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Renewable Energy Solutions for Baltic–Nordic Region 2021

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "A4: Bio-Energy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2021) | Viewed by 8535

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Biosystems Engineering, Institute of Technology, Estonian University of Life Sciences, 51014 Tartu, Estonia
Interests: bioeconomy; biofuels; biomass conversion; biomethane; bioethanol; lignocellulosic biomass; pretreatment; renewable transport fuels
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Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Wayne State University, 5050 Anthony Wayne Dr., Detroit, MI 48202, USA
Interests: engine technology; combustion; optical diagnostics; propulsion systems
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Biosystems Engineering (BSE) aims to become the leading annual conference in Baltic region in fields related to traditional and modern engineering techniques and technical solutions applied to biological systems. The goal of BSE 2021 is to gather scholars from all over the world to present advances in the fields of biosystems engineering and to foster an environment conducive to exchanging ideas and information. This year, the conference will take place virtually in an e-platform. However, we still hope to provide an environment to develop new collaborations and meet experts on the fundamentals, applications, and products of the mentioned fields.

Among the more prominent topics of the conference are energy and fuels from renewable sources, bioenergy, waste-to-energy, energy efficiency, etc.

Prof. Dr. Timo Kikas
Prof. Dr. Marcis Jansons
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • smart energy systems
  • energy policy
  • energy system analysis
  • renewable energy resources
  • advanced sustainable energy conversion systems
  • renewable heat systems
  • biofuels and biorefineries
  • alternative fuels
  • hybrid and electric vehicles
  • energy storage
  • energy-efficient appliances
  • energy efficiency in buildings

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 3434 KiB  
Article
CFD Modelling of the Thermal Performance of Fruit Packaging Boxes—Influence of Vent-Holes Design
by Adhiyaman Ilangovan, João Curto, Pedro D. Gaspar, Pedro D. Silva and Nanci Alves
Energies 2021, 14(23), 7990; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14237990 - 30 Nov 2021
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2415
Abstract
The shelf life of perishable products depends mainly on the conservation of air temperature. Packaging boxes are usually used to accommodate food products during cold storage and transport and/or display. The design of the vent-holes of the packaging box must promote cold airflow [...] Read more.
The shelf life of perishable products depends mainly on the conservation of air temperature. Packaging boxes are usually used to accommodate food products during cold storage and transport and/or display. The design of the vent-holes of the packaging box must promote cold airflow and remove the field heat of the produce after harvest at a short time. This study describes the influence of the vent-holes design and its performance during cold storage. The cooling performance of the different packaging boxes is evaluated experimentally and numerically using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD). Three new packaging box configurations with the same size but different vent-holes design (size, shape and position) and a reference box are modelled. The transient three-dimensional CFD model predicts the airflow pattern and temperature distribution within the different packaging boxes. The best thermal performance packaging achieved a fruit model temperature 1.5 K to 5 K lower than the other configurations at the end of 8 h of cooling. These predictions allow the development of new packaging box designs that promote the shelf-life extension of perishable products. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Renewable Energy Solutions for Baltic–Nordic Region 2021)
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24 pages, 49775 KiB  
Article
Operational Parameters of a Diesel Engine Running on Diesel–Rapeseed Oil–Methanol–Iso-Butanol Blends
by Jakub Čedík, Martin Pexa, Michal Holúbek, Jaroslav Mrázek, Hardikk Valera and Avinash Kumar Agarwal
Energies 2021, 14(19), 6173; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14196173 - 27 Sep 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2721
Abstract
This contribution focuses on utilizing blended biofuels of rapeseed oil and methanol with diesel. Rapeseed is one of the most cultivated energy crops in Europe, and its purpose in the blends is to increase the bio-content in test fuels. The purpose of methanol [...] Read more.
This contribution focuses on utilizing blended biofuels of rapeseed oil and methanol with diesel. Rapeseed is one of the most cultivated energy crops in Europe, and its purpose in the blends is to increase the bio-content in test fuels. The purpose of methanol in the blends is to increase bio-content and compensate for the higher viscosity of the rapeseed oil. As methanol is almost insoluble in diesel and rapeseed oil, iso-butanol is used as a co-solvent. The fuel blends were tested in volumetric concentrations of diesel/rapeseed oil/methanol/iso-butanol 60/30/5/5, 50/30/10/10, and 50/10/20/20. Diesel was used as a reference. The measurements were performed on a turbocharged diesel engine Zetor 1204, loaded using the power-takeoff shaft of the Zetor Forterra 8641 tractor. In this paper, the effect of the blended fuels on performance parameters, engine efficiency, production of soot particles, and regulated and unregulated emissions are monitored and analyzed. It was found that engine power decreased by up to 27%, efficiency decreased by up to 5.5% at full engine load, emissions of NOX increased by up to 21.9% at 50% engine load, and production of soot particles decreased; however, the mean size of the particles was smaller. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Renewable Energy Solutions for Baltic–Nordic Region 2021)
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18 pages, 4686 KiB  
Article
Hydrothermal Carbonization of Chemical and Biological Pulp Mill Sludges
by Clara Lisseth Mendoza Martinez, Ekaterina Sermyagina and Esa Vakkilainen
Energies 2021, 14(18), 5693; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14185693 - 10 Sep 2021
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 2753
Abstract
A modern pulp mill generates a variety of different by-products and waste streams, some of these can be recycled, refined, sold, or used on-site for energy production. However, some, such as chemical and biological sludges produced in wastewater treatment cannot be reused or [...] Read more.
A modern pulp mill generates a variety of different by-products and waste streams, some of these can be recycled, refined, sold, or used on-site for energy production. However, some, such as chemical and biological sludges produced in wastewater treatment cannot be reused or disposed of easily, mainly due to their high moisture content and poor drying characteristics. Tightening legislation regarding waste disposal as well as the growing need to increase the process efficiencies of pulp mills act as driving forces to find environmentally friendly and energy-efficient techniques for pulp mill sludge treatment. This study summarizes the current methods for pulp mill sludge handling and evaluates the potential of hydrothermal carbonization (HTC), a conversion process through which wet organic substrates can be transformed into a carbonaceous material (hydrochar). Depending on the process parameters, the material’s structure is modified, enabling hydrochar use in energy, soil conditioning and adsorption applications. The sludges were hydrothermally carbonized at 180, 200, 220 and 240 °C for 3 h. The hydrochar and liquid products’ main properties were analyzed. Their potential applications were also evaluated. The effective treatment of sludges from the pulp industry with HTC could transform energy-demanding waste into a value-added source of materials. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Renewable Energy Solutions for Baltic–Nordic Region 2021)
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