Title:
Switchgrass as a Promising Biomass Crop with Soil Improvement Characteristics
Author(s):
Giannoulis, K.D., Molla, A., Dimirkou, A., Danalatos, N.G.
Document(s):
Paper
Abstract:
Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) is an important, environmentalfriendly energy crop. In this work, the effect of switchgrass cultivation on soil denitrification was investigated. Two different soil types, e.g. peat and sandy loam were studied, receiving NO 3 – N up to a concentration of 44 ppm in a pot experiment. Switchgrass variety Alamo was sown in each pot on June 28th (2010) and a nutrient solution of ammonium nitrate at three levels was supplied to correspond to N dressings of 0, 80 and 200 kg N/ha. Upon harvest, the average height of switchgrass was 58 and 36 cm grown on the peat and the sandy soil, respectively. Fresh weight reached 37gr with a range of N uptake up to 10.88 g N/kg biomass. The amount of NO 3 – N to both soil types remained at low levels and actually less than 16.8 mg NO 3 – N/kg soil. Therefore, switchgrass can be considered as a particularly environmentalfriendly crop for biofuel production, and its introduction in future land use planning for biomass and bioenergy production must be seriously considered in Greece.
Keywords:
biomass, switchgrass, Greece, denitrification, soil improvement
Topic:
Biomass Resources
Subtopic:
Energy crops (session 5)
Event:
19th European Biomass Conference and Exhibition
Session:
VP1.3.48
Pages:
689 - 691
ISBN-13:
978-88-89407-55-4
ISBN-10:
88-89407-55-7
Paper DOI:
10.5071/19thEUBCE2011-VP1.3.48
Price:
FREE
