Transportation Infrastructure Implications of Development of a Cellulosic Biofuels Industry for Indiana

Abstract

Development of a cellulosic biofuels industry in biomass-rich states such as Indiana would cause substantial impacts on road infrastructure. This research estimated the infrastructure impacts of cellulosic biofuel production using three Indiana cellulosic facility sites. Following are key results:

Average loaded vehicle trip miles (VTM) are projected to be 101 to 583% higher per gallon of cellulosic biofuel capacity compared to the VTM per gallon of capacity for grain-based ethanol. Average ton-miles per gallon of capacity for cellulosic biofuel production is projected to be 4 to 255% higher compared to the average ton-mile per gallon of capacity for grain-based ethanol.