Handbook of bioenergy crop plants brings together the work of a panel of global experts who survey the possibilities and challenges. Agronomy journal abstract biofuels yields of annual and perennial energy crops in a 12year field trial. The mechanical strength of the briquettes is characterized by the force necessary for their. This book enlightens the vital economic and social roles. This falls around the middle of our lowest range of potential and hence it remains feasible to exceed this, but only if planting rates were to increase at a. Biomass currently accounts for about 15 per cent of global primary energy consumption and is playing an increasingly important role in the face of climate change, energy and food security concerns. Among those species, some grasses might represent a suitable.
A longterm field trial of important perennial and annual energy crops was conducted. Energy from field energy crops a handbook for energy. Instead, this report investigates instances in which energy crops could be. Iii growth and production of herbaceous energy crops david j. However the foundations for this assumption appear weak and are in need of further investigation. A whole portfolio of technologies will come into play. Biomass yield assessment of five potential energy crops. In contrast to food crops that pull nutrients from the soil, energy crops actually improve soil quality. Energy crops potential in the near future in europe. The investigation of the compressive properties of hemp.
Rising oil prices have lead to more food crops being grown. The cost effective production of bioethanol from nonfood sources, like wood or agricultural waste, would allow for a large source of biomass for fuel production, and reduce our reliance on imported oil. Pdf energy analysis of three energy crops in greece. The primary difference is the degree to which intensive agricultural practices, that tend to need more energy, can be applied for energy crops. Additional hurdle to widespread planting of bioenergy crops identified. The last few years have seen the concept of bioenergy and biofuels come of age. The afbi environment and renewable energy centre at hillsborough linked with the renewable energy crops programme at loughgall has been conducting research into the production and utilisation potentials of biomass crops since the mid1970s. Energy may be generated through direct combustion or gasification of the crops to create electricity and heat, or by converting them to liquid fuels such as ethanol. Crops for energy crops for energy has produ ced the first holistic study looking at the potential contribution of woody energy crops to sw regional renewable energy targets,greenhouse gas reductions,economic development and wider environmental benefits. Acacia auriculiformis acacia cyclops acacia farnesiana. Renewable energy policies have become embodied legislation in a number of countries. Herbaceous energy crops, also referred to as grassy or forage energy crops, are highyielding lignocellulosic crops that remain in cultivation for several seasons and are harvested, on average once a year, after taking two to three years to reach full productivity.
This handbook is intended as a reference for individuals who want a comprehensive overview of energy for agriculture, many of whom are located in remote areas with limited library resources. This comparison allows one to estimate a breakeven price, that is, a price for which the. Heather coleman, assistant professor of biology at syracuse university, studies plant cell walls to grow dedicated energy trees in. Opportunities and challenges facing new energy crops tab. Two of the key forms of energy crop currently grown and utilized for bioenergy are short rotation coppice src. Allen b, kretschmer b, baldock, d, menadue h, nanni s and tucker g 2014 space for energy crops assessing the potential contribution to europes energy future. European policies to promote energy crops hilkka summa european commission dg agriculture and rural development eubionet brussels 28.
In europe, solid biomass energy crops covered about 50,000 60,000 ha of land in 2007. Electricity and heat can be generated using as fuel combustible biomass obtained from dedicated energy crops or organic residues e. Bioenergy crops could deliver 4% of future energy requirements but what are the challenges that need to be addressed. Building upon a body of attitudinal evidence that, for the arable sector, has captured attitudes towards straw production, straw incorporationonfarm use or sale, and willingness to consider growing energy crops glithero et al. Annual herbaceous crops high biomass sorghum sorghum sudan short rotation woody crops hybrid willow hybrid sorghum feedstock opportunities are regionspecific imperative that biomass feedstock systems are sustainable purpose grown energy crops offer long term scale, sustainability, and affordability. Dedicated energy crops must be at least as profitable as conventional crops that could be grown on a given site before farmers will produce energy crops on that site. Examples include plants that are used to produce biofuel, but also trees that are grown for burning wood. Please view the pdf by using the full text pdf link under view to the left. The handbook of energy crops exits only as an electronic publication on the newcrops web site.
