KENAF

Charles L. Webber III, Robert E. Bledsoe, and Venita K. Bledsoe

USDA, ARS, SCARL & International Kenaf Association (IKA)
International Symposium on Renewable Feedstock for Biofuel and Bio-based Products
The roles of fiber crops: kenaf, jute, hemp, flax, and allied fibers.
August 11-13, 2010
Austin, Texas
KENAF
Production Production
Potential Potential
Promises Promises
If we knew what it was we were doing, it
would not be called research, would it?
Albert Einstein
Research
Experience
&
Expertise
To the Master's honor all must turn,
each in its track, without a sound,
forever tracing Newton's ground.
Albert Einstein
If I have been able to see further, it was only
because I stood on the shoulders of giants.
Sir Isaac Newton
(Hibiscus cannabinus L.)
Warm season, annual fiber crop closely
related to cotton and okra
Kenaf
Production
Kenaf Seed
Oil Content = 21.4 to 26.4 %
Caution: Storing Seed
to Maintain Viability Avoid
High Temperatures and Humidity
Studies show seed stored at 8 - 12% relative
humidity & 10 to -10
o
C (14 to 50
o
F)
for 5 years were fully viable.
35,000 40,000 seeds/kg
(16,000 18,000 seeds/lb)
Production
Planting Kenaf
Plant when the soil has warmed
and frost has past As early as
April, & May in US
Standard Equipment
Various Row Spacings
Flat Ground or Raised Beds
Planting Plates (Sorghum), Seed
Drills, or Air Seeders
Kenaf Yields
Yield Factors:
Length of Growing Season
Average Day & Night Temperatures
(Degree Days)
Ample Water
Stalk yields range from 11-18 mt/ha
(5 8 tons/a)* Over Dry Weight
Market demands for kenaf and
competing crops are critical
considerations.
PLANT POPULATIONS
Planting Depth 1.25 to 2.5 cm (.5 to 1 inches)
Maximum Stalk Yields = 185,000-370,000 plants/ha
(75,000-150,000 plants/a.
Seed for Planting = 8 kg/ha (7 lb/a).
Plant Populations Below 185,000 plants/ha
Will Reduce Stalk Yields.
Low Populations Increases Plant Branching Which Can
Create Mechanical Harvesting Problems
More than 370,000 plants/ha Plants Self Thinning
Satisfactory populations produce stalks diameters of
1.9 to 3.8 cm (.75 to 1.5 inches).
SOIL & FERTILITY
Wide range of soils (high organic peat soils to
sandy soils)
Best soil = well drained, fertile, neutral pH
Proper fertility maintenance maximizes yield and
minimizes production costs.
Excess Nitrogen can be decrease stalk yields.
Soil should be analyzed prior to application of
fertilizers.
Kenaf Weed Control
Weeds can reduce yields.
Initial weed control is often required.
Trifluralin, Metolachlor, and
Pendimethalin are among the effective
pre-emergence herbicides.
Trifluralin is the standard used by kenaf
researchers registered for use in kenaf
grown for fiber.
Crop Rotation
Including kenaf in a crop rotation with a legume
crop is excellent management
It reduces pest problems
It increases soil fertility
Weed management benefits
Soybean Rotation Results
Kenaf reduces the stunt (Tylenchorhynchus spp.)
nematode populations significantly.
Significant reduction of stunt nematodes benefits next
years soybean production.
Potential
Twine Rope Sackcloth
First Domesticated in North Africa
1700-1800 to India
1902 to Russia
1935 to China
World War II to United States
HISTORY OF KENAF
(U.S. Perspective)
Potential
Kenaf in United States
World War II
Twine Rope Sackcloth
Research to Improve Yields Resulted
in the Developments of
Production Practices Suitable for U.S.
Anthracnose Resistant Varieties
Harvesting Machinery to Increase Efficiency
In 1950s USDA
Evaluated 400 Different
Species for U.S. Fiber
Demands for Paper
Production
Hibiscus cannabinus L.
Crotalaria juncea L.
Kenaf Sunn Hemp
In the 1950s USDA Found
Kenaf is an Excellent
Cellulose Fiber
Source for:
Newsprint
Bond Paper
Corrugated Liner
Board
Kenaf Uses Less Energy
to Process into Paper
Pulp than Standard
Wood Sources
Kenaf Uses Less
Chemicals to Process
into Paper Pulp than
Standard Wood Sources
In 1960s USDA Developed 2
Improved Kenaf Varieties
Everglades
71
Everglades
41
Everglades 71
Everglades 41
Stalk Yield
Self Defoliating = Greater Stalk %s
Reduced Branching
Disease Resistance
In 1960s and 1970s
USDA Developed and Refined
Pulping Technology for Kenaf
Production System Research
Late 1980s and 1990s
Newsprint Pulp Fiber, Corrugated Liner Board and
Bond/Specialty Papers to a
Vast Diversity of Potential Products and Uses
Building Materials (i.e. Particle Board, Resin Boards,
Building Insulation, Ceiling Tiles, & Concrete/Fiber
Blocks, etc.)
