Plant feedstocks
As world demand for both food and fuels increases, there is significant interest in finding ways of getting more out of every hectare of land – particularly land which is not suitable for food production.
Newcastle University is engaged in large-scale trials in India and Thailand based on Jatropha Curcas and other non-edible cultivars (for more information on this project please see http://www.ceg.ncl.ac.uk/reimpact/India.htm). This is complemented by laboratory-based work using biotechnology to develop plants with a much broader application envelope and significantly higher yields.
Crop varieties
Work is underway to develop new improved crop varieties aimed at improving pest resistance (viral, fungal, bacterial and insect). There is also work on developing crops that can thrive on semi-arid or otherwise marginal land. A combination of plant genomics and agronomic management is being used to improve crop productivity in respect of both yield and digestibility. This work recognises the interlinked needs of fuel production, human food production and animal food production – especially when there is pressure to minimise waste by using the whole crop. Success at making maize photo-insensitive – aiming to double crop height through 24-hour growing – opens up new prospects for improving biofuel crop productivity. Recognising that N2O is an important greenhouse gas, work is also underway to improve the nitrogen efficiency of crops by working at the agronomy/genetics interface.
Organic farming techniques are also being developed on the university’s organic farm – test-growing novel crops aimed at bio-gas production.
Seawater algae are also being cultivated as a feedstock – for more information please see http://www.ncl.ac.uk/energy/research/themes/Bio-Energy/Algae.htm
