August 18, 2010
Growing Ethanol Industry Experiences Significant Efficiency Increases
Published in Hoosier Ag Today
Developmental stages are inherent in all human endeavors. This is true of individuals, communities and commerce. As endeavors cycle from infancy to toddler stages, greater efficiencies are gained. In markets, growth signals product acceptance and provides the necessary incentives for production improvements. Recent studies revealed significant efficiencies spurred by growth and development in the ethanol industry.
"As we see it, this is just the tip of the iceberg," said NCGA First Vice President Bart Schott. "Ethanol has proven to be an advantageous green alternative to foreign and ecologically precarious sources of petroleum. These studies illustrate that innovations in agriculture and ethanol production will only further enhance ethanol's desirability as an energy resource worthy of continued support."
Recently, Dr. Steffen Mueller, Principal Research Economist for the Energy Resources Center at the University of Illinois at Chicago published a detailed report on dry mill ethanol production. By comparing data collected from 2008 ethanol production with figures from a 2001 USDA commissioned survey, Mueller found sizable efficiency gains.
The findings showed the amount of greenhouse gases produced in production, water use and other key factors. Over a seven year period, dry mill ethanol production experienced a 28 percent reduction in thermal energy and 32.1 percent reduction in electricity per gallon requirements. Water usage has been reduced by 26.6 percent per gallon of ethanol produced. Additionally, ethanol output from a bushel of corn has increased by 5.3 percent.
Also significant to the industry is the backend corn oil separation process utilized by about one-third of the ethanol plants surveyed in Mueller's study. Corn oil can now be produced along with dried, modified, and wet distillers grain with solubles as a corn-based ethanol production co-product.
A second study published this summer by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Office of Energy Policy and New Uses updates 2004 measurement data to include all fossil fuel energy used in the production of one gallon of corn ethanol. The report found a 1 to 2.3 positive energy balance for ethanol production, meaning that for every unit of energy used to produce a gallon of ethanol, 2.3 energy united are created. This is significantly higher than the previous USDA estimate. The gains are attributed to efficiencies in growing corn and improvements in utilizing the energy in corn during the ethanol production process.
Nitrogen use per-bushel of corn produced has decreased by about 20 percent since the mid-1990s, and all direct energy inputs have declined close to 50 percent. Aided by increased ethanol plant yields, USDA's study concluded overall corn-energy input for ethanol production has been reduced by 40% per gallon over the last ....
