Researchers in the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences are working with the entrepreneur behind the proposed startup of an innovative woody biomass-to-energy facility planned for north central Pennsylvania to determine if the planned operation will be sustainable and ecologically sound.
Woodland Biomass Innovations is developing a proposed operation that promises to convert roughly 1,000 tons of regional wood residues per day into 42,000 gallons of gasoline, biochar and renewable electricity. Company founder Luca Pandolfi plans to build his facility in Tioga County, where it can be fed by surrounding dense forests partially composed of small-diameter trees that mostly go to waste in timbering operations.
The novel partnership between the college and the startup benefits students, the startup and the state, according to Dan Ciolkosz, associate research professor of agricultural and biological engineering.
"Penn State Extension and research faculty have worked together with Woodland Biomass Innovations in a way that helps the business move forward while also giving students invaluable practical experience studying new business opportunities for bio-based energy in Pennsylvania," he said. "In many ways, this is a neat example of how Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences' efforts in teaching, research and extension all have worked together to support innovation in the private sector in our state."
Researchers in the College of Agricultural Sciences have been modeling the environmental impact and benefit of the process Woodland Biomass Innovations will use and are evaluating forests in the area to ensure they'll sustainably provide enough biofuel to support the proposed operation.
Is there enough biomass in the nearby forests to feed the operation? That is a question that needed to be answered, according to Juliana Vasco-Correa, assistant professor of agricultural and biological engineering. She arranged a capstone project involving fourth-year students majoring in the agricultural and biorenewable systems management to find the answer, using U.S. Forest Service data describing northern Pennsylvania forest resources.
In preliminary findings, the students determined that forests within 25 miles of the proposed facility can sustainably provide enough woody biomass to meet Woodland Biomass Innovations' projected demand. The 25-mile limit is important, Vasco-Correa explained, because previous studies by researchers in other places have shown that beyond that distance transportation costs - both financial and ecological - associated with delivering large quantities of biomass make projects like Woodland Biomass Innovations not viable.
