Sustainable Woody Biomass for
Bioenergy, Biofuels and Bioproducts
T. Volk
Sustainable Use of Renewable Energy
Syracuse, NY, November 6, 2008
Colleagues and Collaborators
• SUNY - ESF
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–
–
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Dr. Thomas Amidon - Dr. Lawrence Abrahamson - Dr. Kim Cameron
Phil Castellano
- Doug Daley
- Michael Kelleher
Dr. Valerie Luzadis - Dr. Lawrence Smart
- Dr. Arthur Stipanovic
Dr. Ed White
Graduate Students
- Thomas Buchholz
- Jaconette Mirck
- Godfrey Ofezu
- Amos Quaye
- Michelle Serapiglia
– numerous undergraduate students
• Academic Partners and Collaborators
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–
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Agrifood and Biosciences Institute
Cornell University
Middlebury College
SUNY Delhi
University of Guelph
University of Saskatchewan
- Canadian Forest Service
- Michigan State University
- Montreal Botanical Gardens
- University of Connecticut
- University of Minnesota
• Industrial Partners
– Agricultural Development Services
- AgroEnergie
– Case New Holland
- Catalyst Renewables
– Honeywell International
- Mesa Engineering
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
- Antares Inc.
-Double A Willow
- O’Brien and Gere
Overview
• Woody biomass at the national level
• Amounts of woody biomass from forests
•
•
•
and willow biomass crops
Willow biomass crops as one of multiple
source of woody biomass
Benefits of willow biomass crops
Commercialization of willow biomass
crops
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Renewable Energy in the U.S.
85% of our
primary
energy
comes from
fossil fuels
{
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
(EIA 2007)
National Biomass Supply
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
• Assessment of
•
whether land
resources in the US
could sustainably
produce over 1 billion
tons of biomass
Enough biomass to
replace about 30% of
the country’s
petroleum
consumption
National Biomass Supply
• Over 1.3 billion dry tons
377
(Perlack et al. 2005)
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
annually from forest
and agricultural land
that is currently not
being utilized
– 368 million odt from
forests
– 998 million odt from
agricultural land
– 377 odt projected to
come from perennial
energy crops
Woody Biomass Feedstocks
Large quantities of
wood residues from
primary and
secondary wood
product
manufacturers are
available
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Low value wood
from forests can be
harvested
sustainably
Willow biomass
crops can be grown
on under utilized
open land
NY’s Forest Resources
• 18.5 million acres of forest land
• 15.4 million acres of timberland
New York State Land Cover
-
• Only 2 pulp mills in NY, down from
Miles
0
Legend
15
30
60
90
– 774 million tons of standing biomass
– Annual growth 3X greater than harvest
120
15 in the mid 1980s
N YS La nd Co ver
W ate r
F orest 19 ,55 7,15 5 a c.
P asture/Ha y 6 ,03 3,5 72 a c.
R ow Cro ps
1,6 94 ,2 29 ac.
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Map Create d for th e Willow Biom ass Project
Dat e: Ju n e 14, 2005
– Limited markets for low value trees
– Results in poor forest management,
especially high grading
• Bioenergy/bioproducts markets can
– support sustainable management
– improve the economic viability of rural
communities
Woody Biomass From NY’S Forests
Net annual growth
(~2.5%)
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
~ 774 millon odt
Current standing
biomass in
merchantable
growing stock
Amount Available for Bioenergy and Biofuels
(Current removals + Bioenergy harvest) is
less than 75 % of the Net Annual Growth
Woody Biomass From NY’S Forests
Comparison of Various Proportions of All Live Merchantable Biomass
Considered for Availability in Relation to Net Growth
120
Resultant Biomass
Thousands odt
100
Volume of Removals
From Growing-stock
80
60
Total of Resultant
Biomass and
Removals From
Growing-stock
Annual Net Growth
of Growing-stock
40
20
0
0.0150
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
0.0100
0.0075
0.0050
Proportion Considered
0.0025
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
©The Research Foundation of SUNY 2008
Socio-economic Potential
• Amount of technically available biomass
resource will vary due to a range of
socioeconomic factors:
– Perceptions and assessments of sustainability
– Market prices for other energy sources (coal,
oil, natural gas)
– Prices for biomass for other uses (i.e. pulp
logs, saw logs, pellets, firewood, mulch)
– Landowners management objectives
– Incentives and policies that support renewable
energy
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
NY’s Agricultural Resources
• Long term decline in
agriculture in NY
Total Cropland (1,000 acres)
6000
– Loss of ~ 1 million acres of
active cropland in past 25
years
– Currently 1.5 to 2 million acres
of marginal farmland in NY
5000
4000
3000
• Willow biomass crops could
2000
1000
0
1970 1975 1980 1985
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
1990 1995 2000
2005
•
be an alternative crop for
farmers and landowners
Produces environmental and
rural development benefits
in addition to bioenergy
and/or bioproducts
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Timber land within 25
miles of Syracuse
• Over 584,000 acres of
•
forest cover
Remove forest land:
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–
–
–
preserves
excessive slope
small parcels
classified wetlands
• Result is 400,000 acres of
•
•
(Castellan et al. 2008)
timberland
Potential production of over
245,000 odt of woody
biomass per year from
timberlands
Enough woody biomass for
35-60 Mwe
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Agricultural land
within 25 miles of
Syracuse
• Over 440,000 acres of
•
agricultural land cover
Remove land:
–
–
–
–
not classified for agriculture
excessive slopes
wetlands
small parcels
• Over 167,000 acres
•
•
(Castellan et al. 2008)
remaining
On 10% of this land
(16,700 acres) can produce
83,500 odt/yr
Enough woody biomass for
10 - 20 Mwe
Why Willow?
