Cedar Chips Research Articles

Comparison of Gaseous Emissions from Stored Biomass Residues

Woody biomass used as alternative fuel to generate power becomes a significant element of sustainability nowadays. Biomass is usually stored for some period before direct combustion or processing in biorefineries. The objective of this study is to quantify and compare the gas emissions from Western Red Cedar (WRC) and Douglas fir (DF) chips during storage at a range of temperatures (5-50oC) under both non-aerobic and aerobic conditions. Results showed that the dominant mechanism is different depending on the stored materials. Emissions of CO and CH4 were 2-5 orders of magnitude less than CO2 emission for both WRC and DF chips. The major components of VOCs detected by GC/MS from both materials are similar, consisting of hydrocarbons, aldehyde, terpenes, methanol, acetone, ketone, acid and esters, benzene and its derivatives. The total concentrations of VOC (TVOC) under both conditions differed with temperature, and they were much higher from the DF chips than WRC. The emission factors under the aerobic condition were higher when compared to those under the non-aerobic condition over the storage time period.

Performance of Burkholderia multivorans CCA53 for ethyl red degradation.

The discharge of industrial dyes and their breakdown products are often environmentally harmful. Here, we describe a biodegradation method using Burkholderia multivorans CCA53, which exhibits a capacity to degrade azo dyes, particularly ethyl red. Under the optimized culture conditions, 100 μM ethyl red was degraded more than 99% after incubation for 8 h. Real-time PCR analysis of azoR1 and azoR2, encoding two azoreductases, revealed that transcription level of these genes is enhanced at early phase under the optimized conditions. For a more practical approach, hydrolysates were prepared from eucalyptus or Japanese cedar chips or rice straw, and rice straw hydrolysate was used as the best medium for ethyl red biodegradation. Under those conditions, ethyl red was also degraded with high efficiency (>91%). We have thus constructed a potentially economical method for the biodegradation of ethyl red.

Effect of Moisture on Gas Emissions from Stored Woody Biomass

Biomass materials have been increasingly used due to their renewable nature. The problems occurring during the storage of fresh woody materials include gas emissions and dry matter losses as a result of degradation. The objective of this study was to investigate and quantify the effect of moisture content on gas emissions from stored wood chips. Experiments were conducted under non-aerobic and aerobic conditions using fresh Western Red Cedar (WRC) chips with different initial moisture contents over a range of temperatures. The peak CO2 emission factor of 2.9 g/kg dry matter (DM) was observed from high moisture chips at 20 °C under non-aerobic conditions after two-month storage, which was an order of magnitude greater than that from low moisture chips. In the case of volatile organic compounds, a range of compounds were detected from all tests. The concentration of VOCs was found to be positively correlated with moisture content. Gas emissions from the aerobic reactors exhibited similar trends as non-aerobic reactors with respect to the effect of moisture content, although higher values were observed under aerobic conditions. Slight reduction of dry mass from all tests at the end of storage indicated the decay-resistance characteristics of WRC.

Energy-efficient milling method for woody biomass

Size reduction is essential to utilize biomass in many applications. Production of fine particles from biomass chips is usually performed using milling machines that consume large amount of energy. Steam explosion (SE) is a promising method for reducing the size of biomass using less energy consumption because it utilizes thermal energy. In this study, we focused on the possibility of the SE method to produce fine particles with a size below 1mm from wood chips. Sakura (Prunus spp., hardwood) and Japanese cedar (Cryptomeria japonica, softwood) chips with a size of 5–10mm were used in this study. The effects of SE conditions – such as temperature and residence time – and of the biomass type on the biomass size reduction were investigated in detail. The energy consumption of SE was also calculated and compared with that of the conventional mill. We found that SE is an energy-efficient method for biomass milling.

Enviro-exergy sustainability analysis of boiler evolution in district energy system

Investigations into energy resources are important from the point of energy sustainability. The principal objective of this study is to investigate the evolution of the operating boilers at the University of Idaho (UI) district energy plant through an exergy analysis. The biomass boiler uses western red cedar chips from nearby lumber mills and provides 95% of the steam requirements of the main campus of UI in Moscow, ID, USA. Thermodynamic analysis reveals a thermal efficiency of 76% and an exergy efficiency of 24% for the biomass boiler. A combustion model is developed to determine the primary emissions products of both the bone dry wood chips and natural gas fuels. CO2 comprises 26% of the bone dry biomass emissions and 8% of the natural gas emissions products. Testing results of the biomass boiler exhaust stack show CO2 emissions of 14% when an average moisture content of 33% is accounted for. An overview of the evolution of the energy plant is discussed, showing the generational differences in each boiler. By using a biomass fuel source, the cost per 1000 kg of steam produced is on average 63% lower than using natural gas, resulting in savings of over $1 million annually.

