Use Of Renewable Biomass Research Articles

Modelling the Transition to a Circular Agriculture - A Systems Dynamics Perspective

Designing efficient and sustainable pathways for ensuring the transition to a circular economy is one of the main challenges to which an answer must be found, regardless of the economic sector, activity field or geographic area of ​​interest. In order to improve the planet natural resource conservation systems, the main representative institutions and policy makers have implemented a series of strategies and directives, all over the world. From a simple crossing through relevant documents, assumed at global level such as: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, United Nations 2015, regional level: The New Circular Economy Action Plan, EC 2020 or national level: Recovery and Resilience Plan of Romania, 2023, the main common denominator it can be identified - focusing on finding the optimal balance between the environmental resources rational exploitation, protection and developing competitive economy systems. The bioeconomy involves the use of renewable biomass, including raw material obtained from different categories of secondary products, for the production of finished products in the economy. Interest in the bioeconomy has grown over the last decade, and this study analyses the potential of biomass and circular bioeconomy models in the agricultural sector, using systemic modelling approaches. In this sense, studies and models of bioeconomy and circular economy applied at the regional and European level are presented, specifically for dynamic system modelling methods. Finally, we propose studying a circular bioeconomy pilot model for sunflower production in Romania, highlighting the potential of biomass and secondary products from this crop. The use of sunflower by-products in various applications, such as animal feed, biofuels, functional food ingredients or bio-composite materials, underlines their importance in promoting circular economy practices.

Thermodynamic Analysis of the Possibility of Using Biomass as a Component of High-Energy Materials

One of the unconventional, innovative ways of using biomass is using it as a component of high-energy material. According to conceptual assumptions, biomass can act as an energy carrier in modified high-energy materials-explosives (EX). Modification of the composition of the explosive requires the development of a method of introducing an additional component and changes its explosive and operational parameters (including safety). Thermodynamic calculation programs allow you to model the predicted energetic parameters of an explosive in order to select prospective compositions without the need to carry out a large number of costly and time-consuming field tests. This enables more effective design of new explosives compositions by narrowing down the scope of field tests using the “in situ” method. The use of renewable biomass as a corrector of EX properties may be a pro-environmental approach and reduces the production costs of the product. The thermodynamic simulations performed showed that, in the case of an appropriate proportion of ingredients, comparable and better energy properties were obtained in relation to the base composition. Moreover, the qualitative analysis of the sub-detonation products did not reveal the emission of additional gaseous components harmful to the environment compared to the reference explosive.

Hydrothermal reduction of NaHCO3 into formate with hexanehexol

In the nature, CO2 and water are converted into biomass or organics via photosynthesis and geochemistry, respectively. The use of renewable biomass for CO2 reduction under hydrothermal conditions means the integration of photosynthesis and geochemistry for CO2 reduction, and then a rapid and highly efficient CO2 reduction can be expected. Here, we report a hydrothermal reduction of CO2/NaHCO3 by using biomass-derivative hexanehexol, which has the most similar structure to carbohydrate biomass, as a preliminary work for CO2 reduction with real biomass. We show that NaHCO3 can be reduced into formate, and an about 80% yield of formate based on the initial hexanehexol was achieved at 300°C for 1h.

Corrosion of stainless steels in the riser during co-processing of bio-oils in a fluid catalytic cracking pilot plant

Co-processing of bio-oils with conventional petroleum-based feedstocks is an attractive initial option to make use of renewable biomass as a fuel source while leveraging existing refinery infrastructures. However, bio-oils and their processing intermediates have high concentrations of organic oxygenates, which, among their other negative qualities, can result in increased corrosion issues. A range of stainless steel alloys (409, 410, 304L, 316L, 317L, and 201) was exposed at the base of the riser in a fluid catalytic cracking pilot plant while co-processing vacuum gas oil with pine-derived pyrolysis bio-oils that had been catalytically hydrodeoxygenated to ~2 to 28% oxygen. A catalyst temperature of 704°C, a reaction exit temperature of 520°C, and total co-processing run times of 57–75h were studied. External oxide scaling 5–30μm thick and internal attack 1–5μm deep were observed in these short-duration exposures. The greatest extent of internal attack was observed for co-processing with the least stabilized bio-oil, and more so for types 409, 410, 304L, 316L, 317L stainless steel than for type 201. The internal attack involved porous Cr-rich oxide formation, associated with local Ni-metal enrichment and S-rich nanoparticles, primarily containing Cr or Mn. Implications for alloy selection and corrosion are discussed.

