Solar energy is significantly more efficient than corn ethanol for energy production.

New study compares growing corn for energy to solar production. It's no contest L: https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2025/04/new-study-compares-growing-corn-for-energy-to-solar-production-its-no-contest/ C: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47868063 posted on 2026.04.22 at 15:21:46 (c=2, p=4)

New study compares growing corn for energy to solar production. It's no contest https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2025/04/new-study-compares-growing-corn-for-energy-to-solar-production-its-no-contest/ #HackerNews #energyproduction #solarvsbiofuel #cornenergy #sustainability #innovation

New study compares growing corn for energy to solar production. It's no contest ---- - 48 minutes ago | 16 points | 10 comments - URL: https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2025/04/new-study-compares-growing-corn-for-energy-to-solar-production-its-no-contest/ - Discussions: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47868063 - Summary: A new PNAS study reveals solar energy is dramatically more efficient than corn ethanol for energy production. It takes approximately 31 hectares of corn ethanol crops to generate the same energy as one hectare of solar panels. Currently, about 12 million hectares of US farmland—an area the size of New York State—are devoted to corn grown for biofuel due to government blending mandates. Researchers found that converting just 3.2% (about 391,000 hectares) of corn-for-ethanol farmland near transmission sites to solar would produce equivalent annual energy to all current corn ethanol farming, increasing solar's share from 3.9% to 13%. Converting 46% would meet 2050 decarbonization goals. The shift would reduce fertilizer and irrigation use significantly while allowing pollinator-friendly plants beneath panels to sequester carbon and stabilize soil. Additionally, farmers could earn three to four times more per acre leasing land for solar versus crop farming, according to a related Nature Sustainability study. Despite some local resistance and moratoriums, the research suggests solar offers substantial ecological and economic benefits compared to biofuel crops.

New study compares growing corn for energy to solar production Link: https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2025/04/new-study-compares-growing-corn-for-energy-to-solar-production-its-no-contest/ Discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47868063

New study compares growing corn for energy to solar production https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47868063 #hackernews #tech

New study compares growing corn for energy to solar production. It's no contest - https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2025/04/new-study-compares-growing-corn-for-energy-to-solar-production-its-no-contest/ #hackernews

New study compares growing corn for energy to solar production. It's no contest https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2025/04/new-study-compares-growing-corn-for-energy-to-solar-production-its-no-contest/ #solar

New study compares growing corn for energy to solar production Article URL: https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2025/04/new-study-compares-growing-corn-for-energy-to-solar-production-its-no-contest/ Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47868063 Points: 57 # Comments:… https://www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2025/04/new-study-compares-growing-corn-for-energy-to-solar-production-its-no-contest/ #Tech #Technology #TechNews #AI #Gadgets #Software #Cybersecurity #Apple #Google #Microsoft #Startup #OpenSource #HackerNews [Hacker News]