BACKGROUND While advantages of biofuel have been widely reported, studies also highlight the challenges in large scale production of biofuel. Cost of ethanol and process energy use in cellulosic ethanol plants are dependent on technologies used for conversion of feedstock. Process modeling can aid in identifying techno-economic bottlenecks in a production process. A comprehensive techno-economi...

Constructed wetlands have emerged as a viable alternative for secondary treatment of domestic wastewater in areas with landscape limitations, poor soil conditions, and high water tables, which limit installation of full-scale adsorption fields. Existing information on the effects of macrophytes on treatment performance is contradictory and mostly derived from greenhouse mesocosm experiments. Th...

This study investigated the performance of steers grazing rhizomatous birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.) (RBFT) compared to nonrhizomatous birdsfoot trefoil (BFT) in pure stands or when interseeded with endophyte-free tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.; TF). Five forage treatments of RBFT, BFT, TF, RBFT+TF, and BFT+TF (four replicate paddocks per treatment) were continuously stocke...

In germinating seeds under unfavorable environmental conditions, the mobilization of stores in the cotyledons is delayed, which may result in a different modulation of carbohydrates balance and a decrease in seedling vigor. Tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) caryopses grown at 4°C in the dark for an extended period in complete absence of nutrients, showed an unexpected ability to survive...

Five grass species (Dactylis glomerata L., Phleum pratense L., Lolium perenne L., Festuca arundinacea L. and the hybrid Felina (Lolium multiflorum L. × Festuca arundinacea L.)), commonly used in roughages for ruminants, were harvested at different maturities of primary growth (n = 60) and evaluated for contents of dry matter (DM), crude protein (CP), ash, crude fat, neutral detergent fibre (NDF...