Costs of using crop residues in direct combustion applications
The economic feasibility of burning crop residues for on-farm grain drying, grain drying at a grain elevator, and electricity generation at a utility are examined. Following dramatic price increases for petroleum during 1979, grain drying is the most economically attractive alternative studied. For on-farm applications, a typical 400-acre grain harvest would consume nearly 5,500 gallons of propane to dry 52,000 bushels of corn from 22% moisture content wet basis (MCWB) to 15% MCWB. Fuel savings from using crop residues instead of propane amount to nearly $2,080 for a typical 8-day harvest. Since one grain elevator services many customers, the front-end capital costs of a residue burner cane spread over a larger harvest. The fuel savings over propane for grain elevators amount to nearly $27,400 per year - approximately the cost of the drying equipment (bin excluded). The cost of using crop residues in utility aplications are prohibitive if the average cost of coal for utilities is used for comparison. The potential use of crop residues as a utility boiler fuel is much greater than grain drying, but relative costs depend on the specific characteristics of each application and on the accessibility and cost of coal.
- Research Organization:
- Solar Energy Research Inst. (SERI), Golden, CO (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- EG-77-C-01-4042
- OSTI ID:
- 5447559
- Report Number(s):
- SERI/TR-353-513
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
AGRICULTURAL WASTES
COMBUSTION
CEREALS
DRYING
CROPS
RESIDUES
AGRICULTURE
CAPITAL
COST
ELECTRIC UTILITIES
HARVESTING
MAIZE
POWER GENERATION
PROPANE
TRANSPORT
ALKANES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
GRAMINEAE
GRASS
HYDROCARBONS
INDUSTRY
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OXIDATION
PLANTS
PUBLIC UTILITIES
SOLID WASTES
THERMOCHEMICAL PROCESSES
WASTES
140504* - Solar Energy Conversion- Biomass Production & Conversion- (-1989)