Wood chile peppers stalks-plastic composite production

Nowadays, most common wood fibers used to produce wood plastic composites are from Oak and pine trees, rice hull, recycled paper, pallets and post-industrial oak fiber, furniture waste, or cedar wood chips. This paper is focused on a new wood plastic composites based on pre-dried New Mexico red chile stems and leafs with high-density polyethylene. The specimens were manufactured following ASTM 638-9 standard using injection molding. A series of experiments were designed to investigate how wood fiber length, geometry, and water absorption affects the microcellular structure of the new sustainable material. The effects of proportions and particle size on the strength of the resulting blend were analyzed. It was found that larger particle sizes of wood fiber showed higher mechanical properties. The blending of additives in the new sustainable material has shown to increase proper fiber dispersion improving the strength of the material.

Upgrading of pyrolysis bio-oil using nickel phosphide catalysts

Pyrolysis bio-oil is a promising source of liquid fuels, but requires upgrading to remove excess oxygen and produce a satisfactory fuel oil. Nickel phosphide has been shown to be an active composition for hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) of bio-oil model compounds. In this study, nickel phosphide catalysts were used for direct upgrading of an actual pyrolysis bio-oil derived from cedar chips. The activity of Ni2P deposited on an amorphous SiO2 support for HDO was first verified using the model compound, 2-methyltetrahydrofuran (2-MTHF), at the temperature of the pyrolysis oil treatment of 350°C. The Ni2P/SiO2 catalyst showed high activity for 2-MTHF hydrodeoxygenation under atmospheric pressure hydrogen with low cracking activity.Fast pyrolysis and catalytic upgrading were conducted sequentially using a laboratory-scale, two-stage system consisting of a fluidized bed pyrolyzer and a fluidized bed catalytic reactor both operating at 0.1MPa, with a hydrogen partial pressure of 0.06MPa. It was found that the Ni2P/SiO2 catalyst was moderately effective in upgrading the biomass pyrolysis vapors and producing a refined bio-oil with decreased oxygen content. The moderate deoxygenation of the bio-oil was confirmed by elemental analysis and Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS) analysis. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) analysis showed that the treated bio-oil mainly consisted of phenolic compounds, and the MS spectra before and after upgrading suggested that reactions including hydrodeoxygenation, hydrogenation, decarbonylation, and hydrolysis occurred during the upgrading. Furthermore, Ni2P supported on ZSM-5 zeolite eliminated oxygen in the bio-oil with smaller reduction in the oil yield than Ni2P supported on SiO2. The deoxygenation activity of the nickel phosphide catalysts was higher than that of conventional catalysts such as Ni/SiO2, Pd/C and an FCC-catalyst.

Direct ethanol production from cellulosic materials by consolidated biological processing using the wood rot fungus Schizophyllum commune

In the present study, ethanol production from polysaccharides or wood chips was conducted in a single reactor under anaerobic conditions using the white rot fungus Schizophyllum commune NBRC 4928, which produces enzymes that degrade lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose. The ethanol yields produced from glucose and xylose were 80.5%, and 52.5%, respectively. The absolute yields of ethanol per microcrystalline cellulose (MCC), xylan and arabinogalactan were 0.26g/g-MCC, 0.0419g/g-xylan and 0.0508g/g-arabinogalactan, respectively. By comparing the actual ethanol yields from polysaccharides with monosaccharide fermentation, it was shown that the rate of saccharification was slower than that in fermentation. S. commune NBRC 4928 is concluded to be suitable for CBP because it can produce ethanol from various types of sugar. From the autoclaved cedar chip, only little ethanol was produced by S. commune NBRC 4928 alone but ethanol production was enhanced by combined use of ethanol fermenting and lignin degrading fungi.

Nitrogen and phosphorus removal from wastewater treatment plant effluent via bacterial sulfate reduction in an anoxic bioreactor packed with wood and iron.

