Productivity, site evaluation and state of nutrition of Gmelina arborea plantations in Oluwa and Omo forest reserves, Nigeria

Onyekwelu, Jonathan C.; Mosandl, R.; Stimm, Bernd

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2006.04.002

Cited by 51 publications

(50 citation statements)

References 19 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Tropical rain forest is the major source of timber supply and energy crops in Nigeria with high plant diversity of over 4,600 plant species. The forest covers 10% of the countryÕs land area with over 560 tree species at a range of about 30 to 70 species per hectare for trees ≥ 5 cm diameter at breast height (dbh) [8].Terminalia superba is a tree found in the tropical lowland forest in Nigeria. The tree is planted around April at the beginning of the rainy season, and thrives on rich, well-drained alluvial soils, although it can also be cultivated on other soil types namely lateritic sands, gravel and clays, lava, black basaltic clays and crystalline soils.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Characterization of Selected Nigerian Biomass for Combustion and Pyrolysis Applications

Akinrinola¹,

Darvell²,

Jones³

et al. 2014

Energy Fuels

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Biomass is the most utilised form of renewable energy, especially in developing nations, and is a possible replacement for fossil fuel in power generation. The most commonly used method for recovering energy from biomass is combustion. Many countries are exploring the utilisation of energy crops and indigenous residues to deliver sustainable sources of biomass. For these bioresources, detailed characterisation of the fuel properties is essential in order to optimise the combustion processes. In this study, some potential energy crops and woods from Nigeria, namely Terminalia superba, Gmelina arborea, Lophira alata, Nauclea diderrichii, and also one 2 abundant agricultural residue, palm kernel expellers (PKE) were characterised for their combustion properties. Standard characterisation methods such as proximate and ultimate analyses, metals analysis, and ash fusion test were used for this purpose and the results were compared to some UK biomass. In addition, their thermal conversion was assessed by thermogravimetric analysis and pyrolysis-gas chromatographyÐmass spectrometry. Finally, combustion studies were conducted by suspending single biomass particles in a methane flame to obtain information on reactivities and combustion characteristics. Results indicate that the ash fractions in the Nigerian woods were low in K, Si, and Ca, resulting in low calculated alkali indices, hence these fuels are not predicted to cause severe fouling problems. Furthermore, the analysis of the evolved product during devolatilisation from Py-GC-MS suggests that the content of oil is high in Gmelina. Finally, the results from the single particle combustion experiments revealed longer char burn out rate for Lophira and Nauclea when compared with those of Terminalia and Gmelina.Keywords: biomass, torrefaction, energy, combustion, pyrolysis. Nigeria has large reserves of gas and solid minerals, and the largest oil reserves in Africa.Consequently the country has a very high dependence on crude oil, which contributes seedling nurseries, and plantation management [7]. Woods in the plantations include Gmelina, Terminalia, teak, eucalyptus, and pine. Tropical rain forest is the major source of timber supply and energy crops in Nigeria with high plant diversity of over 4,600 plant species. The forest covers 10% of the countryÕs land area with over 560 tree species at a range of about 30 to 70 species per hectare for trees ≥ 5 cm diameter at breast height (dbh) [8].Terminalia superba is a tree found in the tropical lowland forest in Nigeria. The tree is planted around April at the beginning of the rainy season, and thrives on rich, well-drained alluvial soils, although it can also be cultivated on other soil types namely lateritic sands, gravel and clays, lava, black basaltic clays and crystalline soils. The wood air dries rapidly, degrades slightly and is lightweight to medium-weight, with a density ranging from 370Ð730 kg/m³ at a moisture content of about 12% [9]. Once the wood is dried, it becomes stable. The chemical composition

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterization of Selected Nigerian Biomass for Combustion and Pyrolysis Applications

