In response to the EU's REPowerEU initiative (COM (2022) 108) which encourages an increase in biogas production by 20% in member states by 2030 to boost energy independence, it has become essential ...to identify sustainable alternatives to traditional feedstocks for biogas production, especially in the EU Member states where there is still high dependence on corn silage as the main raw material in biogas plants. While corn silage, predominantly used in the European biogas plants today, serves primarily for the livestock sector, alternative sources need to be explored. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the potential of Arundo donax, a perennial energy crop, as an alternative feedstock in a continuous anaerobic process. The biogas yield and its quality, characterized by CH4, CO2, H2S and O2 content, were determined during a continuous process with A. donax, compared with two mixed feedstocks of A. donax and corn silage over a 5‐month period in a continuous anaerobic digestion process. The results revealed that A. donax exhibits a biogas yield and methane content comparable to corn silage, indicating its potential as a viable and sustainable alternative feedstock for biogas production.
The study aimed to evaluate the potential of Arundo donax L. as an alternative to corn silage for biogas production through continuous anaerobic digestion. A. donax demonstrated comparable biogas and methane yields to corn silage. This suggests that A. donax could serve as a sustainable feedstock, aligning with the EU's REPowerEU plan for increased biogas production by 2030.
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Hazelnut fruit samples were collected over 2 years (2020 and 2021) and subjected to four different drying temperatures (100, 120, 140, and 160 °C) and four different drying times of 15, 30, 45, and ...60 min using conduction drying. The analyses performed showed that conduction drying at different temperatures and different drying times had a significant effect on the change in the composition of the hazelnut shell fuel and its mass properties. Comparing the untreated samples over two years and the samples after drying, it can be seen that in 2020, the drying treatment causes a decrease in the percentage of C and H, while in 2021, drying at 160 °C and 45 min causes an increase in C and H values. After treatment, the S content decreased on average, while the value of O increased or remained the same. The greatest increase in heating values (HHV and LHV) was observed at temperatures of 140 °C and 120 °C and the duration of 45 min. When drying was applied, a significant difference in mass change was observed at 120 °C, 100 °C, and 140 °C and 30 and 60 min process durations. The change in heating value is significantly affected by the parameters year of sampling, temperature, and time, while the change in mass of the hazelnut shell is most affected by drying time.
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Agricultural biomass is one of the most important renewable energy sources. As a byproduct of corn, soybean and sunflower production, large amounts of biomass are produced that can be used as an ...energy source through conversion. In order to assess the quality and the possibility of the use of biomass, its composition and calorific value must be determined. The use of nonlinear models allows for an easier estimation of the energy properties of biomass concerning certain input and output parameters. In this paper, RFR (Random Forest Regression) and SVM (Support Vector Machine) models were developed to determine their capabilities in estimating the HHV (higher heating value) of biomass based on input parameters of ultimate analysis. The developed models showed good performance in terms of HHV estimation, confirmed by the coefficient of determination for the RFR (R2 = 0.79) and SVM (R2 = 0.93) models. The developed models have shown promising results in accurately predicting the HHV of biomass from various sources. The use of these algorithms for biomass energy prediction has the potential for further development.
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4.
Dorada i skladištenje krumpira Matin, Ana; Špelić, Karlo; Radić, Tatjana ...
Glasnik Zaštite Bilja,
12/2022, Volume:
45, Issue:
6
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Krumpir (Solanum tuberosum L.) je kroz povijest bio važan izvor hrane u svijetu. Kako bi se krumpir mogao koristiti kroz cijelu godinu potrebno je očuvati njegova fizikalna i kemijska svojstva ...doradom. U doradu krumpira pripada sušenje, čišćenje, sortiranje i preradu u gotove proizvode. Nakon berbe krumpira gomolji se čiste od zemlje i primjesa, dok zdravi i kvalitetno očišćeni gomolji odlaze na skladištenje. Krumpir se čuva u privremenim i stalnim skladištima na optimalnoj temperaturi skladištenja. Održavanjem optimalnih uvjeta u skladištima koji obuhvaćaju praćenje temperature, vlažnosti i sastava zraka smanjuju se gubici na najmanju moguću mjeru (oko 3,7 %), a gomolji održavaju i zadovoljavajuću kvalitetu. Slijedom navedenog, cilj ovog rada je utvrditi i dati pregled za najpovoljniji način dorade i skladištenja krumpira
Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) historically has been an important source of food in the world. In order for potatoes to be used throughout the year, it is necessary to preserve their physical and chemical properties by processing them. Potato processing includes drying, cleaning, sorting and processing into finished products. After the potato harvest, they are cleaned of soil and impurities, healthy and well-cleaned potato goes to the storage. Potatoes are stored in temporary and permanent warehouses at the optimal storage temperature. By maintaining optimal consditions in the warehouses, which include monitoring of temperature, humidity and air composition, losses are reduced to the smallest possible extent (about 3.7%), and the potato maintain a satisfactory quality. Accordingly, the aim of this paper is to determine and provide an overview of the most favorable way of processing and storing potatoes.
