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Bioenergy Conversion Technologies
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Bioenergy Conversion Technologies

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2022) | Viewed by 16599

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Emmanuel Revellame

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Louisiana, Lafayette, LA 70503, USA
2. Energy Institute of Louisiana, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Lafayette, LA 70503, USA
Interests: bioenergy; bioprocessing; chemical reaction engineering; wastewater treatment; biological wastewater treatment; environmental biotechnology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Randy Maglinao

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Advanced Fuels Center, Montana State University-Northern, Havre, MT 59501, USA
Interests: biofuels; biomass conversion; biodiesel production; pyrolysis; transesterification; heterogeneous catalysis; chemical reaction engineering

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The purpose of this Special Issue is to present a collection of papers detailing recent and promising advances in the conversion of biomass into different forms of bioenergy. Bioenergy conversion technologies are roughly classified as either biochemical or thermochemical processes. However, due to the intrinsically variable or heterogeneous characteristics of biomass feedstock, conversion pathways that combine biochemical and thermochemical technologies are considered to have the greatest potential. These pathways often produce other useful by-products in addition to bioenergy, which significantly contributes to their techno-economic viability. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

  1. Development of biomass feedstock;
  2. Biomass pretreatment, fractionation, and extraction;
  3. Bioenergy production processes:
    • Direct combustion processes,
    • Pyrolysis,
    • Carbonization,
    • Gasification,
    • Liquefaction,
    • Traditional anaerobic digestion (for biogas production),
    • Altered anaerobic digestion (for production of products other than biogas). This includes electrochemical conversion technologies (i.e., MFC, MEC),
    • Biodiesel production technologies;
  4. Fuel upgrading;
  5. Techno-economic analysis and life cycle assessment.

Dr. Emmanuel Revellame
Dr. Randy Maglinao
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

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 feedstock development
  • biomass pretreatment techniques
  • thermochemical conversion technologies
  • biochemical conversion technologies
  • TEA and LCA

