Ken Vogel

USDA-ARS plant geneticist at UNL

Ken Vogel leads joint USDA-UNL research on switchgrass. His team sparked international excitement in early 2008 with results of the largest study of its kind that showed switchgrass grown for biofuel produces 5.4 times more energy than needed to grow, harvest and process it into cellulosic ethanol. Findings, reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, were from a five-year study involving 10 farms in three states that examined net energy output, greenhouse gas emissions, biomass yields, agricultural inputs and estimated cellulosic ethanol production from switchgrass grown for biofuel.

Thick stands of lush native switchgrass waving in a summer's breeze represent the raw materials for the next generation of biofuels.

Commercial production of cellulosic ethanol from switchgrass or other biomass sources remains a few years off. But Nebraska researchers are making sure farmers have high-yielding strains and management information to efficiently grow switchgrass for biofuel.

Ken Vogel, a USDA-ARS plant geneticist at UNL, leads joint USDA-UNL research on switchgrass. He has developed high-yielding switchgrass varieties specifically for biofuel production and has studied their potential since the early 1990s. He and colleagues also have identified management practices for maximizing production and have evaluated yields, economics and energy output.

The team sparked international excitement in early 2008 with results of the largest study of its kind that showed switchgrass grown for biofuel produces 5.4 times more energy than needed to grow, harvest and process it into cellulosic ethanol. Findings, reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, were from a five-year study involving 10 farms in three states that examined net energy output, greenhouse gas emissions, biomass yields, agricultural inputs and estimated cellulosic ethanol production from switchgrass grown for biofuel.

“This clearly demonstrates that switchgrass is not only energy efficient, but can be used in a renewable biofuel economy to reduce reliance on fossil fuels, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance rural economies,” Vogel said.

Researchers also found greenhouse gas emissions from switchgrass-based ethanol production were 94 percent lower than emissions from gasoline production.

UNL agricultural economist Richard Perrin found the on-farm cost of producing switchgrass for biofuel averages about $60 per ton. Perrin’s findings were published in BioEnergy Research.

Switchgrass has long been used for conservation plantings and cattle grazing. Vogel said he’s excited about growing switchgrass for biofuel production because it’s a perennial that doesn’t need annual planting, grows well on marginal land ill-suited to crops, and harvesting doesn’t diminish its soil-protecting powers.