DuPont breaks ground on cellulosic biorefinery
6 Dec 2012
Work is gathering pace on one of the world’s largest commercial-scale cellulosic biorefineries
DuPont is a step closer to commercialising its advanced biofuels by breaking ground on its cellulosic ethanol facility in Nevada, Iowa.
Expected to be completed in mid-2014, the $200m facility will be among the first and largest commercial-scale cellulosic biorefineries in the world.
According to DuPont, the new facility is expected to generate 30 million gallons of cellulosic biofuel per year.
This will be produced from corn stover residues- a non-food feedstock that consists of corn stalks and leaves.
The first commercial facility will require a capital investment of about $7 per gallon of annual capacity.
To supply the corn stover for its plant, DuPont will contract with more than 500 local farmers to gather, store and deliver over 375,000 dry tons of stover per year into the Nevada facility.
The first commercial facility will require a capital investment of about $7 per gallon of annual capacity
The stover will be collected from an approximate 30 mile radius around the new facility and harvested off of 190,000 acres.
The company notes that for many corn growers, crop residue management is a major challenge when maximising their potential grain yield.
This is because leftover corn stover interferes with planting, delays stand establishment, monopolises nitrogen in the soil and often harbors damaging insect, pests and pathogens.
DuPont will further adapt its cellulosic ethanol technology to additional feedstocks. It is already processing switchgrass in the testing facility it owns jointly with the University of Tennessee near Knoxville, US.
