Iowa researchers spend six years studying perennial grasses in corn and soybean fields

In Iowa, strategically planting perennial grass throughout corn and soybean fields helps address the unintended environmental consequences of growing the dominant row crops, including soil erosion, fertilizer runoff and greenhouse gas emissions.

But converting portions of farmland back to prairie has to make financial sense for farmers, which is why a research team led by Iowa State University has spent the past six years studying how to efficiently turn harvested grass into lucrative renewable natural gas.

A pair of recently published peer-reviewed articles by Schulte-Moore’s research group modeled the economic feasibility of grass-to-gas production in different settings and from varying perspectives, analysis that helps flesh out the system’s win-win potential.