John Sheehan

University of Minnesota | UMN · Institute on the Environment

Grasslands are the largest contributor of nitrous oxide (N 2 O) emissions in the agriculture sector due to livestock excreta and nitrogen fertilizers applied to the soil. Nitrification inhibitors (NIs) added to N input have reduced N 2 O emissions, but can show a range of efficiencies depending on climate, soil, and management conditions. A meta-an...

Pasture land occupies extensive areas and is increasingly of interest for sustainable intensification, land use diversification, greenhouse gas emission mitigation, and bioenergy expansion. Accurate maps of pasture and other managed land covers are needed for monitoring, intercomparison, assessing potential uses, and planning. Yet, land maps can be...

Pastures are complex land covers with a variety of land use systems. This land cover occupies large areas in the globe and is mainly used for livestock production. Brazil is one of the largest livestock producers and has extensive pasture areas. We analyzed the pasture land cover change of the São Paulo State between the years 2000 to 2015. São Pau...

Brazil is one of the largest exporters of cattle meat production. Most of this production is under pasture areas, with different levels of livestock and field management. Remotely sensed images could be interesting tools to detect distinct temporal and spatial patterns of these systems. In this context, classification algorithms have been proposed...

Significance The climate benefits of cellulosic biofuels have been challenged based on carbon debt, opportunity costs, and indirect land use change, prompting calls for withdrawing support for research and development. Using a quantitative ecosystem modeling approach, which explicitly differentiates primary production, ecosystem carbon balance, and...

Agave has emerged as a potential feedstock for bioenergy production on the last decade. Studies suggests that the expansion of Agave production towards low-grade lands can potentially meet extreme bioenergy demands (600 EJ year-1). These predictions were made using the Environmental Productivity Index (EPI), which was parameterized using data from...

Livestock production has high impact in the environment, contributing up to 18% of total anthropogenic greenhouse gases emissions (GHG), around 80% of the agriculture sector. Enteric methane (CH4) from ruminants and nitrous oxide (N2O) from manure deposited in pastureland are the main sources. The aim of this study was to evaluate the global potent...

To meet rising demands for agricultural products, existing agricultural lands must either produce more or expand in area. Yield gaps (YGs)-the difference between current and potential yield of agricultural systems-indicate the ability to increase output while holding land area constant. Here, we assess YGs in global grazed-only permanent pasture la...

As pastagens ocupam grandes áreas do território brasileiro. O sensoriamento remoto tem ampla aplicação no monitoramento espaço-temporal dessas pastagens. O objetivo deste trabalho foi a identificação de diferentes manejos de pastagens em séries temporais de NDVI por meio da utilização do filtro de suavização Savitzky-Golay com auxílio de dados cole...

The livestock production contributes to around 18% of total anthropogenic greenhouse gases emissions (GHG), and 80% of the agriculture sector. Nitrous oxide (N2O) from manure deposited in grassland is one of the main sources, corresponding to 17% of the livestock sector. Nitrification inhibitors (NI) added to manure and to N fertilizer is a strateg...

This study proposes a novel integration of a municipal wastewater treatment facility (WWTF) with a cyanobacterial nutrient removal process for sidestream wastewater treatment. A life cycle assessment (LCA) approach was used to determine the effectiveness and environmental performances of the integrated system. The LCA is populated by models of wast...

In recent years, there has been a rapid expansion of the growing of crops for use in bioenergy production rather than for food. This has been particularly the case for sugarcane in Latin America and Africa. This book examines the further potential in the context of the food versus fuel debate, and as a strategy for sustainable development. Detailed...

Biomass constitutes all the plant matter found on our planet, and is produced directly by photosynthesis, the fundamental engine of life on earth. It is the photosynthetic capability of plants to utilize carbon dioxide from the atmosphere that leads to its designation as a “carbon neutral” fuel, meaning that it does not introduce new carbon into th...

The sustainability of biofuels is inextricably linked to the broader challenges of sustainable agriculture and sustainable development. And both these challenges are deeply rooted in political and ethical questions that we have yet to address in a clear and coherent manner. The debate about biofuels’ indirect effect on global land use change is the...

