Ethanol's new biomass: watermelons
Ok, we know that technically any plant product can be made into ethanol. But the list of plant biomass that researchers are actively working on converting to ethanol is getting pretty long as well. We have the obvious ones - corn and soybeans - but also poplar trees, grapes, citrus fruit and now, watermelons.The National Watermelon Association (c'mon, you knew there was a NWA, right? It's only been around since 1914) announced it will begin research with the USDA, the University of Georgia and an ethanol plant in Florida so that the estimated 700 million pounds of watermelons that are wasted each year can be used for ethanol production.
This story says that the each year about 20-25 percent of the nation's watermelon crop is left on the ground. This is because there comes a time when harvesting the few ripe melons left in the fields is not profitable. Also, visually blemished melons are left to rot. If we can use watermelons to power flex-fuel cars, will spitting seeds out the tail pipe become the new American summer game?
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[Source: Domestic Fuel]
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