Arundo Donax – One of the Diverse Feedstocks Used To Create Biofuels

A reader wrote in with a question about his plans to get in the ethanol business, using a certain feedstock in which he’s an expert.  Indeed, one of the most interesting things about biofuels is the enormous diversity of feedstocks.

The plant pictured here, Arundo donax, a type of cane that is highly prized for its growth rate, and the diversity of soils and climates in which it grows.  But the energy density of all terrestrial plants is at least 30 times less than algae, which is the main reason for the interest in the latter.