ARS Helps Farmers and Ranchers Prospect for Non-Fossil Oil and Gas

Agricultural producers may soon hit a trifecta – the ability to clean up the environment, reduce dependence on fossil fuel, and create a new source of income.

ARS scientists at the Eastern Regional Research Center are testing a thermo-catalytic system to help farmers and ranchers convert farm and ranch leftovers and waste to sources of bioenergy (oil and gas), and high-value by-products. The system uses heat in a no-oxygen environment, called pyrolysis, to create crude bio-oil and bio-char.

The Combustion Reduction Integrated Pyrolysis System (CRIPS) travels to farms and can run “off-the-grid” to process low-value crop leftovers like grasses grown on marginal-quality lands, forest residues, and animal manure. CRIPS can produce about 40 gallons of gasoline-quality fuel per 1,000 pounds of dry farm waste

Read the blog to learn more.