Prabhakar, N. et al. Proc. Int. Soc. Sugar Cane Technol., Vol.

27, 2010
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CANE TRASH AS FUEL

By

N. PRABHAKAR, D.V.L.N. RAJU and R. VIDYA SAGAR

Nava Bharat Ventures Ltd, Samalkot, India
[email protected]

KEYWORDS: Cane Trash, Energy,

Trash Processing, Leaching.
Abstract
SUGARCANE dry trash, a residue in cane fields, has significant potential as a biomass
fuel. It contains nearly 28% of the total energy content in the sugarcane crop. However,
this potential fuel is wasted by burning it in open fields after sugarcane harvesting
producing harmful emissions. In India, if all the cane trash be utilised to full potential,
the national energy deficit can be reduced by 50%. Moreover, the sugar industry gets an
additional 110% power export in the process. Unfortunately, the collection mechanisms
in vogue are uneconomical and not suitable to realise the potential energy benefits.
Deccan sugars, sugar mill of Nava Bharat Ventures Ltd has tried a collection
mechanism by harvesting dry leaves along with cane and processing it through the
milling tandem, thus increasing bagasse generation. Sugarcane trash has high alkali and
silica content, which makes it unsuitable as boiler fuel directly. Trash processed with
the cane supply is thoroughly washed in the milling process, thereby significantly
reducing the alkali and silica content of the resultant bagasse. Harvesting and processing
trash along with sugarcane seems to be a good method to make trash a suitable boiler
fuel and realise its potential.
Introduction
The Indian Sugar Industry is progressing well in its efforts to expand the implementation of
cogeneration. The industry is progressively achieving benchmarks in reduced process energy
consumption. A few sugar mills have reduced steam consumption to 340 kg/tonne cane producing
direct white consumption sugar by following the double sulfitation process. A few more are aiming
to achieve steam consumptions of 300 kg/tonne cane.
In India, sugarcane cultivation is done manually except for the operations of land
preparation and cane transportation for which tractors are used. Green cane harvesting is done
manually. Green leaves and cane tops are used as fodder. Manual harvesting has become a serious
production bottleneck threatening the survival of the sugar industry. Various types of mechanical
harvesters are being tried in the recent past.
Sugarcane trash, the dry brown leaves attached to the cane stalk, to some extent forms
mulch in the fields 5–6 months into the initial growth or ratooning period. Post harvest burning of
trash is common practice, releasing harmful greenhouse gases like N2O, CH4 and CO2 in addition to
CO. Very few sugar mills having a cogeneration facility are trying to collect trash from the fields by
using balers. Manual collection and transport of loose trash from fields is practised at certain mills.
Biomass has got a lot of potential in varied applications from power generation to plastics.
There is a growing interest and need for an efficient biomass collection mechanism. Cane trash is a
potential source of biomass with well established benefits as a fuel and manure. Appropriate
collection mechanisms and attractive markets for trash will make sugarcane cultivation more
profitable.
Deccan sugars have undertaken trials to demonstrate the efficient collection of trash by
whole-of-crop harvesting and milling. This was to provide additional fuel to their 9 MW [rated
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boiler pressure: 43 bar (abs)] and 20 MW [rated boiler pressure: 87 bar (abs)] capacity co-
generation facilities. The associated factory process steam consumption has been reduced to
350 kg/tonne cane.
The mill is situated in coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh, South India in the tropics at
17002’N latitude and 82009’E longitude. Average altitude is 15 m above MSL. Cyclonic conditions
prevail in the area during the cane growing period. Soil conditions and a cyclonic climate are the
cause of severe sugarcane lodging. Land holdings are small averaging 1.1 ha. Many fields are not
easily accessible for sugarcane transportation. Harvested sugarcane is shifted manually by laborers
to a convenient place for loading.
The mill has the capacity to crush 450 000–585 000 tonnes of sugarcane annually. In the
recent past, due to uneconomical margins for sugarcane farming with increased labour costs, the
crop production reduced to 240 000 tonnes. As the crush rate reduced, we were able to trial this
unique approach to trash collection.
Cane trash handling and utilisation–previous research and experiences
Sugarcane produces huge quantities of foliage; up to 40% of total biomass. On an average,
15–20 tonnes of cane trash are produced per hectare. However, the quantity varies with varieties
and crop growth. Cane trash contains considerable amounts of plant nutrients. These nutrients can
be conserved if recycled into the soil. However, the entire amount of trash obtained from cane fields
cannot be utilised for mulching, as an excessively thick blanket of mulched trash can inhibit
germination, harbors reptiles and results in poor cane growth.
Results obtained at the Regional Agriculture Research Station, Anakapalle, India led to the
recommendation of 3 t/ha of trash mulching to conserve soil moisture and nutrients
(Ramalingaswamy 1998). However, mulching is more effective in upland and light soil conditions.
The 12 to 17 t/ha of surplus trash has to be economically utilised by proper collection.
Post-harvest trash burning causes loss of nutrients (Krishna, 2002). Cane stubbles get
damaged due to the heat and cause delayed germination resulting in poor yield during ratooning.
Burning trash generates intense heat ranging from 600oC to 800oC which kills beneficial soil micro-
organisms and earth worms. The global warming potential of gases such as N2O and CH4 in
addition to CO2 that are released during burning is of greater concern. N2O is the most worrying
emission because of its high global warming potential (300 times more damaging than CO2).
Sugarcane has significant potential as a source of biomass fuel. Sucrose in the stalk only
represents approximately 30% of the total energy of the above ground biomass of sugarcane. C4
species like sugarcane will outperform C3 species in their ability to accumulate biomass. The
maximum above ground biomass growth can be as high as 550 kg/ha/day. When grown under rain-
fed conditions, sugarcane has one of the highest water use efficiencies of all crops in terms of water
used per unit mass of biomass produced (Botha, 2009).
Energy potential in cane trash
Sugarcane is an energy crop produces the energy equivalent per hectare per cropping cycle
of 95–114 barrels of crude oil (Botha, 2009; Ripoli, 2000; Rein, 2007; Krishna, 2002). 60% of the
energy is transported to the mill as clean cane, 12% is utilised as fodder (young internodes and
green leaves) and the rest 28% (trash) is predominantly burnt in the open (Ripoli, 2000; Rein, 2007;
Krishna, 2002).
Cane trash is a potential fuel with a calorific value ranging from 3845–4375 kcal/kg on dry
basis (Kurt woytuik, 2006) having moisture in the range of 20–30%.
With an average yield of clean cane of 75–80 t/ha, each hectare of sugarcane cultivation has
12–17 tonnes of excess cane trash available. This is equivalent to a primary energy value of up to
50 000 kWh per hectare of sugarcane-cultivated land. However, associated activities in the process
of generating energy from trash such as transportation, processing and energy extraction influence
the actual electrical energy benefits reaped from cane trash.
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Cane trash as fuel for power generation–the challenges

