Title:
Life Cycle Assessment of Miscanthus as a Fuel Alternative in District Heat Production
Author(s):
Parajuli, R., Dalgaard, T., Nguyen, T.L.T., Sperling, K.
Document(s):
Paper
Poster
Abstract:
This study assesses the environmental performance of district heat production based on Miscanthus as a fuel input and compares it with Natural Gas (NG). As a baseline scenario, we assume that the process of energy conversion from Miscanthus to heat takes place in a Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plant. Alternatively, we have simulated the combustion process of Miscanthus in a boiler, where only heat is produced. For NG similar scenarios are examined. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) in relation to 1 MJ of heat production with Miscanthus fired in a CHP would lead to a Global Warming Potential (GWP) of -0.071 kgCO2-eq, a Non-Renewable Energy (NRE) use of -0.767 MJ primary, and 0.09 m2Land Use (LU). In contrast, production of 1 MJ of heat with Miscanthus fired in a boiler would lead to a GWP of 0.005 kg CO2-eq, NRE use 0.172 MJ primary, and land use 0.063 m2-a. Miscanthus fired in a CHP performs better than in the boilerfrom the stand point of GWP and savings in fossil fuels, but leads to a higher LU.A comparison between Miscanthus and NG shows that the former in spite of possessing advantage in reducing GWP and NRE use,additional land required for it could be seen as a disadvantage. Key words: LCA, Miscanthus, Natural gas, District heat, CHP, Boiler, Global Warming Potential, Non-Renewable Energy Use, Land Use.
Keywords:
boiler, combined heat and power generation (CHP), land use, life cycle assessment (LCA), Miscanthus, natural gas, district heat, global warming potential, non-renewable energy use
Topic:
Biomass resources
Subtopic:
Energy crops and energy grasses
Event:
21st European Biomass Conference and Exhibition
Session:
1BV.3.44
Pages:
388 - 400
ISBN:
978-88-89407-53-0
Paper DOI:
10.5071/21stEUBCE2013-1BV.3.44
Price:
FREE
