Biomass from Green Areas and Its Use for Energy Purposes

Abstract

In the current situation, fossil fuels are the primary source for electricity production. As a result of activities related to environmental protection, other sources are also used to produce energy. One of the renewable sources is biomass, which is becoming more and more popular for economic reasons. Biomass produced in green areas is a source of energy that has not been used in an appropriate way so far. This scientific article presents the possibility of using biomass from parks and gardens for the production of pellets and the assessment of their properties in terms of the possibility of using them for energy purposes. Coniferous sawdust was an additional component of the pellets. The produced pellets were tested for mechanical, thermogravimetric, and calorimetric properties. It was found that pellets made of biomass consisting of fir (493.12 N) and pine (450.84 N) cones with an addition of coniferous sawdust were the most resistant to mechanical damage. The amount of ash in the analyzed pellets was below 3%, and their calorific value ranged from 16.95 to 19.54 MJ·kg−1. Additionally, during pellet combustion, the lowest emission of sulfur dioxide was recorded for pellets made of sawdust from coniferous trees and acorns (1.01 mg·m3), while the lowest emission of nitrogen oxides was recorded for pellets made of a mixture of coniferous sawdust and pinecones (65.33 mg·m3). The emission of the tested gases decreased as a result of the addition of coniferous sawdust to the tested types of biomass. On the basis of the conducted research, it was noted that waste biomass formed in green areas can be a raw material for energy production.