Crops for biofuel?

Greetings,
What are the best crops for biofuels?
How do corn/maize/soy stack up against each other?
Is there a perennial version of these plants?
How dependent are they on fertilizer?
Can they grow sustainably by rotation?
<curious>
-het


--
"Fast, cheap, good: pick two." -The Engineer's Dilemma

Energy Alternatives: http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/energy/energy.html
H.E. Taylor http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/

On Wed, 13 Oct 2004 10:52:40 -0700, "H. E. Taylor"
<het@despam.autobahn.mb.ca> wrote:

>Greetings,
> What are the best crops for biofuels?
> How do corn/maize/soy stack up against each other?
> Is there a perennial version of these plants?
> How dependent are they on fertilizer?
> Can they grow sustainably by rotation?
><curious>

Apparently oil-producing crops are currently favoured, but some places
are doing research on producing ethanol from waste, e.g. forest
product 'slash' (small branches), corn husks etc., via bacteria,
fermentation and distillation. These are less advanced than the
oil-crop route.

--
John W Hall <wweexxsseessssaa@telus.net>
Cochrane, Alberta, Canada.
"Helping People Prosper in the Information Age"

On Wed, 13 Oct 2004 10:52:40 -0700, "H. E. Taylor"
<het@despam.autobahn.mb.ca> wrote:

>Greetings,
> What are the best crops for biofuels?
> How do corn/maize/soy stack up against each other?
> Is there a perennial version of these plants?
> How dependent are they on fertilizer?
> Can they grow sustainably by rotation?
><curious>

Apparently oil-producing crops are currently favoured, but some places
are doing research on producing ethanol from waste, e.g. forest
product 'slash' (small branches), corn husks etc., via bacteria,
fermentation and distillation. These are less advanced than the
oil-crop route.

--
John W Hall <wweexxsseessssaa@telus.net>
Cochrane, Alberta, Canada.
"Helping People Prosper in the Information Age"

On Wed, 13 Oct 2004 10:52:40 -0700, "H. E. Taylor"
<het@despam.autobahn.mb.ca> wrote:

>Greetings,
> What are the best crops for biofuels?
> How do corn/maize/soy stack up against each other?
> Is there a perennial version of these plants?
> How dependent are they on fertilizer?
> Can they grow sustainably by rotation?
><curious>

Apparently oil-producing crops are currently favoured, but some places
are doing research on producing ethanol from waste, e.g. forest
product 'slash' (small branches), corn husks etc., via bacteria,
fermentation and distillation. These are less advanced than the
oil-crop route.

--
John W Hall <wweexxsseessssaa@telus.net>
Cochrane, Alberta, Canada.
"Helping People Prosper in the Information Age"

corn sucks, soy sucks, but not so badly. sunflower and mustard aren't bad,
neither are peanuts.

http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_yield.html

--
Steve Spence
http://www.green-trust.org
"H. E. Taylor" <het@despam.autobahn.mb.ca> wrote in message
news:416D6B68.54AD@despam.autobahn.mb.ca...
> Greetings,
> What are the best crops for biofuels?
> How do corn/maize/soy stack up against each other?
> Is there a perennial version of these plants?
> How dependent are they on fertilizer?
> Can they grow sustainably by rotation?
> <curious>
> -het
>
>
> --
> "Fast, cheap, good: pick two." -The Engineer's Dilemma
>
> Energy Alternatives: http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/energy/energy.html
> H.E. Taylor http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/

corn sucks, soy sucks, but not so badly. sunflower and mustard aren't bad,
neither are peanuts.

http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_yield.html

--
Steve Spence
http://www.green-trust.org
"H. E. Taylor" <het@despam.autobahn.mb.ca> wrote in message
news:416D6B68.54AD@despam.autobahn.mb.ca...
> Greetings,
> What are the best crops for biofuels?
> How do corn/maize/soy stack up against each other?
> Is there a perennial version of these plants?
> How dependent are they on fertilizer?
> Can they grow sustainably by rotation?
> <curious>
> -het
>
>
> --
> "Fast, cheap, good: pick two." -The Engineer's Dilemma
>
> Energy Alternatives: http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/energy/energy.html
> H.E. Taylor http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/

In article <416dcd11_1@newsfeed.slurp.net>,
<sspence@beavercreekconsulting.com> Steve Spence wrote:
>
> corn sucks, soy sucks, but not so badly. sunflower and mustard aren't bad,
> neither are peanuts.
>
> http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_yield.html
>
>>[...]

Ah thanks Steve. That's useful.

<regards>
-het



--
"Fast, cheap, good: pick two." -The Engineer's Dilemma

Energy Alternatives: http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/energy/energy.html
H.E. Taylor http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/

In article <416dcd11_1@newsfeed.slurp.net>,
<sspence@beavercreekconsulting.com> Steve Spence wrote:
>
> corn sucks, soy sucks, but not so badly. sunflower and mustard aren't bad,
> neither are peanuts.
>
> http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_yield.html
>
>>[...]

Ah thanks Steve. That's useful.

<regards>
-het



--
"Fast, cheap, good: pick two." -The Engineer's Dilemma

Energy Alternatives: http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/energy/energy.html
H.E. Taylor http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/

corn sucks, soy sucks, but not so badly. sunflower and mustard aren't bad,
neither are peanuts.

http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_yield.html

--
Steve Spence
http://www.green-trust.org
"H. E. Taylor" <het@despam.autobahn.mb.ca> wrote in message
news:416D6B68.54AD@despam.autobahn.mb.ca...
> Greetings,
> What are the best crops for biofuels?
> How do corn/maize/soy stack up against each other?
> Is there a perennial version of these plants?
> How dependent are they on fertilizer?
> Can they grow sustainably by rotation?
> <curious>
> -het
>
>
> --
> "Fast, cheap, good: pick two." -The Engineer's Dilemma
>
> Energy Alternatives: http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/energy/energy.html
> H.E. Taylor http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/

In article <416dcd11_1@newsfeed.slurp.net>,
<sspence@beavercreekconsulting.com> Steve Spence wrote:
>
> corn sucks, soy sucks, but not so badly. sunflower and mustard aren't bad,
> neither are peanuts.
>
> http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_yield.html
>
>>[...]

