Transcript Four Corners Retreat

4 Corners Biocarbon Alliance
Sustainable carbon and energy from biorenewables
Production
Processing
Utilization
Environmental and Economic Assessment
Education
Participants and Contacts
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KSU – Center for Biobased Polymers by Design* - Sun;
Bioprocessing Industrial Value-Added Program
MU – Bioprocessing and Biosensing Center - Tan
ISU – Office of Biorenewables Programs - Brown
UNL – NE Center for Energy Sciences Research - Cassman
KU – Center for Environmentally Beneficial Catalysis* Subramaniam; Transportation Research Institute
Diverse interdisciplinary groups at each institution (Agriculture,
Engineering, Basic Sciences, Logistics, Transportation,
Economics, Policy)
* Designates contact representative at each institution
Challenges to Sustainabilty
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Water use
Reducing fossil fuel use
Nutrient redistribution
Greenhouse gas emissions
Educating students about sustainability
Public outreach
Improved energy efficiency
New materials and fuels from renewable carbon
Soil and water quality
Producing both food and fuel
Advantages for proposal development
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Education
Rural development
Connectivity to national labs and industry
Center of feedstock production
Policy development for the transition to the
bioenergy economy
Systems approach
Targets for State Support
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Study group to assess current biofuels/bio-based
products sustainability
Workshops to identify and develop new models for
sustainable carbon and energy from biorenewables
Virtual college of biorenewables
Coordinated strategic plan for expertise and physical
infrastructure
Memoranda of understanding among the institutions
Targets for Federal Support
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IT infrastructure for real time collaborative research
and education
National center for production-scale environmental
assessment of biorenewable feedstocks
High-throughput screening of feedstocks catalysts
and media for process development
University/industry consortia for transport, handling
and storage
Midwest alliance for biocarbon science and
engineering
National standards for life cycle assessment
Plan for advancement
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White paper for research offices
Support of state governments
Workshop for proposal development
KU – Strengths and Resources
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Multiscale infrastructure and expertise for
catalysis and process engineering research
for biomass conversion (NSF ERC)
Transportation research for biofuel testing,
standards, engine performance and
emissions
Partnerships with a dozen leading chemical
and energy companies
KSU - Strengths and Resources
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Laboratory and pilot scale biorefinery
facilities and instrumentation (bioconversion
and thermal processing)
Integrated interdisciplinary team for biobased polymer synthesis, processing, and
product design
Renewable materials handling and storage
MU - Strengths and Resources
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Bio-based products research facilities
Soybean and corn genomics
Biodiesel applications research
ISU - Strengths and Resources
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Thermochemical processing
Economics and policy
Soybean Corn genomics
UNL - Strengths and Resources
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Production scale research facilities &
expertise for research in environmental
sustainability
Catalysis for bioconversions
Soybean genetics and biotechnology for
improved biodiesel production
Biorefinery
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Biofuels and biobased materials, transportation fuels. Fine
chemical synthesis, biomass is the feedstock of the future.
Biomass to biocrude preliminary steps in biorefining (cellulose
breakdown, lignin processing, oil separation).
Second generation biofuels (mixed alcohols, fatty acid
cracking).
Subregional approach to diversified biofuel generation
Byproduct utilization (these byproducts are now going to be
produced on huge scales (like glycerol), how do we turn these
byproducts into useful products?
Thermochemical processing of biomass.
Feedstocks for Energy Production
Optimization of agricultural production
for energy
 Production systems development
 Distributed direct conversion of
biomass to high value liquid fuels
 Carbon sequestration
 Genetics
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Funding Opportunities
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Pooled State Funds
Farm Bill
DOE
NSF
Private Foundations
Industry
Resource Needs
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Current capabilities are not integrated
IT infrastructure for data transfer
Memorandum of understanding among the
universities
Multi-institutional curricular agreements
Infrastructure
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Cyberinfrastructure (teaching and on-line
process optimization)
Seminar series
Retreat for faculty
Existing agricultural production facilities
Biomaterials laboratories
Sustainability
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Role of agriculture in global climate change
Environmental sustainability of biofuels
Verifiable reduction in green house gas
emissions
Soil and water quality
Energy efficiency
Transportation
Methodology development for assessing
environmental impact at the systems level