Annual/Termination Reports:

[01/23/2014] [08/03/2011] [11/26/2012] [12/26/2014]

Report Information

Participants

Creech, Earl  Utah State University; Sparrow, Steve  University of Alaska; Howell, Dan  PNNL, Richland, WA; Ottman, Mike  University of Arizona; Shewmaker, Glenn  University of Idaho; Berti, Marisol  North Dakota University; Fransen, Steve  Washington State University; Yang, Bin -- ; Larson, Steve  USDA-ARS, Logan, UT; Steiner, Jeffery  Advisor;

Brief Summary of Minutes

The service provider for the conference call had technical difficulties which resulted in some callers not being able to join the conference. The possibility of submitting a grant was discussed when a request for proposal is announced, likely next year. The time and location for the next meeting was discussed and the consensus was that we meet in conjunction with the ASA-CSSA annual meeting in Long Beach, CA Nov 2-5, 2014. It was requested that publications and other activities for the fiscal year be collected and entered into the annual report.

Accomplishments

Members of this WERA group submitted a USDA AFRI Cap grant 2013-03845 Optimizing Crop Portfolios for Food, Forage, and Second Generation (2G) Biofuels Feedstock Production in the Northern Great Plains and Pacific NW. Dr. Berti, NDSU, led this effort which was reviewed in the summary from the review panel:<br /> <br /> <br /> This is a very ambitious project that will be directed at North Dakota State University (NDSU) that enlists the collaboration of 24 researchers from eight other universities, two USDA-ARS laboratories, seven commercial partners, two Hispanic serving institutions, and a stakeholder advisory panel. The five broad goals include: 1) germplasm enhancement of three species; 2) integrated cropping systems for both the NC and Inland PNW; 3) generation of data and fuel samples with a new crop oil conversion process; 4) determination of the economic, environmental, and social impacts of biofuel value chains in both regions; and 5) development interest in high school, undergraduate, and graduate student interested in biofuels. In addition to this they intend to optimize crop portfolios to ensure sustainable production biofuels in both regions.<br /> <br /> Synthesis Comments by Review Panel:<br /> <br /> This proposal is supported by an extremely strong team of researchers, extension specialists, and educators. The management plan for this complex project includes five co-PI's which will help with the day-to-day manage each of the five objectives. The extension activities of several of the other PI's will also enhance the potential for grower adoption of these crops and production strategies. The Stakeholder Advisory Panel will also help keep the project on target and improve the visibility of this project at the production and processing level in the industry. The budget was well balanced across both supporting institutions and by category. Perhaps the only weak point of the budget was the request for $43,500 for International Travel including $20,000 for an external evaluation from Europe and $3,500 for the winter nursery in Chile. The proposal would have been stronger with a more focused approach both geographically and across specific objectives. It was a little strange to see the University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez and California State Polytechnic - Pomona being targeted for minority student recruitment. <br /> <br /> <br /> This is the second of other grants focusing on oil seed and cellulosic biofuel grants aimed at production and conversion to assist in meeting the national RFS2 biofuel goals.<br /> <br />