Field level challenges
Pricing mechanism–Farmer confidence
For a long time now, farmers have been accustomed to send fresh clean cane to the mill.
Payment is made to farmers on a weight basis. Average recovery from the previous campaign is
also considered in the payment system.
A suitable pricing mechanism for the whole-of-crop harvested cane has to be developed to
provide sufficient confidence in farmers.
Collection and transport
Low bulk density
Low bulk density accounts for higher transportation and handling costs. Trash has a very
low bulk density, which invariably increases the collection and transportation cost. Experiments at
the mill have shown that the density of loose trash is in the range of 50–65 kg/m3. Cane stalk
bundled with dry leaves is found to have a bulk density in the range of 220–230 kg/m3.
Baling is one alternative for reducing trash collection and transportation costs. Trash can be
compacted to 242–306 kg/m3 using large rectangular balers (Hassuani et al.. 2005). However,
baling is energy intensive compared to trash collection along with cane.
Collection efficiency
It is observed that 56–84% of trash can be collected by raking and baling trash (Hassuani et
al., 2005). We can achieve more than 95% trash recovery by harvesting trash along with cane.
Soil % in trash
The collection mechanism must also ensure that soil is not entrained with the trash during
collection. Baling without a prior raking operation is found to have a soil content in the range of
5-6%. With the raking operation, the sand content in the bales is in the range of 1.5–2.0%.
(Hassuani et al., 2005).
The soil cannot be easily separated and hence results in excessive erosion in boilers
whereas, in the case of harvesting trash along with lodged cane, there is a possibility to provide a
sand separation mechanism before processing it in the mill.
Factory level challenges
Fuel usage challenges
Total alkali, sulfates, chlorine and silica concentrations in trash
Alkali metals in conjunction with other inorganic components such as silica, sulfur and
chlorine are primarily responsible for slagging and fouling, which reduce the boiler efficiency.
These components are common in herbaceous crops. They play an important role in the plant
metabolism ( Kurt woytuik, 2006).
Volatile alkali metals at high temperatures form inorganic gases which react with other fuel
components to exacerbate ash deposition problems by two primary mechanisms. The first
mechanism is by reduction of the ash fusion temperature due to the formation of alkali silicates. The
second mechanism is by condensation of alkali vapours on boiler tube surfaces, which react with
sulfur to form alkali sulfates reducing the boiler effectiveness (Baxter and Jenkins, 1995). Chlorine
assists in effective transport of alkali vapours to the boiler tube surfaces (Miles, 1995).
The tendency to form deposits or slag increases significantly at ash levels of between
0.17 kg/GJ to 0.34 kg/GJ. Fouling and possible slagging occurs above those total alkali
concentration levels (Miles, 1995).
The total alkali concentration of the fuel can be reduced by blending with a processed fuel-
like bagasse. However, composite data (calculated from analysis reports of raw cane trash and
bagasse) presented in Figure 1 show that the total alkali, Cl and SO3 concentration per unit energy is
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still above the threshold level (0.17 kg/GJ) for fuel mixtures having trash contents greater than 20%.
Boiler manufactures are recommending trash to bagasse ratio of 10:90 for the latest high pressure
boilers.