Wood Degradation by Thermotolerant and Thermophilic Fungi for Sustainable Heat Production

The use of renewable biomass for production of heat and electricity plays an important role in the circular economy. Degradation of wood biomass to produce heat is a clean and novel process proposed as an alternative to wood burning, and could be used for various heating applications. So far, wood degradation has mostly been studied at ambient temperatures. However, the process needs to occur at elevated temperatures (40–55 °C) to produce useable heat. Our objective was to study wood degradation at elevated temperatures for its potential application on heat production. Two (a thermotolerant and a thermophilic) fungi with different degradation strategies were chosen: lignin-degrading Phanerochaete chrysosporium and cellulose-degrading Chaetomium thermophilum. Each fungus was inoculated on nonsterile and sterile birch woodblocks to, respectively, study their wood degradation activity with and without natural biota (i.e., microorganisms naturally present in wood). The highest wood decay rates were found with...

Combination of chemical and biological transformation for the sustainable manufacturing of bulk chemicals

Bulk chemicals, also called commodity chemicals, occupy an important position within the national economy. At present, the preparation of bulk chemicals in China is mainly based on chemical transformation using petroleum, coal, natural gas and other non-renewable fossil resources as the raw materials. The development of chemical processes is unsustainable and the existence of serious pollution accompanied by a considerable number of carbon dioxide emissions has caused environmental problems. The future trends of Chinas bulk chemicals manufacturing will be diversified feedstocks and green synthesis processes. The use of renewable biomass as raw materials and biotransformation will become research hotspots in bulk chemicals preparation. Chemical transformation and biotransformation have their respective advantages but cannot avoid their shortcomings. The effective integration of chemical transformation and biotransformation can fully exert each advantage, thus resulting in a high-performance green process. This review discusses the key scientific problems of combined chemical and biological transformation to prepare bulk chemicals, including feedstocks fusion, process fusion and integrated system fusion. Measures and suggestions on the development of related fields are also put forward.

Production of nitrogen-based platform chemical: cyanophycin biosynthesis using recombinantEscherichia coliand renewable media substitutes

Background Cyanophycin (CGP) is a sustainable polymer that can be converted to a derivative with reduced arginine content, or to completely biodegradable poly-aspartic acid, which can substitute for non-biodegradable polyacrylates. In nature, it is produced by most cyanobacteria; however, these microbes are not suitable for large-scale production due to slow growth and low polymer content. Results Cyanophycin synthetase gene (cphA) from Anabaena variabilis ATCC 29413 was PCR amplified and cloned into Escherichia coli. Different renewable media components, such as soybean meal, potato wastes and corn-derived zein hydrolysate, were evaluated for their feasibility for CGP production at shake flask level. The optimized conditions were then tested in a 7 L bioreactor; a maximum cell weight of 10.2 g L-1 was obtained. CGP comprised 23 g g-1 of cell dry matter (CDM) with molecular weight between 21.5 and 31 kDa and was composed of aspartic acid, arginine and lysine in the ratio of 1.05:1:0.2 (mass basis). Conclusion The efficient use of renewable biomass for cyanophycin production could achieve competitive price, and in return, promote the use of this platform chemical to produce innovative polymers and materials.© 2012 Society of Chemical Industry

Sustainable hydrogen production for fuel cells by steam reforming of ethylene glycol: A consideration of reaction thermodynamics

