Corn Stover Grinding

and Biofuel Production

A FARMING GUIDE THAT ADDS VALUE

TO YOUR HARVEST AFTER SEASON

THROUGH THE PROCESS OF CORN

STOVER PROCESSING

TREVOR BARNES

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Executive Summary

The biofuel market is a blossoming industry that shows promise. Both

the government and private sector are actively investing in alternative

energy methods. Research from many different universities is

showing promising results for the use of cover crops as a biomass.

This biomass can be converted into biofuels through many different

processes. The problem is the inefficient way in which the biomass is

produced.

Our company aims to solve this problem by starting from the source

of biofuel production, which is the farmer. If we want to more

efficiently develop biomass, it has to be done on the farm so we can

transport more at a time. The greatest thing about our process is it

requires only the purchase of one piece of equipment that could

possibly double your revenues each harvest season. The rest of our

process can be completed using equipment already found on your

farm.

This will require farmers to experiment after crop season with our

corn stover collection product to figure out the most efficient way to

grind the corn stover.

I will clear up any misconceptions about biofuels and give you the

facts about the biofuels industry.

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Table of Contents

Executive Summary......................................................................... 2

Research being Conducted .............................................................. 4

Theory on Use ................................................................................ 7

Introduction to the Market.............................................................. 9

Feedstock Competitors ................................................................. 10

Potential Costs and Profits ............................................................ 11

Pre-harvest Implementation/estimates ......................................... 12

Harvest Process ............................................................................ 12

Derivative Set-up with Manufacturer............................................. 13

Future Impacts on the Biofuel Market ........................................... 13

Conclusion .................................................................................... 13

Appendix ...................................................................................... 14

Works Cited .................................................................................. 15

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Research being Conducted

Currently, the United States uses 20 billion gallons of

Jet-A fuel. The Midwest is responsible for the

consumption of 5 billion of those gallons (MASBI,

2013). Each year that passes it becomes more urgent

that we look for a safer alternative to the volatile

Middle Eastern oil market. 1

The Biofuels industry within the past decade has seen

major growth as our need for a more reliable

domestic source of fuel to keep airlines in business,

airfares cheap, and the environment safe. Research in

many areas has been growing, but we are specifically

looking into the process of developing corn stover

into a biomass to convert to a biofuel (SunGrant,

2011).

1 Graph provided by Energy Information Administration, 2011 http://www.navigantresearch.com/blog/articles/using-fuel-cells-to-

reduce-commercial-airlines%E2%80%99-fuel-consumption

The Biofuels

industry within

the past decade

has seen major

growth as our

need for a more

reliable

domestic source

of fuel to keep

airlines in

business,

airfares cheap,

and the

environment

safe.

Figure 1: World Consumption of Jet Fuel

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MASBI (Midwest Aviation Sustainable Biofuels Initiative) is a group of 40

different corporations, government agencies, and trusts that are actively

researching alternatives to current aviation fuels (Midwest Aviation

Sustainability Biofuel Initiative, 2013). Among this group, you will find

United Airlines, Boeing, and the Chicago Department of Aviation. MASBI

is at the forefront of technology and research into developing alternative

fuels to provide more stability in the domestic fuel market

for the purpose of serving the aviation community. MASBI

has set standards for the aviation industry on the

development of alternative fuels and deadlines for

environmentally safe practices.

Corn stover conversion is in its preliminary phase of

research, but is already turning the heads of major

agriculture product developers like DuPont and Poet

(Pennington, 2013). Early results in the Biofuel conversion

process using corn stover are very promising since it is one

of the more efficient ways to derive a biofuel from biomass. The cost

effectiveness of developing

a Biofuel from corn stover

is predicted to be on par

with regular diesel in the

next 15 years according to

a MASBI study (MASBI,

2013).

2

Early development of corn

stover into biofuel has been

promising as a drop-in to

regular Jet-A fuel. The initial costs of the fuel are very expensive (anywhere

2 Source: F.O. Licht

http://www.thebioenergysite.com/articles/9/the-future-of-biofuels-a-global-perspective

● ● ●

MASBI has broken the

cost down and figured it

has nothing to do with

the inefficiency in the

conversion process, but

has to do with efficiency

of grinding, harvesting,

and transporting the

corn stover from the

farm.● ● ●

Figure 2: World Biodiesel Production

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from $12-$20 a gallon) since most have not gone to their plant production

phase and are still in pilot phase (Airport Council Initiative, 2013). MASBI

has broken the cost down and figured it has nothing to do with the

inefficiency in the conversion process, but has to do with efficiency of

grinding, harvesting, and transporting the corn stover from the farm.

Figure 3: Farmer Knowledge on Corn Stover

3

Current research into developing products that

will be able to harvest and then grind corn stover

efficiently isn’t in full swing, but is rapidly

growing. Farmers can use existing equipment to

help biofuel manufacturers to reduce costs of the

corn stover (Marsh, 2011). Combines and

foragers are common place on the farm and there

are a few tweaks that need to be made to the

machinery to be able to use them for the purpose of grinding corn stover.