Alkali + Cl + SO3

SO3
5% trash
10% trash
Chlorine 20% trash
30% trash
40% trash

Alkali

0.00 0.05 0.10 0.15 0.20 0.25 0.30

kg/GJ

Fig. 1—Alkali content in trash–bagasse fuel mixture per unit energy content
at different mixture concentrations.

Pilot scale experiments on a Cuba mill in Hawaii have shown that leaching by milling is
very effective in reducing the total alkali, sulfur and chlorine content of trash. It is also observed
that considerable improvement in leaching was achieved by decreasing the particle size (Kurt
woytuik, 2006).
All herbaceous crops have higher concentrations of the alkali metals, chlorine, silica and
sulfates. Leaching is already proven to improve fuel characteristics in the case of bagasse. Bagasse
generated by milling trash along with cane is having the total alkali index well below the threshold
0.17 kg/GJ level because of the efficient leaching in milling.
Trash processing challenges
Crushing rate
The cane crushing rate is found to reduce by 2.3% for 1% increase in trash % cane
processed in milling tandems, primarily due to increased fibre content. It is found that the fibre rate
is not affected by processing additional trash along with cane (Kent, 2007).
Energy consumption
Electrical energy consumption at the milling station will theoretically increase due to the
additional fibre content in trash. However, the lignin content, which generally provides the rigidity
or hardness in fibre, is comparatively less in fibre of trash. Hence, the power consumption per tonne
of fibre in trash will be less than that of fibre in cane stalk. There will also be an increase in steam
consumption due to increased mixed juice % cane.
Juice quality and sugar extraction
It is observed that increase in trash processed along with cane during milling results in
reduction in purity of juice, increased extraction of reducing sugars and loss of pol carried through
extra fibre in trash. A 0.1 unit decrease in extraction and 0.3 units decrease in mixed juice purity
was observed for 1% increase in trash % cane. (Kent, 2007)
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In the current study, it is assumed that the effect of the above challenges for processing trash
in a milling tandem can be managed within limits through minor changes to milling and sugar
processing plants.
Methodology
Three trials of 440 minutes duration were undertaken by the mill to evaluate the potential
and actual effects on the entire mill of using cane trash as fuel in the existing infrastructure. During
the three trials, 89 tonnes of trash were processed along with 417 tonnes of clean cane. The cane
received along with trash at the mill was fed to the cane carriers using grab unloaders and processed
through three sets of knives, a cane shredder and a 4 milling tandem of 30 × 60’ size with underfeed
rollers. The last mill is equipped with a grooved roller pressure feeding device.
The increased bagasse due to extra fibre content in trash is used as fuel for the cogeneration
system. The cogeneration system constitutes a 64 t/h travelling grate boiler generating superheated
steam at 43 bar (abs) and 415°C. In the campaign, 3000 tonnes of trash were processed
intermittently but at regular intervals with cane in the mill.
Results and discussion
Harvesting and transport of trash along with cane
The work required for detrashing during harvesting has reduced but head load to be carried
to the truck per hectare has increased. The cost of transportation has also increased due to reduced
bulk density of trash along with cane in comparison with clean cane. During the trials, cane trash
levels of around 21.4% of the total clean cane received at the sugar mill were recorded. The cane
trash levels recorded during the trials are given in Figure 2.

