HUMAN NUTRITION PERSONNEL

Mr. WHITTEN. What discussions have you had with the Office of the Secretary and with OMB with respect to acquiring additional personnel ceilings in support of the human nutrition laboratories? Dr. BERTRAND. SEA has submitted their personnel needs to OMB. However, due to the constraints on federal employment levels we have not been successful in acquiring additional personnel ceilings for the nutrition laboratories.

WEEDS IN COTTON

Mr. WHITTEN. Bermudagrass, johnsongrass and other weeds and grasses greatly increase the cost of cotton production. Furthermore, they greatly interfere with reduced tillage and no-till production. What is your current research program in this area?

Dr. BERTRAND. At Stoneville, Mississippi, where we have most of our research on these particular weeds, we are currently devoting a quarter of a scientist per year and about $20,000 on research to develop systems for the control of bermudagrass, johnsongrass, and other weeds and grasses. The development of the rope wick applicator has helped to reduce crop losses by controlling johnsongrass. Mr. WHITTEN. What is included in the fiscal year 1982 budget for this work?

Dr. BERTRAND. There are no additional funds in the fiscal year 1982 budget for research to develop systems for control of bermudagrass, johnsongrass, and other weeds and grasses in cotton.

Mr. WHITTEN. Do you have any estimates of the potential savings that might result from this work?

Dr. BERTRAND. At our current level of reseach on these weeds in cotton, progress in developing improved control technology will be slow and it will take many years to achieve significant savings. Under an expanded program we could develop improved weed control technology for perennial weeds in cotton such as bermudagrass, nutsedge, spurred anoda, and johnsongrass. This technology would reduce yield losses, improve cotton yields and quality, and reduce weed control costs providing a savings of at least $120 million per year.

ENERGY RESEARCH CENTERS

Mr. WHITTEN. What is the current status of the energy research centers?

Dr. BERTRAND. Funding for two agricultural energy centers was appropriated to the Science and Education Administration in fiscal year 1980. These centers were established at Tifton, Georgia, and Peoria, Illinois. The Southern Agricultural Energy Center is primarily concerned with on-farm energy production and use; the Northern Agricultural Energy Center is concerned with the selection, screening, and evaluation of energy crops and their conversion to alcohols and petrochemical substitutes. The centers assist with the coordination of energy programs among Science and Education Administration units in that Agricultural Research, Cooperative Research, and Extension personnel are located at the centers. They manage research on alternative energy sources at Agricultural Research satellite locations, conduct the peer review process and

monitor extramural grants, and conduct energy technology transfer programs. They also manage agricultural energy programs funded by the Department of Energy and coordinate these programs with those funded by the Science and Education Administration.

Mr. WHITTEN. Please provide for the record a detailed description of the activities being carried out at each energy center, the budget for the center and the plans for fiscal year 1982.

Dr. BERTRAND. A description of the activities being carried out in fiscal year 1981 will be provided for the record. Detailed plans for fiscal year 1982 have not been completed, but in the main they should be a continuation of fiscal year 1981 activities. No funding increase for the centers is requested in the fiscal year 1982 Science and Education Administration budget. The expected loss of passthrough funding from the Department of Energy in fiscal year 1982 will result in substantial program reductions, particularly for extramural projects.

[The information follows:]

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Solar Energy Applications Research. Research is conducted on solar crop drying, heating livestock shelters and greenhouses, and multiple uses of collectors. Mathematical models, simulation studies, and proof-ofconcept experiments are used to determine uses and combinations of uses for which solar energy can be effectively used to replace petroleum-based fuels. FY 1981 Funding - $375,000.

Biomass Harvesting and Processing Research. Cooperative research is
conducted with the Georgia Coastal Plain Experiment Station (CPES), the
Southeast Watershed Research Center, the Soil Conservation Service, and
others to: (a) determine methods and machines to remove varying amounts
of corn residue for energy conversion, (b) determine effects of removal
of these residue portions on water runoff and soil productivity capability,
(c) determine methods and machines to produce, harvest, handle, and process
sweet sorghum for conversion into fuel alcohol, and (d) develop equipment
to harvest crops produced specifically for biomass energy.
FY 1981 Funding - $400,000

Alternate Energy Applications Research. Research is conducted on methods
of on-farm handling, storage, and feeding of stillage produced in
converting corn into fuel alcohol. The work is cooperative with the
CPES and will include feeding trials to develop diets for swine, dairy,
and beef animals. Other research includes methane production and
utilization and on-farm production of vegetable oil as a diesel
substitute. FY 1981 Funding - $425,000.

Wind Energy for Irrigation. Research conducted at a satellite location at Bushland, Texas, is directed toward utilization of wind energy to supplement energy requirements for irrigation pumping and for farm electrical needs. FY 1981 Funding - $200,000

A second wind energy research project is located at Ames, Iowa, with major emphasis on load management and the problems associated with interfacing electricity generated from wind with the public utility grid.

