1. Corn Stover Grinding
and Biofuel Production
A FARMING GUIDE THAT ADDS VALUE
TO YOUR HARVEST AFTER SEASON
THROUGH THE PROCESS OF CORN
STOVER PROCESSING
TREVOR BARNES

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Executive Summary
The biofuel market is a blossoming industry that shows promise. Both
the government and private sectorare actively investing in alternative
energy methods. Research from many different universities is
showing promising results for the use of cover crops as a biomass.
This biomass can be converted into biofuels through many different
processes.The problem is the inefficient way in which the biomass is
produced.
Our company aims to solve this problem by starting from the source
of biofuel production, which is the farmer. If we want to more
efficiently develop biomass, it has to be done on the farm so we can
transport more at a time. The greatest thing about our process is it
requires only the purchase of one piece of equipment that could
possibly double your revenues each harvest season. The rest of our
process canbe completed using equipment already found on your
farm.
This will require farmers to experiment after crop seasonwith our
corn stover collection productto figure out the most efficient way to
grind the cornstover.
I will clear up any misconceptions about biofuels and give you the
facts about the biofuels industry.

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Table of Contents
Executive Summary......................................................................... 2
Research being Conducted.............................................................. 4
Theory on Use ................................................................................ 7
Introduction to the Market.............................................................. 9
Feedstock Competitors ................................................................. 10
Potential Costs and Profits ............................................................ 11
Pre-harvest Implementation/estimates ......................................... 12
Harvest Process ............................................................................ 12
Derivative Set-up with Manufacturer............................................. 13
FutureImpacts on the Biofuel Market ........................................... 13
Conclusion.................................................................................... 13
Appendix...................................................................................... 14
Works Cited.................................................................................. 15

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Research being Conducted
Currently, the United States uses 20 billion gallons of
Jet-A fuel. The Midwest is responsible for the
consumption of 5 billion of those gallons (MASBI,
2013). Each year that passes it becomes more urgent
that we look for a safer alternative to the volatile
Middle Eastern oil market. 1
The Biofuels industry within the past decade has seen
major growth as our need for a more reliable
domestic source of fuel to keep airlines in business,
airfares cheap, and the environment safe. Research in
many areas has been growing, but we are specifically
looking into the process ofdeveloping corn stover
into a biomass to convert to a biofuel (SunGrant,
2011).
1 Graph provided by Energy Information Administration,2011
http://www.navigantresearch.com/blog/articles/using-fuel-cells-to-
reduce-commercial-airlines%E2%80%99-fuel-consumption
The Biofuels
industry within
the past decade
has seen major
growth as our
need for a more
reliable
domestic source
of fuel to keep
airlines in
business,
airfares cheap,
and the
environment
safe.
Figure 1: World Consumption of Jet Fuel

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MASBI (Midwest Aviation Sustainable Biofuels Initiative) is a group of 40
different corporations, government agencies, and trusts that are actively
researching alternatives to current aviation fuels (Midwest Aviation
Sustainability Biofuel Initiative, 2013). Among this group, you will find
United Airlines, Boeing, and the Chicago Department of Aviation. MASBI
is at the forefront of technology and research into developing alternative
fuels to provide more stability in the domestic fuel market
for the purposeof serving the aviation community. MASBI
has set standards for the aviation industry on the
development of alternative fuels and deadlines for
environmentally safe practices.
Corn stover conversion is in its preliminary phase of
research, but is already turning the heads of major
agriculture product developers like DuPont and Poet
(Pennington, 2013). Early results in the Biofuel conversion
process using corn stover are very promising since it is one
of the more efficient ways to derive a biofuel from biomass. The cost
effectiveness of developing
a Biofuel from cornstover
is predicted to be on par
with regular diesel in the
next 15 years according to
a MASBI study (MASBI,
2013).
2
Early development of corn
stover into biofuel has been
promising as a drop-in to
regular Jet-A fuel. The initial costs ofthe fuel are very expensive (anywhere
2 Source: F.O. Licht
http://www.thebioenergysite.com/articles/9/the-future-of-biofuels-a-global-perspective
● ● ●
MASBI has broken the
cost down and figured it
has nothing to do with
the inefficiency in the
conversion process, but
has to do with efficiency
of grinding, harvesting,
and transporting the
corn stover from the
farm.● ● ●
Figure 2: World Biodiesel Production

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from $12-$20 a gallon) since most have not gone to their plant production
phase and are still in pilot phase (Airport Council Initiative, 2013). MASBI
has broken the costdownand figured it has nothing to do with the
inefficiency in the conversion process, buthas to do with efficiency of
grinding, harvesting, and transporting the corn stover from the farm.
Figure 3: Farmer Knowledge on Corn Stover
3
Current research into developing products that
will be able to harvest and then grind corn stover
efficiently isn’t in full swing, but is rapidly
growing. Farmers can use existing equipment to
help biofuel manufacturers to reduce costs of the
corn stover (Marsh, 2011). Combines and
foragers are common place on the farm and there
are a few tweaks that need to be made to the
machinery to be able to use them for the purposeof grinding corn stover.
The current problem is the collection of the corn stover after it has been
ground has not been solved.
We have a solution to lower the costof the inputs to the biofuel production.
This is where our productcomes into effect to revolutionize the process.
3 Farmers knowledge of corn stover
http://msue.anr.msu.edu/news/survey_indicates_farmers_can_supply_corn_stover_biomass_bu
t_questions_remai
Current research
into developing
productsthat will
be able to harvest
and thengrind
cornstover
efficiently isn’t in
full swing, but is
rapidly growing.

