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A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "A4: Bio-Energy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (18 April 2023) | Viewed by 32662

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Prof. Dr. Jacek Dach

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Guest Editor

Department of Biosystems Engineering, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 50, 60-637 Poznań, Poland
Interests: biomass, biowaste; biogas/biomethane/biohydrogen technologies; process modeling and optimization; GHG emissions reduction; integrated systems in renewable energy storage and production, power-to-X systems

Prof. Dr. Maciej Zaborowicz

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Guest Editor

Department of Biosystems Engineering, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Poznan, Poland
Interests: computer image analysis; artificial neural networks; neural modeling; machine learning; deep learning; computer science in agriculture
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Wei Qiao

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Guest Editor

College of Engineering, China Agricultural University, East Campus, Beijing 100083, China
Interests: anaerobic digestion of waste and wastewater; organic waste treatment; biomethane and biohydrogen production; syngas fermentation; anaerobic membrane reactor; bio-desulfurization of biogas; pathogen removal through AD

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue in Energies, entitled “Advances in Biomass for Energy Technologies,” focuses on recent advances in theoretical and applied research, technology development, and the environmental and social impacts of new bioenergy technologies. The issue includes papers that consider novel current research and technologies as well as a literature review. This Special Issue focuses on biogas and biohydrogen production from biomass and biowaste, new technical and technological solutions in bioenergy production, combined systems such as unstable renewables (wind, sun) split with fully controlled biogas or pyrolysis installations, economic assessment of new solutions and technologies, GHG emissions reduction from biomass management caused by new bioenergy systems, environmental impacts of new systems versus old management technologies, modeling of bioenergy processes, including Artificial Intelligence technics (ANN), lifecycle assessments, bioenergy storage and many other related topics.

Prof. Dr. Jacek Dach
Prof. Dr. Maciej Zaborowicz
Prof. Dr. Wei Qiao
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

biomass
biogas
biomethane
biohydrogen
integrated systems
economic assessment
processes modeling
GHG emissions reduction
biowaste management
bioenergy storage

Published Papers (11 papers)

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Research

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12 pages, 2644 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Airflow Resistance of Solid-Separated Dairy Waste for Drying and Storage

by El Jirie N. Baticados, Sergio C. Capareda and Cole I. Mitchell

Energies 2023, 16(13), 5038; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16135038 - 29 Jun 2023

Viewed by 619

Abstract

The resistance of solid-separated solid wastes (SSDWs) to moderate airflow ranging from 0.05 to 0.30 m³/s-m² was measured at various bed depths and moisture levels. The pressure drop across a loose-fill fixed bed column was observed to increase more rapidly with increasing airflow rates than with increasing bed depths. An increase in the moisture content (10 percentage points) caused a decrease in the pressure drop by an average of 13.2–17.0%, evaluated within a 10–40% moisture content (MC) range. A full-factorial model analysis using standard least squares was used to describe the main effects and interactions of the test parameters in predicting the pressure drop. The Hukill and Ives nonlinear model was able to accurately describe the airflow resistance data of SSDWs at various MCs. Empirical curves describing the SSDW resistance to airflow were developed to aid in the preliminary design of ventilation systems for drying and storage. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Biomass for Energy Technologies)

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13 pages, 2927 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Economic Value Estimation of Biogas Utilization in Public Wastewater Treatment Plants of the Republic of Korea

by Deok-Kyeom Jung and Sung-Min Park

Energies 2023, 16(5), 2150; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16052150 - 23 Feb 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1458

Abstract

This paper presents economic value estimation of improved biogas utilization systems of public wastewater treatment plants in Republic of Korea. Since a large amount of biogas produced at digestion facilities is being wasted as a by-product, the biogas energy utilization system needs to be enhanced. In this paper, three operating options able to utilize the produced biogas are proposed, and then their monetary benefits are estimated by means of net present value calculation. Real operational data from the public wastewater treatment plant located in Sejong city, Republic of Korea, is used to reflect a variation of the rated daily gas production and its concentration according to the weather and seasons, resulting in calculating more reliable results. Additionally, to minimize the estimation errors due to uncertainties of the gas concentration and the gas selling price, a Monte Carlo simulation considering the variation of critical input data is carried out. As a result, the proposed approach can lead to better decisions in selecting the suitable biogas utilization system by forecasting the ranges of possible economic values. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Biomass for Energy Technologies)