Publications

Larson, Steven R., Kevin B. Jensen, Joseph G. Robins, and Blair L. Waldron. 2014. Genes and Quantitative Trait Loci Controlling Biomass Yield and Forage Quality Traits in Perennial Wildrye. Crop Sci. 54:116 (2014). doi: 10.2135/cropsci2013.04.0261<br /> <br /> Gao, J., K. D. Thelen, and X. Hao. 2013. Life cycle analysis of corn harvest strategies for bioethanol production. Agron J. 105:705-712. doi:10.2134/agronj2012.0420.<br /> <br /> Smith, S.L., K.D. Thelen, and S.J. MacDonald. 2013. Yield and quality analyses of bioenergy crops grown on a regulatory brownfield. Biomass and BioEnergy. 49:123-130.<br /> <br /> Zegada-Lizarazu, W., D. Parrish, M.T. Berti, and A. Monti. 2013. Dedicated crops for advanced biofuels: consistent and diverging agronomic points of view between the USA and the EU-27, Biofuels, Bioproducts, and Biorefining online DOI:10.1002/bbb.1430.<br /> <br /> Heaton, E. L.A. Schulte, M.T. Berti, H. Langeveld, W. Zegada-Lizarazu, D. Parrish, and A. Monti. 2013. Managing a second-generation crop portfolio through sustainable intensification: Examples from the USA and EU. Biofuels, Bioproducts, and Biorefining. online DOI:10.1002/bbb.1429<br /> <br /> Anfinrud, R., L. Cihacek, B.L. Johnson, Y. Ji, and M.T. Berti. 2013. Sorghum and kenaf biomass yield and quality response to nitrogen fertilization in the northern Great Plains of the USA. Ind. Crops Prod. 50:159-165.<br /> <br /> Kamireddy, S.R., J. Li, S. Abbina, M.T. Berti, M. Tucker, and Y. Ji. 2013. Converting forage sorghum and sunnhemp into biofuels through dilute acid pretreatment. Ind. Crops Prod. 49:598-69.<br /> Berti, M.T., S.R. Kamireddy, and Y. Ji. 2013. Row spacing affects biomass yield and composition of kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) as a lignocellulosic feedstock for bioenergy. J. Sustainable Bioenergy Systems 3: 68-73.<br /> <br /> Kamireddy, S.R., J. Degenstein, Y. Ji, and M.T. Berti. 2013. Pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis of kenaf as a potential source for lignocellulosic biofuel and green chemicals. Current Organic Chemistry 17(15):1624-1632.<br /> <br /> Berti, M.T., and B.L. Johnson. 2013. Switchgrass establishment as affected by seeding depth and soil type. Ind. Crops Prod. 41:289-293.<br /> <br /> Monono, E.M., P.E. Nyren, M.T. Berti, and S.W. Pryor. 2013. Variability in biomass yield, chemical composition, and ethanol potential of individual and mixed herbaceous biomass species grown in North Dakota. Ind. Crops Prod. 41:331-339.<br /> <br /> Watrud, L.S., J.R. Reichman, M.A. Smith, E.H. Lee, J.D. Jastrow, M.D. Casler, H.P. Collins, S.C. Fransen, R.B. Mitchell, V.N. Owens, B.Bean, W.L. Rooney, and G.A. King. 2012. Chemistry and microbial functional diversity differences in biofuel crop and grassland soils in multiple geographies. BioEnergy Res. DOI 10.1007/s12155-012-9279-y<br /> <br /> <br /> Proceedings publications <br /> <br /> Berti, M.T., B.L. Johnson, R.W. Gesch, D. Samarappuli, Y. Ji, W. Seames, and S.R. Kamireddy. 2013. Forage sorghum: an excellent feedstock for second generation biofuels in the North Central Region of the USA. p. 160-165. In 21st European Biomass Conference and Exhibition. 2-6 June, 2013, Copenhagen, Denmark, Available at http://www.etaflorence.it/proceedings/index.asp (verified 10 June 2013).<br /> <br /> Gesch, R.W., Berti, M.T., B.L. Johnson, A. Aponte, Y. Ji, W. Seames, and D. Archer. 2013 Double- and relay-cropping oilseed and biomass crops for sustainable energy production. p. 372-377 In 21st European Biomass Conference and Exhibition. 2-6 June, 2013, Copenhagen, Denmark, Available at http://www.etaflorence.it/proceedings/index.asp (verified 10 June 2013).<br />

Impact Statements

1. The impacts cannot be measured at this time. It will take several years and successful funded grants. It will also take some time for our WERA 1016 group to mature thereby becoming competitive for national grants.

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Report Information

Participants

ATTENDEES TO WERA-1016 in JUNE 2011:;
Cavalieri, Ralph, (cavalieri@wsu.edu) Washington State University, Academic Advisor; Berti, Marisol T., North Dakota State University;Brummer, Joe, Colorado State University; Collins, Hal, USDA-ARS Prosser, WA;Creech, Earl, Utah State University;Fransen, Steve, Washington State University;Howe, Dan, PNNL, Richland, WA;Islam, Anowar, University of Wyoming;Larson, Steve, USDA-ARS, Logan, UT;Jones, Wayne, ZeaChem Inc.; Marsalis, Mark, New Mexico State University;Ottman, Mike, University of Arizona;Roseberg, Rich, Oregon State University;Shewmaker, Glenn, University of Idaho;Sparrow, Steve, University of Alaska;Thelen, Kurt, Michigan State University;Woodward, Tim, Columbia Basin College, Pasco, WA;

