Compatibility of High-Moisture Storage for Biochemical Conversion of Corn Stover: Storage Performance at Laboratory and Field Scales

• Published in: Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology
• Main Authors: Wendt, Lynn M., Murphy, J. Austin, Smith, William A., Robb, Thomas, Reed, David W., Ray, Allison E., Liang, Ling, He, Qian, Sun, Ning, Hoover, Amber N., Nguyen, Quang A.
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2023
• Subjects: 09 BIOMASS FUELS; DML
• Online Access: http://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1471085; https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1471085; https://doi.org/10.3389/fbioe.2018.00030

Here, wet anaerobic storage of corn stover can provide a year-round supply of feedstock to biorefineries while reducing the risks associated with fire loss and microbial degradation. Aerobic and anaerobic storage methods were evaluated for wet corn stover in 100L laboratory reactors. Of the methods evaluated, traditional ensiling resulted in <6% total solid dry matter loss (DML), about 5 times less than the aerobic storage process and slightly less than half that of the anaerobic modified-Ritter pile method. To further demonstrate the effectiveness of the anaerobic storage, a field demonstration was completed with 272 dry tonnes of corn stover; DML averaged <5% after 6 months. Assessment of sugar release as a result of dilute acid or dilute alkaline pretreatment and subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis suggested that when anaerobic conditions were maintained in storage, sugar release was either similar to or greater than as-harvested material depending on the pretreatment chemistry used.