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Miscanthus

 
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Miscanthus
 
 
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Miscanthus is a genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
 of about 15 species of perennial grasses
Poaceae

Poaceae or Gramineae is a family in the Class Liliopsida of the Magnoliophyta. Plants of this family are usually called grasses; the shrub- or tree-like plants in this family are called bamboo ....
 native to subtropical and tropical regions of Africa
Africa

Africa is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km? including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area....
 and southern Asia
Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
, with one species (M. sinensis) extending north into temperate eastern Asia.

Selected species

sterile hybrid between M. sinensis and M. sacchariflorus, Miscanthus giganteus
Miscanthus giganteus

Miscanthus giganteus is a large perennial grass used for energy production. It is currently used commercially in the UK with a rapidly growing market demand....
 or "E-grass", has been trialed as a biofuel
Biofuel

Biofuel is defined as solid, liquid or gaseous fuel derived from relatively recently dead biological material and is distinguished from fossil fuels, which are petroleum#formation....
 in Europe since the early 1980s.






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Encyclopedia


Miscanthus is a genus
Genus

A genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The taxonomic ranks are domain , kingdom , phylum, class , order , family , genus, and species....
 of about 15 species of perennial grasses
Poaceae

Poaceae or Gramineae is a family in the Class Liliopsida of the Magnoliophyta. Plants of this family are usually called grasses; the shrub- or tree-like plants in this family are called bamboo ....
 native to subtropical and tropical regions of Africa
Africa

Africa is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km? including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area....
 and southern Asia
Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
, with one species (M. sinensis) extending north into temperate eastern Asia.

Selected species
  • Miscanthus floridulus
  • Miscanthus giganteus
    Miscanthus giganteus

    Miscanthus giganteus is a large perennial grass used for energy production. It is currently used commercially in the UK with a rapidly growing market demand....
  • Miscanthus sacchariflorus (Amur silver-grass)
  • Miscanthus sinensis
    Miscanthus sinensis

    Miscanthus sinensis is a Poaceae native to eastern Asia throughout most of China, Japan and Korea....
  • Miscanthus tinctorius
  • Miscanthus transmorrisonensis


Uses


M. giganteus

The sterile hybrid between M. sinensis and M. sacchariflorus, Miscanthus giganteus
Miscanthus giganteus

Miscanthus giganteus is a large perennial grass used for energy production. It is currently used commercially in the UK with a rapidly growing market demand....
 or "E-grass", has been trialed as a biofuel
Biofuel

Biofuel is defined as solid, liquid or gaseous fuel derived from relatively recently dead biological material and is distinguished from fossil fuels, which are petroleum#formation....
 in Europe since the early 1980s. It can grow to heights of more than 3.5 m in one growth season. Its dry weight annual yield
Yield

Yield in science, mathematics, and engineering:* Semiconductor device fabrication, the proportion of devices produced which function correctly...
 can reach 25t/ha (10t/acre). It is sometimes called "Elephant Grass" and thus confused with the African grass Pennisetum purpureum, also called "Elephant Grass."

The rapid growth, low mineral content and high biomass
Biomass

Biomass, as a renewable energy source, refers to living and recently dead biological material that can be used as fuel or for industrial production....
 yield of Miscanthus make it a favorite choice as a biofuel
Biofuel

Biofuel is defined as solid, liquid or gaseous fuel derived from relatively recently dead biological material and is distinguished from fossil fuels, which are petroleum#formation....
. After harvest, it can be burned to produce heat and steam for power turbines. The resulting CO2
Carbon dioxide

Carbon dioxide is a chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalent bond to a single carbon atom. It is a gas at standard temperature and pressure and exists in Earth's atmosphere in this state....
 emissions are equal to the amount of CO2 that the plant used up from the atmosphere during its growing phase, and thus the process is greenhouse gas
Greenhouse gas

Greenhouse gases are gases in an atmosphere that Absorption and Emission radiation within the Infrared#Different regions in the infrared range....
-neutral, if one does not consider any fossil fuels that might have been used in planting, fertilizing, or harvesting the crop, or in transporting the biofuel to the point of use. When mixed in a 50%-50% mixture with coal, it can be used in some current coal-burning power plant
Fossil fuel power plant

A fossil-fuel power plant is a power stations that burns fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas or petroleum to produce electricity.Fossil-fuel power plants are designed on a large scale for continuous operation....
s without modifications.

M. sinensis

M. sinensis is cultivated as an ornamental plant
Ornamental plant

Ornamental plants are typically grown in the flower garden or as house plants. Most commonly they are grown for the display of their flowers. Other common ornamental features include leaves, scent, fruit, Plant stem and bark....
. In Japan, where it is known as susuki, it is considered an iconic plant of late summer and early autumn. It is mentioned in Man'yoshu (Vol8 1538) as one of the seven autumn herbs (akinonanankusa). It is used for the eighth month in hanafuda
Hanafuda

are playing cards of Japanese origin , used to play a number of games. The name literally translates as 'flower cards'....
 playing cards. It is decorated with Bush clover for the Mid-Autumn Festival
Mid-Autumn Festival

The Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival, or in Chinese, Zhongqiu Jie , is a popular harvest festival celebrated by Han Chinese people and Vietnamese people , dating back over 3,000 years to moon worship in China's Shang Dynasty....
. Miscanthus has also excellent fiber
Fiber

Fiber or fibre is a class of materials that are continuous filaments or are in discrete elongated pieces, similar to lengths of yarn. They are very important in the biology of both plants and animals, for holding tissue s together....
 properties for paper
Paper

Paper is thin material mainly used for writing upon, printing upon or packaging. It is produced by pressing together moist fibers, typically cellulose pulp derived from wood, rags or grasses, and drying them into flexible sheets....
making.

External links

  • (German)
  • - Miscanthus Research at the University of Illinois