Current and innovative technologies for pruning harvesting: A review

Pari, Luigi; Suardi, Alessandro; Santangelo, Enrico; García-Galindo, D.; Scarfone, A.; Alfano, Vincenzo

doi:10.1016/j.biombioe.2017.09.014

Cited by 44 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…The chipping system is formed by a rotor equipped with special knives; it provides a net cut of the pruning and avoids the formation of shredded material. Details of chipping systems of different pruning harvesters, including the MAREV Alba 150 model, are furnished separately [20]. The presence of shredded fine particles in the stored wood chip piles tends to occlude the air spaces among chips, limiting air circulation and slowing down the dying process of the biomass.…”

Section: Phase 1-pruning Harvestmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pelleting Vineyard Pruning at Low Cost with a Mobile Technology

Toscano

Alfano²,

Scarfone³

et al. 2018

Energies

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The goal of this work was to test a patented pruning harvester and a mobile pelleting system specifically designed for the vineyard agripellet chain. Biomass was characterized before and after storage and after the pelleting stage. The performance, the fuel consumption, and the work quality of the harvester were assessed together with the productivity and the power consumption of the mobile pelleting system. Production costs of pellet were estimated for the whole logistic chain, considering two scenarios: Storage and pelleting directly at the farm site or at a dedicated location at variable distance from the fields. For comparison, the direct production of chips without pelleting was considered. Results indicate that harvester performance was quite good and comparable with commercial solutions; the chips produced exhibited excellent storage performance, allowing direct pelleting without forced drying; the pellet quality was good comparable with that produced from forestry biomass. From an economic point of view, in-field pelleting was the most cost-effective solution, with a good margin of profit up to 57€ t−1; on the other hand, when transport to an intermediate storage center is necessary, profit margin reduces gradually and fades off at an average 50 km distance from the fields.

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Section: Phase 1-pruning Harvestmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pelleting Vineyard Pruning at Low Cost with a Mobile Technology

Toscano

Alfano²,

Scarfone³

et al. 2018

Energies

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“…Animal farming residues are produced during animal breeding (like manure).Primary crops residues require collection using suitable machinery [8,9]. Agriculture residues are generally collected in the form of round bales, square bales, or in their chopped form [10]. As a result, there is a demand for additional energy for recovery, harvesting, processing, storage, and transportation to prepare such biomass for energy purposes [11,12].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Influence of the Use of Windrowers in Baler Machinery on the Energy Balance during Pruned Biomass Harvesting in the Apple Orchard

Dyjakon

2018

Energies

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The effective operation of machinery in agricultural processes is crucial in terms of energy efficiency, economic consequences, and environmental footprint. The agricultural sector provides many opportunities to bring biomass to the market. An interesting option is to collect the branches after a regular pruning of apple orchards in the winter-spring season. As the harvesting of pruning residues in apple orchards for energy purposes demands additional primary energy, any measures that increase the amount of collected biomass are desirable. In this study, the influence of pruning harvesting using a baler with and without windrowers on pruning biomass yield, energy input and output flow, energy balance, CO 2 emission reduction, and costs of that operation in apple orchards was investigated. The performed analysis, based on the results from two apple orchards, revealed that the energy balance was positive for both variants. However, in comparison with the harvesting process without windrowers, the use of windrowers in these two orchards caused an increase in pruning biomass yield by 0.45 tDM·ha −1 per year (25%) and 0.54 tDM·ha −1 per year (33%), respectively. The energy balance increased up by ca. 0.8-1.0 GJ·ha −1 , although the fuel consumption by the tractor was higher. The use of windrowers did not significantly increase the costs, but resulted in remarkably better income from biomass selling (ca. €30-40 ha −1 ). Finally, the increase in the mass of harvested biomass led to a higher potential CO 2 emission reduction. As a result, pruning biomass is an attractive source of energy, especially for local markets.Energies 2018, 11, 3236 2 of 15 than 60% of the current renewable energy production in the EU-28, and the majority is sourced from solid biomass [5]. Due to the numerous advantages of using biomass, much attention has been paid to developing advanced technologies to enable its conversion to energy and fuels. The main source of solid biomass is forestry [6], but significant amounts are produced by agriculture as well, including energy crops and agricultural residues [7]. Agricultural residues can be divided into three main groups: primary crop residues, secondary crop residues, and animal farming residues. Primary crops residues are produced on the field (like straw, prunings, and other cuttings). Secondary crop residues are generated during processing of harvested products (like pomace or sunflower husks). Animal farming residues are produced during animal breeding (like manure).Primary crops residues require collection using suitable machinery [8,9]. Agriculture residues are generally collected in the form of round bales, square bales, or in their chopped form [10]. As a result, there is a demand for additional energy for recovery, harvesting, processing, storage, and transportation to prepare such biomass for energy purposes [11,12]. The limited season for harvesting crop residues results in seasonal supply of agriculture-based biomass [13]. Among the crop residues, the seasonal pruning of fruit orchards r...

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“…However, branches and shoots regularly produced are considered a problem rather than an opportunity and, hence, they are not used or incorrectly disposed of [4]. Traditionally, pruning residues are disposed of through open-air burning, releasing a variety of pollutants [5].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Jatropha curcas, L. Pruning Residues for Energy: Characteristics of an Untapped By-Product

et al. 2018

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Jatropha (Jatropha curcas, L.) is an energy crop mainly cultivated for the oil-seed, and the oil is usually used as bio-fuel. However, few studies have reported information about the utilization of the wood as a fuel for boiler heating systems. With 2500 jatropha trees per hectare, it is possible to produce about 3 t·ha −1 ·y −1 of woody biomass from pruning. In addition, jatropha trees are commonly cut down to a height of 45 cm once every 10 years, with a production of 80 t·ha −1 of dry matter of woody biomass. The use of this biomass has not yet been investigated. During the European project JatroMed, woody biomass from jatropha pruning was collected in Morocco. Chemical and physical characteristics of the wood were conducted according to UNI EN ISO standards. The following jatropha wood characteristics have been analyzed: Moisture and ash contents, the ash melting point, heating value, and concentrations of C, H, N, and S. This research focused on the evaluation of the potential use of jatropha pruning for energy production, and the results represent critical data that is useful for future studies and business potential.

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Current and innovative technologies for pruning harvesting: A review

Cited by 44 publications

References 32 publications

Pelleting Vineyard Pruning at Low Cost with a Mobile Technology

Pelleting Vineyard Pruning at Low Cost with a Mobile Technology

The Influence of the Use of Windrowers in Baler Machinery on the Energy Balance during Pruned Biomass Harvesting in the Apple Orchard

Jatropha curcas, L. Pruning Residues for Energy: Characteristics of an Untapped By-Product

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