Maize is grown in large quantities for nutritional purpose; its agricultural by-product is the corn stover, which is usually unused. Because of its high abundance and high cellulose content, it is a promising substrate for biogas production. However, this cellulose-rich biomass is not used in anaerobic fermentors today, due to its insolubility. It forms a solid crust at the top of the liquid ph...

As a promising material for bioethanol production, corn stover has been studied under various pretreatment methods prior to production of bioethanol. However, the storage of pretreated corn stover is still challenged by both weather conditions and the physical properties of its own. The objective of this experiment is to evaluate the effect of low-moisture anhydrous ammonia (LMAA) pretreatment ...

Stress fractures of the third metacarpal bone (McIII) are a common cause of lameness in Thoroughbred racehorses. The most commonly described location is the mid-dorsolateral cortex (Copelan 1979; Richardson 1984, 1999; Stashak 1987; Stover et al. 1988; Cervantes et al. 1992; Pilsworth and Shepherd 1997; Stover 1998; Sullins 1998), but they also occur distally and proximally in the dorsal cortex...

Combined Heat and Power (CHP) production using renewable energy sources is gaining importance because of its flexibility and high-energy efficiency. Biomass materials, such as corn stover and forestry residues, are potential sources for renewable energy for CHP production. In Mississippi, approximately 4.0 MT dry tons of woody biomass is available annually for energy production. In this study, ...

E. coli bacteria move in streams freely in a planktonic state or attached to suspended particulates. Attachment is a dynamic process, and the fraction of attached microorganisms is thought to be affected by both bacterial characteristics and particulate properties. In this study, we investigated how the properties of cell surfaces and stream particulates influence attachment. Attachment assays ...

Lengthy straw/stalk of biomass may not be directly fed into grinders such as hammer mills and disc refiners. Hence, biomass needs to be preprocessed using coarse grinders like a knife mill to allow for efficient feeding in refiner mills without bridging and choking. Size reduction mechanical energy was directly measured for switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.), wheat straw (Triticum aestivum L.), ...

The equilibrium moisture content (EMC) of biomass affects transportation, storage, downstream feedstock processing, and the overall economy of biorenewables production. Torrefaction is a thermochemical process conducted in the temperature regime between 200 and 300 °C under an inert atmosphere that, among other benefits, aims to reduce the innate hydrophilicity and susceptibility to microbial d...

Crop residues such as corn (Zea mays L.) stover are viewed as an abundant and inexpensive source of biomass that can be removed from fields to produce bioenergy. Assumptions include that with minimum or no-tillage farming methods, there will be no deleterious production or environmental effects. A long-term field study was established in eastern Nebraska, USA, to compare the switchgrass managed...

Changes in quantity and quality of corn crop stover can have a large impact on soil conservation and soil carbon (C) sequestration over large areas. The aim of this study was to evaluate changes in production, concentration and amount of C and nitrogen (N) in corn stover fractions due to cultivar development. Two field experiments were conducted in the city of Rolândia (Paraná State, Brazil) us...

Ionic liquids (ILs) have emerged as attractive solvents for lignocellulosic biomass pretreatment in the production of biofuels and chemical feedstocks. However, the high cost of ILs is a key deterrent to their practical application. Here, we show that acetate based ILs are effective in dramatically reducing the recalcitrance of corn stover toward enzymatic polysaccharide hydrolysis even at load...