Agricultural Engineering/Agronomy, Central Iowa, and BioCentury Research Farms

Comparison of Biofuel Systems: COBS—A New Long-Term Study

Authors: Matthew Z. Liebman (Iowa State University) , Robert Horton (Iowa State University) , Michael Thompson (Iowa State University) , Robert P. Ewing (Iowa State University) , Kendall Lamkey (Iowa State University) , Richard M. Cruse (Iowa State University) , Meghann Jarchow (Iowa State University) , Matthew J. Helmers (Iowa State University) , Robert P. Anex (Iowa State University) , Carl H. Pederson (Iowa State University) , Carl H. Pederson (Iowa State University)

Abstract

This project seeks to identify and develop cropping systems that produce large quantities of biofuel feedstocks while protecting soil and water resources and increasing biodiversity on the Iowa landscape. Treatments in the COBS experiment include a conventional corn-soybean cash grain system; continuous corn grown for grain and stover, with and without a winter cover crop; a mixture of perennial prairie plants fertilized for high biomass production; and a highly diverse, unfertilized mixture of prairie plants, which serves as a benchmark for understanding the functional characteristics of a native plant community.

Keywords: Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, Agronomy

How to Cite: Liebman, M. Z. , Horton, R. , Thompson, M. , Ewing, R. P. , Lamkey, K. , Cruse, R. M. , Jarchow, M. , Helmers, M. J. , Anex, R. P. , Pederson, C. H. & Pederson, C. H. (2008) “Comparison of Biofuel Systems: COBS—A New Long-Term Study”, Iowa State University Research and Demonstration Farms Progress Reports. 2007(1).