B5198 - Biomass and Renewable Energy Systems

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, the student is expected to have an up-to-date, critical view on the main renewables, and to know the peculiarities, limitations, potential and applicability of each of the main renewable sources of interest in the agricultural and forestry chains. The student will also be able to compare renewable and non-renewable energy sources in terms of sustainability.

In addition, the student is expected to acquire an appropriate level of knowledge of: how biomass is deployed to produce energy; the layout and the components of renewable energy plants; the chemo-physical working principles of renewable energy plants.

Last, the student is expected to be able to apply the acquired knowledge in the context of farms and of biomass supply from agricultural and forest territory.

Course contents

COURSE-SPECIFIC PREREQUISITES

To facilitate a better understanding of the course topics, students are recommended to have a basic knowledge of Thermodynamics and a general familiarity with the concepts of energy and power.

COURSE CONTENTS

The course focuses on systems and technologies within the field of Agricultural Engineering, with particular emphasis on the renewable energy sources that are most relevant to agricultural enterprises and agroforestry systems.

The course includes technical visits to biogas/biomethane plants, as well as to biomass heat/power plants that valorise agricultural and forestry by-products. Seminars delivered by industry professionals and researchers are also scheduled to complement the course topics.

The course covers the following subjects:

• Introduction to renewable energy sources: global energy scenario and the role of renewable energy; classification of energy sources.
• Fundamentals of Thermal Engineering: physical quantities commonly used in the energy sector; principle of energy conservation; efficiency; introduction to steam cycles, combined cycles, and combined heat and power (CHP) systems.
• Energy conversion of biomass: biomass types; definitions of products, by-products, and waste; animal by-products; chemical and physical properties of biomass.
• Laboratory characterization of biomass: proximate analysis, ultimate analysis, determination of the heating value and biomethane potential of biomass.
• Anaerobic digestion.
• Biogas and biomethane plants: main plant configurations; biogas upgrading technologies; biomass pre-treatment techniques; digestor feedstock formulation and balancing; digestate treatment technologies; preliminary sizing of biogas plants; incentive schemes and regulatory aspects.
• Direct biomass combustion and biomass power plants: general principles; fixed-bed boilers; fluidized-bed boilers; emissions and emission control.
• Biomass gasification and pyrolysis.
• Hydropower: general principles; plant configurations; hydraulic turbines.
• Solar energy: general principles and technologies (solar thermal, photovoltaic, and agrivoltaic systems).
• Wind energy: general principles; wind turbines.

Readings/Bibliography

The teaching materials for this course are available on the Virtuale Learning Environment (https://virtuale.unibo.it/?lang=en ).

Further readings:

• material from the seminars
• scientific papers suggested by the teacher
• Arthur Wellinger, Jerry Murphy, David Baxter, The biogas handbook: science, production and applications. Woodhead Publishing, 2013
  
• Eklas Hossain, Slobodan Petrovic, Renewable energy crash course, Springer, 2021 (https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-030-70049-2)

Teaching methods

During in-class lectures the topics of the course will be presented and discussed. To complement the lectures, seminars with invited experts and professionals will be held, as well as laboratory activities and technical visits to farm renewable energy plants.

For laboratory activities and technical visits: due to the nature of the activities and teaching methods, attendance requires successful completion of Modules 1 and 2 in e-learning mode, as well as Module 3 on health and safety in study environments. Information on dates and attendance procedures for Module 3 is available on the Degree Programme website.

For laboratory sessions, students must wear a lab coat and appropriate footwear. Suitable PPE, such as disposable latex gloves, will be provided where required.

Assessment methods

The final grade will be composed as follows:

• evaluation of an individually produced essay submitted prior to the examination date (up to 18 points);

• oral test consisting of a couple of short questions on the topics covered in class (up to 10 points);

• other factors such as: active participation in the discussions arising during the lectures and the seminars, active participation in the laboratory activities and in the technical visits, processing of the laboratory data acquired, evaluation of the exercises proposed during the course (up to 7 points).

The essay topic must be chosen among those proposed and must be between 2000 and 3000 words. It should be submitted at least one week prior to the chosen oral examination date.

The final mark will be the sum of the points obtained in the three components above. The examination result will be communicated at the conclusion of the oral test. A minimum score of 18/30 is required to pass. If the total score exceeds 30 points, the grade will be 30 with honours.

Students with learning disorders and\or temporary or permanent disabilities: please, contact the office responsible (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students ) as soon as possible so that they can propose acceptable adjustments. The request for adaptation must be submitted in advance (15 days before the exam date) to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness of the adjustments, taking into account the teaching objectives.

Teaching tools

Audiovisual aids and laboratory equipment.

In case of difficulties in understanding part of the course content, the instructor is available for clarification meetings, which shall be scheduled via email.

Office hours

See the website of Mirko Maraldi