FY 1981 Funding - $ 75,000.

5) Methane Generation and Utilization (Swine Waste). A satellite project
at Columbia, Missouri, conducts research on the generation and utilization
of methane from swine waste. An alcohol still is under construction to
use methane in the production of alcohol. FY 1981 Funding $100,000.

6) Harvesting, Transporting, and Storage System for Alcohol Feedstocks.
At Belle Glade, Florida, existing equipment is being adapted or developed
to minimize energy consumption and environmental hazards, as well as to
establish the optimum form, moisture level, and specific equipment needs
for transporting biomass to conversion plants. FY 1981 Funding - $132,000.

Grants will be awarded on agriculturally related energy research on combustion, pyrolysis, and gasification of biomass to liquid and gaseous fuels; and on solar and wind energy applications in agriculture. This research will be closely coordinated with that funded by AR and with DOE funds. FY 1981 Funding $1,067,000.

C. Extension Activities

The Technology Transfer Program Leader prepares an agricultural energy newsletter for State extension energy specialists. He also assists the Federal Extension Staff in the conduct of an on-farm solar energy demonstration program. FY 1981 Funding $150,000.

DOE pass-through funds are used primarily to support grants for research on the production and utilization of renewable energy sources. The program for FY 1981 includes:

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Solar Energy Program. Grants will be made in two specific areas of
inquiry: (1) Solar systems used for single purposes or processes
will emphasize the design, development, and economic analysis of
components for active, passive, and hybrid solar systems used for
crop drying, food processing, heating of livestock shelters, and
heating of greenhouses. (2) Multiple-use and/or multiple source
solar systems will emphasize the development, system analysis, and
integration of solar systems utilizing direct solar heating
separately or in combination with wind or biomass as backup systems.
In FY 1980, 37 projects were funded, and these projects are monitored
by the Southern Agricultural Energy Center. FY 1981 Funding
$1,750,000.

Methane Generation and Utilization. Research, development, and
demonstration grants will include design and development of farm-
size methane generators, development of associated materials handling
systems, fuel and byproduct use, and process improvements. FY 1981
Funding $1,200,000.

3) Thermal Conversion of Biomass. The objectives of this research are to develop equipment and systems for direct combustion and gasification of crop residues and other biomass energy sources on the farm. FY 1981 Funding - $1,200,000.

4) Vegetable Oils for Fuels and Petrochemical Substitutes.

Studies

will be made of the on-farm production, extraction, and utilization
of vegetable oils as liquid fuels. This includes sunflower,
soybeans, and peanuts. Very closely allied projects will be funded
on the handling, storage, and utilization in animal diets of the
oilseed protein byproduct. FY 1981 Funding $200,000.

5) Agricultural Wind Energy Research Program. This program is operated
from the satellite location at Bushland, Texas. Specific program
areas are: (1) Analytical and economic studies, information
dissemination, and program management. (2) General farmstead power
application. (3) Irrigation pumping studies. (4) Wind-powered
farm building heating application. (5) Product processing and

storage energy requirements when using wind power on or near the
farm. FY 1981 Funding - $1,065,000.

II. Northern Agricultural Energy Center, Peoria, Illinois

1) Hydrocarbon-Producing Plants as Potential Multi-Use Crops. Hydrocarbon
plant species that are potentially adaptable to U.S. agricultural
practices are identified and evaluated. Oils, polyphenols, and
hydrocarbon polymers produced by select U.S. plant species are
characterized. University and USDA scientists cooperate in plant-
breeding efforts to develop biomass crop varieties, and provide
long-range chemical analytical support for breeding and production
studies. FY 1981 Funding - $292,000.

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Increased Energy Efficiency of Substrate Preparation for Alcohol
Fermentation. Wheat straw, corn refuse, and other residues are
subjected to various physical/chemical pretreatments prior to
enzymatic saccharification. Sugars from hemicellulose/cellulose
fractions will be evaluated as direct alcohol fermentation
substrates. Specific fungi are being evaluated for their ability to
preferentially degrade lignin in lignocellulosics.
Cellulose tests

are being conducted to determine cellulose residue susceptibility
to saccharifying enzymes. Various mutational techniques will be
employed to selectively develop mutants with preferential ability
to degrade lignin. FY 1981 Funding - $385,000.

Innovative Fermentation Technology for Alcohol Production. These
programs include the design of a novel process for the production
of a high concentration of ethanol on a solid substrate, the
evaluation of selected microorganisms and conditions for increased
alcohol yields from xylose, the determination of the feasibility
of using immobilized microbial cells to convert sugar crops to
ethanol, and the screening of specific yeasts and bacteria for their
ability to produce maximal alcohol from various fermentable sugars.
FY 1981 Funding - $372,000.

4) Energy-Saving Methods for Recovery of Usable Protein from Alcohol
or Methane Fermentation Media. Research is conducted on composition
of distillers' grains and solubles to obtain information on the
carbohydrate components such as hemicellulose in the fiber.