We investigated the removal of nitrogen and phosphate from the effluent of a sewage treatment plant over a long-term operation in bioreactors packed with different combinations of wood and iron, with a trickling filter packed with foam ceramics for nitrification. The average nitrification rate in the trickling filter was 0.17 kg N/m3∙day and remained at 0.11 kg N/m3∙day even when the water temperature was below 15 °C. The denitrification and phosphate removal rates in the bioreactor packed with aspen wood and iron were higher than those in the bioreactor packed with cedar chips and iron. The bioreactor packed with aspen wood and iron continued to remove nitrate and phosphate for >1200 days of operation. The nitrate removal activity of a biofilm attached to the aspen wood from the bioreactor after 784 days of operation was 0.42 g NO3-N/kg dry weight wood∙ day. There was no increase in the amount of dissolved organic matter in the outflow from the bioreactors.

Use of Wood-Based Materials in Beef Bedded Manure Packs: 2. Effect on Odorous Volatile Organic Compounds, Odor Activity Value,Escherichia coli, and Nutrient Concentrations

The objectives of this study were to determine the effects of three types of wood-based bedding materials (kiln-dried pine wood chips, dry cedar chips, and green cedar chips) and corn stover on the concentration of odorous volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and total in bedded pack material. Four bedded packs of each bedding material were maintained for two 42-d periods ( = 32; eight replicates/bedding material). Straight- and branched-chained fatty acids, aromatic compounds, and sulfide compounds were measured from the headspace above each bedded pack. Green cedar bedding had the highest concentration of odorous VOCs, and pine chip bedding had the lowest ( < 0.01). Calculated odor activity values were highest for green cedar bedding, followed by dry cedar, corn stover, and pine chip bedding. As the bedded packs aged, the concentration of odorous VOCs increased, particularly in the bedded packs containing green cedar chips and dry cedar chips. Total concentrations increased from Days 0 to 21 and then began to decline and were similar among all bedding materials ( < 0.10). Results of this study indicate that producers using a long-term bedded pack management in their facility may benefit from using pine chips because they do not appear to increase odor over time. Cedar-based bedding materials may be better suited for a scrape-and-haul system, where the bedded pack is removed after 1 or 2 wk. Total concentrations did not differ between any of the four bedding materials over time.

Use of wood-based materials in beef bedded manure packs: 1. Effect on ammonia, total reduced sulfide, and greenhouse gas concentrations.

The objectives of this study were to determine the effect of using corn stover or three different wood-based bedding materials (kiln-dried pine wood chips, dry cedar chips, or green cedar chips) on airborne concentrations of NH, total reduced sulfides (TRS), CO, CH, and NO above lab-scaled bedded manure packs. Four bedded packs of each bedding material were maintained for two 42-d periods. Airborne NH, TRS, CO, CH, and NO were measured weekly. Bedded packs containing dry or green cedar had lower concentrations of NH (350.8 and 357.3 mg m, respectively; < 0.05) than bedded packs containing pine chips or corn stover (466.0 and 516.7 mg m, respectively). Airborne CO was also lower from bedded packs containing dry and green cedar (1343.7 and 1232.3 mg m, respectively; < 0.001) compared with bedded packs containing pine chips or corn stover (2000.2 and 1659.8 mg m, respectively). Air samples from bedded packs containing green cedar chips had a higher ( < 0.01) concentration of CH than bedded packs containing dry cedar chips, corn stover, or pine chips at Day 35 and 42. Initially, TRS concentration was similar among all bedding materials; at 28 to 42 d, TRS was higher ( < 0.001) from bedded packs containing the cedar products. Airborne NO was similar ( = 0.51) for all bedding materials. Pine chips and cedar products can be adequate substitutes for corn stover in deep-bedded barns, but cedar bedding may need to be removed more frequently.

Alicyclobacillus cellulosilyticus sp. nov., a thermophilic, cellulolytic bacterium isolated from steamed Japanese cedar chips from a lumbermill

A thermophilic bacterium, strain Sueoka(T), was isolated from steamed Japanese cedar chips from a lumber mill in Gobo, Japan. The strain was able to grow on carboxymethyl cellulose at 60 °C, was Gram-stain-negative, and grew between 40.0 and 67.5 °C (optimum at 55 °C) and between pH 3.5 and 6.5 (optimum at pH 4.8). Comparative analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed 91.9 , 90.9 , and 90.8% similarity to Alicyclobacillus macrosporangiidus(T), Alicyclobacillus pomorum(T), and Alicyclobacillus acidocaldarius(T), respectively. The major quinone was MK-7 and the predominant cellular fatty acids were ω-cyclohexane C19 : 0 and ω-cyclohexane C17 : 0. The DNA G+C content was 60.8 mol%. Based on the results of this study, strain Sueoka(T) is a novel species of the genus Alicyclobacillus, and the namehttp://dx.doi.org/10.1601/nm.5071Alicyclobacillus cellulosilyticus sp. nov. (type strain Sueoka(T) = JCM 18487(T) = KCTC 33007(T)) is proposed.

