghum
breeders globally through distribution of thousands of value added
germplasm and superior hybrid parents and information on various issues.

The parental lines developed by him had been extremely useful to private
and public sector in many countries. In partnership, he has contributed
to release sorghum cultivars in India such as PKV 400, PKV 801, CSH 18,
ASH 1, PSH 1, etc. Two forage varieties had been released in Latin
America for acid soils. Nearly 50 private sector hybrids under marketing
are based on the parental lines bred by him and these occupy presently
over 2.8 million ha area in rainy season in India. He is one of the
architects of tapping private seed sector funds for public research by
helping establish ICRISAT-Private Sector Sorghum Hybrid Parents Research
Consortium. He is also responsible to augment the financial resources of
ICRISAT through developing a number of projects.

He has published 275 papers, in research journals, reports and
conference papers, and 10 book chapters, and enriched the science in
sorghum and pigeonpea. He has also been consultant with IPA, Recife,
Brazil from 1984 to 1985 and led Latin American Sorghum Project based at
CIAT, Colombia from 1996 to 2000 and has visited nearly 20 countries to
study collaborative research projects.

He trained several in-service staff of various developing countries in
the area of sorghum improvement. He guided six students for MSc degree
and three for PhD. One of the PhD students received the Best Young
Scientist Award offered by Indian Science Congress.

He traveled in several countries in the world and visited several
sorghum research programs and made various suggestions to make them more
effective.

**[Biodiesel: Brazilian Perspective. New and Future Feedstocks for its
Production.]{.smallcaps}**

**[The Official Brazilian Biodiesel Test Program]{.smallcaps}^1^**

Miguel J. Dabdoub^2^

President

Biofuels Chamber of the São Paulo Government

For the Brazilian government, biodiesel production and it's introduction
into the Brazilian energy market is of the highest priority and is of
tremendous national interest. Brazil is the primary world producer of
sugar-cane ethanol, and employing this ethanol as a starting material,
the country will be able to produce a 100% truly renewable biodiesel, in
contrast with the biodiesel made with methanol produced in Europe and
the USA. In this way, the Brazilian trend will be to produce ethyl
esters, although most of the Brazilian biodiesel produced presently is
still soybean methylic biodiesel. Taking advantage of the high
biodiversity, and the consequently abundant availability of a huge
variety of vegetable oil feedstock (seeds and fruits) such as the
various Latin American and African palms, castor oil, soybeans,
sunflowers, peanuts, and other Brazilian plants, our research group has
devoted their efforts of the past ten years researching the ethanolysis
of at least twenty different vegetable oils. In most cases our process
has been examined using crude, de-gummed, partially refined, and refined
oils. The transesterification of these oils, including waste vegetable
oils (WVO), with ethanol and homogeneous, or heterogeneous catalysts,
has also been studied in detail.

We have conducted meticulous research seeking specific feedstock to be
used in high-quality biodiesel production, which fulfill precise
specifications, such as the cloud point to reliably be between -1°C and
-10°C (12°F to -4°F), as well as a high cetane number, consistently to
be above 60. Although some of these new feedstock are produced in
tropical climates, they are predicted to be included in the set of
"Future Feedstock for Biodiesel", to be used world-wide, due to their
excellent cold-flow properties.

Our results concerning the production and use of ethylic biodiesel,
clearly show that this method is technically feasible to employ
industrially. During our presentation about the development of biodiesel
in Brazil, we will elaborate on the production capacities, current
demand, and the outlook for the future of biodiesel. **Details on
improving technology for production, and, in particular, on the
employment of ethylic biodiesel in a variety of engines will also be
disclosed in the discourse.**

Abstract of the paper to be presented at USDA Global Conference on
Agricultural Biofuels, 20-22 August 2007, at Minneapolis, Minnesota,
USA.

^2^ Associate Professor, LADETEL -- Laboratory for Clean Technology
Development at the Department of Chemistry, Ribeirão Preto campus,
University of São Paulo, Brazil. <migjodab@usp.br>

[Dr. Miguel J. Dabdoub]{.smallcaps}

Professor Dr. Miguel J. Dabdoub obtained his PhD in Organic Chemistry in
1989, and he is currently Associate Professor and the leader of
LADETEL - Laboratory for Clean Technology Development at the University
of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto campus. His research group is a large team
composed of undergraduate, Ph.D. and post-doctoral students, and other
permanent researchers.

Dr. Dabdoub has devoted part of his research to the production and use
of alternative fuels, with an emphasis on production of Biodiesel
employing methylic and ethylic approaches, continuously seeking new
feedstock to be included in the "Future Feedstock for Biodiesel",
relating to the energetic yield-per-acre, and to the cold-flow
temperatures, and other physico-chemical properties of the produced
fuel.

The Professor has published 44 scientific articles in various
international journals and spent 3 years (1998 -- 2000) in Ann Arbor, MI
at the University of Michigan, as Visiting Professor. Presently, Mr.
Dabdoub is responsible for the Biodiesel Brasil Program which is
developed in partnership with 28 different private companies, and 5
other Brazilian universities. He is also President of the Biofuels
Chamber of the São Paulo State Government.

