Does anyone know the energy balance of switch grass and or cellulosic ethanol?

Question

I know that corn ethanol is 1.3 to 1, gasoline 5 to1 and sugar cane 8 to 1. If the energy balance of switch grass is more than corn, then why is our stupid government not going after cellulosic ethanol?

Answer 1

A rough estimate for any plant matter is 7,000BTU/lb or 15,000kj/kg of dry mass. The ethanol has the same heat value whatever its made from.

Answer 2

I have checked into switchgrass before and I did a little bit of research and actually attended an NREL conference in Philadelphia a little over a year ago. Spoke with a representative from the USDA and he recommended Miscanthus grass, its supposedly better than switchgrass because of growth rate, don't have to replant for 10 years and harvesting can be done with corn harvesting equipment. He advised why the Government is hesitant to switch to alternative crops is that a lot of the farm land is already in corn and it would "appear" not to be beneficial for farmers to "switch" crops when they are used to growing corn for market, feed etc... Another holdup back at end of 2006 meeting was the necessary enzyme to convert the feedstock into cellulosic ethanol CHEAPLY. They have been doing research all over the world with Miscanthus Giganteus, in the UK especially and University of Illinois  here in the US and I have found online several scientist/chemists who have created or found enzymes to convert miscanthus into cellulosic ethanol. I tend to agree that the Government should be using different feedstock such as miscanthus or offer incentives (subsidies) for farmers to switch or add to their farming practices. I actually bought some of the miraculous "Miscanthus Giganteus" off of Ebay last spring to see if it was the miracle grass------IT IS!   Anyway there are lots of feasibility studies from all over the world regarding Miscanthus as a new feedstock for cellulosic ethanol.  Hope this helps you somewhat with your question.

Answer 3

Cellulosic ethanol is still pretty much a dream.  There is currently no viable way to produce ethanol from cellulosic materials.  The government does not produce ethanol, this is done by private companies.  If there was a way to make money on cellulosic ethanol, they would be doing it.

Answer 4

Jason has the information.  Switchgrass, and several other things, will generate more ethanol per acre than corn.  Another advantage is that the switchgrasses are also nitrogen fixers rather than nitrogen depleters.