Kudzu [Pueraria montana

详细信息    查看全文

• 作者：Rowan F. Sage ; Heather A. Coiner ; Danielle A. Way ; G. Brett Runion ; Stephen A. Prior ; H. Allen Torbert ; Richard Sicher ; Lewis Ziska
• 关键词：Bioethanol ; Biofuel ; Invasive species ; Renewable energy ; Starch
• 刊名：Biomass and Bioenergy
• 出版年：2009
• 出版时间：January 2009
• 年：2009
• 卷：33
• 期：1
• 页码：57-61
• 全文大小：268 K

文摘

We determined the amount of standing biomass of kudzu (Pueraria montana var lobata) in naturally infested fields in Maryland and Alabama, USA. At each site, we evaluated the carbohydrate content of roots, stems, and leaves. For a third site from Georgia, we evaluated the carbohydrate content of kudzu roots of varying diameters. Belowground biomass in Alabama exceeded 13 t ha⁻¹, and contained an average of 37 % fermentable carbohydrates (sucrose, glucose, and starch). Roots from Georgia of all size classes contained over 60 % fermentable carbohydrates. Biomass and carbohydrate levels in roots from Maryland were low compared to plants growing in Alabama and Georgia, producing 5 t ha⁻¹ of roots with 20 % non-structural carbohydrate. Stems from Alabama and Maryland contained 1–3 % carbohydrates. Based on the yield and carbohydrate content, we estimate wild kudzu stands in Alabama and Georgia could produce 5–10 t ha⁻¹ of carbohydrate, which would rival carbohydrate production from maize and sugar cane fields. If economical harvesting and processing techniques could be developed, the kudzu infesting North America has the potential to supplement existing bioethanol feedstocks, which could be of significance to the rural economy of the southeastern USA.