The use of renewable biomass, such as ethylene glycol (EG), for hydrogen production offers a more sustainable system compared to natural gas and petroleum reforming. For the first time, the reaction thermodynamics of steam reforming and sorption enhanced steam reforming of EG have been investigated. Gibbs free energy minimization method was used to study the effect of pressure (1–5 atm), temperature (500–1100 K) and water to EG ratio (WER 0–8) on the production of hydrogen and the formation of associated by-products (CH 4, CO 2, CO, C). The results suggest that hydrogen production is optimum when steam reforming occurs at atmospheric pressure, 925 K and with a WER of 8. Moreover, working at high temperature (>900 K) and with a WER above 6 inhibits almost entirely the production of methane and carbon. The main source of hydrogen in the system is found to be steam reforming of methane and water gas shift reaction by the analysis of the response reactions (RERs). Hydrogen production is governed by the former reaction at low temperatures while the latter one comes into prominence as temperature increases. By coupling with in situ CO 2 capture using CaO, the formation of CO 2 and CO can be avoided and high purity of hydrogen (>99%) can be achieved.

Hydrothermal carbon from biomass: a comparison of the local structure from poly- to monosaccharides and pentoses/hexoses

Carbon particles are synthesized under hydrothermal conditions using different biomass (glucose, xylose, maltose, sucrose, amylopectin, starch) and biomass derivates (5-hydroxymethyl-furfural-1-aldehyde (HMF) and furfural) as carbon sources. Carbons obtained from mono- and polysaccharides, hexose and pentose sugars, and from the biomass derivatives, HMF and furfural, are compared from the particle morphology, chemical composition and structural point of view. A clear structural and morphological difference can be observed in carbons from pentoses and hexoses, but in the latter case, irrespective of the nature of the hexose sugar, all carbon materials showed astonishing similarities, opening the way for the use of renewable biomass in the synthesis of such carbon materials.

Anaerobic biotechnological approaches for production of liquid energy carriers from biomass

In recent years, increasing attention has been paid to the use of renewable biomass for energy production. Anaerobic biotechnological approaches for production of liquid energy carriers (ethanol and a mixture of acetone, butanol and ethanol) from biomass can be employed to decrease environmental pollution and reduce dependency on fossil fuels. There are two major biological processes that can convert biomass to liquid energy carriers via anaerobic biological breakdown of organic matter: ethanol fermentation and mixed acetone, butanol, ethanol (ABE) fermentation. The specific product formation is determined by substrates and microbial communities available as well as the operating conditions applied. In this review, we evaluate the recent biotechnological approaches employed in ethanol and ABE fermentation. Practical applicability of different technologies is discussed taking into account the microbiology and biochemistry of the processes.

Effect of Ammonia Fiber Expansion (AFEX) and Silane Treatments of Corncob Granules on the Properties of Renewable Resource Based Biocomposites

Development of economically and ecologically attractive composite technologies is possible through the use of renewable biomass based resources such as polymeric matrices and reinforcement filler materials. The processability and physical properties of these composite materials are very important parameters for product performance. This study develops the enabling technology needed to transform corncobs, an abundant agricultural residue from the corn grain industry, into reinforcement filler material for manufacturing biocomposites. We have successfully fabricated biocomposite materials from poly(lactic acid) (PLA) and corncob granules (CCG) that were produced by a microcompounding molding system. To ensure appropriate interfacial interactions between the matrix and composite material, surface properties of the biocomposite filler must be modified accordingly. CCG-matrix adhesion was promoted by surface modifications using ammonia fiber expansion (AFEX), liquid ammonia treatment, and silane treatment. The final composite materials have improved mechanical and thermomechanical properties such as high flexural properties, high impact strength, and modulus at higher temperature. The surface morphology, as indicated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), showed good dispersion of CCG in the PLA matrix. Modification of the CCG surface showed an improved adhesion and dispersion within the matrix. Overall, the results demonstrated the potential of CCG as reinforcement filler material for a renewable source based polymeric matrix.