Nutrient fertilizer requirements for sustainable biomass supply to meet U.S. bioenergy goal
2011
Han, Fengxiang X. | King, Roger L. | Lindner, Jeffrey S. | Yu, Tzu-Yi | Durbha, Surya S. | Younan, Nicolas H. | Monts, David L. | Su, Yi | Luthe, John C. | Plodinec, M John
The U.S. Biomass Roadmap set forth a goal that, by the year 2030, biomass will supply energy approximately equivalent to 30% of current petroleum consumption. Here we report on the amount of nutrient fertilizers required to meet the proposed 1-billion tons of sustainable bioenergy biomass production annually. To meet this goal, U.S. agriculture (assuming a scenario with high yield increase and land use change) will have net removals of 40.3, 12.7, and 36.2 Tg (million tons) of N, P₂O₅, and K₂O, respectively. The 1-billion tons of bioenergy biomass production alone will remove 16.9, 5.2, and 18.2 Tg of N, P₂O₅, and K₂O, respectively, from U.S. agricultural land. Considering the efficiencies of fertilizers in soils and the contribution of biomass residuals in fields, the overall bioenergy-focused agriculture would require 58.2, 27.3, and 31.7 Tg of N, P₂O₅, and K₂O fertilizers, respectively; this corresponds to an overall nutrient fertilizer application increase by a factor of 5.5 over the base line (1997). This study indicates an increased need for domestic and/or international production facilities for fertilizers if the goal of the Biomass Roadmap is to be attained.
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