30 28.54
Trash % cane
25
19.05
Trash % cane

20 16.93

15
Trial-1 Trial-2 Trial-3

Fig. 2—–Cane trash processed during trials as percent of clean cane.

Processing trash along with cane through mills
An effective analysis system is essential to arrive at an accurate price for sugarcane which is
consistent with the existing cane payment framework. It is essential for the analysis system to
provide sufficient confidence for farmers to participate in the harvesting of trash with cane.
Unfortunately, core samplers and NIR analysers are not currently used as the basis for
determining the sugarcane price. We had to adopt a random sampling and weight-based analysis
system. We have demonstrated its working to the farmers for encouraging harvesting trash along
with cane.
The fibre rate through the milling plant has decreased by 14.28% because of inadequate
feeding facilities suitable for milling trash along with cane.
Imbibition
To maintain effective sucrose extraction, imbibition was increased to compensate for the
increase in fibre content. Pol % bagasse remained at 1.8% for increase in imbibition % cane in the
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range of 1.7–1.25 units for 1% increase in trash % cane. The pol in bagasse increased rapidly by
further decreasing the increment in imbibition % cane (Table 1)
Table 1—Percentage increase in Imbibition % cane for 1% increase in trash % cane.
Increase in imbibitions per unit
Trial no. Pol % bagasse
increase in trash % cane
Trial–1 1.781 1.8
Trial–2 1.280 1.8
Trial–3 0.762 2.01

Extracted juice properties

Sucrose extraction in mixed juice
Table 2—Mixed juice quantity (MJ) and % pol observed during trials.
Normal values without trash Values during the trials
Trial no.
Pol % MJ MJ % cane Pol % MJ MJ % cane
Trial–1 7.21 149.86
Trial–2 10.53 108.65 8.1 133.78
Trial–3 7.42 146.20

Table 3—Decrease in sucrose extraction for 1% increase in trash % cane*.

Decrease in sucrose extraction

Trial no. Trash % clean cane
(kg / tonne cane)
Trial–1 0.33 19.05
Trial–2 0.36 16.93
Trial–3 0.21 28.54
*derived from data in Table 2
Table 3 shows the effect on sucrose extraction of processing trash along with cane. As it is
observed, there is a 0.21–0.36 kg per tonne cane decrease in sucrose extraction for 1% increase in
trash % cane. Because of the relatively short nature of the trials, it was not possible to directly
measure the effect of trash on sugar quality and recovery. However, the decrease in sucrose content
mixed juice (Table 2) is a clear indicator of the effect on sugar recovery.
Colour removal
Table 4–Value of IU measurements made during trials.
Mixed juice colour (normal Mixed juice
Trial no.
value without trash) colour during trials
Trial–1 46 000
Trial–2 19 146 32 669
Trial–3 35 403

Table 5–Colour removal during clarification process.

