The prospect of sweet sorghum as the source for high. Using both the sweet juice and the bagasse for bio ethanol production increases the bio ethanol yield that can be obtained per hectare of sweet sorghum. However, presently it is not economically feasible to produce ethanol from sweet sorghum baggas. Juice, ethanol, and grain yield potential of five sweet. Ethanol plants in high yielding regions will likely generate returns on assets of 11%12% and in low yield areas the returns on assets will be less. A team at the university of nebraskalincoln is exploring sweet sorghum ethanol as a future income source for dryland agriculture in western nebraska. If there were yearround operations, they could achieve over 1,000 gallons of ethanol per acre.
The results obtained in the experiment showed that sweet sorghum cultivar sugargraze produces ethanol lower than cane. The use of sweet sorghum as a feedstock for ethanol production. This may seem like a good number, but sweet sorghum has the potential of producing up to 800 gallons of ethanol per acre. Guidelines for the eu model to process sweet sorghum as energy crop 37. Sweet sorghum ethanol production nc state extension. Sorghum, sorghum bicolorl moench, is the fifth most important cereal after rice, wheat, maize, and barley. Ethanol tolerance, osmotolerance and sugar conversion efficiency were used to screen yeasts for potential ethanol production from sweet stem sorghum juice. Sweet sorghum is a highyielding biomass feedstock that shows promise for production in missouri, especially in marginal lands. Diffusion of a sustainable eu model to produce 1st. Statistics analysis shows before september, the brix degree of longshi 1 is the highest, but with the growing of plants, at the beginning of september, the difference becomes smaller until no any gap between them. Sweet sorghum, as one of the energy crops in china, has been selected as feedstock to produce bio ethanol. In the case of forage sorghum and an integrated sweet sorghum pathway, the use of a portion of feedstock to fuel chp systems significantly reduces fossil fuel consumption and ghg emissions. Moench, is a potential alternative feedstock for bioethanol production because the juice from its stalks contains high levels of fermentable sugars, mainly sucrose, fructose, and glucose, and it has short life cycle of only 100120 d. One such crop that has a higher ratio is sweet sorghum at 18.
Sweet sorghum as an ethanol feedstock in western nebraska. Ethanol fermentation also produces large quantities of co2 as a coproduct contributing to global warming. In addition, the produced baggas after juice extraction can be used for ethanol production or animal feed. Also, sweet sorghum based ethanol is sulfurfree and cleaner than molassesbased ethanol, when mixed with gasoline,he explains. The sweet sorghum is investigated as an alternative source in place of sugar cane for ethanol production. It is relatively drought tolerant, has a high forage and ethanol yield per acre, has relatively low cost of production, is adaptable to notill, has a coproduct called bagasse that could be used for animal feed, and the crop itself could be used for silage if needed. Sweet sorghum is one of the most suitable crops for ethanol production. Eight sweet sorghum cultivars namely csv19ss, csv24ss, csv27, csv32f, pv, ssv84, rvicsh, spv1871. In the present study, the co2 produced in sweet sorghum juice ssj fermentation was captured by absorption in 5 m naoh.
Sweet sorghum has been studied as an alternative crop for sugarsethanol in. However, the current rfs premium expected for sweet sorghum ethanol over corn ethanol, or a 30% increase in sweet sorghum yields, would increase benefits to both parties sufficiently. Mar 14, 2020 1g ethanol from sweet sorghum can be a better alternative to various other sources used for its production. Sweet sorghum is any of the many varieties of the sorghum grass whose stalks have a high sugar content. Supply and demand for ethanol in india and potential for sweet sorghum as an alternative feedstock. Pdf the potential of sweet sorghum as a source of ethanol. The economic feasibility of producing ethanol from sweet sorghum juice is projected using monte carlo simulation models to estimate the price ethanol plants will likely have to pay for sweet sorghum and the uncertain returns for ethanol plants. Sweet sorghum is considered a wateruse efficient crop, with high potential as an alternative feed stock for bioethanol production. Increasing ethanol production in india using sweet sorghum. Pretreatment of sweet sorghum bagasse for ethanol production. Another advantage is sweet sorghum can be harvested twice and, in some regions, three times a year. Technological quality of sweet sorghum processed without panicles. Gasoline contains a percentage of ethanol less energy intensive to produce than corn ethanol reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
Sweet sorghum ethanol yields were greater than maize yields across sites, but the soil carbon similarly decreased regardless of crop and location. Pdf composition of sugar cane, energy cane, and sweet. However, largescale planting on marginal lands would require improved varieties with optimized biofuelrelated traits and tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses. Jul 21, 2011 when looking at ethanol production, the output ratio should be substantially higher than the input for a crop to be deemed efficient. From 2007 to 2009, university of kentucky researchers examined the feasibility of ethanol production from sweet sorghum. Sindoka has decided to utilize the area for sweet sorghum based bioethanol. Sweet sorghum being a c 4 species is more wateruse efficient and can be table 1. Our analysis indicates that with current sweet sorghum yields and prices, the sweet sorghum ethanol pathway is barely a breakeven prospect for western nebraska.