A wider range of crops is being explored, including nonfood crops, as well as the use of crop residues rather than grain or seed. The fastestgrowing sector of german biofarming has been in the area of renewable energy crops on nearly 500,000 ha 1,200,000 acres of land 2006. The international energy agency predicts that world energy demand will increase by onethird by 2035. The expected profitability of six cellulosic feedstock crops is compared with two corn zea mays l. Energy cane energy crop production perennial herbaceous crops switchgrass miscanthus annual herbaceous crops high biomass sorghum sorghum sudan. Adequate food supplies and a reasonable quality of life require energy both in commercial and noncommercial forms. Major land use change is one potential impact of producing bioenergy crops. Farmland, food, and bioenergy crops need not compete for.
Space for energy crops assessing the potential contribution. Approach from ad416 cover crops and cash crops will be grown and plant residue harvested. Utilization of mesquite and honey locust pods as feedstocks for energy production. As defined by the european commission, the share of renewable energies in gross domestic energy consumption in the european union has to reach 12% by 2010 1. In my opinion, energy crops hold tremendous potential, tiller says, being careful to add that theyre not the only solution in the worlds transition from fossil fuels. Handbook of bioenergy crops a complete reference to. As the source of twothirds of global ghg emissions, the energy sector will be pivotal in determining whether or not climate change goals are achieved. Bioenergy, in the form of cellulosic biomass, starch, sugar, and oils from crop plants, has emerged as one of the cheaper, cleaner, and environmentally sustainable alternatives to traditional forms of energy. Space for energy crops assessing the potential contribution to europes energy future energy crops are amongst the most sought after raw materials used to produce fuel. The research and development programmes in energy management in agriculture are being implemented through the three allindia coordinated research projects on energy requirement in agricultural sector, utilization of animal energy and renewable energy sources. Support for the department of energy, office of science.
It is a rather small area compared with that used for traditional energy crops grown for transportation biofuels, which cover about 2. To be a viable substitute for fossil fuels, an alternative fuel should not only have superior environmental benefits over the fossil fuels it substitutes, be economically competitive with it, and be available in sufficient quantities to make meaningful impact on energy demand, but it should also provide a net energy gain over the energy. We have a strong commercial focus based on historic relationships and experience in energy trading, agriculture and renewable energy. It is often claimed that they have little negative environmental and. An assessment of the potential for biological solar energy utilization using carbohydrates produced by higher plant photosynthesis as chemical feedstock. In other words, if the additional energy invested in the crop production can be justified in terms of the energy return from growing more crops.
Handbook of bioenergy crops a complete reference to species. Expected acreage of energy crops biomass needed annually. Great britains first wheatbased ethanol plant, which opened in 2010, is expected to produce 106 million gallons 4 million liters of the biofuel each year. Energy crops and biofuels by 2020 the member states of the european union are supposed to have cut their greenhouse gas emissions by 20%, raised the share of total energy consumption met from renewable sources to 20%, and increased energy efficiency by 20%. Report produced for birdlife europe, european environmental.
Handbook of energy for world agriculture 1st edition. Mp437 corn production handbook university of arkansas, united states department of agriculture, and county governments cooperating. Energy from field energy crops a handbook for energy producers. Agriculture and food production general publications renewable energy renewable energy and energy crops. Additional hurdle to widespread planting of bioenergy.
