ISU Bioeconomy
Initiative
Jill Euken jeuken@iastate.edu
Impacts already……
Current Status - Ethanol
Biorefineries in Producion (139)
Biorefineries under Construction (62)
Source: RFA
1-24-08
Typical Grain Ethanol Plant
Distillation
Fermenter
Starch
Enzymes
Ethanol
Ethanol
CO2
Cooker
Milling
Starch
Water
Sugar
Grain
Dried Distillers
Grains and
Solubles
(DDGs)
ISU Extension “Conversations”
96 counties, 950 respondents, March ‘2007
Optimism
• Jobs
• Livestock expansion
• Improving infrastructure
• Iowa pride
• Increased tax base
• Economic development
 Value adding
 Rural revitalization
• Potential for keeping young people in Iowa
Concerns
• Increased land costs, input
costs, and risk
• Water quality and quantity
• Loss of wetlands and habitat
• Quality of life issues degraded
by industrial growth
• Strains on physical infrastructure
• Food versus feed versus fuel
• More consolidation in farming
due to higher land prices
“Biggest change for agriculture since the plow”
Facts and Figures
December, 2007
- 7.3 billion gal/year
- 2.5 billion bu. corn/year
In 2008
- another 6 billion gal/year comes online
- will require additional 2 billion bu/yr
Total corn requirement for U.S. ethanol by
end of 2008 will be 4.5 billion bu/year
2008 corn supply may not be sufficient to meet food,
export, feed, and ethanol demands; corn prices may
rise to the point that ethanol production is reduced
by 10-15%*
Chris Hurt, Purdue University
Prediction:
…….we ain’t seen nothin yet…….
2007 Energy Bill Mandates
36 Billion gallon of ethanol by 2022
21 Billion gallon must come from cellulose
Total
36
Corn-based
24
Billion
gallons
12
Biomass-based
0
2000
2008
2016
2022
Source: U.S. DOE
The HUGE Challenge Before Us
21 billion
gallons
• It took 30 years to reach 6 billion
gallons per year of grain-based
ethanol fuel (using technology
known for millennia)
• The new biofuels mandate
requires production of 21 billion
gallons per year of advanced
biofuels within 15 years (and no
commercial plants currently exist)
6 billion
gallons
30 years
15 years
Where will biomass
come from?
DOE 1.3 Billion Ton Study*
*Could supply 66% of U.S. transportation fuel
How do we “jump start”
the cellulose industry?
2007 DOE Biorefinery Awards=$385M
$80 M
$80 M
$40 M
$80 M
$76 M
$33 M
Feedstocks
- corn stover
- Wheat straw
- Milo stubble
- Yard/wood waste
- landfill waste
- Barley straw
- Energycane
Source: R. Wisner, ISU
November, 2006
What is a feasible timeline
for this transition?
Advanced Corn-to-Biofuel Biorefineries
Vision
Today
Corn
starch
2010
2012
Corn
starch
and
bran
Corn
starch,
bran, and
cobs
2015
Corn
starch,
bran, cobs
and stover
2020
Corn starch,
bran, cobs,
stover, and
dedicated
cellulosic
crops
Source: Larry Johnson, ISU
US Biomass inventory = 1.3 billion tons*
Corn stover
19.9%
Wheat straw
6.1%
Soy
6.2%
Crop residues
7.6%
Grains
5.2%
Perennial crops
35.2%
Manure
4.1%
Urban waste
2.9%
Forest
12.8%
*Could supply 66% of U.S. transportation fuel
From: Billion Ton Vision, DOE & USDA 2005
Current Sustainable
Availability of
Cellulosic Biomass
from Agricultural
Lands
6 mdt/year
21 mdt/year*
6 mdt/year
75 mdt/year
11 mdt/year
* Oil seeds, soybeans, sugar crops, root crops
Source: http://feedstockreview.ornl.gov/pdf/billion_ton_vision.pdf
Timing
and Used
Feedstocks
for 25
’25
Feedstocks
in Attaining
theXGoal
How will the biomass
be converted into fuels?
Three approaches to
advanced biofuels
• Biologically
(enzyme) based
cellulosic ethanol
• Thermally based
biofuels (including
ethanol)
• Hybrid processing
(includes both
biological and
thermal steps)
Source: R.C. Brown, ISU
“Next Generation” Biofuels
• corn bran
• corn cobs
• corn stover
• dedicated energy crops
Agricultural & Bioenergy/Bioproduct Value Chain
Germplasm
Ceres
Syngenta
Monsanto
Cultivation
Harvest
Transport
Storage
Lack of focus on economic &
environmental drivers
Additional research needed
Pioneer/DuPont
Canavialis
Dow
Integrated Systems Approach
Processing
Novozymes
Genencor
Poet
ICM
Iogen
Verasun
ConocoPhillips
“If any one step on the value chain does not work, the entire value chain does not work.”
Source: Jill Euken and Joe Colletti, ISU
The first “Advanced” Biofuels Project in
Iowa: Project LIBERTY
• Converting Emmetsburg, IA plant to an integrated
biorefinery
• Over $300 million capital investment
• Will produce 125 million gallons of ethanol
– 25 million from cellulosic feedstock
• Cellulosic feedstocks are cobs and corn fiber
• Multiple synergies with corn and cellulose model
Why cobs?