We evaluate the comparative productivity of maize and sugarcane biofuel feedstocks as a function of latitude. Solar radiation for photosynthesis varies by latitude and contributes to differential productivity of tropical and temperate zones. We calculate comparative productivity in two ways—the amount of net sugar energy produced per unit area, and...

In its simplest terms, biomass is all the plant matter found on our planet. Biomass is produced directly by photosynthesis, the fundamental engine of life on earth. Plant photosynthesis uses energy from the sun to combine carbon dioxide from the atmosphere with water to produce organic plant matter. More inclusive definitions are possible. For exam...

Our global agriculture system is failing us: * Food prices are up. * A billion people face obesity. * A billion people face starvation and malnutrition. * Nitrogen and phosphate pollution from farms continue to threaten the health of our waterways and other natural ecosystems. * Greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural expansion and land cleari...

This study provides a benchmark of the life cycle environmental impact characteristics associated with a typical soybased ink used for sheetfed lithographic printing. The scope ineluded a streamlined Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) and Impact Assessment (LCIA). Materials, processes, and life cycle stages that are the same between different printing inks...

Increasing population and consumption are placing unprecedented demands on agriculture and natural resources. Today, approximately a billion people are chronically malnourished while our agricultural systems are concurrently degrading land, water, biodiversity and climate on a global scale. To meet the world's future food security and sustainabilit...

The global sustainable bioenergy (GSB) project was formed in 2009 with the goal of providing guidance with respect to the feasibility and desirability of sustainable, bioenergy-intensive futures. Stage 1 of this project held conventions with a largely common format on each of the world's continents, was completed in 2010, and is described in this p...

Optimizing pastureland use has the potential to be a key part of sustainably meeting the growing global demands for food, feed, fiber, and fuel. This study identified where and to what degree we can utilize pastureland more intensively. We quantified and mapped the pasture utilization intensity, which is the ratio of current to potential pasturelan...

The politics of biofuels policy have a long and tortuous history, from its early days of gasohol to the rancorous debates over special interest subsidies. The latest chapter in the biofuels debate is “indirect land use change.” Biofuels, according to its opponents, are taking food out of the mouths of people while contributing to greenhouse gas emi...

Genetically engineered cyanobacteria harvest light energy to directly produce isobuteraldehyde and isobutanol.

The Role of Biomass in America's Energy Future (RBAEF) project, initiated during the first half of 2003, has sought to identify and evaluate paths by which biomass can make a large contribution to energy services and determine means to accelerate biomass energy use. In addressing these issues, the study has focused on future, mature, technologies r...

For cellulosic ethanol to become a reality, biotechnological solutions should focus on optimizing the conversion of biomass to sugars.

Agricultural residues such as corn (Zea mays L.) stover are a potential feedstock for bioenergy and bio-based products that could reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil. Collection of such residues must take into account concerns that residue removal could increase erosion, reduce crop productivity, and deplete soil carbon and nutrients. This ar-tic...

In its simplest terms, biomass is all the plant matter found on our planet. Biomass is produced directly by photosynthesis, the fundamental engine of life on earth. Plant photosynthesis uses energy from the sun to combine carbon dioxide from the atmosphere with water to produce organic plant matter. More inclusive definitions are possible. For exam...

This paper presents estimates of changes in rainfall-induced soil erosion and soil carbon mineralization of individual land capability class I-VIII soil types in Iowa. Land management considered in this analysis includes various quantities of corn stover removal on continuous corn and corn-soybean rotations that are subject to conventional, reduced...

The first part of this book (chapters 1-5) examines US agriculture's role as a producer and consumer of energy, and the integration of biomass energy into energy systems. It also presents a policy overview and outlooks for energy production and consumption in the USA. The second part (chapters 6-20) is a compendium of current research about agricul...

A methodology was developed to estimate quantities of crop residues that can be removed while maintaining rain or wind erosion at less than or equal to the tolerable soil-loss level. Six corn and wheat rotations in the 10 largest corn-producing states were analyzed. Residue removal rates for each rotation were evaluated for conventional, mulch/redu...

