Energy from Switchgrass: Bio-Mass Conversion Analysis

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2013
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Swarthmore College. Dept. of Engineering
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Thesis (B.A.)
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Full copyright to this work is retained by the student author. It may only be used for non-commercial, research, and educational purposes. All other uses are restricted.
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Abstract
A model is presented for the production of switchgrass and its conversion to bio-oil using fast pyrolysis. Switchgrass is a leading energy crop because of its high biomass yield in a variety of soil conditions. For switchgrass growth, a typical growing cycle that includes sunlight, seed, planting, application of herbicide and fertilizers, mowing, harvesting and post-harvest processing is evaluated. The output biomass is then considered as input to the USDA Agricultural Research Service fast pyrolysis system that has been developed for processing energy crops and agricultural residues for bio-oil production on an experimental basis. In addition to specific energy and exergy content, the analysis uses cumulative energy and exergy demand to provide an evaluation of the environmental impact of the process in a manner analogous to life cycle assessment. Resources contributing to energy losses and exergy consumption are identified.
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