Ah thanks Steve. That's useful.

<regards>
-het



--
"Fast, cheap, good: pick two." -The Engineer's Dilemma

Energy Alternatives: http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/energy/energy.html
H.E. Taylor http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/

"H. E. Taylor" <het@despam.autobahn.mb.ca> wrote

> What are the best crops for biofuels?

Anything currently being grown for other purposes. The best way to produce
biofuel is to use the huge amount of organic waste already being produced
every day i.e. unrecyclable paper, agricultural wastes, home yard waste,
restaurant scraps, factory leftovers etc.

A common mistake in people who are trying to envision a renewable energy
future is to look for "the" single magic solution. Rather, the key is to
take advantage of the immense diversity of available energy sources in the
most convenient local form.

"H. E. Taylor" <het@despam.autobahn.mb.ca> wrote

> What are the best crops for biofuels?

Anything currently being grown for other purposes. The best way to produce
biofuel is to use the huge amount of organic waste already being produced
every day i.e. unrecyclable paper, agricultural wastes, home yard waste,
restaurant scraps, factory leftovers etc.

A common mistake in people who are trying to envision a renewable energy
future is to look for "the" single magic solution. Rather, the key is to
take advantage of the immense diversity of available energy sources in the
most convenient local form.

"H. E. Taylor" <het@despam.autobahn.mb.ca> wrote

> What are the best crops for biofuels?

Anything currently being grown for other purposes. The best way to produce
biofuel is to use the huge amount of organic waste already being produced
every day i.e. unrecyclable paper, agricultural wastes, home yard waste,
restaurant scraps, factory leftovers etc.

A common mistake in people who are trying to envision a renewable energy
future is to look for "the" single magic solution. Rather, the key is to
take advantage of the immense diversity of available energy sources in the
most convenient local form.

In article <I9ednV3E5t5ZDPPcRVn-sQ@magma.ca>,
<davegow.removethis@magma.ca> Dave Gower wrote:
> "H. E. Taylor" <het@despam.autobahn.mb.ca> wrote
>
>> What are the best crops for biofuels?
>
> Anything currently being grown for other purposes. The best way to produce
> biofuel is to use the huge amount of organic waste already being produced
> every day i.e. unrecyclable paper, agricultural wastes, home yard waste,
> restaurant scraps, factory leftovers etc.
>

I was thinking specifically of fuels for engines. I know about
the work by Iogen generating ethanol from cellulose, but using paper etc
now for most people would involve likely involve changing from
ICEs to steam (or Stirling), yes?

I am currently constructing a scenario where there are no fossil
fuels [post coal] and nuclear is out of the picture for other reasons.
Isolated people are living on wind, solar, geothermal and biofuels,
so the question of efficiencies naturally arises. The question of
what biotech to posit for Iogen-type solutions is open as yet.

> A common mistake in people who are trying to envision a renewable energy
> future is to look for "the" single magic solution. Rather, the key is to
> take advantage of the immense diversity of available energy sources in the
> most convenient local form.
>

I generally agree, with the proviso that efficiencies will
be an important factor.

<regards>
-het


PS.
2004/04/21: Iogen: Iogen producing world’s first cellulose ethanol fuel
<http://www.iogen.ca/HTML2/news/04_21_2004.html>



--
"The universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for
our wits to grow sharper." -Eden Phillpotts

PV FAQ: http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/energy/pv_faq.html
H.E. Taylor http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/

In article <I9ednV3E5t5ZDPPcRVn-sQ@magma.ca>,
<davegow.removethis@magma.ca> Dave Gower wrote:
> "H. E. Taylor" <het@despam.autobahn.mb.ca> wrote
>
>> What are the best crops for biofuels?
>
> Anything currently being grown for other purposes. The best way to produce
> biofuel is to use the huge amount of organic waste already being produced
> every day i.e. unrecyclable paper, agricultural wastes, home yard waste,
> restaurant scraps, factory leftovers etc.
>

I was thinking specifically of fuels for engines. I know about
the work by Iogen generating ethanol from cellulose, but using paper etc
now for most people would involve likely involve changing from
ICEs to steam (or Stirling), yes?

I am currently constructing a scenario where there are no fossil
fuels [post coal] and nuclear is out of the picture for other reasons.
Isolated people are living on wind, solar, geothermal and biofuels,
so the question of efficiencies naturally arises. The question of
what biotech to posit for Iogen-type solutions is open as yet.

> A common mistake in people who are trying to envision a renewable energy
> future is to look for "the" single magic solution. Rather, the key is to
> take advantage of the immense diversity of available energy sources in the
> most convenient local form.
>

I generally agree, with the proviso that efficiencies will
be an important factor.

<regards>
-het


PS.
2004/04/21: Iogen: Iogen producing world’s first cellulose ethanol fuel
<http://www.iogen.ca/HTML2/news/04_21_2004.html>



--
"The universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for
our wits to grow sharper." -Eden Phillpotts

PV FAQ: http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/energy/pv_faq.html
H.E. Taylor http://www.autobahn.mb.ca/~het/