Life-cycle energy use and greenhouse gas emissions of production of bioethanol from sorghum in the United States.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The availability of feedstock options is a key to meeting the volumetric requirement of 136.3 billion liters of renewable fuels per year beginning in 2022, as required in the US 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act. Life-cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of sorghum-based ethanol need to be assessed for sorghum to play a role in meeting that requirement.

Results

Multiple sorghum-based ethanol production pathways show diverse well-to-wheels (WTW) energy use and GHG emissions due to differences in energy use and fertilizer use intensity associated with sorghum growth and differences in the ethanol conversion processes. All sorghum-based ethanol pathways can achieve significant fossil energy savings. Relative to GHG emissions from conventional gasoline, grain

SUBMITTER: Cai H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3850671 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature