Switchgrass is a biofuel made from a crop that can grow up to 10 feet tall and captures solar energy. It produces up to 100 gallons of ethanol per ton, five times more than sugarcane, and has lower production costs. Researchers are working to develop the best switchgrass strains for ethanol production. Growing switchgrass can also return land to a natural state for wildlife.
Switchgrass ethanol is an ethanol-based biofuel created from switchgrass crops. Unlike traditional grasses, switchgrass can grow up to 10 feet during a growing season. It is thick, with stems that resemble wood rather than grass. This signature plant also captures solar energy which can be helpful in converting the herb into ethanol.
The United States Department of Agriculture and other government departments around the world are using the power of grass to produce ethanol-based biofuels. Weed can be grown on plots of land that have, over the years, been depleted of vitamins and nutrients from other crops. Its deep root system also makes growing shrubs in drought areas more effective.
Scientists are working with the genetics of various switchgrass strains to develop a form that contains all the best characteristics for ethanol production. The most predominant characteristics that are modified in this way include hardiness of herbaceous crops and overall yields during a given growing period. With future development, a type of field grass could be created that uses much less fertilizer and nitrogen, while producing the best possible growth for alfalfa ethanol production.
While sugarcane ethanol has been studied in the past as an effective alternative to corn-based ethanol, yield is often limited to less than 20 gallons (75.7 liters) of ethanol per ton (907 kilograms) of sugarcane . Switchgrass, on the other hand, produces up to 100 gallons (378.5 liters) of switchgrass ethanol per ton (907 kilograms) of dry grass. In essence, one ton (907 kilograms) of vermilion grass could produce five times more biofuel ethanol than sugar cane.
Another benefit of producing switchgrass ethanol is the lower cost of production. Currently, corn is the most widely used raw material for the production of ethanol. Producing ethanol from corn is thought to use as much energy as it does in pure fuel. Ethanol biofuels made from switchgrass tend to produce five times as much energy as is needed to produce the fuel, which could mean lower production costs and lower ethanol costs at the pump. When the total cost of the machinery used to plant, grow and harvest the corn is taken into consideration, the yield difference rises to 20 times higher for corn ethanol compared to corn ethanol.
Some researchers believe there is even a hidden benefit to making ethanol from chives. Corn crops require land leveling, in order to plant corn crops. Planting lawn grass essentially returns the land to a more natural, prairie-like state that birds and smaller animals can use for food and habitat.
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