A Two-Stage Wood Chip-Based Biofilter System to Mitigate Odors from a Deep-Pit Swine Building

A mobile biofilter testing laboratory was developed where two-stage biofilters filled with western cedar and hardwood chips were examined to treat odor emissions from a deep-pit swine finishing facility in central Iowa. An automatically controlled water supply system was tested and used to control media moisture content. Odor concentrations from theinlet and biofilter treatments, gas flow pressure drop, leachate pH and ammonia concentration, and water consumption were monitored.Results indicate that the water supply system tested in this study can keep wood chip media at a high and stablemoisture content of 72% 3% (western cedar) and 62% 3% (hardwood)with a 6.4 L/m3-day water supply. Western cedar (WC) chips achieved an average reduction efficiency of 51%, 83%, and 41% for odor, H2S, and NH3, respectively, when keeping the WC moisture content at 72% and the empty bed residence time (EBRT) between 3.7 and 5.5 s. A linear relationship between media unit pressure drop and unit airflow rate was observed with two-stage biofilters having an advantage in potentially reducing media compaction.Leachate pH and NH3 concentration were measured with pH levels in the 7.2 to 7.9 range with the NH3 concentration in the 198 to 1300 mg/L as N range.The effects of three different levels of media moisture content shows that proper moisture content is a key factor for the success of wood chip biofilters, but is not a substitute for inadequate EBRT.

Attempt on improving property of highly-densified biomass resources for renewable energy

To develop improved physical and calorific properties of highly-densified plant biomass resources, a new hot-pressing process was invented, in which biomass resources are subject to hot-compaction accompanied with flow deformation in a closed container, and the effects of compressing and temperature conditions for various plant-biomasses on the bulk density, size-stability and the calorific value were investigated. Results showed that the compactability of the biomasses was improved with increasing moisture contents and heat-holding time, and highly-densified products with the bulk density of roughly 1.35 g/cm³ were obtained from all plant-biomasses. In addition, the products from cedar wood chip at specific temperature and pressure conditions got improved size-stability against moisture, and they kept their shapes even in boiling water. The calorific value of the products showed about 6,000 cal/cm³, which is around 60% of the coal. Therefore, some advantages of these highly-densified biomasses for energy use compared with existing solidified products were confirmed.

Influence of woody biomass (cedar chip) addition on the emissions of PM 10 from pulverised coal combustion

Co-combustion of pulverised coal with a woody biomass, cedar chip was conducted in a lab-scale drop-tube furnace (DTF) to investigate the synergetic interaction between the inorganic elements of different fuels and the emissions of sub-micron particles (particles smaller than 1.0 μm in size, PM 1) and super-micron particles (particles in the size range of 1.0–10 μm, PM 1+) during co-firing. The mass fraction of cedar chip in fuel blend ranged from 10% to 50%. All the fuels were burnt in air at two furnace temperatures, 1200 and 1450 °C. The results indicate that, under an identical calorific input, combustion of cedar chip alone favored the emission of sub-micron PM 1, which is dominated by volatile elements including K, Ca, Fe, Na and P. A large fraction of K and Na were most probably present as gaseous vapors in the furnace. The other metals mainly condensed into nano-scale nuclei which subsequently coagulated into a variety of sizes in flue gas. Coal combustion alone favored the release of super-micron particles rich in Al and Si. Emission of PM upon co-firing was a function of both cedar chip share and furnace temperature. At a small mass fraction for cedar chip in fuel blend, e.g. 10% tested here, interaction between the inorganic elements of single fuels was insignificant at either furnace temperature. Accordingly, the quantities of PM 1 and PM 1+ emitted from co-firing at 10% cedar chip were slightly higher than from the combustion of coal alone, due to the contribution of cedar chip. Significant interaction between the inorganic elements of single fuels was observed for co-firing of coal with >10% cedar chip at the furnace temperature of 1450 °C. As has been confirmed, adding 20–30% cedar chip to coal resulted in the shift of approximately 90% of PM 1 and 50% PM 1+ into coarse ash particles. For the cedar chip-derived alkali vapors and nano-scale/sub-micron particles, the rates of their shift into larger particles were influenced by two competing routes, homogeneous coagulation and surface reaction with coal-derived kaolin. In contrast, the shift of super-micron particles was primarily determined by their collision probability with the coal-derived mineral grains in bulk gas. A sticky surface for particles is also essential. The shift of individual metals into coarse ash differed distinctly from one another.