• High biomass production
•
•
•
•
Three-year old willow in Tully, NY
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
•
potential
Produces uniform
feedstock
Easily established with
unrooted cuttings
Resprouts vigorously after
each harvest
Limited insect and pest
problems
Wide range of genetic
variability
Previous and Current Willow Trials
Previous biomass sites
Current biomass sites
Phytoremediation sites
Living Snowfence sites
Riparian buffer sites
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Willow Biomass Production Cycle
Three-year old after
coppice
Site Preparation
Planting
Harvesting
One-year old after
coppice
Coppice
First year growth
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Early spring after coppicing
Three Year Old Willow Biomass Crops
¾Willow yields are typically 4
odt/acre/yr in the first rotation and 5
odt/ac/yr in subsequent rotations
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Global Carbon Cycles
Natural Gas
1
0.40
100 % Carbon Closure
1J
(Assumes 0.25 t/ha-yr increase in soil carbon)
11-16 J
55 J
Feedstock
Production
(62%)
Transportation
(12%)
(Mann and Spath 1997, Heller et al. 2003)
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Power Plant
Construction
(26%)
Net CO2
Emissions: 0%
Corn Ethanol
1
1.67
Wildlife and Biodiversity Benefits
• Mixtures of species
Different growth stages of willow
biomass crops create diversity across
the landscape
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
and ages create
structural and
functional diversity
across the landscape
• In a region will have
all three stages of
growth at any point in
time
• Harvest occurs during
the dormant season
Bird Diversity in Willow
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Andre Dhondt – Laboratory of Ornithology
Cornell University
Peter Wrege – Cornell University
Bird Diversity in SRWC
• SRWC provide good
•
•
•
Comparison of species diversity in SRWC
and other habitats based on breeding bird
survey data (Dhondt et al. 2001)
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
foraging and breeding
habitat for a diversity of
birds
57 different species
regularly used SRWC
28 species were found to
breed in SRWC plots
Diversity in SRWC was not
significantly different from
breeding bird survey data
from
– old fields
– intact eastern deciduous
forest
Challenges to Commercialization of Willow
• The people factor
– Misperceptions about biomass and willow
– Different opinions about the concept of sustainability
• Economics of the systems
– High up front establishment cost
– Yields and low prices for biomass
– High harvesting costs
• Infrastructure to support willow deployment
– Large amount of planting stock (typical planting density is 5,800
plants acre-1)
– Equipment for planting and harvesting
– Lack of experience and understanding for large scale
implementation
– Need for consistent and ongoing R&D and policy support for
energy crops
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Commercial Planting Stock Production
• Double A Willow, Fredonia NY
•
has established about 100
acres of willow nursery beds
planted since 2005
Planting stock for biomass
crops and for other
applications
– 5 million cuttings in 2007/08
– Projected production of 15 million
cuttings in 2008/09
– 30 million in 2010
Shrub willows in nursery beds at
Double A Vineyards, Fredonia, NY
(www.doubleawillow.com).
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
• Cost of cutting production has
already been significantly
reduced
SUNY ESF Willow Breeding Program
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
• A 20% increase in yield will
•
•
•
reduce the cost of delivered
willow biomass by 13%
Breeding program started in
1995 with collections from
across the Northeast and
Midwest U.S.
Since 1998, more than 600
crosses attempted
Initial breeding efforts are
providing yield increases of 20
– 40%
Harvester Development
• Dormant season, single pass
•
•
•
New CNH Short-Rotation Coppice header
being tested in the UK in March 2008
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
•
cut and chip harvesting system
based on New Holland (NH)
forage harvester
Trials over the past two years
with a NH forage harvester
and specially designed cutting
head
CNH is developing a new
Short-Rotation-Coppice (SRC)
header
Initial field trials were run in the
UK in March 2008
Field trials planned for the US,
UK, Belgium and Germany in
the winter of 2008/2009
Commercial Plantings Established
by Catalyst Renewables in 2008
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Market Developments
Combined Heat and Power
Biorefinery
Co-firing
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Gasification
Small Scale Heat
Now is the Time for Action
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
• “The stone age did not
end for lack of stone,
and the oil age will end
long before the world
runs out of oil.”
– Sheikh Zaki Yamani, former
oil minister for Saudi Arabia
• "We must be the
change we wish to see."
~M.
Ghandi
© The Research Foundation of SUNY
Acknowledgements
¾ USDA CSREES
¾ USDA Rural
Development
¾ NYS Energy Research
and Development
Authority (NYSERDA)
¾ Honeywell International
¾NYS Dept. Agriculture
and Markets
¾ NYSTAR