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Theory on Use
Biofuel manufacturers, as previously
stated, are struggling to make the price of
their fuels competitive with the cheap,
abundant oil from the Middle East
(Pennington, 2013). The current process
of developing the fuels is inexpensive,
but manufacturers are forced to transport,
process, and grind corn stover
themselves. This is getting expensive
since they do not have the infrastructure
in place to handle this process.This is
where you as the farmer come into play.
Farmers have all the equipment necessary to
producethe biomass productfrom the corn
stover directly on the farm. Combines and
foragers are necessary for the harvesting
process and we want to keep using these
machines to producethe biomass. With any
combine available to farmers we have the
ability to cut the cornstalks. We then will be
able to come through with a forager system to
grind the chopped stalks. We are developing a
system with a lot of promise to then collect the
corn stover from the forager and put it in a semi
to transport.
We expect that the process will double the time
it takes to harvest but also double the profits associated with the added work.
We are
developing a
system with a
lot of promise
to then collect
the corn
stover from
the forager
and put it in a
semi to
transport.

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This will also be able to spread out fixed costs ofmachinery in labor over
the extra 4-6 weeks on top of the regular harvest season. The farmer will be
boosting the American economy from this new biofuel development process.
Farmers will be able to charge more money on the price of corn stover and
the manufacturers pay less overall to process it, making the overall costof
the end productof biofuel less expensive. 4
4 Source: John Deere Website
https://www.deere.co.uk/en_GB/media/images/our_company/news_and_media/press_releases
/2012/sep/New-John-Deere-7080-Series-SPFH-B_800x600.jpg
Figure 4: John Deere Forager

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Introduction to the Market
Your target market will be the biofuel manufacturers
and other large scale chemical manufacturers that are
invest in the biofuel development process.Billions of
dollars are up for the taking since biofuel
manufacturers will look for a cheaper alternative to
processing the inputs to their biofuel process (Coyle,
2007). We expect our system to become the “norm”
when dealing with the process line in developing
biofuels.
5Both the government and private sectors will invest
in the development of biofuels, so there is a
possibility to scorecontracts with the government
which would be handled and negotiated by our
5 Corn stover quantities
http://bioweb.sungrant.org/Technical/Biomass+Resources/Agricultura
l+Resources/Crop+Residues/Corn+Stover/Default.htm
Your target market
will be the biofuel
manufacturers and
other large scale
chemical
manufacturers
that are invest in
the biofuel
development
process. Billions of
dollars are up for
the taking since
biofuel
manufacturers will
look for a cheaper
alternative to
processing the
inputs to their
biofuel process.
Figure 5: Corn Stover Usage

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company for you, the farmer. We expect the government to have
nearly as big of a role in purchasing the ground corn stover as the
private industry, since the government needs fuel for military
purposes (Jerram, 2011).
Private sectorwill look to cashin on the recent push to use biofuels in
the aviation industry. They will be cutting costs wherever they are
able to so they can be competitive on the open market with all the
other manufacturers looking to cash in big. We predict that there will
be no shortage of demand (Coyle, 2007) for your ground corn stover
productif you are to convert your existing equipment to handle the
grinding of corn stover after harvest season. The earlier you are able
to let our company setup our equipment on your combine and contract
between your farm and the manufacturer the easier it will be to
develop recurring business with the
same companies in the future.
Feedstock
Competitors
You may wonder why you should steer away from developing corn
stover for feedstockpurposes and focus your productionon
developing it for biofuel purposes (Pennington, 2013). One big reason
is that recent studies show that corn stover is good for feedstock
purposes for cattle, but only in moderation and that too much can hurt
your cattle. Future demand for corn stover purposes in the biofuel
industry will be way higher than for the feedstockindustry. It appears
that it will be a better investment to transition your equipment after
seasonfor biomass productionrather than for feedstockproduction.
We predict that there will be
no shortage of demand for
your ground corn stover
product if you are to convert
your existing equipment to
handle the grinding of corn
stover after harvest season.

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Potential Costs and Profits
Since we are in the early phases of research both for how the inputs
specifically needed to be treated and ground and for the companies that
would use our inputs to the biofuel process,
there is quite a bit of financial risk (Eubank,
2013). All our company can promise is that we
will setup contracts between you and the
biofuel manufacturer once you have agreed to
use our productto grind and transport the
biomass developed from corn stover.
To combat this risk we will design insurance
plans to help cover the costof the development
of and processingof the corn stover you were
promised would be bought in the contract. This
would be determined later on how much
coverage you want when we develop the
contract.
The costto producethe corn stover is estimated
around $59 if processed onthe farm and then
another $20 to transport per ton. If the
manufacturer were to have to buy, transport,
and process aton it would costthem close to
$175. We were looking to split the difference
between these two prices in order to get a
healthy profit margin that you as the farmer,
our company as the productdeveloper and
contract negotiators, and the biofuel company
could all be happy with. You would make
between $40 and $60 a ton based on the
quantity purchased by the manufacturer.
If the
manufacturer
were to have to
buy, transport,
and process a ton
it would cost them
close to $175.
You would make
between $40 and
$60 a ton based on
the quantity
purchased by the
manufacturer.

