Abstract
The article presents the research made on the effects of methods of pressure-thermal agglomeration of corn bran, as well as the influence of processing parameters on selected physicochemical properties and biogas efficiency. Corn bran moistened to four levels of moisture content was used for the tests: 20%, 25%, 30% and 35% of dry matter. The pressure-thermal treatment was carried out with the use of a Brikol SJ25 pellet maker and a TS-45 single-screw extruder. In the tests of the extrusion-cooking process, three rotational speeds of the extruder screw were applied: 70, 90 and 110 rpm. The following characteristics were examined: efficiency of the extrusion-cooking and pelleting process, as well as the energy consumption. The water absorption index (WAI), the water solubility index (WSI), bulk density, kinetic strength, structure analysis by the ART/FTIR method, energy potential and the efficiency of cumulated biogas and cumulated methane per dry mass, as well as fresh mass and fresh organic matter and a series of microscopic pictures were completed. The analysis of the ATR/FTIR infrared spectra of the tested pelleted and extruded samples showed clear changes at the molecular level. Biogas production of extruded corn bran increased by several percent, as compared to untreated material.
Highlights
Coal-fired power plants and combined heat and power plants are being abandoned as these have a negative impact on the natural environment condition and contribute to the greenhouse effect
In mills dealing with the grinding of corn for food purposes, there is a big problem with the management of wastes in a form of corn bran
Combined mechanical and enzymatic pretreatment can give satisfactory results in destruction of cellulosic biomass structure to make cellulose more accessible to the enzymes in fermentation process
Summary
Coal-fired power plants and combined heat and power plants are being abandoned as these have a negative impact on the natural environment condition and contribute to the greenhouse effect. One of the ways of obtaining energy and, at the same time, reducing CO2 emissions is the use of renewable energy resources, including biomass. In Poland, it is estimated that about 10 tons of biomass are obtainable annually from only 1 ha of agricultural land. This is the equivalent of about 5 tons of hard coal [1]. Considering the total area of agricultural land and the possibility of obtaining biomass from state-owned forests, it is possible to obtain biomass amount to the equivalent of 150 million tons of hard coal. One of the most effective ways of using biomass for energy production is its processing via methane fermentation in order to obtain high-energy biogas
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