OTHER PARTICIPANTS:;
Davison, Jay, University of Nevada; Dixon, Ken, Sunset Ethanol, Reno, NV; Ganjegunte, Girisha, Texas A&M University; Lozovava, Vera, Illinois State University; Putnam, Dan, University of California, Davis;Ray, Dennis, University of Arizona; Robbins, Joe, USDA-ARS, Logan, UT;

Brief Summary of Minutes

Provide information with a focus on the decisions made. As an alternative, provide an attachment of your meeting minutes.

The inaugural meeting of WERA 1016 "Adaptation, Quality and Management of Sustainable Cellulosic Biofuel Crops in the West" was conducted from June 20-22, 2011 and was hosted by Steve Fransen and Hal Collins at WSU-Prosser in Prosser, WA. In addition to research reports and discussions, we toured various bioenergy labs at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Richland, WA and viewed various bioenergy crops growing in small and field test plots at Columbia Basin College in Pasco and at the WSU-Prosser station. Bioenergy and biofuel discussions were scheduled the day before and after the all-day field tour. A complete agenda of the meeting is provided as appendix A.

A complete listing of WERA 1016 members and participants of the June, 2011 meeting is provided. Nearly all members of WERA 1016 were able to attend, which produced a great deal of discussion and understanding of the current state of affairs in biofuel research and Extension programming in the west. This also provided opportunities to collaboratively develop small and large teams within the region for competitive national grants. Ralph Cavalieri presented the update from the Western Directors and what he sees as the future for many issues facing our group and the budget crisis that will surely impact future grant programs.

The tour was the highlight for every participant. We started the tour with our member Tim Woodward at CBC at Pasco where he is developing switchgrass for the irrigated western region and non-lodging alfalfa also for biofuel. Next stop was at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland. Our member Dan Howe arranged for the group to tour the various labs starting with development and testing of catylists through conversion of biomass in a large-scale gasifier. We ended the tour back at Prosser where members Steve Fransen and Hal Collins showed a 10 acre irrigated switchgrass study to measure WUE of switchgrass to corn and sweet sorghum. This was followed by small plots dating back to 2002, the first switchgrass plots grown at Prosser. A BBQ that evening allowed members to visit and reflect on the enormous task at hand when introducing new approaches from old and new crops for biofuel and biomass. The meeting ended after the third morning of meetings and discussion. New officers elected for the next years are: Chair - Marisol Berti; Vice-Chair - Glenn Shewmaker; Secretary - Steve Sparrow. It was agreed that Steve Fransen will continue to work with the new committee and assist in coordination of WERA 1016 efforts to develop collaborative grants. The next meeting will be hosted by Dr. Berti in North Dakota in 2012. Meeting ended about noon on June 22, 2011.

Agenda for this meeting appears in the attachment for Meeting Minutes following.

Accomplishments

Two accomplishments can be highlighted in this report. First, this meeting provided an opportunity for members to share their interests in modern dryland or irrigated biofuel crops grown in the western region. This will lead to greater cooperation in research and Extension projects and grants in the future. Secondly, members of this WERA group have submitted a USDA Foundational grant to promote a Western Region Biofuel Conference that is scheduled for late March, 2012 in Reno, NV. This is the first of other grants focusing on oil seed and cellulosic biofuel grants aimed at production and conversion to assist in meeting the national RFS2 biofuel goals.

Publications

None to report.

Impact Statements

1. The impacts from our first meeting cannot be measured at this time. It will take several years and successful funded grants. It will also take some time for our WERA 1016 group to mature thereby becoming competitive for national grants.