Dr. Dabdoub is the head of the Program for Testing Biodiesel on Vehicles
and Engines, coordinated by the Brazilian Federal Government, with the
participation of several companies such as Ford, Volkswagen, Fiat,
Mercedes Benz, Peugeot, Citroen, Valmet (tractors), Cartepillar, Bosch,
Siemens, Delphi, Cummins, MWM-International Engines, Parker Filters,
Mahle, Mann, Fleetguard filters and others.

Dr. Dabdoub is working in collaboration with Brazilian, European and
American companies building biodiesel plants. In Brazil and in other
South American countries Dr. Dabdoub has built several biodiesel
facilities, and an additional one factory (100,000 TPY) is currently
under construction. Mr. Dabdoub has previously built a biodiesel plant
in the midwestern region of the United States in Gilman, Illinois, and
an additional plant in Durant, Oklahoma.

**[Biomass Production Decision Making Tools and Planning]{.smallcaps}**

Dr. Robert P. Anex\
Associate Professor, Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering

Associate Director, Office of Biorenewables Programs

*Iowa State University*

[www.iastate.edu](http://www.iastate.edu/)

Biofuel production is a national priority in the United States for
reasons of both security and sustainability. There remain, however, many
barriers to reaching our ambitious goals of producing 35 billion gallons
of biofuel by 2017 and 60 billion gallons by 2030. Arguably the most
difficult of these barriers, and the one that most requires a coupling
of local and national policy, is the challenge of producing the massive
quantities of biomass feedstocks that will be required. Our ability to
produce these quantities of domestic, renewable transportation fuels
ultimately depends on a large number of individual and collective
decisions by farmers, business people, government, and the citizenry at
large. These decisions will be made in a context of competing uses for
land, a diverse agricultural economy, and a multi-functional landscape
that provides recreation, food, fiber, clean water and air, and a
variety of other ecosystem services on which large urban and rural
populations depend. In order to make these decisions and the trade-offs
inherent in those choices, land managers and community developers need
to tools that aid them in evaluating the technical, economic and
environmental viability of biomass production, harvest, transport and
use.

A free web-based whole-farm decision tool named I-FARM has been
developed that allows individual farmers to evaluate options to increase
biofuel feedstocks on their own unique farm. The I-FARM tools comprises
a series of biophysical and economic models at farm scale that assists
landowners and land managers, their technical advisors, and policy
developers in evaluating options for dramatically increasing the biomass
productivity. The I-FARM tool has been used to evaluate biomass
production on representative farms in five regions of Iowa. Average
results indicate that compared to grain harvest only, single-pass
harvesting of corn stover can increase biomass harvest 80% while
increasing labor only 25%. With traditional baling techniques 60% more
labor is required and significantly more energy is consumed. To
compensate for nutrient removal with biomass, nitrogen fertilizer
application should be increase by 42% and 67% for 60% corn residue
removal (bales) and 95% corn residue removal (single pass).

Enterprise models extended to reflect probabilistic factors such as
weather and market prices can allow decision-makers to understand the
economic risks associated with crop and management choices. Analysis
shows, for example, that the availability of crop insurance and
government programs greatly reduces the economic risk of producing corn
relative to a perennial grass feedstock. On prime Iowa corn ground,
without these programs switchgrass at \$50 /dry ton would provide an
expected return approximately equal to corn grain at \$2.00 /bu. However
with these programs the expected return of corn at \$2.00 /bu is more
than 4 times that of switchgrass at \$50 /dry ton (approx. \$19/ ac).
Decision tools that support biomass production and policy planning are
needed to guide anticipated increases in biofuel feedstock production
toward an economically and environmentally sustainable path.

[Robert Anex]{.smallcaps}

[Biography]{.smallcaps}

Robert P. Anex, PhD, is an Associate Director, Office of Biorenewables
Programs and an Associate Professor, Agricultural and Biosystems
Engineering at the Iowa State University. Dr. Anex holds a BS and MS in
mechanical engineering and a PhD in environmental engineering from the
University of California, Davis. Dr. Anex is an expert on biofuel
production systems considered from "field to fuel". He is the principal
investigator of projects assessing the impacts of the widespread
adoption of lignocellulosic biomass conversion technology; developing
productive, efficient, and sustainable strategies for using corn stover
biomass as a feedstock; and nutrient cycling in coupled agricultural and
industrial systems. He is a member of the editorial board of the
*International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment* and is an editor for
the *Journal of Industrial Ecology*.

[^1]: Abstract of the paper to be presented at USDA Biofuel Conference,
    20-22 August 2007, At Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.

[^2]: Principal Scientist, Scientist and Scientific Officer,
    International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Aid Topics
    (ICRISAT), Patancheru 502 324, Andhra Pradesh, India: First author
    email: b.reddy@cgiar.org