Burning Corn More Efficient Than Manufacturing Biofuels, Study Says

The most efficient way to convert corn into energy is to burn the kernels to generate electricity, rather than processing the plant into biofuels, according to a study in the journal Science. Research by a scientist at the University of California, Merced, showed that burning corn to produce electricity for electric-powered vehicles produces 56 percent more energy per acre than converting the corn to biofuels. The combustion of corn to generate electricity for cars also produced about half the greenhouse gases as the conversion of corn to ethanol, according to the study. Meanwhile, a study by the environmental groups Friends of the Earth and Earth Track projects that the continuing expansion of federal subsidies to produce ethanol from corn and cellulosic materials, such as cheatgrass, could cost taxpayers $420 billion through 2022. The Obama administration is calling for the rapid expansion of biofuel production from non-food crops, and anticipated federal subsidies for the program are likely to average $28 billion a year, according to the study.