drought resilience<\/a>, good nitrogen-use efficiency and a deep root system.<\/p>\n\u201cThere is an assumption that the most sustainable bioenergy crops are perennial because they require fewer inputs and can sequester more biomass than annuals,\u201d Rooney said. \u201cThose statements are true, but U.S. agriculture always requires annual cropping varieties and options as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Carbon and soil fertility<\/h3>\n Researchers found that an acre planted with the bioenergy sorghum hybrid accumulates roughly 3.1 tonnes of dry root biomass over the crop\u2019s 155 day growing season. As well as this, the roots were found to have travelled up to 6.5 feet deep into the soil over the growing season.<\/p>\n
These measurements mean scientists can now predict the amount of atmospheric carbon dioxide potentially captured inside these roots. These numbers will also shed light on how many carbon credits a planted field might earn. \u201cFrankly, the numbers are quite favourable,\u201d Rooney said.<\/p>\n
The numbers collected also provide an important understanding regarding the crop\u2019s potential to improve soil fertility and water-holding capacity by replenishing soil organic carbon. However, previous research his shown that in the US, soil organic carbon levels have fallen by approximately 50% over the past 100 years in land that has been planted with annual crops.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis drop in soil carbon levels could be due to cropping practices, microbial activity and changing land use,\u201d Rooney commented. These complex factors mean that predicting how long it might take to replenish lost carbon requires sophisticated modelling, and the restoration process is likely to take many decades.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor modelling, they need to have a realistic number to start with,\u201d Rooney explained. \u201cWe haven\u2019t historically had enough info to do that, but this study provides a benchmark for scientists and policymakers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Further research<\/h3>\n In this study, Rooney and his team managed the field trials and helped with phenotyping. Mullet and his team characterised the root system and the genes expressed within. \u201cOver multiple years, the study considered in-depth how one bioenergy sorghum hybrid interacts with two soil types,\u201d Rooney said.<\/p>\n
However, Rooney stresses that further research is required: \u201cIn this study, we didn\u2019t sample the genetic diversity of bioenergy sorghum at all, except for one standard type,\u201d Rooney said. \u201cAnd looking at multiple environments and expanding the range of we are evaluating is essential.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sustainable bioenergy production system<\/h3>\n Modelling studies estimate that millions of acres of abandoned and marginal cropland in the US are available for planting, many of which are in the Gulf Coast region. \u201cThis region is ideal for bioenergy sorghum production because of ample rainfall, long growing seasons and low competition with grain crops,\u201d Mullet said. \u201cYet despite the Gulf Coast\u2019s excellent potential for biofuels production, there are no bioenergy research centres and very few biorefineries in the region.\u201d<\/p>\n
Furthermore, the crop has improved over the years in terms of productivity, resilience and composition, as have the impacts on atmospheric carbon dioxide and carbon in the soil, due to Mullet\u2019s and Rooney\u2019s efforts. The carbon captured in biofuels and bioproducts at biorefineries and bioenergy sorghum roots could generate carbon credits, potentially benefitting producers and industry.<\/p>\n
Mullet is now working to attract industry and government funding to help develop the next generation of biorefineries designed to use biotechnology sorghum biomass to produce biofuels, bioproducts, and biopower.<\/p>\n
Mullet concluded: \u201cRecently, I\u2019ve decided the most important thing we can do is continue research on bioenergy sorghum optimisation, but also to help design and build biorefineries that will process materials from the crop in a way that\u2019s optimal.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe project has expanded to not just producing biofuels and bioproducts, but also directly capturing carbon and sequestering it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The study, \u2018Bioenergy sorghum\u2019s deep roots: A key to sustainable biomass production on annual cropland<\/a>,\u2019 was recently published in\u00a0GCB B<\/em>i<\/em>oenergy<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A study conducted at Texas A&M University shows that the annual crop can sequester atmospheric carbon dioxide. Carbon and carbon dioxide The Earth\u2019s atmosphere is experiencing an increased amount of carbon dioxide and a shortage of carbon in the soil. However, scientists have discovered that bioenergy sorghum has the potential ability to provide meaningful relief […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":16853,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[24433,785],"tags":[550,689],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Bioenergy sorghum root tackles issues with Carbon Dioxide and Carbon<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n