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Report Information

Participants

Attendees to WERA 1016 August 6-8, 2012

Members

;

Berti, Marisol, associate professor, Plant Sciences, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND;
Girisha Gagejunte, Texas A&M University, El Paso, TX;
Howe, Daniel, PNNL, Richland, WA;
Shewmaker, Glenn, University of Idaho, Twin Falls, ID;
Sparrow, Stephen, University of Alaska, Fairbanks;
Thelen, Kurt, Michigan State University

Other attendees

;
Aponte, Alfredo, PhD. student Plant Sciences, NDSU, Fargo;
Ji, Yun, assistant professor, Dept. Chemical engineering, UND, Grand Forks;
Li, Yinbao, post doc, Chemical engineering, UND, Grand Forks;
Kamereddy, Reddy, PhD. Students, Chemical engineering;
Kandel, Hans. Extension crop production, Plant Sciences, NDSU, Fargo, ND;
Maung, Thein, Research assistant professor, Agribusiness & Applied Economy, NDSU, Fargo;
Orak, Adnan, Visiting professor, Namik Kemal University, Turkey;
Ripplinger, David, Research assistant professor, Agribusiness & Applied Economy, NDSU, Fargo;
Samarappuli, Dulan, MS student, Plant Sciences, NDSU, Fargo, NDSU;
Saxowsky, David, associate professor, Agribusiness & Applied Economy, NDSU, Fargo;
Osvaldo Teuber, PhD. Student, Plant Sciences, NDSU, Fargo, ND

Brief Summary of Minutes

Summary

The annual meeting was conducted from August 6-8, 2012 and was hosted by Marisol Berti at North Dakota State University in Fargo, ND. Six members of the committee representing six different states attended the meeting. Also other researchers and students from North Dakota State University (NDSU) and University of North Dakota (UND) joined us in the meeting and field tour increasing the attendance to 17.

The meeting started with a presentation from the Chair from the Department of Plant Sciences Dr. Horsley. After that Dr. Marisol Berti presented the advances in biomass research in the state of North Dakota. All committee members presented a 30 minutes summary of their research on biomass crops production or conversion. We had a field tour on Tuesday to the North Dakota State University Fargo and Prosper Experimental Stations. Among the crops shown on the tour were forage sorghum, switchgrass, miscanthus, cool-season grasses in mixtures with alfalfa, cover crops use for bioenergy crops, forage brassicas for forage and energy, and winter camelina-forage sorghum double and relay-cropping systems.

The meeting ended with a business meeting where an interesting discussion of the future plans for this group took place and also the possibilities of developing a proposal template in biomass crop production for the committee to be prepared ahead of time to apply for funding for bioenergy crops research in the Western states when the opportunities arise.

Minutes of Business Meeting Section

August 8, 2012

Attendees:

Marisol Berti, Girisha Ganjegunte, Daniel Howe, Glenn Shewmaker, Stephen Sparrow, Kurt Thelen, David Saxowsky, David Ripplinger, Thein Maung.

The goals for this meeting were to develop collaborative efforts among the Western States on research and outreach in cellulosic biomass feedstock production and use in the West, to develop plans for the next WERA 1016 meeting, and elect officers for the coming year.

We discussed future activities for the WERA 1016 group and decided we need activities other than just annual meetings. As such, we decided a major effort should be put into seeking grant funds to support collaborative research and outreach efforts among members of the group and others. We did this because we recognize that we can gain synergism from collaborative efforts among different states in the West and that funding efforts are likely to be more successful for multi-state and multi-disciplinary proposals. With that in mind, we decided we need to know what the opportunities and obstacles for successful cellulosic biofuel production and uses are in the West and that we need a set of defined objectives around which to build proposals.

The group decided we should work on developing a proposal template rather than a specific proposal so as to be poised to write proposals tailored to specific request for proposals when opportunities arise. We discussed developing a white paper on opportunities for biomass production in the western states which could serve as a spring board for developing a proposal template, although we decide to start building the proposal template first. The group also decided we should not focus on any particular biomass crop species since different crops are adapted to different soils and climates in the West and since bio-refineries are not likely to rely on a single crop. We also discussed and agreed we should seek industry support, in part because having such support will likely increase the probability of success with grants but also could be a way to garner funding. The group discussed what portions of the biomass energy chain should be included and decided that while the focus should be on sustainable feedstock production, we should also include harvest, pre-treatment and storage, transportation, and conversion and that life-cycle analyses should be part of any proposal we put forward.