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19 pages, 4738 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Application of Post-Flotation Dairy Sludge in the Production of Wood Pellets: Pelletization and Combustion Analysis

by Sławomir Obidziński, Magdalena Joka Yildiz, Sebastian Dąbrowski, Jan Jasiński and Wojciech Czekała

Energies 2022, 15(24), 9427; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15249427 - 13 Dec 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1486

Abstract

The amount and variety of waste increases every year. One of the places where biodegradable waste is generated is the agri-food industry, where it is possible to utilize it for the purpose of energy production. The aim of this research was to determine the possibility of using post-floatation dairy sludge as a raw material for co-pelletization with sawdust. The scope of this work included physical and chemical characterizations of the feedstock, the co-pelletization process, and the combustion of the produced pellets, combined with an exhaust analysis. The obtained values of the pellets’ density at each level of sludge addition allowed us to conclude that the obtained pellets had a good market quality and constituted a full-fledged, innovative solid fuel, in accordance with the guidelines of the latest, currently applicable ISO 17225 standard. Furthermore, adding ca. 20%wt of sludge to sawdust resulted in a 30% decrease in the pelletization power demand, and still, the combustion characteristics of the pellets met the European Ecodesign emission limitations in terms of the CO and NOx content in the exhaust. The addition of post-flotation dairy sludge to sawdust has a beneficial influence on the production of fuel pellets by decreasing the energy consumption of the pelletization process and improving the pellets’ kinetic durability. Due to legal requirements and the pursuit of the circular economy principle, one should expect an increased interest in the use of agri-food waste for the production of biofuels. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Biomass for Energy Technologies)

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14 pages, 4858 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Mechanism of Electron Acceptor Promoting Propionic Acid Transformation in Anaerobic Fermentation

by Hongjing Jing, Wenzhe Li, Ming Wang, Hao Jiao and Yong Sun

Energies 2022, 15(11), 3947; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15113947 - 27 May 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1646

Abstract

To improve the conversion efficiency of propionic acid in the post-anaerobic fermentation of biogas slurry, the anaerobic fermentation process using biogas slurry with a high acid content was simulated in an anaerobic reactor at 35 ± 0.5 °C using sodium propionate as the sole substrate. The effects of different electron acceptors (NO₃⁻, SO₄²⁻ and Fe³⁺) on propionic acid conversion and the succession of microbial community structures were investigated. The results showed that the experimental group with the electron acceptor NO₃⁻ exhibited the best anaerobic fermentation effect, with a maximum propionate removal rate of 94%, which was 36% higher than the control group without an electron acceptor. The maximum methane production rate was 307.6 mL/g COD, an increase of 30% compared with the control group. Thauera, Aquabacterium, Desulfomicrobium, Clostridium_sensu_stricto_1, and other functional microorganisms were all enriched. The dominant functional genes related to redox reactions, such as K03711, K00384, and K03406, were highly enriched in the reactor when Fe³⁺ and NO₃⁻ were added. The study shows that adding an electron acceptor can enhance interactions between microorganisms, achieve efficient propionate conversion, and improve methane production in the system. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Biomass for Energy Technologies)

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15 pages, 2748 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Determination of the Concentration of Propionic Acid in an Aqueous Solution by POD-GP Model and Spectroscopy

by Mariusz Adamski, Mirosław Czechlowski, Karol Durczak and Tomasz Garbowski

Energies 2021, 14(24), 8288; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14248288 - 9 Dec 2021

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2018

Abstract

Biorefining and biorefineries are the future of industry and energy. It is still a long way to complete its implementation, but small biorefineries focused mainly on the production of fuels and energy are more and more frequent in rural areas and large areas located near big cities in which, in addition to fuels and energy, various organic substances of high market value are also produced. In order to optimize biogas production and to control methane fermentation processes, fast and accurate identification of carboxylic acid concentrations, including propionic acid as a precursor to acetic acid, is needed. In this study, a process quality control method was developed to evaluate the propionic acid content of an aqueous solution from the fermentation mass. The proposed methodology is based on near infrared spectroscopy with multivariate analysis and stochastic metamodeling with a denoising procedure based on proper orthogonal decomposition (POD). The proposed methodology uses the Bayesian theory, which provides additional information on the magnitude of the correlation between state and control variables. The calibration model was, therefore, constructed by using Gaussian Processes (GP) to predict propionic acid content in the aqueous solution using an NIR-Vis spectrophotometer. The design of the calibration model was based on absorbance spectra and calculation data from selected wavelength ranges from 305 nm to 2210 nm. Measurement data were first denoised and truncated to build a fast and reliable metamodel for precise identification of the acid content of an aqueous solution at a concentration from 0 to 5.66%. The mean estimation error generated by the metamodel does not exceed 0.7%. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Biomass for Energy Technologies)

