Browsing by Author "Johnson, Jerry J., advisor"
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Item Open Access Adaptability of oilseed species at high altitudes of Colorado and technology transfer to Afghanistan(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2012) Sediqi, Mohammad Navid, author; Johnson, Jerry J., advisor; Byrne, Patrick F., committee member; Jha, Ajay K., committee memberTo view the abstract, please see the full text of the document.Item Open Access Agronomic factors affecting dryland grain sorghum maturity and production in northeast Colorado(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2012) Sauer, Sally M., author; Johnson, Jerry J., advisor; Hansen, Neil C., committee member; Jha, Ajay K., committee member; McMaster, Gregory S., committee member; Vigil, Merle F., committee memberTo view the abstract, please see the full text of the document.Item Open Access An integrated approach to local based biofuel development(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2011) Enjalbert, Jean-Nicolas, author; Johnson, Jerry J., advisor; Peterson, Gary, 1940-, committee member; Olsen, Daniel B., committee member; McKay, John K., committee member; Byrne, Patrick F., 1948-, committee memberOilseed crops have potential to replace a portion of the on-farm energy demand currently satisfied by fossil fuel. This dissertation allies mechanical engineering, field testing, and molecular breeding research into an integrated approach to solve problems associated with straight vegetable oil (SVO) production and use on Colorado farms. Four related topics of investigation and activity are reported. To identify an adapted, short-season oilseed crop that could fit into the current High Plains dryland cropping system, a genetic diversity study was conducted on three potential oilseed species: Brassica juncea, Brassica carinata, and Camelina sativa. To illuminate the genetic basis of camelina response to drought stress, a two-year study of quantitative trait loci (QTLs) was implemented under dry and irrigated conditions using 181 recombinant inbred lines (RILS) developed from European cultivars. To understand and eventually manage camelina production, a multi-environmental regional trial of camelina seed yield, oil content, and oil quality was conducted with eight American and European varieties. Extension activities introduced SVO information and technology to farmers in Colorado. Camelina sativa showed better adaptation to semi-arid environments than B. juncea and B. carinata, outyielding them due to camelina's shorter stature, higher harvest index, and greater resistance to flea beetle. Camelina yield, oil content, and linolenic fatty acid (FA) content were higher in cool, wet environments than in warm, dry environments. Linolenic FA content and seed size were negatively correlated (p<0.05) with early flowering time. Earlier flowering was associated with increased seed yield (p<0.01) under dry and hot environments, but with decreased seed yield under irrigation. Environment was a larger source of variation than genotype for all the traits measured in this study. Twenty-nine QTLs were found in camelina for seed yield, oil quality, and drought-tolerance-related traits such as leaf water content and leaf nitrogen content, which could lead to breeding for improvement of camelina performance in semi-arid environments. Some QTLs were shared by multiple traits, suggesting either pleiotropic effects or proximity of genes. The cumulative effect of stable, favorable alleles for seed yield was a 16% increase in yield. Trait responses to moisture varied widely, both in the multi-environmental regional trial using cultivars and in the single-location trial using RILs. The range of trait response reflects variation in plasticity in camelina germplasm. Two analysis methods, namely, additive main effects and multiplicative interaction (AMMI) and the moisture difference value method, were used to detect false positive QTLs and to predict QTL effect in specific environments. AMMI was used successfully to delineate mega-environments within the study region and to identify the best-adapted varieties for these mega-environments. With the QTL data developed in this study, marker-assisted selection could be used to identify camelina varieties adapted to specific environments or to a broad range of environments. Five lines possessing three favorable yield QTLs expressed under drought conditions are undergoing seed increase and additional multi-locational testing for potential release. Oilseed-for-biofuel workshops, crusher demonstrations, and oilseed field days were conducted to demonstrate the feasibility of potential advantages of SVO for farmers wanting an alternative energy source to reduce their use of fossil fuel. A limited number of early adopters are beginning to integrate camelina into their crop rotation. Three small oilseed crushing and processing facilities have been established from collaboration with farmers and other agencies, and another is in the design stage. Two extension fact sheets will be published on camelina production and on biofuel production at a farm scale.Item Open Access Analysis of industrial oilseeds: production, conversion to biofuels, and engine performance from large to small scale(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2015) Drenth, Aaron C., author; Olsen, Daniel B., advisor; Johnson, Jerry J., advisor; Cabot, Perry E., committee member; Schaeffer, Steven L., committee memberMost of the biofuel produced in the U.S. as an alternative to petrodiesel is derived from soybean oil. Three major problems of using soy and other traditional biofuel feedstocks are: (1) the high commodity cost of the feedstock results in higher cost fuel than the petroleum equivalent, (2) land use requirements are too great to offset a significant portion of petroleum use, and (3) many traditional biofuel feedstocks also have food uses, which creates market competition and a “food versus fuel” debate. The problems above are addressed by exploring the feasibility of biofuel production from a new class of oilseeds known as industrial oilseeds, and industrial corn oil as a biofuel feedstock. Industrial oilseeds are alternative low-cost oilseeds also known in the literature as low-impact oilseeds or non-food oilseeds. Due to their non-food nature, they steer us clear of any food versus fuel debates. They have several advantages over conventional oilseeds, such as a short growing season, high oil yield and quality, ability