The groups decided the proposal template outline should include nine main topics (but emphasis could vary somewhat depending on RFP). The nine topics are:

1. Resources (e.g. soils, water, climate, including opportunities for use of marginal resources such as marginal land, waste water).

2. Sustainable cellulosic feedstock production (specific crops and production practices may vary across sub-regions within the West).

3. Pre-treatment (e.g. densification, torrefaction)

4. Transportation and logistics

5. Conversion (emphasis on transportation fuels, use of waste products such a lignin, and other chemicals)

6. Economics

7. Life-cycle analysis

8. Social and rural development

9. Enabling technologies

We also agreed that each proposal should have an education/outreach component, and a commercialization component.

Kurt Thelen shared a list obstacles to bioenergy cropping systems which was developed from a survey of agronomist in central U.S. (attached as appendix) which we agreed will be useful as a starting point for developing ideas for the body of a proposal template.

David Saxowsky suggested that the coordinator of the proposal template not necessarily had to be the principal investigator of the proposal when the opportunity arises. Then, Marisol Berti volunteered to get the proposal template going and seek for information from the group to complete it.

The group discussed and agreed we should develop and maintain a website for WERA1016 Marisol Berti volunteered to host the website at NDSU but in further inquiry about it, we might be able to use the already in place NIMMS website where we can upload information and documents. We also agreed the secretary should periodically send out an e-mail message to members for updates on relevant activities to be included in an occasional newsletter and/or the website.

Glenn Shewmaker agreed to host the 2013 WERA 1016 meeting in Idaho, most likely in Idaho Falls, which is where the Idaho National Laboratory is located. We also agreed to tentatively plan the 2014 meeting to be in Alaska (hosted by Steve Sparrow) and the 2015 meeting to be in Texas (hosted by Girisha Ganjegunte).

Officers for the coming year are:

Glenn Shewmaker, chair

Marisol Berti, past-chair

Stephen Sparrow, chair-elect

Girisha Ganjegunte, secretary


Individual Project Reports can found on the WERA-1016 Homepage under the tab "Additional Documents" at the following link:


http://lgu.umd.edu/lgu_v2/homepages/home.cfm?trackID=12416

Accomplishments

Results from a March, 2010, straw poll of 12 Agronomists representing (Univ. of Wisconsin, Univ. of Minnesota, Univ. of Illinois, Univ. of Guelph, Louisiana State Univ., Univ. of Arkansas, Mississippi State Univ., Purdue Univ. Michigan State Univ.<p><br /> <br /> The question was: <b>What do you see as the top two challenges associated with establishing bioenergy crops on the agricultural landscape?</b><p><br /> <br /> <b>Agronomics of integrating bioenergy crops with conventional crops</b><ul><br /> <li>Nutrient removal from a misconception that some biofuel crops dont need fertilizer. <br /> <li>Evolution of unknown pest problems. <br /> <li>Lack of temporal flexibility- with high costs of establishment and issues (costs) of termination, perennial biomass crops reduce cropping system flexibility.<br /> <li>Unknown effects possibly negative, of perennial crops on successive annual crops. Might include water depletion, nutrient redistribution.<br /> <li>Logistics of adoption from row crop production.<br /> <li>Scale  bioenergy crops best fit into niches within the landscape yet the scale of processing push towards 100% of landscape. <br /> <li>Agronomic of bioenergy crops; fertility, pest mgt, weed science. <br /> <li>Integration into existing annual cropping systems.</ul><p> <br /> <br /> <b>Storage and handling of bioenergy crops</b><ul><br /> <li>Transportation of low energy biomass.<br /> <li>Material handling logistics. <br /> <li>Storage & handling & transportation issues. <br /> <li>Handling material after harvest. <br /> <li>Harvesting biomass in a storable form.</ul><p> <br /> <br /> <b>WSPG lag period to peak yields</b><ul><br /> <li>Lag period for perennial warm season grasses to hit max yield. <br /> <li>Lag period to peak biomass in wspg.</ul><p> <br /> <br /> <b>Environmental/Sustainability</b><ul><br /> <li>Soil organic matter for sustainable production systems.<br /> <li>Soil erosion/stability/structure.<br /> <li>Time and energy to establish cover crops to alleviate SOM, soil stability.<br /> <li>Yield and environmental aspects of marginal land use.</ul><p> <br /> <br /> <b>Food vs. fuel</b><ul><br /> <li>Market competition with food. <br /> <li>Reduction of crop land dedicated to food production.</ul><p><br /> <br /> <b>Marketing/Economics</b><ul><br /> <li>Fluctuations in fuel prices.<br /> <li>Marketing, who will take bioenergy crops. <br /> <li>Marketing flexibility of biomass. <br /> <li>Chicken vs egg argument. e.g. canola crushing plant; build biorefinery first or plant crops. <br />