Normal values without trash Values during the trials

Mixed juice Clear juice Colour removal Mixed juice Clear juice Colour removal
colour colour % colour colour %
19 146 17 783 7.12 35 403 23 524 33.55

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From Table 4 above, there is considerable increase in mixed juice colour observed by
processing trash along with cane during the trials. Starch content in the leaves is believed to be
primarily responsible for the increased juice colour. There is an increase of between 550–1400 IU
colour units in mixed juice for a 1% increase in trash % cane. However, as per Table 5,
considerable removal of juice colour was observed in the juice clarification process. The residual
colour in clear juice is easily removed in syrup clarification and crystallisation processes. Hence,
trash was deemed to have no significant impact on the sugar colour of the product (Figure 3).

75.3
72.0
Sugar colour I.U

62.0 61.5
56 56 57.3
52.7 54.5
52.0
47.6 48.4 46.3
45 45.8
42.0 39.8 42
36
32.0
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Week

Product sugar colour in 2008-09 campaign Product sugar colour during trials

Fig. 3—Product sugar colour in 2008–09 campaign starting from 24 November 2008.

Boiler performance
Leaching of trash during milling ensured a clean fuel for the boiler. The analysis of the fuel
showed concentration of alkali in ash well below the threshold level responsible for slagging.
Figure 4 shows a comparison of measurements of concentrations of alkali Cl+ and SO3+ ions in
bagasse from clean cane, from trash processed along with cane, and with that of trash in its
naturally occurring state.

Trash
SO3 Bagasse from trash+cane
Bagasse from clean cane
Chloride

Alkali

0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9

kg/GJ

Fig. 4—Alkali, chlorine and SO3 concentrations per unit energy (kg/GJ).

The results have clearly shown that leaching effectively removes alkali content from trash.
There was no noticeable change in the performance of the boiler vis-à-vis flue gas temperature
profile as shown in Figure 5.
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Normal
800
degrees centrigrade

10:00
600 11:00
400 13:00
200
0
Furnace out Economizer in Economizer out APH out Wet scrubber out

Fig. 5—Effect of using leached cane trash along with bagasse as fuel on the boiler
flue gas temperature profile.

Increased sand content in bed ash is observed, indicating excess silica being entrained with
the trash during trials. Installation of sand separators at the mill feeding point would reduce the
excess sand content in cane with trash.
There was an increase in the oxygen content in flue gas during the trials (Figure 6) which
may presumably be due to increased moisture content to 52% or the changed fuel properties.

7.0
6.0
%

5.0
4.0
10:00 11:00 13:00

Time

Oxygen % flue gas Normal value

Fig. 6–Oxygen content in flue gas during Trial 3.

Cost of trash
To understand the economics of collection and harvesting trash as a fuel, a value for trash
has been derived by assigning costs to various activities and effects involved (Table 6).
Table 6—Incremental cost of trash as fuel by processing it along with
cane in the milling tandem.

S. no Description Value (US$/tonne of trash)

1 Trash price paid to farmer 4.0
2 Transport charges 5.0
Power consumption for leaching trash
3 5.0
(90 kWh / tonne fibre and $80 / MWh)
Steam consumption due to increased imbibition
4 0.6
(0.02 t bagasse @ $30 per tonne bagasse)
5 Sugar loss through bagasse ( Assumed sugar price of $460/tonne) 13.0
6 Sugar loss through molasses (Assumed sugar price of $460/tonne) 7.0
Realization from 1% on cane increased molasses @ $120/t
7 – 6.0
molasses (due to increment in juice RS content)
8 Cost of trash 28.6

