Waste not, want not.

An effort is underway at the Biomass Energy Conversion, or

BECON, facility in Nevada, Iowa to use biomass, organic material

to yield valuable fuels and chemicals.

I.C. Anderson, professor of agronomy, is one of the ISU faculty

members currently conducting research on biomass material,

such as crops, crop waste, trees, wood waste and animal waste,

at the BECON facility. Anderson is concentrating on the use of

anaerobic digestion of corn stover – corn stalks and other

remnants that abide after harvest – and swine manure to produce

methane gas that can be combusted for heat or used to fuel

engines to generate electricity.

“Our goal is to produce a renewable source of energy,” he

said.

Anderson’s ultimate goal, he said, is to develop a market for corn

stover bales for use in anaerobic digestion to produce methane or

other chemicals. By baling corn stover, the farmer can gather

standing stalks and leave the other half of the plant that contains

most of the nutrients in the field. This diminishes the need for soil

tillage. The problem, Anderson said, lies in the fact that farmers

are accustomed to tilling the soil.

“This practice will cause farmers to reduce tillage,” he said.

The BECON facility is operated by the Iowa Energy Center, which

works to improve the state’s energy efficiency and increase its

renewable resources. The facility is intended to provide scientists

with the resources to conduct their research and to provide

information about the potentials of biomass, said Floyd Barwig,

director of the Iowa Energy Center.

“This is real-world information that will prove to people that these

technologies are viable,” he said.

The BECON facility is a key player in fulfilling the Iowa Energy

Center’s goal by developing value-added products from Iowa’s

abundant biomass resources, Barwig said.

“We’re a state that has tremendous biological resources and

researchers that are advancing the frontiers,” he said. “We see a

range of different technologies developing [in the future] from

things now considered waste, such as feed waste and grease,

that can become a new kind of refinery. These valuable fuels and

chemicals are right here in Iowa and we are able to leave part of

the value with the Iowa farmers and communities.”

For more information on the BECON facility, visit the Iowa Energy

Center Web site at

href=”http://www.energy.iastate.edu”>www.energy.iastate.edu.