Airborne fungi in biofuel wood chip storage sites

Barontini, M.; Crognale, Silvia; Scarfone, A.; Gallo, Pietro; Gallucci, Francesco; Petruccioli, Maurizio; Pesciaroli, Lorena; Pari, Luigi

doi:10.1016/j.ibiod.2013.12.020

Cited by 29 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Despite this drying, as the storage period becomes longer, mold tends to develop more frequently. This calls for correct handling of the wood chips [23,[33][34][35]. The storage of whole trees too is connected with storage losses.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Options for Optimizing the Drying Process and Reducing Dry Matter Losses in Whole-Tree Storage of Poplar from Short-Rotation Coppices in Germany

Pecenka

Lenz

Hering

2020

Forests

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For sustainable production of wood in short-rotation coppices and agroforestry systems, it is necessary to optimize the storage processes to achieve low dry matter losses together with low-cost drying. The harvesting of the trees can be carried out very efficiently with modified forage harvesters or tractor-powered mower-chippers. The wood chips produced can be dried naturally at low cost in open-air piles. However, this type of storage is connected with high dry matter losses of up to about one fourth in the course of seven-month storage. Although harvesting whole trees is connected with significantly higher costs, lower dry matter losses are to be expected from storing the trees in piles. Consequently, in this study, the storage and drying behavior of poplar under different German weather conditions and depending on the structure of the storage piles has been examined in detail. After a seven-months storage period, the trees still displayed moisture contents of 41–44% following an initial moisture content of 56% but achieved very low dry matter losses of only 4–7%. Moisture contents of 35–39% could only be achieved in October after a further two-months drying period under favorable weather conditions. All storage piles were built up on approximately 30 cm high support timbers for better ventilation. Additionally, covering the ground with a fleece did not have any influence on the drying behavior, nor did different pile heights. Smaller tree trunk diameters are not only connected with a higher share of bark or ash, but also thinner trunks tend to become damp again more quickly after rainfall. That is why whole-tree storage is suitable above all for medium or longer rotation periods with which, under favorable conditions, the higher harvesting costs can be compensated by a higher wood chip quality and lower storage losses.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Options for Optimizing the Drying Process and Reducing Dry Matter Losses in Whole-Tree Storage of Poplar from Short-Rotation Coppices in Germany

Pecenka

Lenz

Hering

2020

Forests

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“…The most common diseases caused by this species are keratitis, onychomycosis, and hyalohyphomycosis [36][37]. The less frequent occurrence of the genus Fusarium was identified also in other studies [2,15,38]. In the study on birch and spruce wood from Finland, the spores of genus Fusarium and Trichoderma were identified as well.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 66%

“…It was discovered that the amount of spores in the air during manipulation of wood chips will decrease below the value of 1,000 CFU.m -3 (colony forming unit.m -3 ) only at a distance of 300 m from the pile. This can therefore be considered dangerous and potentially harmful to human health [15].…”

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confidence: 99%

Biological Risks from Long-Term Storage of Wood Chips

Lieskovský¹,

Gejdoš²,

Messingerová³

et al. 2017

Pol. J. Environ. Stud.

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Renewable energy sources based on wood are becoming increasingly important and popular. However, their increased consumption is inevitably connected with questioning their quality [1][2]. Quality is in specific cases determined by the method of production and the storage process [3][4]. The quality of wood chips is at present evaluated according to the calorific value and moisture content, which are often influenced, besides the wood species itself, by weather conditions and storage method [5][6][7][8][9]. The increased number of plants using wood chips as a source of energy is connected with raising the question of health and safety hazards associated with the production and storage of wood chips. The factors most hazardous for human health are represented by the hazards associated with the activity of fungi and moulds in Pol. J. Environ. Stud. Vol. 26, No. 6 (2017), 2633-2641 AbstractThe aim of our study was to monitor and analyze the main biological hazards connected to the long-term storage of wood chips for energy production. The analysis was carried out in four high-capacity storage yards of the town heating plants in the Banská Bystrica self-governing region in Slovakia. Five samples were taken from each pile of a rectangular shape and volume over 4,000 m 3 ; the sampling was carried out at the beginning of the monitoring period and at the end of the monitoring period (after one year). Thirtyfour species of microscopic fungi were identified (18 at the beginning of the monitoring period and 16 at the end of the monitoring period). Thirty-three of them can potentially cause severe diseases. Fungi of the genus Aspergillus, causing severe diseases, were identified as the most abundant. The research confirmed that if the length of storage time is more than a year, the potential hazards for human health increase due to the increasing number of spore-forming pathogens. Following the monitoring of atmospheric conditions the highest increase of harmful spores was recorded at the average annual temperature of 10ºC and precipitation of over 1,000 mm a year.

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“…Concerning human health, higher biomass moisture content causes an increase of CO and VOC emission [7] as well as the formation of carcinogenic compounds from wood combustion [13,14]. The fine particles may be responsible for severe diseases, like invasive pulmonary infections or broncho-pulmonary allergies [15], whereas the larger particles one may have a role in air and soil contamination [16]. Forced hot air drying is a process for the conditioning of biomass (firewood and/or wood chips) which allows increasing the efficiency and flexibility of combustion, transportation, and storage process [17].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wood Chip Drying through the Using of a Mobile Rotary Dryer

Giudice¹,

Acampora²,

Santangelo³

et al. 2019

Energies

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Drying is a critical point for the exploitation of biomass for energy production. High moisture content negatively affects the efficiency of power generation in combustion and gasification systems. Different types of dryers are available however; it is known that rotary dryers have low cost of maintenance and consume 15% and 30% less in terms of specific energy. The study analyzed the drying process of woody residues using a new prototype of mobile rotary dryer cocurrent flow. Woodchip of poplar (Populus spp.), black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.), and grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) pruning were dried in a rotary drier. The drying cycle lasted 8 h for poplar, 6 h for black locust, and 6 h for pruning of grapevine. The initial biomass had a moisture content of around 50% for the poplar and around 30% for grapevine and black locust. The study showed that some characteristics of the biomass (e.g., initial moisture content, particle size distribution, bulk density) influence the technical parameters (i.e., airflow temperature, rate, and speed) of the drying process and, hence, the energy demand. At the end of the drying process, 17% of water was removed for poplar wood chips and 31% for grapevine and black locust wood chips. To achieve this, result the three-biomass required 1.61 (poplar), 0.86 (grapevine), and 1.12 MJ kgdry solids−1 (black locust), with an efficiency of thermal drying (η) respectively of 37%, 12%, and 27%. In the future, the results obtained suggest an increase in the efficiency of the thermal insulation of the mobile dryer, and the application of the mobile dryer in a small farm, for the recovery of exhaust gases from thermal power plants.

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Airborne fungi in biofuel wood chip storage sites

Cited by 29 publications

References 31 publications

Options for Optimizing the Drying Process and Reducing Dry Matter Losses in Whole-Tree Storage of Poplar from Short-Rotation Coppices in Germany

Options for Optimizing the Drying Process and Reducing Dry Matter Losses in Whole-Tree Storage of Poplar from Short-Rotation Coppices in Germany

Biological Risks from Long-Term Storage of Wood Chips

Wood Chip Drying through the Using of a Mobile Rotary Dryer

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