Title:
Guidelines for Sugarcane Straw Removal: a Decision-Making Tool to Assessing the Potential and Availability of Biomass
Author(s):
Menandro, L.M.S., Castro, S.G.Q., Hernandes, T.A.D., Castioni, G.A F., Bordonal, R.O., Luciano, A.C.S., Carvalho, J.L.N.
Document(s):
Paper
Slide presentation
Abstract:
Although crop residues left on the soil surface provides several ecosystems services which results in some benefits in the soil quality and crop yield, there is a growing interest to use sugarcane straw as a cellulosic raw material to meet bioenergy global demands. This trade-off associated with the dual function of straw has raised concerns about "how much", "when" and "where" to remove straw from sugarcane fields in Brazil. However, a traditional recommendation of remove 50% of sugarcane straw was adopted regardless of the amount of straw produced, the edaphoclimatic conditions and management practices in the fields. The objective of this study was developing a Guidelines for sugarcane straw removal in South-Central Brazil to supplying the feedstock for bioenergy sector with low greenhouse gas emissions, soil conservation and sugarcane yield longevity. This Guidelines were based on four pillars: scientific literature; straw characterization; field experiments; straw removal strategies. These pillars allowed the establishment of nine principles that lead to straw removal and are applied in a hierarchical-key methodology. Therefore, our work showing the procedure steps to promoting an oriented sugarcane straw removal, using a new decision-making tool that estimate the straw amount to be collected, as well as, “where” and “when” perform suitability straw removal. The association between the decision-making tool with the geographical information system allows to create straw removal maps in sugarcane cultivated areas, helping the agricultural and logistic operations. This Guidelines are a great advance in the straw management and most efficient use of biomass since that there is not a similar tool available. It can encourage producers to take into account the straw removal to carry out renewable energy production by assess the potential and availability of biomass at local levels. This systematic and oriented use of the whole sugarcane energy potential is also essential for the development of new value bioproducts, moving towards a fully bioeconomy.
Keywords:
bioeconomy, bioenergy, biomass, straw, sugar cane, strategy
Topic:
Sustainable Resources for Decarbonising the Economy
Subtopic:
Biomass potentials and biomass production models
Event:
28th European Biomass Conference and Exhibition
Session:
1AO.1.4
Pages:
4 - 8
ISBN:
978-88-89407-20-2
Paper DOI:
10.5071/28thEUBCE2020-1AO.1.4
Price:
FREE
