Developing South Dakota’s Biorenewable Energy Economy

–2010 Bioprocessing Center (CBRD)–Sun Grant Initiative–2010 Drought Center–Industry Partnerships

South Dakota Legislative Energy BriefingSouth Dakota Energy Infrastructure AuthorityJanuary 11, 2007

Gary Lemme; Dean/Professor

College of Agriculture and Biological Sciences

South Dakota State University

Growing South Dakota:Biorenewable Energy

Biomass Resources

• Ag residues– Corn stover (4-4.5 tons/acre/year)– Grain straw

• Energy crops– Grasses (10-20 tons/acre/year)– Woody crops

• Forestry residues– Thinning & mill residue

• Refuse fuels– Municipal & industrial

South Dakota Bioenergy Field

2010 Center for Bioprocessing Research and Development (CBRD)

• Collaboration among;– South Dakota School of Mines

and Technology (lead institution)

– South Dakota State University• South Dakota Agricultural

Experiment Station– US Department of Energy

• National Renewable Energy Laboratory

– Industry Partners• KL Process Design (Rapid City, • VeraSun (Brookings),• ICM Inc. (Kansas), • ZYMETIS (Maryland)

CBRD Research Focus

• Biomass pretreatment

• Microbial conversion

• Separations

• Process simulation

• Life cycle analysis

CBRD Accomplishments

• Started on July 2006 ($ released January 2007)– Interactions with industry & national laboratory– Establishment of industrial advisory council– Submitting infrastructure grants to DOE– Submitting research grants to DOE, industry, USDA,

& SD commodity groups– Research project initiated

• DUSEL project on “mining extremophiles” for enzymes• Pretreatment projects on extrusion based clean fractionation

and near critical water hydrolysis• Conversion project on high solid bioreactors

1. Enhance America's national energy security

2. Promote diversification and environmental sustainability of America's agriculture.

3. Promote opportunities for biobased economic diversification in America's rural communities.

4. Enhance collaboration between land grant universities and federal agencies (USDA, DOE, DOT)

National Initiative led by SDSU

Feedstock Development(fuel for the industry)– grain stover– native grasses (switchgrass &

prairie cord grass)

Biomass Pretreatment & Conversion– Fermentation– Enzymatic process

Sun Grant Initiative at SDSU

• Joint research – Colleges of Ag/Bio Sciences and Engineering– Regional academic partners– South Dakota private partners

• System wide research – field-fuel tank-feedlot-families– Multi-source systems (methane digester, wind,

bio-oil,& ethanol)

• Workforce development– Bioprocessing minor– K-12 educational material

Integrated Biorenewable energy program at SDSU

How much ethanol can SD produce from corn stover? (2004 data)

• 4.15 million acres corn @ 130 bu/a• 539.5 million bu corn = 15.1 million tons corn &

15.1 million tons stover (1:1 mass ratio)• 45% stover removal (sustains tilth) = 6.8 million

tons• 680 million gallons ethanol/year produced (100

gal ethanol/ton stover)• Plus {1.51 billion gallons ethanol from grain}

(2.8 gal/bu grain)

Corn Stover Bales for South Dakota’s Biorenewable energy

• Developing a stable & sustainable feedstock supply– 2010 Drought Center

• Feedstock infrastructure• Conversion efficiency hurdles• Cost-competitiveness

Challenges to Biomass Energy*

* Addressed through public-private research and education partnerships

1. Effective & timely permitting processes

2. Infrastructure investmentroads, rails, water, capital

3. Intergenerational farm transfer4. Economic competitiveness 5. Workforce development

education system, quality of life, vitality of communities

Public Policy Issues facing Biorenewable Energy Industry

Adapting technology to grow South Dakota

Stewardship of South Dakota’s natural resources while growing the economy

South Dakota’s future is all about people

Gary Lemme ; Dean605-688-4148gary.lemme@sdstate.edu