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Hence, a valuable fuel is available to the mill at $28.6 / tonne or $1.66 / GJ. Hence,
processed trash is far more attractive than crude oil [$8.7 / GJ] or coal with carbon capture
[$4.8/GJ] (Botha, 2009).
Conclusion
In a country like India, a farmer is used to delivering clean cane to the mill and receiving
payment on the basis of weight and previous campaign mill average recovery. The impact for an
Indian scenario of collecting and milling trash along with cane has been undertaken. Apprehensions
associated with factors such as deterioration in sugar quality, clinker formation and fouling in boiler
and resistance from farming community for such change in harvesting and transportation can be
overcome to some extent by these successful trials.
These preliminary trials have yielded interesting results such as:
1. The dried leaves, non cane portion for milling worked out to be approximately 20%
of clean cane on weight basis.
2. Raw cane trash (i.e. prior to milling) has a higher calorific value in the range of
3845–4375 kcal/kg on dry basis.
3. Leaching trash in mills effectively reduced fuel alkali concentration delivering a
processed fuel to the boiler with minimal risk of slagging.
4. Though transport of cane along with trash from cane fields to sugar mill involved
greater transportation costs, trash contributed considerably to the increase in quantity
of fuel increasing the net power export from the cogeneration plant.
5. There is a significant reduction in crushing capacity which can be moderately
increased by uniform feeding.
6. The colour content of the mixed juice increased due to compounds extracted from
the trash by the milling process. However, the increased colour content of mixed
juice did not ultimately affect the quality of product sugar as the colour was removed
in the juice clarification, syrup clarification and crystallisation processes.
Through the experience gained in this study, it has been established that the following
criteria for selecting fields suitable for harvesting trash along with cane make the activity more
attractive
• Trash collection should be from fields within 15 km distance from mill
• Erect (non lodging) cane varieties should be selected
• High biomass yielding cane varieties should be selected
Effective separation of sand, uniform feeding of raw material to milling tandem, evolution
of right payment mechanism for dry trash based on either core sampler or NIR technique are
essential in future to continue this activity.
Summarising, crushing of cane along with trash appears to be of extreme use for increased
cogeneration of power. Crushing of cane along with trash reduces atmospheric pollution and helps
in reducing global warming. However, the reduction in crushing capacity can adversely affect the
mill operations when there is sufficient cane available to be crushed. Suitable additional milling
capacity to process trash along with cane is inevitable.
These remarkable advantages of crushing cane along with trash warrant further detailed
studies to help alleviate power shortages in India and reduce global warming.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Mr P. Trivikrama Prasad, Managing Director for his
constant support to pursue these trials. The authors also thank sugar mill Agriculture Department
for their efforts and the farming community for their cooperation in supplying trash along with cane
to make these trials successful.
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REFERENCES
Baxter, L.L. and Jenkins, B.M. (1995). Laboratory illustrations of the transformations and
deposition of inorganic materials in biomass boilers. Available from:
http://www.osti.gov/bridge/servlets/purl/105889-r7J7Ay/webviewable/105889.pdf
[Last accessed: 17 October 2009].
Botha, F.C. (2009). Energy yield and cost from sugarcane biomass system. Proc. Aust. Soc. Sugar
Cane Technol., 31: 1–10.
Hassuani, S.J., da Silva, J.E.A.R. and Neves, J.L.M. (2005). Sugarcane trash recovery
alternatives for power generation. Proc. Int. Soc. Sugar Cane Technol., 25 (1): 394–402.
Kent, G.A. (2007). The effect of trash on the operation and performance of a raw sugar factory.
Proc. Int. Soc. Sugar Cane Technol., 26: (CD-ROM).
Krishna Reddiar Perumal (2002). Environment-Friendly Sugarcane Industry, Book published by
SISSTA, 5–7.
Kurt Woytiuk (2006). Sugar cane trash processing for heat and power production, Masters thesis,
Lulea University of Technology Available from: http://epubl.ltu.se/1653-
0187/2006/57/LTU-PB-EX-0657-SE.pdf [Last accessed: 17 October 2009]
Miles, T.R., Miles, T.R. Jr., Baxter, L.L, Bryers, R.W., Jenkins, B.M. and Oden L.L. (1995).
Alkali deposits found in biomass power plants–A preliminary investigation into their extent
and nature. Available from: http://www.nrel.gov/docs/legosti/fy96/8142v1.pdf [Last
accessed: 17 October 2009].
Ramalingaswamy, K., Jamuna, P., MallikarjunaRao, T.K.V.V. and Padma Raju, A. (1998).
Effect of cane trash management on soil-moisture conservation, soil fertility and yield of
sugarcane. Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 68(9): 603–606.
Rein, P.W. (2007). Cane Sugar Engineering, Book published by Bartens, 35–37.
Rípoli, T.C., Molina Jr., W.F. and Ripoli, M.L.C (2000). Energy Potential of Sugarcane biomass
in Brazil, Sci. Agric., 57 (4): 677–681.
Vincent, Paul H. and Krishnamurhti, M. (2007) Sugarcane trash collection in small farms in
Southern India. Proc. Int. Soc. Sugar Cane Technol., 26: (On CD).

