8 News & Press Releases found
The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) - USDA News
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Agriculture Secretary Vilsack Announces Projects to Improve Farm and Rural Business Energy Efficiency
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced funding for 424 projects across the nation that will help agricultural producers and rural small businesses reduce their energy consumption and costs, and use renewable energy technologies in their ...
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Cellulosic ethanol: expanding options, identifying obstacles
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists are figuring out how to turn wheat straw into ethanol “gold,” and learning more about the bacteria that can “infect” ethanol plants and interfere with fuel production. At the ARS National Center for ...
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ARS explores ways to keep carbon in the soil
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists are testing out alternative ways of tilling the soil and rotating crops to see if they can help wheat farmers in Oregon sequester more carbon in the soil and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Soil ...
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Protecting soils and producing biofuel with corn stover
Those lonely cornstalks—called corn stover—left behind in the fields after the grain harvest is complete could someday become valuable raw material for the production of cellulosic ethanol. In the meantime, Agricultural Research Service (ARS) soil ...
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Retooled approach may make bio-based butanol more competitive with ethanol
A modified method of producing biobutanol could make the fuel more competitive with ethanol as a clean-burning alternative to gasoline. According to Agricultural Research Service (ARS) chemical engineer Nasib Qureshi, biobutanol offers several ...
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Models help assess biofuels` sustainability
Many agricultural products can be converted into feedstocks for alternative fuel. Now analysis from the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) suggests that they can be used this way without reducing the nation`s food supply, soil production capacity ...
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Brachypodium will be a big help in biofuels research
A short little grass known as purple false brome may speed discoveries about switchgrass, its famous cousin and energy-crop hopeful. Agricultural Research Service (ARS) scientists like John Vogel and Yong Gu at the agency`s Western Regional ...
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Glomalin is key to locking up soil carbon
A soil constituent known as glomalin provides a secure vault for the world`s soil carbon. That’s according to Kristine Nichols, a microbiologist at the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory in Mandan, N.D. ...