Agricultural biomass is widely recognized as a clean and renewable energy source, with increasing potential to replace conventional fossil fuels in the energy market. Uganda, like other developing countries, has a high dependency (91%) on wood fuel, leading to environmental degradation. With a coffee production of 233 Metric Tonnes per annum, relating to 46.6 Mega Tonnes of coffee husks from processing, transforming these husks into syngas through gasification can contribute to resolving the existing energy challenges. The objective of this article is to briefly review the energy potential of coffee husks through gasification, and how the gasification process could increase energy recoveries for coffee farmers. Previous findings indicate that the 46.6 Mega Tonnes per year of coffee husks generated in Uganda, with a heating value of 18.34 MJ/kg, is capable of generating 24 GWh of energy. This will address a 0.7% portion of the energy situation in Uganda, while protecting the environment.
Dairy effluent is a potential source of gaseous pollutants associated with global warming and soil acidification. Mitigating such emissions during handling and storage requires substantial financial and labor input. This study evaluated a low‐cost technology for mitigating gaseous emissions from dairy wastewater. For 9 mo, a pilot‐scale vermifilter system installed on a commercial dairy farm was studied. Bimonthly samples of the dairy wastewater influent and effluent from the vermifilter system were collected. These samples’ potential gas emissions (ammonia [NH3], methane [CH4], carbon dioxide [CO2], and nitrous oxide [N2O]) were measured using a closed‐loop dynamic flux chamber method. Results indicated the following reductions in emissions of these gases by the vermifilter system: 84–100% for NH3, 58–82% for CO2, and 95–100% for CH4. Nitrous oxide emissions were mainly below our instrument detection limits and were thus not reported. The vermifilter showed the potential of reducing the global warming potential from the dairy wastewater by up to 100%. This study further indicated that higher ambient temperatures led to higher emissions of CH4 (R2 = .56) and NH3 (R2 = .53) from untreated dairy wastewater. Overall, the vermifilter system has potential to mitigate gaseous emissions from dairy wastewater.
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