Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering, Department of
Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
Accessibility Remediation
If you are unable to use this item in its current form due to accessibility barriers, you may request remediation through our remediation request form.
Date of this Version
12-2011
Document Type
Thesis
Abstract
Significant interest has developed in using cellulosic resources, especially crop residues, to create biofuels. Collecting these residues in a single-pass of the harvester across the field has the potential to be a low cost option. Two models have been developed; the first characterizes the in-field logistics of single-pass crop residue collection, the second the economics. These models allow the user to easily examine a wide variety of both grain-only and single-pass residue collection harvest cases. A variety of possible residue collection cases have been examined, and their effects both on harvester field capacity and harvest cost compared to grain-only harvest have been quantified. Systems where a harvester-towed wagon unloads collected residue directly at the field edge without any intermediary residue-hauling carts were generally the lowest cost. Cost-effective systems were shown to deliver crop residues to a biomass refinery at a mean cost of between $37 and $53 per metric dry matter ton depending on the acceptable reduction in harvester field capacity.
Adviser: Michael F. Kocher
Comments
A thesis Presented to the Faculty of The Graduate College at the University of Nebraska In Partial Fulfillment of Requirements For the degree of Master of Science, Major: Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering, Under the Supervision of Professor Michael Kocher. Lincoln, Nebraska: December, 2011
Copyright 2011 Matthew T. Wold