GHG Emissions and Efficiency of Energy Generation through Anaerobic Fermentation of Wetland Biomass

We conducted the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) of energy production from biogas for maize and three types of wetland biomass: reed <i>Phragmites australis</i>, sedges <i>Carex elata,</i> and <i>Carex gracilis</i>, and “grassy vegetation” of wet meadows (WM). Biogas en...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Robert Czubaszek, Agnieszka Wysocka-Czubaszek, Piotr Banaszuk
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2020-12-01
Series:Energies
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/13/24/6497
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Summary:We conducted the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) of energy production from biogas for maize and three types of wetland biomass: reed <i>Phragmites australis</i>, sedges <i>Carex elata,</i> and <i>Carex gracilis</i>, and “grassy vegetation” of wet meadows (WM). Biogas energy produced from maize reached over 90 GJ ha<sup>−1</sup>, which was more than four times higher than that gained from wetland biomass. However, an estimation of energy efficiency (EE) calculated as a ratio of energy input to the energy produced in a biogas plant showed that the wet fermentation (WF) of maize was similar to the values obtained for dry fermentation (DF) of sedge biomass (~0.30 GJ GJ<sup>−1</sup>). The greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions released during preparation of the feedstock and operation of the biogas plant were 150 g CO<sub>2</sub> eq. kWh<sub>el.</sub><sup>−1</sup> for DF of sedges and 262 g CO<sub>2</sub> eq. kWh<sub>el.</sub><sup>−1</sup> for WF of <i>Phragmites</i>. Compared to the prevailing coal-based power generation in Central Europe, anaerobic digestion (AD) of wetland biomass could contribute to a reduction in GHG emissions by 74% to 85%. However, calculations covering the GHG emissions during the entire process “from field to field” seem to disqualify AD of conservation biomass as valid low-GHG energy supply technology. Estimated emissions ranged between 795 g CO<sub>2</sub> eq. kWh<sub>el.</sub><sup>−1</sup> for DF of <i>Phragmites</i> and 2738 g CO<sub>2</sub> eq. kWh<sub>el.</sub><sup>−1</sup> for the WM and, in most cases, exceeded those related to fossil fuel technologies.
ISSN:1996-1073