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Pre-harvest
Implementation/estimates
Before your harvest seasonbegins in September, our company will have
trained you on how to use our product, how our process works out in the
field, and negotiate a contract between you and the manufacturer that you
both agree upon. Initial estimates put making on average 3-5 tons of corn
stover an acre. We estimate that our process will take anywhere from four to
six weeks. This effectively makes spreading out fixed costs over assets a
100% more efficient since normal harvest season takes 4-6 weeks and we
are doubling that.
Harvest Process
The process begins after the harvest of corn has ended. You attach a grinder
to the head of your combine
and go through your field
as you would when
harvesting the corn. You
will chop all corn stover
and it will be windrowed
out of the back of the
combine. You will then
come through with the
forager and further grind
the corn stover and use our
machine to catch the ground
corn stover material. 6
6https://www.deere.com/en_NAF/media/images/our_company/news_and_media/press_releases/2011/
oct/harvestlab_1024.jpg
Figure 6: Corn Stover Collection

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Derivative Set-up with Manufacturer
We will negotiate the contract price per ton of corn stover with the
manufacturer for you in private. The trade off with this is that we can
guarantee you a profit and insurance on corn stover crop.
Future Impacts on the Biofuel Market
We expect corn stover in the near future to be the premier biomass input to
the biofuel production in the aviation industry. Many universities in the
Midwest are researching benefits of corn stover conversion. Your
commitment to our productand process could revolutionize the world and
the way planes move about the sky.
Conclusion
We expect big profits from the development of corn stover into a biomass
for an input to the biofuel production process. While the industry is very
new to the world market, it has very promising early results. Everyday more
companies enter the biofuel market to combat rising foreign oil prices. We
need farmers like you to be the backboneof the industry by using pioneering
methods to solve our domestic energy crisis. There is risk involved to our
productbut it is only the very minimal price you put into purchasing it. You
can get millions in revenue out of our productin just one harvest season.7
Corn stover is essentially waste product lying out in your field, and we our
method can add value to your harvest.
7 Actual revenues vary depending on farm sizeand yield

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Appendix
Figure 1: World Consumption of Jet Fuel......................................................................4
Figure 2: World Biodiesel Production...........................................................................5
Figure 3: Farmer Knowledge on Corn Stover................................................................6
Figure 4: John Deere Forager.......................................................................................8
Figure 5: Corn Stover Usage .......................................................................................9
Figure 6: Corn Stover Collection ...............................................................................12

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Works Cited
AirportCouncil Initiative.(2013). Going Greener. RetrievedfromACI-NA:
http://www.aci-na.org/sites/default/files/going_greener_brochure.pdf
Coyle,W.(2007). The Futureof Biofuels:A Global Perspective.RetrievedfromThe
BioenergySite:http://www.thebioenergysite.com/articles/9/the-future-of-
biofuels-a-global-perspective
Eubank,A.(2013, March 17). PurdueExpertOffersAdviceforLast-minuteCrop Insurance
Decisions.RetrievedfromHoosierAgToday:
http://www.hoosieragtoday.com/purdue-expert-offers-advice-for-last-minute-
crop-insurance-decisions/
Jerram,L. (2011, June 30). Using Fuel Cells to Reduce CommercialAirlines’ Fuel
Consumption. RetrievedfromNavigantResearch:
http://www.navigantresearch.com/blog/articles/using-fuel-cells-to-reduce-
commercial-airlines%E2%80%99-fuel-consumption
Marsh, B. (2011, November). ForagerHarvesterEvaluation. RetrievedfromUniversityof
California:Natural ResourcesandAgriculture:
http://cekern.ucanr.edu/newsletters/Agronomy41774.pdf
MASBI.(2013). Fueling a SustainableFutureforAviation. Chicago.
MidwestAviationSustainabilityBiofuel Initiative.(2013, March). MASBI. Retrievedfrom
MASBI: http://www.masbi.org/aviation-biofuels-and-midwest/introduction-to-
aviation-biofuels
Pennington,D.(2013, November12). Survey indicatesfarmerscan supply corn stover
biomass,butquestionsremain.RetrievedfromMichiganState University:
http://msue.anr.msu.edu/news/survey_indicates_farmers_can_supply_corn_st
over_biomass_but_questions_remai
SunGrant.(2011). Corn Stover.RetrievedfromSunGrantBioWeb:
http://bioweb.sungrant.org/Technical/Biomass+Resources/Agricultural+Resourc
es/Crop+Residues/Corn+Stover/Default.htm