Akinrinola¹,

Darvell²,

Jones³

et al. 2014

Energy Fuels

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Litter decomposition plays an important role in nutrient cycles and controls primary production in forest ecosystems (Clark et al 1998;Onyekwelu et al 2006;Pandey et al 2007), because it is a key ecological process responsible for the transformation of organic matter and energy from the vegetation to the soil in a variety of ecosystems. Among these ecosystems, tropical and subtropical forests are important vegetation types on the Earth, therefore a large number of studies have recently been conducted in these forests in order to understand C and N cycling through investigations of litter decomposition (Wen et al 1989;Wu et al 1990;Wu 1991;Zhao et al 1991;Didham 1998;Gurvich et al 2003;Cleveland et al 2006;Liao et al 2006;Zou et al 2006;Li et al 2007;Kaspari et al 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Litter decomposition in a subtropical plantation in Qianyanzhou, China

Liu

Cui³

et al. 2011

Journal of Forest Research

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

A long-term (20 months) bulk litter decomposition experiment was conducted in a subtropical plantation in southern China in order to test the hypothesis that stable isotope discrimination occurs during litter decomposition and that litter decomposition increases concentrations of nutrients and organic matter in soil. This was achieved by a litter bag technique. Carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentrations in the remaining litter as well as d 13 C and d 15 N during the experimental period were measured. Meanwhile, organic C, alkali-soluble N and available P concentrations were determined in the soils beneath litter bags and in the soils at the control plots. The dry mass remaining (as % of the initial mass) during litter decomposition exponentially declined (y = 0.9362 e -0.0365x , R 2 = 0.93, P \ 0.0001), but total C in the remaining litter did not decrease significantly with decomposition process during a 20-month period. By comparison, total N in the remaining litter significantly increased from 5.8 ± Statistically, litter decomposition has little impact on concentrations of soil organic C and alkali-soluble N and available P in the top soil. This indicates that nutrient return to the topsoil through litter decomposition is limited and that C cycling decoupled from N cycling during decomposition in this subtropical plantation in southern China.

show abstract

“…km (91% of total plantations) of Gmelina have been established in Oluwa and Omo, respectively [35]. From the result of this study it can be seen that the Gmelina arborea plantation ex- •year −1 [36]. It can be seen that there were conscious efforts to extent the plantation area for the planting of exotic, fast growing trees species like Gmelina arborea [35].…”

Section: Discussion and Interpretationmentioning

confidence: 98%

Spatial Pattern of Land Cover Change Using Remotely Sensed Imagery and GIS: A Case Study of Omo-Shasha-Oluwa Forest Reserve, SW Nigeria (1986-2002)

Adedeji¹,

Adeofun²

2014

JGIS

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Spatial patterns of land cover changes in the Omo-Shasha-Oluwa Forest Reserves were conducted on Landsat TM and ETM+ imageries of 1986 and 2002 using remote sensing and GIS techniques. Extent of tree plantation (Gmelina arborea) grew from about 145 sq. km in 1986 to about 322 sq. km in 2002 (122% increase). The natural forest declined from about 2569 sq. km in 1986 to about 2253 sq. km by 2002, while the non-forest areas increased by some 5% from 341 km 2 in 1986 to about 490 km 2 by 2002. Land cover pattern and its changes in the study area are linked to both natural and anthropogenic processes such as illegal logging, demand for soft wood for industries and expansion of settlements. The conversion of natural forest into monoculture plantations should be discouraged because they do not give room for biodiversity. Specific forestry and environmental laws and regulations that significantly address landscape changes in reserved and protected areas should be enforced to reduce activities that negatively affect the forest reserves. There is also the need to develop a wider and more integrated GIS system of the forest and other land resources in the country to assist different kinds of planning and management activities.

show abstract

Productivity, site evaluation and state of nutrition of Gmelina arborea plantations in Oluwa and Omo forest reserves, Nigeria

Cited by 51 publications

References 19 publications

Characterization of Selected Nigerian Biomass for Combustion and Pyrolysis Applications

Characterization of Selected Nigerian Biomass for Combustion and Pyrolysis Applications

Litter decomposition in a subtropical plantation in Qianyanzhou, China

Spatial Pattern of Land Cover Change Using Remotely Sensed Imagery and GIS: A Case Study of Omo-Shasha-Oluwa Forest Reserve, SW Nigeria (1986-2002)

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About