Modeling Trucking Flows of Switchgrass Feedstock to Biorefinery and Accompanying Impact on Regional Economy: Case Study of Tennessee
This study evaluated optimal plant gate costs for two conventional hay harvest technologies that could be used for harvesting and storing switchgrass feedstock for a potential 189.25 kl year−1 ethanol biorefinery in East Tennessee. Applying a spatially-oriented mixed-integer mathematical programming model and a GIS resource model to estimate the least plant gate cost of the two harvest and logistics systems, results indicate the large square bale system had a lower plant gate cost when compared with the large round bale system, primarily due to the saving in transportation costs with the square bale system. The estimated truck flows of switchgrass feedstock on the road network by month were also estimated and mapped. Moreover, the accompanying economic impact of the expenditures on the switchgrass feedstock transportation was estimated in the analysis. For every dollar spent on switchgrass feedstock transportation in both harvest systems, an estimated $0.71 in economic activity would be created in the study region. Thus, a total $21.6 million and $16.9 million were expected to be generated in total industrial output for the round bale and square bale systems, respectively.
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Supplemental Notes:
- This paper was sponsored by TRB committee AT015(3) CFP - Freight Transportation and Logistics Modeling
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Corporate Authors:
500 Fifth Street, NW
Washington, DC United States 20001 -
Authors:
- Yu, Tun-Hsiang Edward
- Gao, Yuan
- Larson, James A
- English, Burton C
- Wilson, Bradly
- Menard, Robert J
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Conference:
- Transportation Research Board 91st Annual Meeting
- Location: Washington DC, United States
- Date: 2012-1-22 to 2012-1-26
- Date: 2012
Language
- English
Media Info
- Media Type: Digital/other
- Features: Figures; References; Tables;
- Pagination: 15p
- Monograph Title: TRB 91st Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers DVD
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Biomass; Costs; Economic analysis; Freight traffic; Network analysis (Planning); Traffic models
- Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Freight Transportation; I71: Traffic Theory;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 01373035
- Record Type: Publication
- Report/Paper Numbers: 12-3957
- Files: TRIS, TRB
- Created Date: Jun 15 2012 4:05PM