Hydrothermal Carbonization of Brewery’s Spent Grains for the Production of Solid Biofuels
Mateusz Jackowski,
Damian Semba,
Anna Trusek,
Mateusz Wnukowski,
Lukasz Niedzwiecki,
Marcin Baranowski,
Krystian Krochmalny,
Halina Pawlak-Kruczek
Affiliations
Mateusz Jackowski
Division of Bioprocess and Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Norwida 4/6, 50-373 Wrocław, Poland
Damian Semba
Division of Bioprocess and Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Norwida 4/6, 50-373 Wrocław, Poland
Anna Trusek
Division of Bioprocess and Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Norwida 4/6, 50-373 Wrocław, Poland
Mateusz Wnukowski
Department of Boilers, Combustion and Energy Systems, Faculty of Mechanical and Power Engineering, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, 50-370 Wrocław, Poland
Lukasz Niedzwiecki
Department of Boilers, Combustion and Energy Systems, Faculty of Mechanical and Power Engineering, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, 50-370 Wrocław, Poland
Marcin Baranowski
Department of Boilers, Combustion and Energy Systems, Faculty of Mechanical and Power Engineering, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, 50-370 Wrocław, Poland
Krystian Krochmalny
Department of Boilers, Combustion and Energy Systems, Faculty of Mechanical and Power Engineering, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, 50-370 Wrocław, Poland
Halina Pawlak-Kruczek
Department of Boilers, Combustion and Energy Systems, Faculty of Mechanical and Power Engineering, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, 50-370 Wrocław, Poland
To make a beer there are four essential ingredients needed: water, malt, hops, and yeast. After brewing process, the main wastes are spent grains. These are often used as additions to fodders in animal husbandry. This study presents preliminary results of an investigation aiming to determine the feasibility of an alternative use of spent grains as a potential source of solid fuel. This source of energy could make breweries partly sustainable in terms of their energy supply. Such an approach may be feasible especially in large scale industrial breweries. This preliminary study presents encouraging results, showing improvements in terms of the fuel properties of the spent grain after its valorization through hydrothermal carbonization. Moreover, qualitative GC-MS analysis also indicates potential feasibility of the liquid byproduct of the hydrothermal carbonization of spent grain for biogas production. Results of proximate, ultimate, and DTG analyses show that hydrothermal carbonization of spent grain could improve its fuel properties and make it an especially suitable feedstock for fast pyrolysis and gasification. Improvement of HHV is also an improvement in terms of combustion.