to thrive on marginal lands, and low water and fertilizer inputs. These advantages can equate to lower oil costs. Since these oils can be optimized for fuel instead of food, plant scientists can maximize the erucic and other long chain fatty acids, which increase fuel conversion rates and fuel quality. For several of these plant species, little or no engine research has been done; some in the agronomic community still consider some of these plants weeds. This research includes compression ignition engine performance and emissions studies, measurement of important fuel properties, and investigation into the feasibility of several fuel pathways. Corn is not classified as an oilseed by the USDA; however, the corn kernel contains a small amount of oil (~3.5%) which can be extracted during the production of ethanol. Only the starch portion of a corn kernel is converted to ethanol; the remaining solids (including the oil) remain in the distillers grain coproduct. Recently, the ethanol industry has discovered economical methods to extract this corn oil from the meal stream. As corn oil extraction technology has matured and ethanol margins have tightened, the ethanol industry has started widely adapting this technology as an additional revenue-generating coproduct. Since most ethanol plants are non-food grade facilities, corn oil from an ethanol plant can also be categorized as an industrial oilseed. Corn oil represents a relatively new, abundant, and inexpensive source of biofuel feedstock. This research includes compression ignition engine performance and emissions of corn oil based fuels, feasibility of using corn oil as an on-farm biofuel feedstock, research into fuel production and processing methods, and measurement of important fuel properties.Item Open Access Camelina variety performance for yield, yield components and oil characteristics(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2013) Jewett, Freeborn G., author; Johnson, Jerry J., advisor; Dierig, David, committee member; Jahn, Courtney, committee memberOilseed crops have the potential to increase the stability and sustainability of American agriculture by replacing a portion of the fossil fuels consumed by this sector. There are several candidate oilseed species that have been identified as compatible with a dryland winter wheat-fallow rotation. Of these species, Camelina sativa has been previously identified as being a promising species for the High Plains region. This is due to its short growing season, drought tolerance, cold tolerance and resistance to many of the insect and pest species that cause yield reductions in other Brassica oilseed species. To evaluate the performance of this species in the Western United States, we carried out a two year variety trial in 2011 and 2012 to evaluate the performance of 15 varieties in two distinct geographical regions in the Western United States. Six of the varieties, Ligena, SSD10, SSD177, SSD87, SSD138, and Celine, were in the highest-yielding group of varieties in all of our combinations of environments, including irrigated environments. Five of the varieties have been identified as containing favorable alleles for yield and drought tolerance. These SSD varieties yielded well in our study but did not significantly outperform their parental varieties across all environments. The mean yield for the trial across all environments was 813 kg ha-1. Lower-latitude environments in Colorado and Wyoming were not as high-yielding as higher-latitude environments in Montana and Washington State. Camelina did not perform as well at low latitudes even under irrigated conditions during the two years of our study. The low yields can be attributed to above-average, high temperatures. Decreasing the average maximum temperature during the growing season resulted in increased yield and was positively correlated with an increase in the percent oil and percent of the oil profile comprised of polyunsaturated fatty acid and a decrease in the percent oil comprised of saturated fatty acids. From an agronomic perspective, the focus might be on reducing the number of warm days so that they comprise no more than 17% of the growing season. In addition to yield, this study looked at the components of yield to see how they were affected by environmental conditions and how they contributed to yield. The number of plants per hectare had the largest effect on yield. This yield component showed significant genotype by environment (GxE) interaction. This yield component is strongly influenced by environmental conditions and not genotype. This suggests that the quickest and easiest way to increase yield is to increase the planting density of the field. In a dryland agricultural system, increased density may have a negative tradeoff in the form of increased water usage of the crop. If breeders are interested in choosing a variety for seed yield improvement, it would be beneficial to choose thousand seed weight, as this is highly heritable and related to genotype. The number of pods per plant has little relationship with the overall yields for camelina and showed significant GxE interaction. In addition to the variety trial, we assessed the fall planting potential of 11 winter lines and three spring lines of camelina in Fort Collins, CO and Rocky Ford, CO from 2010 to 2011. We found significant differences between the dates of planting (p <0.001). The average yield of the fall seeded entries was 434 kg ha-1, which was less than the average yield of 1033 kg ha-1 for a nearby spring seeded camelina variety trial. This showed that through fall seeding of camelina, it is possible to get a stand, but the yields are lower than spring seeded camelina. Our trial included an entry of pennycress (Thlaspi arvense), another oilseed species with potential for Colorado agricultural areas. This preliminary trial in 2010 to 2011 found that under irrigation, pennycress yielded 1392 kg ha-1, which was much higher than the fall seeded camelina. In a follow up trial of the dryland potential of four lines of pennycress in Akron, CO in 2012, excessive drought conditions resulted in a failure of the plots.Item Open Access Varieties of winter wheat in eastern Colorado require different n recommendations for achieving grain yield and protein content(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2021) Kluth, Danica, author; Johnson, Jerry J., advisor; Ippolito, James A., advisor; Peairs, Frank B., committee memberTo view the abstract, please see the full text of the document.