The current problem is the collection of the corn stover after it has been

ground has not been solved.

We have a solution to lower the cost of the inputs to the biofuel production.

This is where our product comes into effect to revolutionize the process.

3 Farmers knowledge of corn stover http://msue.anr.msu.edu/news/survey_indicates_farmers_can_supply_corn_stover_biomass_bu

t_questions_remai

Current research

into developing

products that will

be able to harvest

and then grind

corn stover

efficiently isn’t in

full swing, but is

rapidly growing.

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Theory on Use

Biofuel manufacturers, as previously

stated, are struggling to make the price of

their fuels competitive with the cheap,

abundant oil from the Middle East

(Pennington, 2013). The current process

of developing the fuels is inexpensive,

but manufacturers are forced to transport,

process, and grind corn stover

themselves. This is getting expensive

since they do not have the infrastructure

in place to handle this process. This is

where you as the farmer come into play.

Farmers have all the equipment necessary to

produce the biomass product from the corn

stover directly on the farm. Combines and

foragers are necessary for the harvesting

process and we want to keep using these

machines to produce the biomass. With any

combine available to farmers we have the

ability to cut the corn stalks. We then will be

able to come through with a forager system to

grind the chopped stalks. We are developing a

system with a lot of promise to then collect the

corn stover from the forager and put it in a semi

to transport.

We expect that the process will double the time

it takes to harvest but also double the profits associated with the added work.

We are

developing a

system with a

lot of promise

to then collect

the corn

stover from

the forager

and put it in a

semi to

transport.

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This will also be able to spread out fixed costs of machinery in labor over

the extra 4-6 weeks on top of the regular harvest season. The farmer will be

boosting the American economy from this new biofuel development process.

Farmers will be able to charge more money on the price of corn stover and

the manufacturers pay less overall to process it, making the overall cost of

the end product of biofuel less expensive. 4

4 Source: John Deere Website https://www.deere.co.uk/en_GB/media/images/our_company/news_and_media/press_releases

/2012/sep/New-John-Deere-7080-Series-SPFH-B_800x600.jpg

Figure 4: John Deere Forager

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Introduction to the Market

Your target market will be the biofuel manufacturers

and other large scale chemical manufacturers that are

invest in the biofuel development process. Billions of

dollars are up for the taking since biofuel

manufacturers will look for a cheaper alternative to

processing the inputs to their biofuel process (Coyle,

2007). We expect our system to become the “norm”

when dealing with the process line in developing

biofuels.

5Both the government and private sectors will invest

in the development of biofuels, so there is a

possibility to score contracts with the government

which would be handled and negotiated by our

5 Corn stover quantities http://bioweb.sungrant.org/Technical/Biomass+Resources/Agricultura

l+Resources/Crop+Residues/Corn+Stover/Default.htm

Your target market

will be the biofuel

manufacturers and

other large scale

chemical

manufacturers

that are invest in

the biofuel

development

process. Billions of

dollars are up for

the taking since

biofuel

manufacturers will

look for a cheaper

alternative to

processing the

inputs to their

biofuel process.

Figure 5: Corn Stover Usage

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company for you, the farmer. We expect the government to have

nearly as big of a role in purchasing the ground corn stover as the

private industry, since the government needs fuel for military

purposes (Jerram, 2011).

Private sector will look to cash in on the recent push to use biofuels in

the aviation industry. They will be cutting costs wherever they are

able to so they can be competitive on the open market with all the

other manufacturers looking to cash in big. We predict that there will

be no shortage of demand (Coyle, 2007) for your ground corn stover

product if you are to convert your existing equipment to handle the

grinding of corn stover after harvest season. The earlier you are able

to let our company setup our equipment on your combine and contract

between your farm and the manufacturer the easier it will be to

develop recurring business with the

same companies in the future.

Feedstock

Competitors

You may wonder why you should steer away from developing corn

stover for feedstock purposes and focus your production on

developing it for biofuel purposes (Pennington, 2013). One big reason

is that recent studies show that corn stover is good for feedstock

purposes for cattle, but only in moderation and that too much can hurt

your cattle. Future demand for corn stover purposes in the biofuel

industry will be way higher than for the feedstock industry. It appears

that it will be a better investment to transition your equipment after

season for biomass production rather than for feedstock production.

We predict that there will be

no shortage of demand for

your ground corn stover

product if you are to convert

your existing equipment to

handle the grinding of corn

stover after harvest season.

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Potential Costs and Profits

Since we are in the early phases of research both for how the inputs

specifically needed to be treated and ground and for the companies that

would use our inputs to the biofuel process,

there is quite a bit of financial risk (Eubank,

2013). All our company can promise is that we

will setup contracts between you and the

biofuel manufacturer once you have agreed to

use our product to grind and transport the

biomass developed from corn stover.

To combat this risk we will design insurance

plans to help cover the cost of the development

of and processing of the corn stover you were

promised would be bought in the contract. This

would be determined later on how much

coverage you want when we develop the

contract.

