Cellulosic ethanol might be better made from a blend of prairie grasses, rather than just one variety.
That is the finding of research being done at the University of Minnesota, according to researcher Dr. Jason Hill who testified at a Field Hearing of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, held April 3 in Fargo, ND.
According to the ND Farm and Ranch Guide, Hill testified that their study found that mixtures of 16 native prairie species produced 238 percent more energy on average than a single prairie species such as switchgrass and as an added bonus, the stands made up of the plant mixtures removed large amounts of carbon dioxide from the air and stored it in the soil, but that the single species stands did not.
“The environmental benefits of producing biofuels from diverse prairie biomass are striking,” Hill said in his testimony. “Most amazingly, producing and using ethanol from diverse prairie biomass can actually reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. This is because a diverse prairie removes more carbon dioxide from the air and stores it in the soil than is released into the air when fossil fuels are burned to farm prairie biomass and convert it into ethanol. This, along with the nitrogen added to the soil by native legumes, actually restores fertility to degraded farmlands, and, a prairie also provides wildlife habitat and reduces soil erosion and pollution of waterways with pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers.”
More on the research can be found on the University of Minnesota website.
A Dodge Viper fueled with 85 percent ethanol set a world speed record when it hit 189 mph last week on the runway at the Mojave Air & Space Port.
Company president Nile Ramsbottom said the company looked at Emporia because of its location and an ongoing partnership with soybean processor Bunge North America.
A new American Wind Energy Association report shows that in 2006, more than 2,400 megawatts of new power generation was installed in the U.S.. According to an 
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“With an increase in biodiesel production comes a surplus of crude glycerin,” said Mark Honeyman, animal science professor and coordinator of Iowa State’s Research Farms. “And with an increase in ethanol comes higher corn prices. Since corn is fed to pigs primarily for its energy value, we’re studying the possibility of replacing corn with glycerin in swine feed.”
Kristjan Bregendahl, assistant professor of poultry nutrition, conducted a metabolism experiment with 48 laying hens. Typical feed rations that included corn, soybean meal, meat and bone meal, and four levels of crude glycerin – 0, 5, 10, or 15 percent – were fed to the hens to determine the energy value of the glycerin.