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17 pages, 3559 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Assessing the Cost of Biomass and Bioenergy Production in Agroindustrial Processes

by Elias Martinez-Hernandez, Myriam A. Amezcua-Allieri and Jorge Aburto

Energies 2021, 14(14), 4181; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14144181 - 11 Jul 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 5263

Abstract

This paper presents bioenergy value chain modelling to estimate the biomass and bioenergy cost of production and biomass netback in combined heat and power (CHP) systems. Modelling compares biomass cost and netback to analyse the feasibility of CHP systems, as well as the internal rate of return (IRR) and payback period (PBP). Models are implemented into the IMP Bio2Energy^® software (Instituto Mexicano del Petróleo, Mexico City, Mexico) for practical application and demonstrated for bioenergy generation in the agroindustrial processes of tequila production, coffee and orange processing using as biomass the agave bagasse, coffee pulp and orange peels coproducts, respectively. Results show that the CHP systems are economically feasible, i.e., biomass cost of production is lower than netback, PBP between 3 and 4 years and IRR > 20%. The cost of bioenergy is lower than the cost of fuel oil and grid electricity being replaced. The sensitivity analysis for boiler steam pressure showed that there is an optimal pressure for coffee pulp (40 bar), a threshold pressure for orange (60 bar) and agave bagasse (70 bar). Sensitivity to biomass input indicated a maximum capacity where economy of scale does not produce any improvement in the indicators. Results demonstrate the usefulness of the modelling approach and IMP Bio2Energy^® in analysing biomass CHP systems. Full article

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15 pages, 3229 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Particle Size on the Aerobic and Anaerobic Digestion Characteristics of Whole Rice Straw

by Lina Luo, Youpei Qu, Weijia Gong, Liyuan Qin, Wenzhe Li and Yong Sun

Energies 2021, 14(13), 3960; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14133960 - 1 Jul 2021

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2248

Abstract

The effect of reducing particle size on physical properties, the methane yield and energy flow were investigated through the biochemical methane potential (BMP) experiment of aerobic-anaerobic digestion (AAD) of rice straw (RS). The whole straw was crushed through four sieves of different aperture sizes (1, 3, 5, and 7 mm) to obtain the actual and non-uniform particle size distribution (PSD). The results indicated that the actual particle sizes were normally or logarithmic normally distributed. Reducing particle size could significantly promote the aerobic hydrolysis and acidification process, increase the content of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) from 4408.78 to 6225.15 mg/L and the degradation of volatile solids (VS) from 40.56% to 50.49%. The results of path analysis suggested that particle size reduction played an important role in improving lignocellulosic degradability, which was the main factor affecting methane production with the comprehensive decision of 0.4616. The maximum methane production obtained at 1 mm sieve size was 176.47 mLCH₄g⁻¹ VS. The phyla of Firmicutes (61.5%), Proteobacteria (9.3%), Chloroflexi (8.3%), Bacteroidetes (4.1%), Cyanobacteria/Chloroplast (4.6%) were mainly responsible for VFAs production and lignocellulose degradation. However, the net negative energy balance was observed at the 1 mm sieve size due to the increased energy input. Therefore, the optimum sieve size for AAD was 3 mm. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Biomass for Energy Technologies)

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14 pages, 2964 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Chemical Characteristics of Selected Grass Species from Polish Meadows and Their Potential Utilization for Energy Generation Purposes

by Bogusława Waliszewska, Mieczysław Grzelak, Eliza Gaweł, Agnieszka Spek-Dźwigała, Agnieszka Sieradzka and Wojciech Czekała

Energies 2021, 14(6), 1669; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14061669 - 17 Mar 2021

Cited by 29 | Viewed by 2545

Abstract

Analyses were conducted on 10 grass species from permanent grasslands in the Noteć Leniwa and Noteć Bystra valley. Their chemical composition was assayed, and their heat of combustion and heating value were determined. The cellulose content ranged from 33.38% to 38.68%, while the content of lignin ranged from 15.42% to 21.99%, and that of hemicellulose from 30.27% to 34.31%. The heating value of grasses was comparable to that of wood from 2- to 3-year-old willows and other fast-growing energy crops. However, the calorific value of naturally dried grasses may be slightly lower. The quantities of minerals in these grasses, exceeding those in wood, did not result in a lowering of their heat of combustion. The analyses clearly showed that the investigated grass species may be successfully used for energy generation purposes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Biomass for Energy Technologies)

