The collection documents research conducted by William Ray Gibbons on the development of renewable fuels and related products derived from agricultural biomass. Materials date primarily from the late 1970s through the 2010s and focus on ethanol production using feedstocks such as fodder beets, corn, sweet sorghum, and agricultural byproducts. The collection includes scholarly articles, technical reports, economic feasibility studies, energy analyses, draft manuscripts, correspondence, and supporting data related to small scale, farm scale, and commercial scale fuel alcohol production.
Also included are draft and final versions of Gibbons’ master’s thesis and doctoral dissertation addressing the technology and economics of ethanol production from fodder beets, along with supplementary research data, tables, and figures. Visual materials such as photographs, slides, transparencies, posters, and charts document experimental procedures, fermentation systems, distillation equipment, and pilot plant operations. Conference papers, seminar materials, and presentations illustrate the dissemination of research findings within academic, agricultural, and industry settings.
The collection further contains newspaper and magazine clippings reflecting public and policy discourse on ethanol and renewable energy over several decades, as well as draft legislative testimony, notes, and briefing materials related to ethanol tax incentives and renewable fuel policy. Additional subject areas include mushroom cultivation using agricultural waste products, energy balance studies, and economic impact analyses of ethanol production in regional and national contexts.
This collection is significant for documenting South Dakota State University’s long term research contributions to renewable energy, applied microbiology, and agricultural biotechnology. It provides detailed evidence of early and sustained investigations into ethanol production technologies, economic feasibility, and energy efficiency at small and community scales. The materials support research into the historical development of the ethanol industry, agricultural innovation in the Upper Midwest, and the role of land grant universities in advancing alternative energy research and informing public policy.