At 20062009 costs and yields from literature, none would be more profitable than the cornbased systems. The atwater system is based on the demonstrated principle that the oxygen used, the carbon dioxide ormed, and the energy evolved in oxidizing foods are the same whether this oxidation takes place in the. The purpose is to put energy for agriculture in perspective by presenting numerous national and regional examples of energy usage. Biogas from dedicated energy crops in northern italy. Agricultural energy consumption includes energy needed to grow and harvest crops and energy needed to grow livestock. Renewable energy crops agrifood and biosciences institute. The energy yield from biomass is highest when energy crops are used to generate electricity in a power plant, with energy yields perhaps 10 times greater than total energy inputs. Energy crops can also be grown to boost gas yields where feedstocks have a low energy content, such as manures and spoiled grain. Ercoli l, mariotti m, masoni a, bonari e 1999 effect of irrigation and nitrogen fertilization on biomass yield and efficiency of energy use in crop production of miscanthus. Agronomy journal abstract biofuels yields of annual and. It also shows the spatial distribution of potential. This study considers the harvesting of three herbaceous energy crops. Handbook of bioenergy crops is a unique reference and guide, with extensive coverage of more than 80 of the main bioenergy crop species.
It is often claimed that they have little negative environmental and indirect land use change impacts. Mapping national yield potential for biomass crops challenges need for mapped estimates of longterm production potential for a wide range of biomass crops, prepared in a consistent manner that permits intercomparison little is known about the environmental tolerances of biomass crops yield histories for biomass crops are limited. S and tucker g 2014 space for energy crops assessing the. Prospects for dedicated energy crop production and attitudes. The energy crops company is an advisory and implementation group which has grown from an established foundation of project development and operation in the renewable energy sector we have a strong commercial focus based on historic relationships and experience in energy trading, agriculture and renewable energy. Case studies beuchte energy village a district heating system was established in the small village of beuchte in 2008.
The energy crops company is an advisory and implementation group which has grown from an established foundation of project development and operation in the renewable energy sector. An important saving in fossil fuels can be achieved by using biomass as an energy source. Annual energy crops grown for biofuels eg oilseed rape. How do we manage this impact in the face of competing land use demands such as biodiversity, water. This study focuses on the scope for additional production of energy crops in europe outside forests, the possible nature and scale of any spare land and some of the sustainability issues associated with increasing output. This book enlightens the vital economic and social roles of. Dedicated energy crops dec mainly maize, triticale and sorghum are often used to integrate other substrates, such as agricultural residues.
Fike encyclopedia of life support systems eolss different about the notion of energy cropping and biorefineries today are the scale and intensity of the enterprises. Prospects for dedicated energy crop production and. The basic energy sciences bes program is a multipurpose, scientific research effort that fosters and supports fundamental research to expand the scientific foundations for new and improved energy technologies and for understanding and mitigating the environmental impacts of energy use. The main findings of the work are that that planting energy crops on 3.
Energy crops rsc publishing royal society of chemistry. December, 20 energy analy sis of three energy crops in greec e vol. Fike encyclopedia of life support systems eolss different about the notion of energy cropping and biorefineries today are. As an example, i present production of rape as energy crop. The heat is produced in two 250 kw furnaces using woodchips which are produced from local srp poplar by a local farmer. Energy crops is a comprehensive reference source which looks at this topic from the plant and agricultural science perspective. Energy crops are a versatile fuel source that when utilized in substitution of fossil fossils can reduce the ghg impact of energy generation.
Mechanical properties of energy crops aivars kakitis, imants nulle, dainis ancans. More structural definitions of land restrictions placed on energy crop. Researchers studied the amount of energy needed for growing corn and soybeans along with the amount of energy to convert those crops into biofuels and found that soybeans use less fertilizers and pesticides, and released less pollutants, including greenhouse gases, into the environment source. Corporate author access the full text link to html. But within cellulosic ethanol, i do think dedicated energy crops are critical to the largescale expansion, she says. This report concentrates on the cost of producing dedicated energy crops and compare those costs to the profitability of conventional crops. This falls around the middle of our lowest range of potential and hence it remains feasible to exceed this, but only if planting rates were to increase at a dramatic rate. In europe, however, using wheat as an energy crop is on the rise. Energy crops are a part of modern biomass or bio energy and can be used for energy in the fields of heat, electricity and fuels. Evaluation of willow clones best suited to northern ireland conditions. The different types of energy crops are described, including grain and seed crops, sugar crops, oil crops, dedicated biomass crops and algae, as an introduction to the detailed chapters on.
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