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32 pages, 6547 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Biomethane in Poland—Current Status, Potential, Perspective and Development

by Grzegorz Piechota and Bartłomiej Igliński

Energies 2021, 14(6), 1517; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14061517 - 10 Mar 2021

Cited by 47 | Viewed by 9730

Abstract

Every year the interest in biofuels, including biomethane, grows in Poland. Biomethane, obtained from biogas, is widely used in the Polish economy; the most important two applications are as gas injected into the gas grid and as automotive fuel. The aim of this work is to determine the potential for the development of the biomethane sector in Poland. The following article presents the technological stages of biomethane extraction and purification. The investment process for biogas/biomethane installation is presented in the form of a Gannt chart; this process is extremely long in Poland, with a duration of three years. In the coming months, the Polish Oil Mining and Gas Extraction will begin to invest in biomethane, which will be connected to the gas grid, while the Polish oil refiner and petrol retailer, Orlen, will invest in biomethane to be used as automotive fuel. This article includes a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) and PEST (Political, Economic, Social, Technological) analysis of the biogas/biomethane sector in Poland. The main barriers to the development of the biogas/biomethane sector in Poland are high investment costs, long lead times and a strong conventional energy lobby. The most important advantages of biogas/biomethane technology in Poland include environmental aspects, high biomethane potential and well-developed agriculture. The development of biogas/biomethane technology in Poland will slowly reduce environmental pollution, reduce carbon dioxide emissions and allow for partial independence from the importing of natural gas. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Biomass for Energy Technologies)

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13 pages, 2694 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Optimization of Cattle Manure and Food Waste Co-Digestion for Biohydrogen Production in a Mesophilic Semi-Continuous Process

by Shuang Liu, Wenzhe Li, Guoxiang Zheng, Haiyan Yang and Longhai Li

Energies 2020, 13(15), 3848; https://doi.org/10.3390/en13153848 - 28 Jul 2020

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 2365

Abstract

Biohydrogen production from organic solid waste has shown particular advantages over other methods owing to the combination of waste reduction and bioenergy production. In this study, biohydrogen production from the co-digestion of cattle manure and food waste was optimized in a mesophilic semi-continuous process. To maximize hydrogen production, the effects of the mixing ratio (the proportion of food waste in the substrate), substrate concentration, and hydraulic retention time (HRT) on the co-digestion were systematically analyzed using a Box–Behnken design. The results showed that strong interactive effects existed between the three factors, and they had a direct effect on the responses. Hydrogen was primarily produced via the butyrate pathway, which was accompanied by the competing heterolactic fermentation pathway. Propionate and valerate produced from lipids and proteins, respectively, were obtained along with butyrate. The optimal process parameters included a mixing ratio of 47% to 51%, a substrate concentration of 76 to 86 g L⁻¹, and an HRT of 2 d. Under these optimal conditions, the hydrogen production rate and hydrogen yield were higher than 1.00 L L⁻¹ d⁻¹ and 30.00 mL g⁻¹ VS, respectively, and the predicted results were consistent with the experimental data. The results indicate that the co-digestion of cattle manure and food waste is a practical and economically promising approach for biohydrogen production. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Biomass for Energy Technologies)

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Review

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22 pages, 1264 KiB

Open AccessReview

Process Performance and Functional Microbial Community in the Anaerobic Digestion of Chicken Manure: A Review

by Yapeng Song, Wei Qiao, Jiahao Zhang and Renjie Dong

Energies 2023, 16(12), 4675; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16124675 - 12 Jun 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1678

Abstract

Anaerobic digestion is one of the most widely used treatment methods for animal manure. Chicken manure has high methane production potential and is thus a suitable substrate for biogas plants. However, high nitrogen content inhibits the metabolism of anaerobic microorganisms and thus hinders methane production from chicken manure. Enhancing the performance of anaerobic digestion for chicken manure is indeed a long-standing challenge. This review presents new insights into maintaining methanogens’ activities, the decomposition of acetate, and the dynamics of methanogenic pathways under high ammonia stress. This review also analyzed the possible strategies for alleviating ammonia inhibition effects, including supplementing trace elements, co-digestion with nitrogen-less materials, in-situ ammonia removal, and long adaptation of anaerobic consortia to ammonia stress. The insights obtained in this paper may provide helpful information for a better understanding of anaerobic digestion technology for chicken manure and other nitrogen-rich waste and wastewater. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Biomass for Energy Technologies)

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