Abstract
Brazil is a developing tropical country with abundant biomass resources. Sugar cane (Saccahrum spp.) is primarily produced to obtain sugar and alcohol. Presently sugar cane is burned before harvest. If the cane were not burned before harvest, the trash (tops and leaves) could be collected and burned to produce steam to generate electricity, or be converted into alcohol fuel and decrease the severe air pollution problems caused by sugar cane burning. Based upon logical assumptions and appropriate data, we estimate the number of people that could be served each year by this biomass if its energy was converted into electricity. From trash and bagasse, 7.0x10(6) and 5.5x10(6) people y-1 could be served, respectively.
Highlights
One way to measure the development of a country is to examine its energy consumption “per capita”
This paper presents the potential amount of electricity that could be produced from the bagasse and the trash of the sugar cane as compared with that from rice hulls in Brazil
Around 12.5 million people can be served by trash and bagasse energy, which equals more than the population of Portugal (10 million people)
Summary
One way to measure the development of a country is to examine its energy consumption “per capita”. There is a strong dependency between development and available energy. In tropical countries like Brazil, that have abundant biomass resources, the primary goal in energy policy must be twofold: 1) biomass energy production and 2) environmental pollution control. Most of the cane area in Brazil is burned before harvest. The pre-harvest burning removes approximately 80% of the trash (the tops, green leaves and dry leaves, or straw); it kills bees, snakes, and scorpions; it decreases accidents with knives and machetes; all of which increases the harvesting capacity for both hand labor and machines
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