Not all fibers are created equal. Hemp makes an AWESOME fiber for paper, as has many mechanical characteristics that make it an excellent natural fiber for composite applications. When Mercedes Benz decided to use hemp it their autos, it was not because hemp was a "groovy" material, rather because its superior to many other natural fibers and less expensive than fiberglass. Hemp is not mentioned in any marketing literature from Mercedes, nor BMW, Chrysler, Ford, etc however, all use use hemp-content composites in their autos.
One of the greatest things about hemp is the fact that it can be used for so many different markets. This is why its attractive. Its not tied to one sole end-use, such as only rope, only paper, etc. It can be used for lots of items.
Hemp is much harder to make assumptions for average tons per acre due to the fact that hemp is not grow as homogeneous as corn. From old notes, I have found that hemp produces 60 gallons of ethanol per dry ton. Therefore, if hemp averages 5 dry tons/acre, then one acre of hemp will produce 300 gallons of cellulose-based ethanol.
Richard G. Lugar and R. James Woolsey wrote an excellent article titled, "The New Petroleum" (Foreign Affairs, Volume 78 No. 1) which states, "First, a simple comparison of energy content reveals that a dry ton of biomass crops--$40 is a reasonable current average cost--is comparable to oil at $10-13 a barrel." Of course there are a lot of other variables and obstacles that need to figured in. I highly recommend that you read this article.
One should note that dry whole stalks hemp currently sell for approximately $100 ton. This is far above the price of $40/ton suggested above. When I spoke with the Department of Energy (DOE) a few years ago, they informed me that hemp has always been a consideration however, if grown it would command too high a price due to the fact that hemp is too versatile and other markets would pay a higher price. The main focus for the DOE has been switchgrass and agricultural wastes.
Professor Richard G. Lugar recently informed me that 1 bone dry ton (bdt) of biomass yields 75 gallons of ethanol. Professor Lugar further stated that yields of 100 gallons per bdt are expected in the future.
Therefore, if hemp yields 5 bdt per acre, then one acre of hemp yields 375 gallons of ethanol; and potentially 500 gallons in the near future. This is quite a bit more than starch-based ethanol, such as those made from corn.
Of course, some yields for hemp fiber can range as high as 10 bdt per acre, which doubles the yield per acre to as much as 1,000 gallons. This of course relies on genetics for both the biomass to cellulosic ethanol conversion as well as breeding of the hemp to produce 10 bdt per acre.
Once again, ethanol from biomass versus biodiesel from vegetable oil.
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Not all fibers are created equal. Hemp makes an AWESOME fiber for paper, as has many mechanical characteristics that make it an excellent natural fiber for composite applications. When Mercedes Benz decided to use hemp it their autos, it was not because hemp was a "groovy" material, rather because its superior to many other natural fibers and less expensive than fiberglass. Hemp is not mentioned in any marketing literature from Mercedes, nor BMW, Chrysler, Ford, etc however, all use use hemp-content composites in their autos.
One of the greatest things about hemp is the fact that it can be used for so many different markets. This is why its attractive. Its not tied to one sole end-use, such as only rope, only paper, etc. It can be used for lots of items.
Eric Pollitt
Global Hemp, Inc
http://www.globalhemp.com/ http://www.globalhempstore.com/
Hemp grown for seed = biodiesel
Hemp grown for fiber = cellulosic ethanol
Hemp is much harder to make assumptions for average tons per acre due to the fact that hemp is not grow as homogeneous as corn. From old notes, I have found that hemp produces 60 gallons of ethanol per dry ton. Therefore, if hemp averages 5 dry tons/acre, then one acre of hemp will produce 300 gallons of cellulose-based ethanol.
Richard G. Lugar and R. James Woolsey wrote an excellent article titled, "The New Petroleum" (Foreign Affairs, Volume 78 No. 1) which states, "First, a simple comparison of energy content reveals that a dry ton of biomass crops--$40 is a reasonable current average cost--is comparable to oil at $10-13 a barrel." Of course there are a lot of other variables and obstacles that need to figured in. I highly recommend that you read this article.
One should note that dry whole stalks hemp currently sell for approximately $100 ton. This is far above the price of $40/ton suggested above. When I spoke with the Department of Energy (DOE) a few years ago, they informed me that hemp has always been a consideration however, if grown it would command too high a price due to the fact that hemp is too versatile and other markets would pay a higher price. The main focus for the DOE has been switchgrass and agricultural wastes.
Professor Richard G. Lugar recently informed me that 1 bone dry ton (bdt) of biomass yields 75 gallons of ethanol. Professor Lugar further stated that yields of 100 gallons per bdt are expected in the future.
Therefore, if hemp yields 5 bdt per acre, then one acre of hemp yields 375 gallons of ethanol; and potentially 500 gallons in the near future. This is quite a bit more than starch-based ethanol, such as those made from corn.
Of course, some yields for hemp fiber can range as high as 10 bdt per acre, which doubles the yield per acre to as much as 1,000 gallons. This of course relies on genetics for both the biomass to cellulosic ethanol conversion as well as breeding of the hemp to produce 10 bdt per acre.
Once again, ethanol from biomass versus biodiesel from vegetable oil.
Eric Pollitt
Global Hemp, Inc
http://www.globalhemp.com/
http://www.globalhempstore.com/