Corn stover is the residue that is left behind after corn grain harvest. We have constructed a life‐cycle model that describes collecting corn stover in the state of Iowa, in the Midwest of the United States, for the production and use of a fuel mixture consisting of 85% ethanol/15% gasoline (known as “E85”) in a flexible‐fuel light‐duty vehicle. T...

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is promoting the development of ethanol from lignocellulosic feedstocks as an alternative to conventional petroleum-based transportation fuels. DOE funds both fundamental and applied research in this area and needs a method for predicting cost benefits of many research proposals. To that end, the National Renewab...

As the Bioethanol Program at the Department of Energy (DOE) nears the end of two decades of research, it is time to take a hard look at where we have been and where we are going. This paper summarizes the status of bioethanol technology today and what we see as the future directions for research and development. All of this is placed in the perspec...

Bioethanol is a fuel-grade ethanol made from trees, grasses, and waste materials. It represents a sustainable substitute for gasoline in today's passenger cars. Modeling and design of processes for making bioethanol are critical tools used in the U.S. Department of Energy's bioethanol research and development program. We use such analysis to guide...

For well over one hundred years, researchers around the world have pursued ways to make ethanol from biomass such as wood, grasses, and waste materials. To distinguish it from ethanol made from starch and sugars in traditional agricultural crops, we refer to ethanol made from biomass as "bioethanol." The effort to develop bioethanol technology gain...

Throughout the western mountainous regions, wildfire risks are elevated due to both fire suppression activities which have changed the forest structure making it more susceptible to stand-killing fires and the expansion of human structures (houses, light commercial) into these same forests, By providing a market for currently noncommercial but flam...

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has undertaken a complete review and update of the process design and economic model for the biomass-to-ethanol process based on co-current dilute acid prehydrolysis, along with simultaneous saccharification (enzymatic) and co-fermentation. The process design includes the core technologies being resea...

This report presents the findings from a study of the life cycle inventories for petroleum diesel and biodiesel. It presents information on raw materials extracted from the environment, energy resources consumed, and air, water, and solid waste emissions generated. Biodiesel is a renewable diesel fuel substitute. It can be made from a variety of na...

Added to JabRef: 2012.01.26 , Owner: Michele Dassisti

Conversion of the fermentable sugars residing in lignocellulosic waste and energy crops can conservatively yield approximately 100 billion gallons of fuel-grade ethanol per year in the United States alone. However, the cellulosic biomass-to-alcohol bioconversion process must be proven economical before industry can commercialize this technology. Th...

The U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Transportation Technologies, DOE's National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Office of Energy and Ecobalance are carrying out a comprehensive Life Cycle Assessment of soy-based diesel fuel (biodiesel) to quantify the environmental aspects of the `cradle-to-grave' production...

The US Department of Energy's Office of Transportation Technologies, DOE's National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the US Department of Agriculture's Office of Energy and Ecobalance are carrying out a comprehensive life cycle assessment (LCA) of soy-based diesel fuel (biodiesel) to quantify the environmental aspects of the “cradle-to-grave” productio...

Solid-state fermentation of chopped sweet sorghum particles to ethanol was studied in static flasks using an ethanol tolerant yeast strain. The influence of various process parameters, such as temperature, yeast cell concentration, and moisture content, on the rate and extent of ethanol fermentation was investigated. Optimal values of these paramet...

This document summarizes the results of the benefits analysis of EERE's programs, as described in the FY 2007 Budget Request.

In the last 10 years advances in biotechnology have reduced the cost of bioethanol by almost 25%. The DOE bioethanol program targets process improvements intended to allow bioethanol to compete with gasoline in the marketplace. Researchers are utilizing biomass feedstock for bioethanol conversion. The bioethanol conversion technology depends on hyd...

Ethanol is used today as an alternative fuel, a fuel extender, an oxygenate, and an octane enhancer. From just over 10 million gallons of production in 1979, the U.S. fuel ethanol industry has grown to more than 1.8 billion gallons of annual production capacity. These commercial operations use technology that converts corn starch to sugars, which a...