Moench is an important dryland cereal grown in india 7. Ethanol producing companies, research institutions, and governments can coordinate with farmers to strategically develop valueadded utilization of sweet sorghum. At 12 to15 feet, this tall, leafy plant that resembles corn sports thick stalks with a lot of biomass and. On the other hand, high fermentable sugar content in sweet sorghum stalk makes it to be more suitable for fermentation to ethanol. Most of the sugar is stored inside the cells of the stalk tissue and can be difficult to release, a necessary step before conventional fermentation.
Pdf sweet sorghum as feedstock for ethanol production. University of kentucky ccd home ccd crop profiles college. Ethanol production potential of sweet sorghum assessed using. Prospects of sweet sorghum as a raw material for ethanol production. In addition to having a higher ratio, the cost of production for sweet sorghum is lower than for corn. Sweet sorghum as a wholecrop feedstock for ethanol production. We seek to enhance sweet sorghum performance on marginal lands, and to identify a strategy for improving its ethanol processing potential, two key components for developing this system for production in midwest region. Although, in most of the united states the term molasses refers to a sweet syrup, made as a byproduct of sugarcane or sugar beet sugar.
Economics of ethanol production from sweet sorghum under cu. This technical manual follows the sweethanol early manual, where the background about the. Its mass can be processed with the same machinery used in the processing of sugar cane, also offering a quantity of biomass bagasse similar in volume to the operation. While this crop holds much promise as an arid land sugar source for biofuel production, a number of challenges must be overcome. Ethanol is currently processed from sweet sorghum in texas, oklahoma, and iowa, as well as india and other parts of the world. Widespread interest in sweet sorghum for ethanol is at. Put it all togetherand allow for two sorghum harvests in a good yearand the dual crop could yield 750 gallons of ethanol per acre in the southern u. This factsheet describes how to process mature sweet sorghum into ethanol and how this process could be implemented on a farm or private residence in the southeastern united states. Efficient extraction method to collect sugar from sweet. A new beginning a ashok kumar, ch ravinder reddy, jv patil and belum vs reddy i. Sweet sorghum is the same species sorghum bicolor l. While considerable progress has been made in improving sweet sorghum for the ethanol supply chain by a combination of centralized and decentralized models, inter alia it calls for firm policy support to sustain the value. However, presently it is not economically feasible to produce ethanol from. The concentration of ethanol and its yield obtained under optimum conditions were 7.
Ethanol production by fermentation of sweetstem sorghum. The sweet sorghum juice had higher cell viability at high ethanol concentrations and minimum sugar concentration at the end of the fermentation process. Improvement of ethanol production from sweet sorghum juice. Ripe sweet sorghum typically consists of approximately 75% cane, 10% leaves, 5% seeds and 10% roots by weight grassi et al. Sweet sorghum, is a plant which produces a 10foot stalk that can be turned into ethanol without damaging the food grain that grows at the top of the plant. Prospects of sweet sorghum as a raw material for ethanol. Additionally, the pollution levels in sweet sorghum based ethanol production has 25% of the biological oxygen dissolved bod, i. Icrisat, along with partners, has been working on the development of a sweet sorghum ethanol value chain over the past several years. Sweet sorghum has emerged as a potential new feedstock for ethanol production. The prospect of sweet sorghum as the source for high biomass. Pdf sweet sorghum bioethanol technology allen vic mamuad. Life cycle assessment on biofuel derived from sweet sorghum. Sweet sorghum ethanol production nc state extension publications.
Cornhusker economics january 17, 2018sweet sorghum as an ethanol feedstock in western nebraska could it happen. Performance evaluation of sweet sorghum juice and sugarcane. Although sweet sorghum is primarily grown to produce sorghum syrup, it can also be used as a feedstock for biofuel. Although research on alternative uses of sweet sorghum has been done 1416, it is still grown mainly for syrup, forage, and grain 15. Sweet sorghum production basics penn state extension. India indicated that ethanol production from sweet sorghum is costeffective. Sizing it all up dweikat says quite plainly, the more sugar,the more ethanol.
Sorghum is a genus of flowering plants in the grass family poaceae. Sweet sorghum is a promising target for biofuel production. The technology of producing jaggery unrefined sugar and syrup from sweet sorghum was also developed. The net energy ratios of sugarcane and sweet sorghum are similar,with 1 input rendering 8 out. Although, ethanol can be produced from sweet sorghum grain but it needs more process for converting its starch to glucose that later will be converted to ethanol. Considering this, many studies have been carried out to generate genetic. Using both the sweet juice and the bagasse for bio ethanol production increases the bio ethanol yield that can be obtained per hectare of sweet sorghum dolciotti et al. In the us and europe, sweet sorghum is grown commercially for ethanol pro duction which is blended with fossilbased fuels 1719.
