Electricity Production from Sugarcane Waste

One of the key elements of going green is the recycling of waste matter to be used in an eco-friendly manner… According to a research published in the international journal Progress in Industrial Ecology, sugarcane biomass, a significant waste product from sugar production, could be a renewable energy source for electricity production in the future!

Who is behind this novel idea?

Engineer Vikram Seebaluck of the University of Mauritius and Dipeeka Seeruttun of the Royal Institute of Technology, in Stockholm, Sweden.

And?

They have demonstrated that an optimal blend of sugarcane agricultural residues (30%) mixed with 70% sugarcane bagasse (the fibrous residue left after sugar production) can be used in electricity production at a cost of just 0.06 US dollars per kilowatt hour.

Is that cheap?

Well… it’s on par with the costs of other renewable energies, including wind power at 0.05 US $ per kWh.

Waste reduction…

Is a must for sustainable development and in that regard this new idea makes a lot of sense. 30 tonnes per hectare of fibre and sugarcane juice are sent to factories for sugar production, which results in 24 tonnes per hectare of waste biomass. When this waste material is mixed together with bagasse in a 30:70 ratio, it creates an ideal mixture that reduces the risk of fouling or slagging of the furnaces used to burn the material.

The verdict?

Is positive! Bioenergy expansion from cane biomass could create rural jobs, reduce costly energy imports, and cut greenhouse gas emissions overall. Its use in electricity production displaces the equivalent of 230 kg of coal for the equivalent amount of energy generated and 560 kg of carbon dioxide per tonne!

via: Science Daily