Absorbents (Animal Bedding, Land and Water
Remediation, Cat, Lizard, and Chicken Litter, etc.)
Textiles (threads, yarns, clothing, tarps, etc.)
Livestock Feed
Fiber in New and Recycled Plastic, and Sound Absorbants
Landscape Mulch, Weed Inhibitors, and Seeding Mats
Seed Oil
Variety Evaluations and Breeding Programs
Plant Density and Row Spacing
Irrigation and Water Usage
Pest Control (Weeds, Diseases, Nematodes, and
Insects)
Tillage Systems, Crop Rotations, and Allelopathy
Yield Component Research
Harvesting Equipment and Processes
Late 1980s and 1990s
Production Research
(Fiber and Livestock Feed)
KENAF COMPONENTS
Flowers/Seeds
Leaves
Stalks
Bark & Core
Whole Stalk Yield Components
Leaves &Stalks
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Kenaf Pl ant 161 DAP
Leaves -
26%
Stalk -
74%
Mature Plants 160 Days
Leaf Biomass Percentages Decrease
as Kenaf Plants Mature
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
150 Days
Days After Planting
20%
36%
Webber 1993
% Leaf Biomass
76 Days
150 Days 76 Days
Kenaf
Leaf, Stalk and Whole Plant
Crude Protein Percentages
Leaves are 14 to 34%
Crude Protein
Stalks are 2 to 12%
Crude Protein
Whole Plant is 6 to 23%
Crude Protein
Kenaf Whole Stalk
Livestock Silage
Has satisfactory digestibility with high
percentage of digestible protein
Digestibility of dry matter ranges from
53 to 58%
Crude Proteins range from 59 to 71%
Other Kenaf Feeds
Kenaf Meal used as a supplement to rice ration for
sheep.
Compares favorably with rations containing
alfalfa meal.
Chopped Kenaf is suitable feed stock for
Spanish goats (meat type).
29% dry matter, 15.5% crude protein and
25% acid detergent.
Kenaf Stalks Average by Weight
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Bark 35%
Core 65%
35% Bark - Long Bast Fibers
65% Woody Core Short Core Fibers
Webber 1993
Stalks Without Leaves
Kenaf Bast Fiber
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Bark
Material
Bast Fiber
Bark Material Pulped Produced
57% Yield of Bast Fiber by Weight
Bale of Bast Fiber
Kalgren 1991
57%
Kenaf Bast Fibers
Paper Pulp Plus
Domestic Supply of Cordage Fiber for
Rope
Twine
Carpet Backing
Burlap
Potential Fiber Source in Manufacturing for
Automobile Components
Carpet Padding
Replace Synthetic Fibers, such as in Fiberglass
Textiles
Fibers for Injection Molded and Extruded Plastics
Bast Fiber =17.4% to 28.6% of Whole Stalk Dry Weight
Environmentally Friendly
Kenaf Bast Fibers
Fiber Lawn Mats Impregnated with Grass Seeds
Spray on Mulches
Along Highway Right of Ways
Construction Sites
To Prevent Soil Erosion from Water & Wind
Fibers in Biodegradable Plastics
Chemical Pulping of Kenaf Woody Core
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Woody Core Core Pulp
Core Material Pulped Produced
41% Yield of Core Fiber Pulp by Weight
Kalgren 1991
Kenaf Core = High Absorbency
Therefore Useful For..
Poultry litter
Animal Bedding
Bulking Agent for Sewage Sludge Composting
Potting Soil Amendment
Toxic Waste Cleanup
Oil Spills
Remediation of Chemically Contaminated Soils
Kenaf Core = 20% to 40% of Stalk Weight
Harvesting Methods Depend on
Production Area
Equipment Availability
Processing Method
Final Product Use
Kenaf Cut and Field Dried
Harvested with Forage Equipment,
Dried and Made into
Small or Large
Square or Round Bales
Cotton Modules for Field
Side Storage
Sugar Cane Harvester
With or Without Modification
Forage Harvester Then a In-Field Cuber
Dry Stalk Kenaf
Low Density =
Light Weight Material
Density of 0.31 g/cm
3
(19.6 lb/ft
3
)
Chopped Kenaf Fiber
Without Compressing
Density = 0.1 g/cm
3
(6.2 lb/ft
3
)
Kenaf Cubes & Pellets
Increase Kenaf Density
390% = 1.21 g/cm
3
(75.6
lb/ft
3
) compared to 0.31
g/cm
3
(19.6 lb/ft
3
) of
unprocessed kenaf.
Processing Methods &
Equipment Depend on
Equipment Availability
Economics Involved (Transportation, Storage, etc.)
Available Commercial Markets
Also, Need of End User
Whole Stalk (unmodified or chopped)
Separated Parts of the Stalk (Bast &/or Core)
KENAF KENAF
Production Production
Potential Potential
Promises Promises
Research and Advantages
Useful Yield Components
Growing Market Opportunities