DisplayTitle

Evaluation of Nebraska Waxy Sorghum Hybrids for Ethanol Production

¹Contribution number 12-424-J from the Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station, Manhattan, KS 66506. ²Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506. ³Current contact information: Research Scientist, R&D, The Mennel Milling Co., 320 Findlay St., P.O. Box 806, Fostoria, OH 44830. Phone: (419) 436-5130 ext. 148. ⁴Undergraduate student, Department of Chemical Engineering, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506. ⁵Undergraduate student, Department of Nutritional Science, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14850. ⁶USDA-ARS Grain, Forages and Bioenergy Research, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583-0937. The use of trade, firm, or corporation names in this publication is for the information and convenience of the reader. Such use does not constitute an official endorsement or approval by the USDA or the ARS of any product or service to the exclusion of others that may be suitable. ⁷Corresponding author. Phone: (785) 532-2919. Fax: (785) 532-5825. E-mail: dwang@ksu.edu

To evaluate the ethanol production performance of waxy sorghum hybrids and the effects of location and harvest year on ethanol yield, samples of four waxy sorghum hybrids collected from two Nebraska locations (Mead and Lincoln) in both 2009 and 2010 were tested for ethanol production in a dry-grind process. No significant difference (P = 0.216) in starch contents was observed among the four hybrids, but starch contents of the hybrids were significantly affected by growth location (P = 0.0001) and harvest year (P = 0.0258). Location, hybrid, and harvest year all had significant effects on ethanol fermentation efficiency in the dry-grind process. Lincoln sorghum samples showed higher (P = 0.022) ethanol fermentation efficiency (90.4%) than did Mead sorghum samples (90.0%). Sorghums harvested in 2010 had higher (P < 0.001) ethanol fermentation efficiency (91.1%) than those harvested in 2009 (89.3%). The 2009 sorghum flours had more amylose-lipid complexes than the 2010 samples did, and amylose-lipid complexes as previously reported had adverse effects on ethanol fermentation. Residual starch contents in distillers dried grains with solubles (DDGS) were significantly affected by hybrid and harvest year (P < 0.0001), but we observed no difference in protein content in DDGS from the four hybrids.