Feasibility Analysis of Brewers’ Spent Grain for Energy Use: Waste and Experimental Pellets

Abstract

Waste production is increasing every day as a consequence of human activities; thus, its valorization is becoming more important. For this purpose, the usage of wastes as biofuels is one of the most important aspects of sustainable strategies. This is the case of the main waste generated in brewing industries: brewers’ spent grain (BSG). In this sector, microbreweries are not able to properly manage the wastes that they generate due to lack of space. Consequently, the transformation of BSG to a high-quality biofuel might be an interesting option for this kind of small industry. In this work, we carried out a physical-energy characterization of BSG, as well as pellets from this waste. The initial characterization showed slightly unfavorable results concerning N and ash, with values of 3.76% and 3.37% db, respectively. Nevertheless, the physical characterization of the pellets was very good, with acceptable bulk density (662.96 kg·m−3 wb) and low heating value (LHV; 17.65 MJ·kg−1 wb), among others. This situation is very favorable for any of the intended uses (for energy use or animal feed, among others).

Keywords

• microbreweries
• waste
• biomass
• pellets