• Consistency
• Farmer willingness
• One pass harvest capability
• Higher ethanol yield
• Greater bulk density
• Proven feedstock
• Logical first step
Simplified LIBERTY Diagram
CO2
Ethanol
Endosperm
Centrifuge
& Dry
Fractionation
Fermentation
Grain Corn
Distillation
Water
Corn Germ
VA Chemicals
and modified
DDGs
Bran
Ethanol
Corn Cobs
Pre-treat
Based on information supplied by POET
Distill
Hydrolysis &
Ethanol Fermentation
Co-product stream
processed into energy
for the ethanol
production processes
29
and drying DDGs
Project LIBERTY Delivers:
• 11% more ethanol from a bushel of
corn
• 27% more ethanol from an acre of corn
• Significant reduction in fossil fuel
consumption
• Replicable model for multiple plants
ISU visit to Hurley SD
Stover/cob removal concerns
•
•
•
•
•
•
How to “value”
Risk
Soil organic matter
Moisture infiltration
Lime needs
Long term soil quality parameters.
2007 Harvest Objectives
To understand impact to the farmer:
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
economics
equipment
processes
storage
transportation
capital
logistics
speed
labor
2007 Cob Harvest
•
•
•
•
Harvested 4,000 acres of cobs in South Dakota
Tested multiple harvest methods
Collaborating with major equipment manufacturers
Conducting over 60 storage experiments
Cob Caddy, Ihnen farm
8010 and Cob Caddy
Cob Caddy Harvest
Cob Caddy
On-Field Storage
Cob handling
9860 CCM harvest
Corn cob mix
Corn cob mix
Feterl cob screener
Cob storage experiments
•
•
•
•
60 experiments
Hybrids
Moisture
Storage/retrieval/
delivery
Looking Ahead to “Third
Generation” Bioprocessing
…..harvesting stover……
Biomass Harvest Logistics
Harvest equipment
Iowa
StateReplacement
Universitycosts:
Research
N, P, and
K Nutrient
N, P, and K Nutrient Replacement Costs:
Nitrogen
Harvest Scenario Lb/ac $/ac
Phosphates
Potassium
Total
$/ac
Lb/ac
$/ac
Lb/ac $/ac
high-cut top
30.6 11.16
3.4
2.34
30.5
9.75
23.34
high-cut bottom
12.3
4.53
0.9
0.62
29.9
9.55
14.69
low cut
42.0 15.46
3.7
2.52
38.9 12.42
30.40
normal cut
37.5 13.78
3.6
2.45
30.6
26.01
9.77
aAverage
for fertilizer N, P, and K at Walton, NE, Kelly, IA and Boone, IA in March 2006.
Nitrogen cost $0.328 lb-1
Phosphate cost $0.615 lb-1
Potassium cost $0.284 lb-1
Source: Stuart Birrell, ISU
New Cropping Systems
Could Provide Biomass Feedstocks
and Environmental Protection
• Using double-crop
sequences
• Using herbaceous and
woody perennials
• Recycling nutrients between
biorefineries and crop fields
Focus on Iowa:
A 2006 Corn Grower Survey…
Survey data collected post harvest 2006.
Corn Price at time of survey ≈ $3.40/ Bushel
Source: John Tyndall, ISU
Survey: Regionally Stratified
Random Sample
1
2
3
4
Map from NASS, 2004
Farmer Knowledge of Corn Stover Market
(n = 602)
How knowledgeable are farmers about
harvesting & marketing of corn stover?
•
41% are “not knowledgeable at all”
•
28% were “a little knowledgeable”
•
20% feel “somewhat knowledgeable ”.
•
Only 4% feel “very informed”.
Interestingly, 6% of the respondents were harvesting &
selling corn stover in 2006 (mostly in W and NC Iowa).
Therefore by and large Iowa’s farmers are still in
the learning phase of this potential market.
Source: John Tyndall, ISU
Farmers believe that harvesting
stover will require:
• increase in capital
investment
• additional
managerial knowledge
• a well-developed
support infrastructure.
Source: John Tyndall, ISU
Farmer Interest in Supplying Stover, 2006
(n= 602)
Source: John Tyndall, ISU
New Century Farm at Iowa State University
•
The first-in-the-nation
integrated research and
demonstration farm
devoted to biomass
production, processing
and utilization
•
Will be a model for
American biorenewable
energy and bioproducts
development
Crop Production, Harvest, Storage & Transportation Research
Production
Ensure
Producer Profitability
Harvest
+
Sustainable Supply
For Biorefineries
Storage
2008 Growing the Bioeconomy Conference
September 8-9
SAVE THE DATE
Jill Euken
Deputy Director, ISU Bioeconomy Institute
Project Manager, Biobased Products, ISU Extension/CIRAS
53020 Hitchcock Ave
Lewis, IA 51544
Phone: 712-769-2600
Email: jeuken@iastate.edu