Globalne potrebe za energijom u stalnom su porastu, što je u posljednje vrijeme vidljivo i kroz povećanje cijena energenata. Iz navedenog razloga, obnovljivi izvori predstavljaju sve značajniji izvor ...energije. Prema zadnjim europskim trendovima, a zbog stupanja na snagu novih Europskih direktiva jednogodišnje kulture postaju neodgovarajuće za uzgoj zbog negativnog učinka na prehrambeni sektor, ali i zbog sve većeg utjecaja na klimatske promjene. Jedna od takvih sirovina je silažni kukuruz, odnosno kukuruzna silaža koja se koristi kao sirovina u proizvodnji bioplina. U ovom radu dat je pregled dosadašnjih spoznaja o tehnologiji proizvodnje, ali i skladištenju kukuruzne silaže i njene primjene u proizvodnji bioplina. Cilj rada je dati odgovor na pitanje zašto je kukuruz konzerviran u obliku silaže postao učestalo korištena jednogodišnja energetska kultura u proizvodnji biogoriva, ali i ukazati na probleme njegovog korištenja ukoliko se isti trend nastavi u budućnosti.
Global energy demands are constantly growing, which can be seen lately in rising energy prices. Because of that, renewable sources became an important source of energy. According to the latest European trend and due to the entry of new European directives annual crops are becoming unsuitable for cultivation due to the negative impact on the food sector, but also due to the growing impact on climate change. One of the raw materials is corn silage, which is used in biogas production. This paper provides an overview of current knowledge on production technology, but also on storage of corn silage and its application in biofuel production. This paper aims to answer the questions why corn preserved in form of silage has become a frequently used one-year energy crop in biofuel production, but also to point out the problems of its use if the same trend continues in the future.
Potato processing and storage Ana Matin; Karlo Špelić; Tajana Radić ...
Glasnik zastite bilja,
12/2022, Volume:
45, Issue:
6
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Open access
Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) historically has been an important source of food in the world. In order for potatoes to be used throughout the year, it is necessary to preserve their physical and ...chemical properties by processing them. Potato processing includes drying, cleaning, sorting and processing into finished products. After the potato harvest, they are cleaned of soil and impurities, healthy and well-cleaned potato goes to the storage. Potatoes are stored in temporary and permanent warehouses at the optimal storage temperature. By maintaining optimal consditions in the warehouses, which include monitoring of temperature, humidity and air composition, losses are reduced to the smallest possible extent (about 3.7%), and the potato maintain a satisfactory quality. Accordingly, the aim of this paper is to determine and provide an overview of the most favorable way of processing and storing potatoes.
The sunflower ( Helianthus annuus L.) is the most important oil plant in the Republic of Croatia for the production of edible oil from seeds. Subsequent to the oil production, the utilizable biomass ...of postharvest residues remains, being used for the production of solid biofuels, as well as the sunflower heads, which can be used as the ingredients for the production of animal feed. The aim of this study was to determine the physical and chemical properties of the sunflower head with seeds in order to be able to use the whole head in animal feed. The sunflower head, which usually has a diameter of 10 to 40 cm, contains 7% of protein, 16% of fiber, and 4% of oil subsequent to the separation of the seeds, while the sunflower seed contains 38 to 45% of oil and many unsaturated fatty acids, being a valuable source of vitamins. By processing the seeds after extraction, a protein-rich cake, or meal, is obtained, which is also a high-quality animal feed. Three sunflower hybrids were used for the study: Alexa SU , Driver CL , and Surimi CL . The results demonstrate that the Surimi CL hybrid has better physical properties due to a larger head diameter and weight. The Alexa SU hybrid had better chemical properties, as it had a higher starch content and a lower water content and therefore should not be thermically treated before use, while the Driver CL hybrid had the highest fat content and the lowest ash content (p<0,05).