Aug 20, 2009 put it all togetherand allow for two sorghum harvests in a good yearand the dual crop could yield 750 gallons of ethanol per acre in the southern u. Moench is the best multipurpose crop for simultaneous production of i grain from its earhead as food, ii sugary juice from its stalk for making syrup, jaggery or ethanol and iii bagasse and green foliage as an excellent. This work evaluates the use of two different varieties of sweet sorghum juice. Fuelgrade ethanol production from sweet sorghum syrup can significantly reduce indias dependence on foreign oil and also minimize the environmental threat caused by fossil fuels. Sweet sorghum for biofuel introduction sweet sorghum sorghum bicolor is primarily grown in kentucky for its syrup. Thus, for prolonging the period of ethanol production from sweet sorghum, the order of seeding time are longshi 1, shennong no. In these trials, various varieties and seeding rates were evaluated. Also, sweet sorghumbased ethanol is sulfurfree and cleaner than molassesbased ethanol, when mixed with gasoline,he explains. The objective of this study was to identify the costs associated with the production of sweet sorghum and to determine the cost per gallon of ethanol produced by using sweet sorghum as the input. Moench having a high concentration of soluble sugars in the stalks. Composition of sugar cane, energy cane, and sweet sorghum suitable for ethanol production at louisiana sugar mills article pdf available in journal of industrial microbiology 387. Initially, the enzymatic hydrolysis of sorghum grains was optimized, and the hydrolysate produced under optimal conditions was used for ethanol production with an industrial strain of saccharomyces cerevisiae, resulting in an ethanol concentration of 87 g l. Eight sweet sorghum cultivars namely csv19ss, csv24ss, csv27, csv32f, pv, ssv84, rvicsh, spv1871, ssv74.
Seventeen of the 25 species are native to australia, with the range of some extending to africa, asia, mesoamerica, and certain islands in the indian and pacific oceans. Production project, with distillation capacity of 100 klpd. Lifecycle energy use and greenhouse gas emissions of. The commercial feasibility is dictated by the high sugar containing varieties, their transport to ethanol plants, storage and availability of robust yeast strains for the fermentation. Sweet sorghum thrives better under drier and warmer conditions than many other crops and is grown primarily for forage, silage, and syrup production. Economic feasibility of ethanol production from sweet. The potential of sweet sorghum as an alternative crop for ethanol production was investigated in this study. The potential of sweet sorghum as a source of ethanol and protein. This factsheet describes how to process mature sweet sorghum into ethanol and how this process could be. The juice extracted from the fresh stem is composed of sucrose, glucose, and. Sweet sorghum is a domesticated grass containing a sugarrich juice that can be readily utilized for ethanol production. The advantages of sweet sorghum for ethanol production in terms of ethanol production, sweet sorghum provides many advantages over other bioenergy crops such as maize and sugar cane. Ethanol sweet sorghum sugars can be fermented to produce advanced biofuel ethanol most u.
In favorable environments, sweet sorghum varieties can grow 14 feet tall and produce 20 to 50 tons of biomass fresh weight per acre. Ethanol production from sweet sorghum syrup for utilization. Future area requirement for sweet sorghum cultivation to meet a small proportion of mandated blending requirements if sweet sorghum is commercially exploited. Evaluation of ethanol fermentation efficiency of sweet. Researchers explore economic potential for sweet sorghum. The doe has targeted sweet sorghum as a prime crop for ethanol production, and the planting of 14 million new acres in sweet sorghum is the underlying assumption in a doe plant to produce 11.
In the us and europe, sweet sorghum is grown commercially for ethanol pro. The term sweet sorghum is used to desrie variet ies of sorghum sorghum bicolor l. A costeffective integrated process to convert sweet sorghum. It has been proposed that nonirrigated sweet sorghum might be grown in western nebraska as a seasonal substitute for corn grain in corn ethanol plants. However, this crop may someday have another use in the commonwealth as a bioenergy crop. Pdf sweet sorghum is an attractive feedstock for ethanol production. It constitutes the main food grain for over 750 million people who live in the semiarid tropics of africa, asia, and latin america. Sweet sorghum agronomy sweet sorghum cultivation and practices are simple and readily adoptable. Forage sorghum based ethanol can achieve a 49% wtw ghg emission reduction when ethanol plants meet process energy demands with chp. It is a c4 crop with low input requirements and accumulates high levels of sugars in its stalks. One species is grown for grain, while many others are used as fodder plants, either cultivated in warm climates worldwide or naturalized in pasture lands.
The ethanol pro duction processing from sweet sorghum grain figure 1 is sim ilar to corn and it can be described ac cording to q uintero et al. Possible ethanol yield can be 600650 gala if all the fermentable sugars in sweet sorghum are converted to ethanol wu et al. Sweet sorghum into ethanol the university of arizona college of agriculture and life sciences a d a p t i n g a n a l e r n a t i v e f u e l c r o p for a r i z n a t he first thing you notice about mature sweet sorghum is its height. In the research summarized here1, we examine the economic feasibility of this possibility, based on the. Soluble sugars in sweet sorghum stalks were firstly converted into ethanol by assf using crushed stalks directly. Sweet sorghum is a cultivar of sorghum primarily developed for the harvest of juice. The three crops with the highest energy potential for fuel production are sugarcane, sugar beet and sweet sorghum.
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