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 1936 KiB  
Article
Multifaceted Analysis of the Use of Catalytic Additives for Combustion with Hemp Pellets in a Low-Power Boiler
by Bernard Knutel, Błażej Gaze, Paulina Wojtko, Marcin Dębowski and Przemysław Bukowski
Energies 2022, 15(6), 2034; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15062034 - 10 Mar 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1672
Abstract
This paper presents the results of a multifaceted analysis of the application of catalytic additives to hemp pellets’ combustion in a low-power boiler. The research concerns the effects of five catalytic additives applied inside the boiler’s combustion chamber—based on TiO2, MnO [...] Read more.
This paper presents the results of a multifaceted analysis of the application of catalytic additives to hemp pellets’ combustion in a low-power boiler. The research concerns the effects of five catalytic additives applied inside the boiler’s combustion chamber—based on TiO2, MnO2, Cu(NO3)2 × 3H2O, H2PtCl6 solution, and 99.5% pure urea solution—on the quality of hemp pellets’ combustion process. For this purpose, technical and elemental analyses of the used fuel were performed. The chemical composition of exhaust gases (NOx, CO, SO2, and PM content) was also examined using an exhaust gas analyzer and a dust meter. The highest reductions in emissions of individual pollutants were for CO (−113%; combustion with Ad3), NOx (−66%; combustion with Ad 4), SO2 (−48%; combustion with Ad3), and PM (−78%; combustion with Ad1). The study also determined the amount of avoided costs due to the use of catalytic additives, as well as the annual prevented CO2 emissions to the atmosphere. Due to rising fuel and energy prices, this study could be helpful for biomass boiler owners who would like to burn locally available raw materials and increase the combustion process’ efficiency. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioenergy Conversion Technologies)
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12 pages, 4031 KiB  
Article
Pyrolysis of Biomass Wastes into Carbon Materials
by Małgorzata Sieradzka, Cezary Kirczuk, Izabela Kalemba-Rec, Agata Mlonka-Mędrala and Aneta Magdziarz
Energies 2022, 15(5), 1941; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15051941 - 07 Mar 2022
Cited by 34 | Viewed by 4037
Abstract
This study presents the results of the biomass pyrolysis process focusing on biochar production and its potential energetic (as solid fuel) and material (as adsorbent) applications. Three kinds of biomass waste were investigated: wheat straw, spent coffee grounds, and brewery grains. The pyrolysis [...] Read more.
This study presents the results of the biomass pyrolysis process focusing on biochar production and its potential energetic (as solid fuel) and material (as adsorbent) applications. Three kinds of biomass waste were investigated: wheat straw, spent coffee grounds, and brewery grains. The pyrolysis process was carried out under nitrogen atmosphere at 400 and 500 °C (residence time of 20 min). A significant increase in the carbon content was observed in the biochars, e.g., from 45% to 73% (at 400 °C) and 77% (at 500 °C) for spent coffee grounds. In addition, the structure and morphology were investigated using scanning electron microscopy. Thermal properties were studied using a simultaneous thermal analysis under an oxidising atmosphere. The chemical activation was completed using KOH. The sorption properties of the obtained biochars were tested using chromium ion (Cr3+) adsorption from liquid solution. The specific surface area and average pore diameter of each sample were determined using the BET method. Finally, it was found that selected biochars can be applied as adsorbent or a fuel. In detail, brewery grains-activated carbon had the highest surface area, wheat straw-activated carbon adsorbed the highest amount of Cr3+, and wheat straw chars presented the best combustion properties. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioenergy Conversion Technologies)
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13 pages, 2894 KiB  
Article
Physicochemical Variation of the Main Components during Wild Pretreatment Process Based on the Concept of the Whole Utilization of Bamboo
by Xiaojuan Yu, Kai Fan, Kun Wang, Jianxin Jiang, Xiaopeng Peng, Haiyan Yang and Meng Wang
Energies 2021, 14(21), 6857; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en14216857 - 20 Oct 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1358
Abstract
Attempting to correlate the characteristics of the fractionated components from bamboo to its susceptibility to enzyme is often inconclusive depending on the parameters of pretreatment conditions. Based on the integrated analysis of chemical components, cellulose bioconversion, characteristic property of isolated hemicellulose, and lignin, [...] Read more.
Attempting to correlate the characteristics of the fractionated components from bamboo to its susceptibility to enzyme is often inconclusive depending on the parameters of pretreatment conditions. Based on the integrated analysis of chemical components, cellulose bioconversion, characteristic property of isolated hemicellulose, and lignin, the optimal mild pretreatment operation for Moso bamboo was 4% NaOH in 20% ethanol aqueous solution. A total of 91.9% mass was successfully recovered, and 66% bioconversion efficiency of the cellulosic sample was finally achieved. Meanwhile, over 25% hemicelluloses and 7% lignin were isolated, and the characteristic analysis indicated that the fractionated biomacromolecule maintained the original core structure, which is a benefit to be further utilized for the production of chemicals or polymers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioenergy Conversion Technologies)
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21 pages, 19121 KiB  
Article
Catalytic Hot Gas Cleanup of Biomass Gasification Producer Gas via Steam Reforming Using Nickel-Supported Clay Minerals
by Prashanth Reddy Buchireddy, Devin Peck, Mark Zappi and Ray Mark Bricka
Energies 2021, 14(7), 1875; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en14071875 - 29 Mar 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1577
Abstract
Amongst the issues associated with the commercialization of biomass gasification, the presence of tars has been one of the most difficult aspects to address. Tars are an impurity generated from the gasifier and upon their condensation cause problems in downstream equipment including plugging, [...] Read more.
Amongst the issues associated with the commercialization of biomass gasification, the presence of tars has been one of the most difficult aspects to address. Tars are an impurity generated from the gasifier and upon their condensation cause problems in downstream equipment including plugging, blockages, corrosion, and major catalyst deactivation. These problems lead to losses of efficiency as well as potential maintenance issues resulting from damaged processing units. Therefore, the removal of tars is necessary in order for the effective operation of a biomass gasification facility for the production of high-value fuel gas. The catalytic activity of montmorillonite and montmorillonite-supported nickel as tar removal catalysts will be investigated in this study. Ni-montmorillonite catalyst was prepared, characterized, and tested in a laboratory-scale reactor for its efficiency in reforming tars using naphthalene as a tar model compound. Efficacy of montmorillonite-supported nickel catalyst was tested as a function of nickel content, reaction temperature, steam-to-carbon ratio, and naphthalene loading. The results demonstrate that montmorillonite is catalytically active in removing naphthalene. Ni-montmorillonite had high activity towards naphthalene removal via steam reforming, with removal efficiencies greater than 99%. The activation energy was calculated for Ni-montmorillonite assuming first-order kinetics and was found to be 84.5 kJ/mole in accordance with the literature. Long-term activity tests were also conducted and showed that the catalyst was active with naphthalene removal efficiencies greater than 95% maintained over a 97-h test period. A little loss of activity was observed with a removal decrease from 97% to 95%. To investigate the decrease in catalytic activity, characterization of fresh and used catalyst samples was performed using thermogravimetric analysis, transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and surface area analysis. The loss in activity was attributed to a decrease in catalyst surface area caused by nickel sintering and coke formation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioenergy Conversion Technologies)
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Review

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34 pages, 10180 KiB  
Review
An Extensive Review and Comparison of Modern Biomass Torrefaction Reactors vs. Biomass Pyrolysis—Part 1
by Piotr Piersa, Hilal Unyay, Szymon Szufa, Wiktoria Lewandowska, Remigiusz Modrzewski, Radosław Ślężak and Stanisław Ledakowicz
Energies 2022, 15(6), 2227; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15062227 - 18 Mar 2022
Cited by 31 | Viewed by 6989
Abstract
Major efforts are currently being made in the research community to address the challenges of greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel combustion by using lignocellulosic biomass, agricultural waste, and forest residues as cleaner energy sources. However, its poor qualities, such as low energy [...] Read more.
Major efforts are currently being made in the research community to address the challenges of greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel combustion by using lignocellulosic biomass, agricultural waste, and forest residues as cleaner energy sources. However, its poor qualities, such as low energy density, high moisture content, irregular shape and size, and heterogeneity, make it impossible to utilize in its natural state. Torrefaction, a simple heat treatment method, is used frequently with natural bioresources to improve their thermal characteristics so that they may be used as energy sources in domestic power plants. The quality of the resulting torrefied solids (biochar) is determined by the heat condition settings in the absence of oxygen, and it may be enhanced by carefully selecting and altering the processing parameters. The comprehensive overview presented here should serve as a useful toolkit for farmers, combined heat and power plants, pulp and paper installations, and other industrial plants that use biomass as a substrate for biofuel production. This research focuses on torrefaction product properties, reaction mechanisms, a variety of technologies, and torrefaction reactors. It is impossible to determine which torrefaction technology is superior as each reactor has unique properties. However, some suggestions and recommendations regarding the use of torrefaction reactors are given. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioenergy Conversion Technologies)
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