WICHITA, Kan. (AP) _ Ethanol plants in Kansas and five other states will be using a cutting-edge technology that turns crop residue and other vegetation into ethanol.

The technology makes cellulosic ethanol, rather than corn ethanol. Cellulose, the main ingredient in a plant's cell walls, is the world's most common organic compound.

Environmentalists tout it as a cleaner, more efficient source of fuel than corn ethanol. The ethanol industry hopes it will be a promising fuel alternative.

Abengoa Bioenergy of Chesterfield, Missouri, will build a plant near Wichita, but the exact location is still being decided. It would produce more than 11 million gallons of the biofuel per year.

The Department of Energy announced last month it awarded $385 million in grants to six companies, including Abengoa, to help develop the first cellulosic ethanol plants.