Grainnet

National Biomass Producers Association to Demonstrate Non-Grain Biofuel Production

Half Way, MO—In mid-summer 2008, National Biomass Producers Association will begin demonstrations of biofuel production using non-grain feedstock.

With a trailer-mounted processing unit, demonstrations will be held in multtiple locations throughout the mid-west and beyond.

The American-made unit is a miniature version of a thermochemical system that can be scaled up for commercial operations.

The project will demonstrate deasibility of biofuel production using feedstocks of local origin.

According to Ed Cahoj (CHA-HOY) of NBPA, an advantage of the thermochemical process is its ability to accomodate almost any type of organic feedstock.

He said switchgrass will surely become a major source of bio-energy but a thermochemical system can utilize wood chips, sawdust, wheat straw, corn stover, and virtually any other organic material.

Another virtue of a thermochemical system is that it needs no water input and discharges no polluted water.

"Environmental impact is minimal," Cahoj said.

A by-product is "biochar" which, according to Cornell University research, is a soil amendment with important fertilizer properties.

Thermochecmical systems can be economically viable with smaller, less expensive plant facilities and much smaller feedstock inputs than those envisioned for other systems.

Logistical problems associated with feedstock collection and transportation are therefore minimized.

Cahoj, like most farmers these days, sees a need for agricultural producers to increase their farm income to keep up with repidly increasing farming costs.

Increasing farm income is also needed to keep rural communities viable and provide opportunities for the younger generation to stay in rural communities and on the farm.

The process used by the demonstration unit is not the only technology under consideration by NBPA but at this time it shows the greatest promise.

NBPA supposts the view that biomass production holds great potential for an entirely new revenue stream for farmers and ranchers and that bio-energy will play an important role in reducing the nation's dependence on imported oil.