AMANDA ROSS ·
The State News
Kurt Thelen, a professor of crop and soil sciences, inspects
soybean plants for damage from Japanese beetles. The soybeans are being raised
as part of a study concerning biofuels, or fuels that can be created from
plants. Soybeans, sunflowers and canola are part of a group called "oilseed
crops," while switchgrass and corn are ethanol crops.
There could be new uses for contaminated land, as MSU researchers try to develop ways to grow biofuel-producing plants on polluted sites.
The researchers teamed up with DaimlerChrysler AG in hopes of finding ways to increase the yield of plants — such as soybeans, switchgrass and sunflowers — that are used in the production of biofuels. They also aim to find a use for contaminated areas and hope growing plants on these sites will help to decontaminate them.
"We are first trying to find more ways to produce biofuel, and the second is to use the plant to eliminate some of the factors that are harmful to the environment," said Kurt Thelen, an associate professor of crop and soil sciences and one of the researchers on the project.
MSU researchers got involved in the project when NextEnergy, a nonprofit organization that supports energy technology development, approached them with the idea of working with DaimlerChrysler AG to research these biofuels.
"Our company had originally been asked by automotive companies to research warranty with their vehicles and the car's engine," said Dan Radomski, the director of market development at NextEnergy. "As we began looking into biofuel and its effect on a vehicle's engine, we made some connections — one of which was with DaimlerChrysler AG — and then contacted MSU in hopes these two groups could help with research on the fuels."
Radomski said the organization chose MSU to help with the project because of its proximity to the group and its reputation as a top agricultural university.
"MSU seemed to be the smart pick because they're in our backyard, they have one of the best agriculture colleges in the country and so far they have done a great job along with DaimlerChrysler," he said.
The research has been conducted on multiple sites in the state, including a two-acre area in Oakland County's Rose Township, where the group from MSU is conducting most of its study.
At the Rose Township site, Thelen and other MSU researchers are trying to find out whether or not the field can produce the proper amount of yield from the plants to be made into biofuel.
"We're at a point now where petroleum-base fuel is at such a high price to get that we need to look for other ways to get other fuels," Thelen said. "These fuels could also be helpful to our economy because we wouldn't have to import fuels from other countries if we can just grow it here in the states."
Representatives from DaimlerChrysler AG say the fuel from the fields could be used soon.
"We are working on a late '07 model of the Jeep Grand Cherokee that would be able to use biofuels," said Kristin Tyll, a spokeswoman from DaimlerChrysler's Safety and Environment department. "Biofuels cannot be used unless a car has a diesel engine, and this specific model has a diesel engine."
Though it might be a while before many more cars are able to use this fuel, Thelen is hopeful that its use will catch on quickly.
"It would be a couple of years because we are still looking for that yield of quality that allows us to grow more crops on more fields," Thelen said. "This is a type of thing that could take off quite fast."
