From the Ground Up

Fields of switchgrass will help scientists fuel a biobased economy. The new UT Office of Bioenergy Programs will coordinate the development and transfer of technology. Co-directors are Dr. Kelly Tiller (foreground) and Dr. Tim Rials.

Riddle: What do you call a pile of plant and animal materials subjected to decay and millions of years of geophysical pressures?
Answer: Petroleum, the base resource that powers much of our economy.

What if we could devise technology that circumvents Nature's method for converting biomass to energy and other products? Well, we already have. The process is called fermentation, and humans have been using this technology to produce alcohol for quite some time. Historically, fermentation efforts have been focused on products for personal consumption; however, since the invention of the automobile just a century ago, there has been an ongoing effort to power combustion engines with ethanol. Petroleum's low price and availability, ease of conversion, and useful co-products made it the logical choice for refining fuel for the burgeoning auto industry. Yet, as increased demand has made petroleum's cost and availability an issue, talk has turned to producing petroleum alternatives.

1. Switchgrass, wood chips, and other biomass arrive at biorefinery.
2. Steam and acid separate shredded biomass into cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin.
3. Cellulose and hemicellulose are broken down into sugars. Lignin is removed for other products.
4. Yeast turns the sugars into alcohol. Distrillation removes water and increases the alcohol's potency as a fuel.
5. Cellulosic ethanol (Gassoline) is transported to consumer outlets.

Back to the Future

In 2006, economists, engineers, plant scientists and chemists at the UT Institute of Agriculture helped advance a bold business model to overcome these obstacles. They proposed to build a new biobased economy for Tennessee. The governor and state legislature listened with entrepreneurial ears, and beginning July 1, the state invested some $60 million in research with the UT Agricultural Experiment Station to position Tennessee as a leader in emerging biofuels industries. Much of the money—$40.7 million—is funding the construction of a pilot biorefinery in East Tennessee.

The facility, which will be located in Monroe County, will demonstrate and refine biofuels production technology as well as work out issues related to continuous production streams, transportation of feedstocks like switchgrass and woody biomass, and distribution of products. The principal product of the refinery will be cellulosic ethanol derived from Tennessee's biomass.

With continued improvements in production technology and economics, government and private partners are expected to invest in multiple commercial-scale biorefineries across the state. Dr. Kelly Tiller, director of external operations for the UT Office of Bioenergy Programs, says commercial implementation of the business model will be an economic bonanza for the state. Specific projections include:

• 4,000 new jobs in rural Tennessee counties
• Satellite plants creating an additional 3,000 jobs and $1 billion in annual revenue from chemical co-products
• $100 million annually in new farm revenue
• Potentially one billion gallons of cellulosic ethanol annually at the potential wholesale price of $1.20 per gallon.

Tennessee has an ideal climate for production of switchgrass and woody biomass, and scientists at UT and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory are leaders in cellulosic production and conversion research. The state's extensive transportation system will also contribute to the development of localized commercial facilities. What about the nation as a whole?

The beauty of the model is its potential portability. In Tennessee, switchgrass and woody biomass may be the most feasible feedstocks; other parts of the nation may take advantage of different biomass sources. Once the biomass-to-ethanol conversion processes are refined, possibilities for localized fuel production in other regions should become apparent.

A New Leader in Bioenergy

The state's research monies, coupled with recent federal investments, including $125 million for a UT-ORNL-led bioenergy center, represent nearly $200 million in investments in bioenergy research in Tennessee. That's a drop in the bucket compared to the potential billions of dollars to be realized by locally produced and sold cellulosic ethanol.

Homegrown fuel is one answer to the nation's need for alternative energy, and UT researchers are leading the way.