PAILLE DE CANNE COMME CARBURANT

Par

N.PRABHAKAR, D.V.L.N.RAJU et R.VIDYA SAGAR

Navoï Bharat Ventures Ltd, Samalkot, Inde.
[email protected]

MOTS CLEFS: Paille de Canne, Énergie,

Traitement de la Paille, Lixiviation.
Résumé
LA PAILLE de canne, un résidu dans les champs de canne à sucre, a un potentiel important comme
un carburant de la biomasse. Elle contient près de 28% de la teneur totale d'énergie dans la culture
de la canne. Toutefois, ce combustible potentiel est gaspillé par le feu en plein champ après la
récolte, produisant des émissions nocives. En Inde, si toute la paille de canne est utilisée, le déficit
énergétique national peut être réduit de 50%; en outre, l'industrie sucrière obtient une exportation
d’énergie de 110%. Malheureusement, les mécanismes pour récolter la paille ne sont pas
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______________________________________________________________________________________

économiques et on n’obtient pas les avantages possibles. La sucrière de Navoï Bharat Ventures Ltd
(Deccan) a essayé de récolter la paille avec la canne et de traiter le tout aux moulins, augmentant
ainsi la génération de bagasse. La paille contient beaucoup d’alcalins et de silice, ce qui ne convient
pas aux chaudières. La paille a été soigneusement lavée aux moulins, réduisant ainsi les alcalins et
la silice dans la bagasse. La récolte et le traitement de la paille avec la canne semblent être une
bonne méthode pour transformer la paille en un combustible de chaudière approprié, ce qui réalise
son potentiel.

RESIDUO AGRICOLA DE LA
CAÑA COMO COMBUSTIBLE

Por

N. PRABHAKAR, D.V.L.N. RAJU and R. VIDYA SAGAR

Nava Bharat Ventures Ltd,Samalkot, India

[email protected]

PALABRAS CLAVE: Residuos, Energía,

Procesamiento de Residuos.

Resumen
EL RESIDUO de cosecha de caña seco dejado en el campo tiene un potencial significativo como
biomasa combustible. Contiene cerca del 28% del total de la energía de la caña. Sin embargo este
potencial es desperdiciado por las quemas abiertas en campo después de la cosecha produciendo
emisiones nocivas. En India, si todos los residuos se utilizan en todo su potencial, el déficit nacional
de energía puede reducirse en un 50%. Adicionalmente la industria azucarera obtiene una
exportación adicional de energía eléctrica del 110%. Desafortunadamente los mecanismos de
recolección disponibles no son económicos y no permiten el logro de los beneficios potenciales.
Deccan Sugars, ingenio de Nava Bharat Ventures Ltd ha ensayado diferentes alternativas para la
recolección de hojas secas para molerlas en el tándem, incrementando la producción de bagazo. Los
residuos tienen altos contenidos de álcalis y sílice lo que los hace no aptos para uso directo en las
calderas. Al procesarlos con la caña son totalmente lavados en el proceso de molienda reduciendo
los contenidos de álcalis y sílice del bagazo resultante. Cosechar y procesar los residuos con la caña
parece ser un buen método para convertir los residuos en un combustible adecuado para las calderas
y aprovechar su potencial.

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