Suncokret ( Helianthus annuus L.) je najvažnija uljarica u Republici Hrvatskoj za proizvodnju jestivoga ulja iz sjemenaka Nakon proizvodnje ulja ostaje korisna biomasa posliježetvenih ostataka, koja se koristi za proizvodnju čvrstih biogoriva, kao i glave suncokreta, koje se mogu koristiti kao sastojci u proizvodnji hrane za životinje. Cilj ovoga istraživanja bio je odrediti fizikalna i kemijska svojstva glave suncokreta sa sjemenkama kako bi se cijela glava mogla koristiti u hrani za životinje. Glava suncokreta, koja obično ima promjer između 10 i 40 cm, sadrži 7 % proteina, 16 % vlakana i 4 % ulja nakon odvajanja sjemenaka, dok sjemenke suncokreta sadrže 38 - 45 % ulja i mnogo nezasićenih masnih kiselina te su vrijedan izvor vitamina. Doradom sjemenaka nakon ekstrakcije dobiva se pogača ili sačma, koja je bogata proteinima i također je visokokvalitetna hrana za životinje. Za istraživanje su korištena tri hibrida suncokreta: Alexa SU , Driver CL i Surimi CL . Dobiveni rezultati pokazuju da hibrid Surimi CL ima bolja fizikalna svojstva zbog većega promjera i težine glava. Hibrid Alexa SU je imao bolja kemijska svojstva jer je imao veći udio škroba i niži udio vode te se stoga ne treba termički obrađivati prije upotrebe, dok je hibrid Driver CL imao najveći udio masti i najmanji udio pepela (p<0,05).
At the beginning and during the development of civilization, natural sources were the only available source of energy. With the development of society and industry, they were replaced by intensive ...use of fossil fuels. Non-renewability and negative impact on the environment called into question the rationality of using such sources. Therefore, natural sources of energy are becoming more and more important, especially biomass, which is becoming an important source of energy due to its ecological advantages. There are numerous ways to convert agricultural biomass into different forms of biofuel. Thermochemical conversion includes a process of pyrolysis in which, under the influence of a high temperature of 400 to 600 °C without the presence of oxygen, very valuable products are obtained in the form of biochar. The aim of this research is to evaluate the energy properties of agricultural biomass (corn, wheat, barley, oats, triticale, rye, soybeans, rapeseed and sunflower) by thermochemical conversion by pyrolysis and analysis of biochar for the evaluation of value-added products and to suggest its application. The mentioned raw materials are characterized by significant pyrolytic conversion potential, i.e. biochar production ranged from 30.03% to 47.0%. Similarly, the heating value (HHV) of biochar after the pyrolysis process increased to 27.11 MJ/kg, which proves that agricultural biomass is a good source of energy per unit mass.
The production of biogas is achieved during anaerobic digestion (AD) using organic matter as a substrate. In Mediterranean countries, a promising substrate is lignocellulose biomass of perennial ...grass Miscanthus x giganteus, due to its potentially high biogas yields, which could be comparable to maize silage. During AD, bacteria convert biomass into more minor compounds, which are further converted to methane by methanogenic archaea. The selection of appropriate microbes for the degradation of the substrate is crucial, and the enhancement of this step lies in the immobilization of microbes on biocarriers. Described here, a microbial consortium, de novo isolated and conditioned to degrade the Mischantus biomass, was immobilized onto several natural biocarriers: natural zeolitized tuff, ZeoSand® (Velebit Agro, Zagreb, Croatia), perlite, and corncob. There was no statistically significant difference in the number of immobilized bacteria across the different materials. Therefore, all proved to be suitable for the immobilization of the consortium. In the consortium, five bacterial species with different shares in the consortium were identified: Enterobacter cloacae, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Enterobacter asburiae, Leclercia adecarboxylata, and Exiguobacterium indicum. After immobilization on each carrier, the share of each species changed when compared to starting conditions, and the most dominant species was E. cloacae (71–90%), while the share for other species ranged from 2 to 23%. The share of E. indicum was 14% at the start. However, it diminished to less than 1% because it was overgrown during the competition with other bacterial species, not due to an inability to immobilize.
Aim of paper is to determine the impact of the mixing of crude soybean oil in mineral diesel fuel on the performance of an internal combustion diesel engine in a tractor. Laboratory testing has ...determined the impact of the use of such a fuel mixture on the rated engine power and exhaust emissions (CO, CO2, HC and NOx). For the purposes of the test, four types of fuel were used, diesel fuel, and mixtures of diesel fuel and soybean degummed oil in concentrations of 5% (S5), 10% (S10) and 20% (S20). Power measurement revealed an increase in average engine power and torque. Hourly fuel consumption was almost the same for all types of fuel. Measurement of exhaust emissions showed an increase in CO, HC and NOx emissions with the addition of soybean oil to diesel fuel
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