Publications

Berti, M.T., and B.L. Johnson. 2013. Switchgrass establishment as affected by seeding depth and soil type. Ind. Crops Prod. 41:289-293.<br /> <br /> Monono, E.M., P.E. Nyren, M.T. Berti, and S.W. Pryor. 2013. Variability in biomass yield, chemical composition, and ethanol potential of individual and mixed herbaceous biomass species grown in North Dakota. Ind. Crops Prod. 41:331-339.<br /> <br /> Berti, M.T., D. Samarappuli, R. Nudell, B.L. Johnson. 2012. Cropping systems for biomass feedstock production in the North Central Region, USA. p. 474-479 In 20th European Biomass Conference and Exhibition. 18-22 June, 2012, Milan, Italy. Available at http://www.etaflorence.it/proceedings/index.asp (verified 10 August 2012).<br /> <br /> Berti, M.T., R. Nudell, R. Anfinrud, D. Samarappuli, and B. Johnson. 2011. Forage resources as feedstocks for the biofuel industry in North Dakota. p. 183-190 In 19th European Biomass Conference and Exhibition. 6-10 June, 2011, Berlin, Germany. Available at http://www.conference-biomass.com/Conference-Proceedings.961.0.html(verified 10 August 2012).<br /> <br /> Hao, X., K.D. Thelen, and J. Gao. 2012. Prediction of the ethanol yield of dry-grind maize grain using near infrared spectroscopy. Biosystems Engineering. 112:161-170.<br />

Impact Statements

1. The work conducted by the WERA-1016 group, when completed, will provide U.S. growers with information necessary to produce cellulosic bioenergy crops at the quantity and quality necessitated by US Energy Policy Act of 2007 (Renewable Fuel Standard).

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Report Information

Participants

Creech, Earl – Utah State University; Howell, Dan – PNNL, Richland, WA; Shewmaker, Glenn – University of Idaho; Berti, Marisol– North Dakota University; Fransen, Steve – Washington State University; Davison, Jay – University of Nevada Reno; and Thelen, Kurt – Michigan State University; Ganjegunte, Girisha – Texas A&M University; Islam, Anowar – University of Wyoming

Brief Summary of Minutes

• Danniel Howe, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, presented: Field to Fuel Performance Testing of Lignocellulosic Biomass: Production and Catalytic Upgrading of Bio-oil to Refinery Blendstocks
• The possibility of submitting a grant was discussed when a request for proposal is announced, likely next year.
• The time and location for the next meeting was discussed and the consensus was that we meet in conjunction with the ASA-CSSA annual meeting in Minneapolis, MN - Nov. 15-18, 2015.
• It was requested that publications and other activities for the fiscal year be collected and entered into the annual report.

Accomplishments

The meetings have led to greater cooperation in research and Extension projects and grants. Members of this WERA group submitted a USDA AFRI Cap grant in the Water for Agriculture Challenge Area: Adaptive Controls for Sustainable and Synergistic Food-Energy-Water-Economic Security under Altered Climates in the PNW & Intermountain U.S. Dr. Shewmaker, University of Idaho, led this effort and is still pending:<br /> <br /> Tracking Number GRANT11727434<br /> Application Title Adaptive Controls for Sustainable and Synergistic Food-Energy-Water-Economic Security under Altered Climates in the PNW & Intermountain U.S.<br /> Time of Submission Wed Aug 13 16:25:41 EDT 2014<br /> CFDA 10.310 Agriculture and Food Research Initiative<br /> Funding Opportunity USDA-NIFA-AFRI-004468<br /> <br /> <br /> A second grant proposal was discussed and Steve Fransen will lead submitting a proposal to DOE:<br /> Concept Paper Details for FOA# DE-FOA-0001179 <br /> 1179-1554: Development, Adoption, and Verification of Redesigned Agricultural Landscapes for Bioenergy Crops in the United States <br /> <br />

