Impact of Harvest Date and Cutting Length of Grass Ley and Whole-Crop Cereals on Methane Yield and Economic Viability as Feedstock for Biogas Vehicle Fuel Production
(2019) In Bioenergy Research 12(1). p.137-149- Abstract
Grass ley and whole-crop cereals used for biogas production are often finely chopped for subsequent ensiling and anaerobic digestion. Chopping can impact not only ensiling stability, digestibility and risk of process hick-ups in the digester but also harvesting capacity and fuel consumption. Based on field experiment data, the aim of this study was to investigate how three different nominal cutting lengths in the range of 3.5 mm to 12.5 mm impact methane yield and economic viability of grass ley and whole-crop cereals used as biogas substrate. A shorter cutting length affected the specific methane potential differently for the different crops, + 14 to − 25%. In biogas vehicle fuel production, balancing the additional energy and economic... (More)
Grass ley and whole-crop cereals used for biogas production are often finely chopped for subsequent ensiling and anaerobic digestion. Chopping can impact not only ensiling stability, digestibility and risk of process hick-ups in the digester but also harvesting capacity and fuel consumption. Based on field experiment data, the aim of this study was to investigate how three different nominal cutting lengths in the range of 3.5 mm to 12.5 mm impact methane yield and economic viability of grass ley and whole-crop cereals used as biogas substrate. A shorter cutting length affected the specific methane potential differently for the different crops, + 14 to − 25%. In biogas vehicle fuel production, balancing the additional energy and economic costs for shorter cutting length required an increased methane potential of less than 1% and 3%, respectively. As long as a decrease in cutting length increased the methane potential, the energy balance and economic result improved, despite higher energy inputs. However, mechanisms behind the impact on methane potential deserve further attention. In conclusion, we have shown that it is economically viable to produce methane gas, as a vehicle fuel, from several agricultural crops grown in the south of Sweden, i.e. grass ley and whole-crop rye and wheat, when they are harvested/chopped with a forager, ensiled as biogas feedstocks and processed to methane gas in a large-scale biogas plant.
(Less)
- author
- Prade, Thomas LU ; Svensson, Sven Erik ; Hörndahl, Torsten and Kreuger, Emma LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2019
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Anaerobic digestion, Biofuel, Energy crops, Energy yield, Methane potential, Techno-economic assessment
- in
- Bioenergy Research
- volume
- 12
- issue
- 1
- pages
- 137 - 149
- publisher
- Springer
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85056648657
- ISSN
- 1939-1234
- DOI
- 10.1007/s12155-018-9952-x
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 44fe3365-631c-4720-8b1d-70c80a50b1d6
- date added to LUP
- 2018-11-28 12:45:44
- date last changed
- 2022-04-25 19:13:46
@article{44fe3365-631c-4720-8b1d-70c80a50b1d6,
abstract = {{<p>Grass ley and whole-crop cereals used for biogas production are often finely chopped for subsequent ensiling and anaerobic digestion. Chopping can impact not only ensiling stability, digestibility and risk of process hick-ups in the digester but also harvesting capacity and fuel consumption. Based on field experiment data, the aim of this study was to investigate how three different nominal cutting lengths in the range of 3.5 mm to 12.5 mm impact methane yield and economic viability of grass ley and whole-crop cereals used as biogas substrate. A shorter cutting length affected the specific methane potential differently for the different crops, + 14 to − 25%. In biogas vehicle fuel production, balancing the additional energy and economic costs for shorter cutting length required an increased methane potential of less than 1% and 3%, respectively. As long as a decrease in cutting length increased the methane potential, the energy balance and economic result improved, despite higher energy inputs. However, mechanisms behind the impact on methane potential deserve further attention. In conclusion, we have shown that it is economically viable to produce methane gas, as a vehicle fuel, from several agricultural crops grown in the south of Sweden, i.e. grass ley and whole-crop rye and wheat, when they are harvested/chopped with a forager, ensiled as biogas feedstocks and processed to methane gas in a large-scale biogas plant.</p>}},
author = {{Prade, Thomas and Svensson, Sven Erik and Hörndahl, Torsten and Kreuger, Emma}},
issn = {{1939-1234}},
keywords = {{Anaerobic digestion; Biofuel; Energy crops; Energy yield; Methane potential; Techno-economic assessment}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{1}},
pages = {{137--149}},
publisher = {{Springer}},
series = {{Bioenergy Research}},
title = {{Impact of Harvest Date and Cutting Length of Grass Ley and Whole-Crop Cereals on Methane Yield and Economic Viability as Feedstock for Biogas Vehicle Fuel Production}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12155-018-9952-x}},
doi = {{10.1007/s12155-018-9952-x}},
volume = {{12}},
year = {{2019}},
}