Biomass obtained from cultivated energy crops is one of the raw materials with the highest\npotential in renewable energy production. Although such biomass can be used in production of\nlignocellulose bioethanol, it is currently mostly used as solid fuel for generating heat and/or electric\nenergy via combustion processes. Calorific values, proximate and ultimate analysis, cell structure\nand micro- and macro-elements data are considered as basic parameters in the valorization of fuel\nproperties during biomass combustion processes. Energy crops are cultivated with the aim to produce\nthe largest possible quantity of biomass with minimal agro-technical inputs. One of these crops is\nSida hermaphrodita (L.) Rusby. Given the fact that the chemical composition of biomass is influenced by\na number of agro-ecological and agro-technical factors, the aim of this work was to determine the fuel\nproperties of Sida hermaphrodita biomass obtained from three different harvest seasons (autumn, winter\nand spring) and cultivated in the area of the Republic of Croatia. On the basis of these investigations\nit was possible to conclude that harvest delaying towards spring season had a positive impact on\nsuitability of using biomass of Sida hermaphrodita in the combustion process, which primarily means\nsignificant lowering the contents of moisture (18.64%), ash (1.94%), and nitrogen (0.65%), but also\nmeans increasing the contents of fixed carbon (6.21%) and lignin (25.45%).
Loading....