Energy Opportunities from Lignocellulosic Biomass for a Biorefinery Case Study

Abstract

This work presents some energy considerations concerning a biorefinery case study that has been carried out by the CRB/CIRIAF of the University of Perugia. The biorefinery is the case study of the BIT3G project, a national funded research project, and it uses the lignocellulosic biomass that is available in the territory as input materials for biochemical purposes, such as cardoon and carthamus. The whole plant is composed of several sections: the cardoon and carthamus seed milling, the oil refinement facilities, and the production section of some high quality biochemicals, i.e., bio-oils and fatty acids. The main goal of the research is to demonstrate energy autonomy of the latter section of the biorefinery, while only recovering energy from the residues resulting from the collection of the biomass. To this aim, this work presents the quantification of the energy requirements to be supplied to the considered biorefinery section, the mass flow, and the energy and chemical characterization of the biomass. Afterwards, some sustainability strategies have been qualitatively investigated in order to identify the best one to be used in this case study; the combined heat and power (CHP) technology. Two scenarios have been defined and presented: the first with 6 MWt thermal input and 1.2 MWe electrical power as an output and the second with 9 MWt thermal input and 1.8 MWe electrical power as an output. The first scenario showed that 11,000 tons of residual biomass could ensure the annual production of about 34,000 MWht, equal to about the 72% of the requirements, and about 9600 MWhe, equal to approximately 60% of the electricity demand. The second scenario showed that 18,000 tons of the residual biomass could ensure the total annual production of about 56,000 MWht, corresponding to more than 100% of the requirements, and about 14,400 MWhe, equal to approximately 90% of the electricity demand. In addition, the CO 2 emissions from the energy valorization section have been quantified and the possibility of re-using the CO 2 flow in order to produce methane is described.

Herbaceous Oil Crops, a Review on Mechanical Harvesting State of the Art

“…A possible strategy to reach this goal is to improve the harvesting operations. Harvesting is the key stage of the supply chain that strongly affects both costs and biomass quality and it plays a key role in the three pillars of the sustainability [22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31]. In a developed country, it is practically impossible to set up a sustainable supply chain for a given crop without effective mechanical harvesting [32].…”

Characterization of Various Biomass Feedstock Suitable for Small-Scale Energy Plants as Preliminary Activity of Biocheaper Project

“…The use of lignocellulosic feedstocks and in particular the residues from agriculture and forestry sectors can reduce greenhouse gas emission and improve the environmental performance of bioenergy conversion systems. Also some energy crops, like cardoon and safflower, have a potential of growing since they are cultivated on the marginal lands and would not compete with conventional crops for food and feed [1,2]. A strategic sector that could significantly contribute to solid biomass supply is the maintenance of rivers to prevent hydrogeological and fire risk.…”

Biomass Production of Three Biofuel Energy Plants’ Use of a New Carbon Resource by Carbonic Anhydrase in Simulated Karst Soils: Mechanism and Capacity

“…(FW) (D 3 ). However, at the end of the stress phase on day 21, only the CA activity of the D 1 treatment was higher than that of the control at 6201 WAU g −1 (FW) ± 75 WAU g −1 (FW) vs. 5760 WAU g −1 (FW) ± 151 WAU g −1 (FW), with the other two treatments, D 2 and D 3 , showing a decrease in activity. When combined with the results for MDA content (Figure 1), we attributed the inhibition of activity to oxidative damage to plant cells from drought stress.…”

“…Due to limited land availability for cultivation, few countries can grow plants for biofuel without other considerations. Although marginal lands are not suited for agricultural production due to poor soil quality, harsh climates, rough terrain, and high levels of pollution, these lands are recommended for the production of biomass feedstock, which has garnered widespread attention [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8]. As an important marginal land resource, karst landscapes occupy approximately 11.2% of the surface of the earth.…”

“…However, bicarbonate is another inorganic carbon source that can be used in photosynthesis, which is absorbed through the roots. In fact, plant growth in karst habitats is almost always adversely affected by high concentrations of HCO 3 − in the range of 3 mmol·kg −1 to 10 mmol·kg −1 , and high pH values ranging from 7.4 to 8.3 [10]. In a recent study, the addition of an appropriate concentration of bicarbonate increased the biofuel production of microalgae (Scenedesmus sp.…”