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Nitrogen and Tillage Management Affect Corn Cellulosic Yield, Composition, and Ethanol Potential

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Abstract

Corn (Zea mays L.) stover and cobs remaining after grain harvest can serve as a feedstock for cellulosic ethanol production. Field trials were conducted at two locations in Minnesota over three years to determine how corn cellulosic yield composition and ethanol yield are influenced by tillage system [chisel tillage (CT), strip-tillage (ST), and no-tillage (NT)] and fertilizer N rate (0, 45, 90, 134, 179, and 234 kg N ha−1). Stover biomass yield, C and N concentrations and content, and potential ethanol yield increased with increasing fertilizer N rate. Stover biomass yield, C content, and potential cellulosic ethanol yield were less with NT than CT and ST by ≥9, 8, and 8 %, respectively. Theoretical ethanol yield of stover was maximized at a fertilizer N rate lower than the economically optimum N rate (EONR) for grain yield. Cob biomass yield, C concentration and content, N concentration, and potential ethanol yield increased with fertilizer N rate, but not at the same magnitude observed for stover. Tillage system did not influence cob biomass yield, C and N concentrations and content, or potential ethanol yield. These results demonstrate that biomass and ethanol production of stover and cobs can be affected by N and tillage management. Cobs may be a more viable feedstock option than stover because nearly all measured variables were less sensitive to management and their harvest removes less C and N from a field compared to full harvest of combined cobs and stover.

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Acknowledgments

Financial support for this product was provided by the Minnesota Corn Growers Research and Promotion Council. The authors thank Dr. Hans Jung for his contributions to the study. Mention of trade or commercial product names is soley for informational purposes and does not imply recommendation or approval by the USDA. The USDA is an equal opportunity employer and provider.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Agroecosystem Management Research Unit, USDA Agricultural Research Service, 137 Keim Hall, UNL-East Campus, Lincoln, NE, 68583, USA

    Aaron J. Sindelar

  2. Department of Soil, Water, and Climate, University of Minnesota, 439 Borlaug Hall, 1991 Upper Buford Circle, St. Paul, MN, 55108, USA

    John A. Lamb

  3. Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics, University of Minnesota, 411 Borlaug Hall, 1991 Upper Buford Circle, St. Paul, MN, 55108, USA

    Jeffrey A. Coulter & Craig C. Sheaffer

  4. Southern Research and Outreach Center, University of Minnesota, 35838 120th Street, Waseca, MN, 56093, USA

    Jeffrey A. Vetsch

Authors
  1. Aaron J. Sindelar
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  2. John A. Lamb
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  3. Jeffrey A. Coulter
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  4. Craig C. Sheaffer
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  5. Jeffrey A. Vetsch
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Correspondence to Aaron J. Sindelar.

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Sindelar, A.J., Lamb, J.A., Coulter, J.A. et al. Nitrogen and Tillage Management Affect Corn Cellulosic Yield, Composition, and Ethanol Potential. Bioenerg. Res. 8, 1284–1291 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12155-015-9586-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12155-015-9586-1

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