Search results for "biofuel"

Sulla (Hedysarum coronarium L.) as Potential Feedstock for Biofuel and Protein

2016

Although sulla (Hedysarum coronarium L.) has many interesting features that could support the production of biofuels (e.g., a high yield and soluble sugar content, N-fixation capacity, low input requirements for its cultivation), no study has assessed the possibility of its use for that purpose. Our objective was to evaluate the potential value for energy production of sulla cut at various stages of growth. Furthermore, the potential of sulla as a dual purpose crop (energy and feed) was investigated. The crop was grown in rainfed conditions in a typical Mediterranean environment (over two complete 2-year crop cycles) and was cut at four different phenological stages. The biomass was divided…

Evaluation of the fuel potential of sewage sludge mixtures with beech sawdust and lignite

2018

Sewage sludge (SS) from municipal wastewater treatment has drawn serious attention of scientists around the world in the attempt to find feasible disposal methods. Therefore, in this work, a solution for valorisation of SS as solid fuel is proposed based on an advanced compositional investigation of SS versus conventional solid fuels, namely, lignite (L) and beech sawdust (BS). A characterisation in terms of proximate analysis and ultimate analysis was performed for the studied materials, both to SS, L, and BS as single fuel and to bi-component mixture formulas of SS and L/BS, in variable proportions of 30:70, 50:50, and 70:30. SS:BS based blends had higher hydrogen (from 4.43 wt. % to 5.14…

Regulating feeding and increasing methane yield from co-digestion of C5 molasses and cattle manure

2014

Abstract The paper investigated the mesophilic (∼35 °C) and thermophilic (∼50 °C) co-digestion of cattle manure and C5 molasses for a variable organic loading rate (OLR). The small scale continuous reactor experiment revealed that thermophilic treatment yielded a maximum 313 ± 16 L/kg VS methane for the feeding ranged between 50% and 70% C5 (v/v). Mesophilic co-digestion, on the other hand, produced maximum 232 ± 32 L/kg VS methane when feeding was ranged between 31% and 47% C5 (v/v). The feeding strategy of this study was sophistically adjusted owing to the unstable volatile fatty acids (VFA) pattern, developed at different stages of the experiment. Attainable molasses feeding for both the…

Torrefaction technology for solid fuel production

2011

The proitability of microalgae biomass farming in Mediterranean environments

2015

The aims of the present study was to assess the economic sustainability of microalgae cultivation in PBRs, ascertain in what conditions of productivity and price it is possible to achieve similar results to those of the irst case, and assess the impact that the results of plant management could have on the balance sheets of farms which may have an interest in expanding their production. Our results show shows that, while prospects are encouraging, there is a need to develop structured supply chains able to confer greater stability to the market and to ensure a higher degree of certainty to stakeholders.

Study of energetic properties of different tree organs in six Olea europaea L. cultivars

2021

AbstractPruning is an important horticultural practice for the management of olive orchards (Olea europaea L.) that generates a considerable amount of residues every year. Olive orchards are increasingly expanding beyond the Mediterranean Basin to new growing Countries (Australia, California, Argentina, Chile and Uruguay) and this will certainly lead to larger availability of pruning material. Currently, the interest in use of olive tree pruning residues for energy purposes is increasing but unfortunately, the information on the differences among organs of the tree, in terms of calorific value and ash content, is scarce. Another unknown aspect is the effect of cultivar vigour on dry matter …

Effect of Microplastics in Hydrothermal Liquefaction (HTL) of Real Municipal Sludge (RMS)

2022

The work herein was focused to study the effect of the microplastics on the yield and quality of biocrude (BC) produced by hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) of real municipal sludge (RMS). HTL experiments with RMS containing 3 % w/w microplastics were conducted at 325 °C and 30 min both in the absence and in the presence of CoMo/Al2O3, NiMo/Al2O3 and activated carbon felt (ACF) as heterogeneous catalysts. A white wax was isolated from BC with a yield of 5, 8 and 6 % w/w daf when CoMo/Al2O3, NiMo/Al2O3 and ACF were used respectively. GC-MS analyses demonstrated that oleamide was present in the wax while FT-IR analyses showed the presence of chlorinated organic compounds, affecting negatively t…

Organic silicon compounds in biogases produced from grass silage, grass and maize in laboratory batch assays

2013

Abstract In the present study the occurrence of volatile organic silicon compounds in biogas produced from grass silage, grass and maize in laboratory batch assays was analyzed and methane potentials were determined. Inoculum from a mesophilic farm digester was used, and its effects were subtracted. Methane yields from grass silage, grass and maize were 0.38, 0.42 and 0.34 m3CH4/kg – volatile solids added (VSadd), respectively. Trimethyl silanol, hexamethylcyclotrisiloxane (D3), octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (D4) and decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5) were detected from all the biogases. Higher yields of volatile organic silicon compounds in the grass (from 21.8 to 37.6 μg/kgVSadd) were detec…

Reactivity of cellulose during hydrothermal carbonization of lignocellulosic biomass

2020

Abstract Hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) of pure cellulose (CE) and birchwood (BW) samples was carried out at temperatures between 160 and 280 °C, 0.5 h residence time and biomass-to-water ratio 1:5, to investigate the reactivity of cellulose in lignocellulosic biomass. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) showed that the CE samples remained unaltered at temperatures up to 220 °C, but were significantly decomposed at 230 °C producing a thermal recalcitrant aromatic and high energy-dense material. FTIR showed that dehydration and aromatization reactions occurred at temperature equal or higher than 230 °C for the CE samples while a similar incre…

An experimental investigation on the long-term compatibility of preheated crude palm oil in a large compression ignition diesel engine

2018

An experimental study was carried out on a large stationary compression ignition engine to evaluate the long-term compatibility and durability issues associated with the use of crude palm oil as fuel. Two different preheating temperatures (60 and 80 °C) were adopted to assess the potential improvements related to lower fuel viscosity. The results obtained, in terms of in-cylinder carbon deposits and engine wear, were compared with the results obtained using ordinary diesel fuel. For each fuel and preheating temperature, the engine was operated for 300 consecutive h, during which several engine lubricant samples were collected and analysed to determine soot and fuel contaminations, viscosity…