The cost to produce the corn stover is estimated

around $59 if processed on the farm and then

another $20 to transport per ton. If the

manufacturer were to have to buy, transport,

and process a ton it would cost them close to

$175. We were looking to split the difference

between these two prices in order to get a

healthy profit margin that you as the farmer,

our company as the product developer and

contract negotiators, and the biofuel company

could all be happy with. You would make

between $40 and $60 a ton based on the

quantity purchased by the manufacturer.

If the

manufacturer

were to have to

buy, transport,

and process a ton

it would cost them

close to $175.

You would make

between $40 and

$60 a ton based on

the quantity

purchased by the

manufacturer.

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Pre-harvest

Implementation/estimates

Before your harvest season begins in September, our company will have

trained you on how to use our product, how our process works out in the

field, and negotiate a contract between you and the manufacturer that you

both agree upon. Initial estimates put making on average 3-5 tons of corn

stover an acre. We estimate that our process will take anywhere from four to

six weeks. This effectively makes spreading out fixed costs over assets a

100% more efficient since normal harvest season takes 4-6 weeks and we

are doubling that.

Harvest Process

The process begins after the harvest of corn has ended. You attach a grinder

to the head of your combine

and go through your field

as you would when

harvesting the corn. You

will chop all corn stover

and it will be windrowed

out of the back of the

combine. You will then

come through with the

forager and further grind

the corn stover and use our

machine to catch the ground

corn stover material. 6

6https://www.deere.com/en_NAF/media/images/our_company/news_and_media/press_releases/2011/

oct/harvestlab_1024.jpg

Figure 6: Corn Stover Collection

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Derivative Set-up with Manufacturer

We will negotiate the contract price per ton of corn stover with the

manufacturer for you in private. The trade off with this is that we can

guarantee you a profit and insurance on corn stover crop.

Future Impacts on the Biofuel Market

We expect corn stover in the near future to be the premier biomass input to

the biofuel production in the aviation industry. Many universities in the

Midwest are researching benefits of corn stover conversion. Your

commitment to our product and process could revolutionize the world and

the way planes move about the sky.

Conclusion

We expect big profits from the development of corn stover into a biomass

for an input to the biofuel production process. While the industry is very

new to the world market, it has very promising early results. Everyday more

companies enter the biofuel market to combat rising foreign oil prices. We

need farmers like you to be the backbone of the industry by using pioneering

methods to solve our domestic energy crisis. There is risk involved to our

product but it is only the very minimal price you put into purchasing it. You

can get millions in revenue out of our product in just one harvest season.7

Corn stover is essentially waste product lying out in your field, and we our

method can add value to your harvest.

7 Actual revenues vary depending on farm size and yield

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Appendix

Figure 1: World Consumption of Jet Fuel......................................................................4

Figure 2: World Biodiesel Production ...........................................................................5

Figure 3: Farmer Knowledge on Corn Stover................................................................6

Figure 4: John Deere Forager.......................................................................................8

Figure 5: Corn Stover Usage .......................................................................................9

Figure 6: Corn Stover Collection ............................................................................... 12

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Works Cited

Airport Council Initiative. (2013). Going Greener. Retrieved from ACI-NA:

http://www.aci-na.org/sites/default/files/going_greener_brochure.pdf

Coyle, W. (2007). The Future of Biofuels: A Global Perspective. Retrieved from The

Bioenergy Site: http://www.thebioenergysite.com/articles/9/the-future-of-

biofuels-a-global-perspective

Eubank, A. (2013, March 17). Purdue Expert Offers Advice for Last-minute Crop Insurance

Decisions. Retrieved from Hoosier Ag Today:

http://www.hoosieragtoday.com/purdue-expert-offers-advice-for-last-minute-

crop-insurance-decisions/

Jerram, L. (2011, June 30). Using Fuel Cells to Reduce Commercial Airlines’ Fuel

Consumption. Retrieved from Navigant Research:

http://www.navigantresearch.com/blog/articles/using-fuel-cells-to-reduce-

commercial-airlines%E2%80%99-fuel-consumption

Marsh, B. (2011, November). Forager Harvester Evaluation. Retrieved from University of

California: Natural Resources and Agriculture:

http://cekern.ucanr.edu/newsletters/Agronomy41774.pdf

MASBI. (2013). Fueling a Sustainable Future for Aviation. Chicago.

Midwest Aviation Sustainability Biofuel Initiative. (2013, March). MASBI. Retrieved from

MASBI: http://www.masbi.org/aviation-biofuels-and-midwest/introduction-to-

aviation-biofuels

Pennington, D. (2013, November 12). Survey indicates farmers can supply corn stover

biomass, but questions remain. Retrieved from Michigan State University:

http://msue.anr.msu.edu/news/survey_indicates_farmers_can_supply_corn_st

over_biomass_but_questions_remai

SunGrant. (2011). Corn Stover. Retrieved from SunGrant BioWeb:

http://bioweb.sungrant.org/Technical/Biomass+Resources/Agricultural+Resourc

es/Crop+Residues/Corn+Stover/Default.htm