The global warming and land use impact of corn ethanol produced at the Illinois River Energy Center |
Jul 2008
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This study assessed the global warming impact (GWI) of ethanol produced at the Illinois River Energy ethanol plant (IRE) on a life cycle basis. IRE is located 80 miles west of Chicago. The plant currently produces 58 million gallon per year of ethanol with an expansion underway to double capacity.
The life cycle assessment includes the GWI contributions from corn agriculture, corn to ethanol conversion at the IRE biorefinery, distribution to the terminal, and combustion.
The analysis was performed using Argonne National Laboratory’s GREET model with customizations based on different data sets. The GREET model was customized using data collected from a survey on agricultural practices around the IRE plant, an assessment of crop rotations using satellite imagery, and an assessment of N2O emissions and carbon sequestration processes based on published literature. The individual data sets and the GREET modeling approach are detailed in this report.
The study finds a much lower on-farm energy consumption of 7,855 Btu per bushel for IRE supplied corn than the current GREET default value of 22,500 Btu per bushel (representing US national average). The large difference could prompt a reassessment of GREET’s agricultural energy default value.
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