Agricultural Engineering Today
Year : 2000, Volume : 24, Issue : 2
First page : ( 1) Last page : ( 12)
Print ISSN : 0970-2962.

Conservation and use of biomass for farm energy

Pathak B.S., Director

Sardar Patel Renewable Energy Research Institute, Vallabh Vidyanagar-388 120.

Based on the paper presented in the Expert Panel Discussion on Energy Management for Sustainable Agriculture during the International Conference on “Managing Natural Resources for Sustainable Agricultural Production in the 21 st Century” at New Delhi during February 14–18, 2000).

Abstract

The fast depleting stocks of fossil.fuels could soon lead to a global energy crisis which will impede all economic activities. Present day agriculture is highly dependent on fossil fuel energy and shortage of the latter will jeopardise world food security. Agricultural biomass, particularly crop resides (CR), is a promising source of energy for agriculture in future. Crop residue based and decentralized power generation will create new economic activities and employment in the rural sector. It will reduce environmental pollution and will not add to atmospheric CO₂. Although residues constitute more than 50% of crop harvest, sufficient attention has not been given to the development of equipment and techniques for collection, transort, storage and processing of CR. Studies in Punjab show that surplus residues can be collected in sufficient quantities to sustain power generation in MW range at competitive cost using the conventional combustion — steam, turbine route. Technology for gasification of woody residues and CR briquettes has reached the market. This will permit the use of CR for thermal and mechanical/electrical energy generation in KW range. As a result of the recent change in diesel price, dual fuel mode of operation of gensets using 70% producer gas from CR and 30% diesel has become more economical than operation on diesel alone. The most appropriate way to recover energy from soft CR, however, is through biological treatment. Progress has been made in anaerobic decomposition of solid organic waste at low moisture content to produce methane and compost. The results of laboratory scale trials suggest that biphasic digestion of CR can be another suitable method to obtain both fuel gas and compost from straws of different crops.

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