• Energy Research

Currently the biodiesel chain is promoted by the European energy policy. For the Italian scenario the sunflower is one of the most important crop to be considered for biodiesel production but the chain is not fully profitable. This problem could be solved with the increase of farm incomes through a proper valorization of by-products. From this point of view the oilseed crop is not considered only for oil production but also for producing multiple products with the same economic value. This is the main inspiring concept of the Extravalore project. The sub-project "Raw Materials" investigated about the possible influence of different agro-technics performed in three distinct geographical environments (Northern, Central and Southern Italy) on the characteristics of by-products obtained from sunflower crop.

Abstract In the renewable energy production solid biomass has became one of the most important source for power and heat generation, in particular woody materials in the form of wood chips, pellet and briquette. Technical standards on solid biofuels require information about origin and source of the biomass, differentiating for example between coniferous and broadleaf. In this work different wood samples were classified employing a method based on thermogravimetric analysis followed by Principal Component Analysis and Soft Independent Modeling of Class Analogy as supervised pattern recognition method. The best results were obtained considering the temperature range between 200 and 300 °C, corresponding to hemicellulose degradation. The method results very efficient (100% recognition) at identifying between hardwood and softwood. Nevertheless it shows a good potential to classify single species. This method can be used to assess the quality of solid biofuels with respect to the requirements defined by the specific technical standards.

During the past four years, the European wood pellet market is currently continuing to increase. Total European consumption was about 9.8 Tg and Italian market reaches almost 1 Tg mainly for domestic supply. The present investigation provides an evaluation of pellet quality of Italian market by analysis of 88 wood pellet samples acquired randomly and directly from the sale points. Particular attention has been dedicated to relationship between ash and some elements. Results highlight that only half of samples fulfil the A1 class (best quality) requirements established in the EN 14961-2. Statistical analysis pointed out that ash content is mainly linked to sulphur, potassium and chlorine. The results show that low limit threshold values for ash content ensure low chlorine and sulphur contents.

Abstract The first generation biofuels still have the role of leader in global production of biofuels. In Europe biodiesel is produced mostly from rapeseed ( Brassica napus L. oleifera Metzg) and sunflower ( Helianthus annuus L.). The EU policy is giving attention to the valorization of residues deriving also from those chains. The present work had the objective of evaluating the quality of residues deriving from biodiesel chains based on rapeseed and sunflower crops as well as on other interesting crops in the Mediterranean area, such as Ethiopian mustard ( Brassica carinata A. Braun) and cardoon ( Cynara cardunculus L.). For this purpose an energetic characterization of straws, hulls and press cakes were performed following the official technical normative, as well as the evaluation of their energetic potential. The energy content of residues resulted to be interesting and their quality compatible in general with an energetic use. Crop residues seem to have the most energy potential in quantitative terms, and their exploitation can improve the energy balance of first generation biodiesel production chain improving their sustainability. Concerning quality, crop residues should be employed in medium-large sized plants to limit problems related to plant management and emissions.