Dewatering of high-moisture wood chips by roller compression method

Abstract In seeking an efficient method for drying very wet chips, we developed and tested an original continuous dewatering system using mechanical compression (10–30 MPa). The moisture content of cedar chips decreased from 100–270% to 85–130% (dry basis), and the energy required to remove the water was 9% (power consumption basis) and 25% (primary energy basis) for heat energy to evaporate the water. In the case of combined drying, in which roller compression was applied first, followed by thermal drying, the energy required to dry wet cedar chips to a moisture content as low as 20% was 49% (power consumption basis) and 58% (primary energy basis) of that required for thermal heating alone. These results indicate that the combined method uses less energy to dry very wet wood chips.

Effect of Converge Mill Grinding on the Enzymatic Saccharification Characteristics of Woody Materials

The effect of the grinding of raw Japanese cedar chip as a model material of woody materials by a new type ball mill, namely converge mill, was studied for the effective enzymatic saccharification. We achieved almost 100% of saccharification degree from ground cedar powder prepared by the converge mill. The grinding time of the converge mill was shorter than that of a conventional tumbling mill. We found that the crystallinity index was more important factor than the mean diameter on the saccharification degree, indicating that the breaking of the micro fiblril structure of cellulose is more essential than the downsizing of the bulk particle. We also studied the effect of media ball types of the converge mill and found that chromium steel ball was more effective to obtain high saccharification degree than SUS 304 and stabilized zirconia balls. We investigated an optimum grinding condition for the converge mill and found that higher rotation speed, lower amount of reactant charge, higher amount of media ball charge, and smaller size of media ball were optimum conditions for the saccharification. It was concluded that the grinding of Japanese cedar by the converge mill was an effective pretreatment to achieve high efficient enzymatic saccharification.

Fischer–Tropsch Synthesis over Ru Catalysts by Using Syngas Derived from Woody Biomass

Synthesis gas of H2/CO = 2/1 was obtained from Japanese cedar chips at a gasification efficiency of 93%, by using steam as a gasification agent at a gasification temperature (Tg) of 1,173 K. Carbon dioxide inevitably contained in biomass-derived synthesis gas did not affect the Fischer–Tropsch synthesis (FTS) reaction. In contrast, trace amount of sulfur impurity in the gas gave rise to fatal deactivation of Ru-based FTS catalysts under the reaction conditions of T = 503 K, P = 1 MPa, and W/F = 2–10 g-catal. h/mol, indicating that complete desulfurization of the gas to <1 ppm was prerequisite in order to obtain stable FTS activity. With increasing impurity levels of H2S, selectivity for higher hydrocarbons decreased.

Total valorisation of red cedar (Thuja Plicata) sawmills wastes. Isolation of extractives and production of activated carbon from the solid residue

Experiments were performed to evaluate a recent extraction process called the instantaneous controlled pressure drop process (briefly: DIC process: “Détente Instantanée Contrôlée”) for extracting some volatile compounds from red cedar wood. This process involves subjecting red cedar chips for a short time (30 s to 5 min) under a steam pressure (1 to 6 bars or from 100 to 165 °C). This first step is followed by a flash decompression toward vacuum (up to 50 mbar). This transition induces a fast evaporation of water and volatile compounds and a cooling effect. The effects of two processing parameters (steam pressure and heating time) on the total extraction yield and on yield of four volatile compounds were evaluated by response surface methodology. The results indicated that the processing pressure is the predominant parameter for global extraction yield of oil (E.O= Extracted Oil) and for yield of the four compounds investigated in this study. The processing time is also a significant parameter but less than processing pressure. Moreover, activated carbon produced from DIC-treated residue revealed larger pore sizes compared to untreated samples.

建設発生スギ材をチップ化した再生木質マルチング材の評価

建設発生スギ材をチップ化した再生木質マルチング材の評価