FERREIRA, J. C. C.; http://lattes.cnpq.br/3864581478196996; FERREIRA, José Cirlânio da Cruz.
Abstract:
About 570 million tons of cane sugar were processed in the 2008/2009 harvest in the
sugar plantations of the Brazilian sugar mills generated approximately 188 million tons of
bagasse. It is mostly burnt in boilers to use the heat for electrical energy generation, to
supply the industrial and agricultural power demands in the mills. However, this
operation has a low yield. Aiming to maximize the energetic output from the bagasse, this
research evaluated the enzymatic hydrolyses and anaerobic digestion of sugarcane
bagasse, stressing the technical viability analysis of the power production potential from
this raw material. Three enzymatic hydrolysis reactors (RHI, RH2 and RH3) and three
UASB reactors (Ri, R2 and R3) for hydrolysed bagasse anaerobic digestion were
operated. The raw material for all the treatments were vapor exploded bagasse (thermally
treated material). The enzymatic hydrolysis reactors were distinctly operated: RHI reactor
(without enzymes), RH2 (simultaneously feeding and enzyme application) and RH3
(exploded bagasse with pre-enzyme treated under thermophilic condition). The
hydrolysed and lixiviated materials were digested in anaerobic reactors. Reactor RH3
presented the best efficiency for the exploded bagasse hydrolysis, while reactors RHI and
RH2 presented smaller r, hydrolysis efficiency. Analysing the anaerobic digestion
efficiency of the hydrolysed materials, the reactors UASB all three investigated reactors
presented high digestibility efficiency with values ranging form 70 to 90 %. Considering
all the Brazilian sugarcane production and the chemical energy within throughout bagasse
generated, the potential power generation from hydrolysis and anaerobic digestion of the
bagasse in the RH3-R3 system would be of 50 Twh/year, almost 12% of the Brazilian
electrical energy demand. For the RH2-R2 system, the potential electrical energy
generation would be of 46TWh/year, and for RHI-RI system, 26TWh/year, which
represent 11% and 6% of Brazilian electrical energy demand. Thus, with this research, it
can be concluded that it is technically viable the electrical energy production from the
methane which was generated in the built systems with enzymatic hydrolysis reactors
followed by UASB reactors.