Biomassa residual para uso energético no Estado do Pará.

Abstract

The growing demand for energy, as a result of the improvement of the productive conditions and increase of the quality of life of the population, drives new research areas in the search for economically viable and sustainable sources from the environmental point of view. Among the available natural sources, lignocellulosic residues from agricultural and forestry activities are highlighted as to their quantity and availability. The objective of this work was to evaluate the energy potential of residues generated from the processing of five agricultural crops produced in the state of Pará. The research was divided into two stages: in the first stage, the productive survey was carried out and the characterization of the physical, chemical and energetic properties and in the second part the thermal behavior of the residues was studied. The design was a completely randomized design, composed of five treatments (coconut shell, cocoa, palm tree bunch, com cob, açaí fruit seed) and three replications. The analyzes showed that there was a difference between the properties and composition of the residues. The initial moisture content and the low density were considered as the main limiting factors. Among the residues studied, the açaí fruit seed, the corn cob and the palm frond were the ones that presented the greatest potential for energy use considering their availability and calorific value. It has been estimated that the state energy potential is around 42 thousand TJ / year. The microregions of Cametá, Tome-açú and Paragominas presented greater aptitude for the use of waste energy. With the results referring to thermogravimetric analysis, it was observed that the combustion of the residues occurred in three stages. The mass loss of the residues occurred at different temperatures and intensities. The açaí fruit seed was the biomass that presented greater thermal resistance and regularity in the release of the energy.