Publications

Larson, Steven R., Kevin B. Jensen, Joseph G. Robins, and Blair L. Waldron. 2014. Genes and Quantitative Trait Loci Controlling Biomass Yield and Forage Quality Traits in Perennial Wildrye. Crop Sci. 54:1–16 (2014). doi: 10.2135/cropsci2013.04.0261<br /> <br /> Kelkar, S., Z. Li, J. Bovee, K.D. Thelen, R. Kriegel, and C.M. Saffron. 2014. Pyrolysis of North-American grass species: effect of feedstock composition and taxonomy on pyrolysis products. Biomass and Bionergy 64:152-161.<br /> <br /> Hedtcke, J.L., G.R. Sanford, K.E. Hadley, and K.D. Thelen. 2014. Maximizing land use during switchgrass establishment in the North Central United States. Agron J. 106:596-604. <br /> <br /> Ganjegunte, G.K., Z. Sheng, and J.A. Clark. 2014. Soil Salinity and Sodicity Appraisal by Electromagnetic Induction in Irrigated Cotton Soils. Land Degradation & Development. 25:228-235.<br /> Sun, Y., G. Niu, P. Osuna, L. Zhao, G. K. Ganjegunte, G. Peterson, J.R. Peralta-Videa, and J. L. Gardea-Torresdey. 2014. Variability in Salt Tolerance of Sorghum bicolor L. Agricultural Science. 2:9-21<br /> <br /> <br /> Proceedings publications <br /> <br /> Wang, S., P. Tumbalam, and K.D. Thelen. 2014. Integrating cover crops into annual cropping systems to increase total ethanol yield and environmental sustainability. Amer. Soc. of Agron. Abstracts, CD.<br /> <br /> Thelen, K.D., K.E. Hadley, G. Sanford, R. Jackson, and G.P. Robertson. 2014. An analysis of bioenergy cropping systems in the Great Lakes Region. Amer. Soc. of Agron. Abstracts, CD.<br /> <br /> Sanford, G., G. Oates, K. D. Thelen, J. Simmons, G. P. Robertson, and. R. Jackson. 2014. Establishing perennial biomass crops difficult but persistence-­?phase yields compare favorably with corn. GLBRC All Scientists Meeting. May 20-22, 2014.<br /> <br /> Tumbalam, P., and K. D. Thelen. 2014. Corn stover ethanol yield as affected by grain yield, Bt trait, and Environment. GLBRC All Scientists Meeting. May 20-22, 2014.<br /> <br /> Tanner, S., S.M. Swinton, T. Skevas, G. Sanford, and K.D. Thelen. 2014. How does production risk influence farmer decisions to adopt perennial bioenergy crops. GLBRC All Scientists Meeting. May 20-22, 2014<br /> <br /> Ganjegunte, G.K., G. Niu, A.L. Ulery, Y. Wu, and C. Wang 2014. Developing Alternative Water Sources for Bioenergy Crop Production on Marginal Lands. Proceedings of ASA, CSSA and SSSA International Meetings “Grand Challenges Grand Solutions”, 1 page [on Web], November 2-5, 2014, Long Beach, CA. Abstract.<br /> Ganjegunte, G.K., and J.A. Clark. 2014. Improved Irrigation Scheduling for Freshwater Conservation in Pecan Fields of EL Paso, TX. Proceedings of ASA, CSSA and SSSA International Meetings “Grand Challenges Grand Solutions”, 1 page [on Web], November 2-5, 2014, Long Beach, CA. Abstract.<br /> <br />

Impact Statements

1. The impacts cannot be measured at this time. It will take several years and successful funded grants. It will also take some time for our WERA 1016 group to mature thereby becoming competitive for national grants.

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