Greenhouse gas mitigation potential from green harvested sugarcane scenarios in São Paulo State, Brazil

Brazil is a major sugarcane producer and São Paulo State cultivates 5.5 million hectares, close to 50% of Brazil's sugarcane area. The rapid increase in production has brought into question the sustainability of biofuels, especially considering the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated to the agricultural sector. Despite the significant progress towards the green harvest practices, 1.67 million hectares were still burned in São Paulo State during the 2011 harvest season. Here an emissions inventory for the life cycle of sugarcane agricultural production is estimated using IPCC methodologies, according to the agriculture survey data and remote sensing database. Our hypothesis is that 1.67 million hectares shall be converted from burned to green harvest scenarios up to years 2021 (rate 1), 2014 (rate 2) or 2029 (rate 3). Those conversions would represent a significant GHG mitigation, ranging from 50.5 to 70.9 megatons of carbon dioxide equivalent (Mt CO2eq) up to 2050, depending on the conversion rate and the green harvest systems adopted: conventional (scenario S1) or conservationist management (scenario S2). We show that a green harvest scenario where crop rotation and reduced soil tillage are practiced has a higher mitigation potential (70.9 Mt CO2eq), which is already practiced in some of the sugarcane areas. Here we support the decision to not just stop burning prior to harvest, but also to consider other better practices in sugarcane areas to have a more sustainable sugarcane based ethanol production in the most dense cultivated sugarcane region in Brazil. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Biosorption of cadmium (II) and lead (II) from aqueous solution using exopolysaccharide and biomass produced by Colletotrichum sp.

The biosorption of Cd(II) and Pb(II) ions on biomass and exopolysaccharide (EPS) produced by Colletotrichum sp. fungus has been investigated as a function of contact time, initial pH, initial metal ion concentration, and initial adsorbent concentration in a batch system. Adsorption equilibrium was described by Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms. Adsorption was characterized through granulometry, SEM and EDX analysis. Then, studies were performed to regenerate the adsorbent. Biosorption of metals by biomass and EPS were best described by the Langmuir and Freundlich isotherm, respectively. Results of thermodynamic investigations showed that adsorption reactions were spontaneous (ΔG° < 0), exothermal, and mainly physical. The EPS was able to remove 79 and 98% of cadmium and lead, respectively, and the biomass removed 85 and 84% of cadmium and lead, respectively, in a solution with initial concentration 100 mg L-1, and the four adsorption-desorption cycles of all adsorbents showed up with great regenerative capacity and relative stability after these four cycles, the high potential of these biological materials in sorption has been shown. © 2013 Copyright Balaban Desalination Publications.

Sorghum grain yield, forage biomass production and revenue as affected by intercropping time

Sorghum is an excellent alternative to other grains in poor soil where corn does not develop very well, as well as in regions with warm and dry winters. Intercropping sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench] with forage crops, such as palisade grass [Brachiaria brizantha (Hochst. ex A. Rich) Stapf] or guinea grass (Panicum maximum Jacq.), provides large amounts of biomass for use as straw in no-tillage systems or as pasture. However, it is important to determine the appropriate time at which these forage crops have to be sown into sorghum systems to avoid reductions in both sorghum and forage production and to maximize the revenue of the cropping system. This study, conducted for three growing seasons at Botucatu in the State of São Paulo in Brazil, evaluated how nutrient concentration, yield components, sorghum grain yield, revenue, and forage crop dry matter production were affected by the timing of forage intercropping. The experimental design was a randomized complete block design. Intercropping systems were not found to cause reductions in the nutrient concentration in sorghum plants. The number of panicles per unit area of sorghum alone (133,600), intercropped sorghum and palisade grass (133,300) and intercropped sorghum and guinea grass (134,300) corresponded to sorghum grain yields of 5439, 5436 and 5566kgha-1, respectively. However, the number of panicles per unit area of intercropped sorghum and palisade grass (144,700) and intercropped sorghum and guinea grass (145,000) with topdressing of fertilizers for the sorghum resulted in the highest sorghum grain yields (6238 and 6127kgha-1 for intercropping with palisade grass and guinea grass, respectively). Forage production (8112, 10,972 and 13,193Mg ha-1 for the first, second and third cuts, respectively) was highest when sorghum and guinea grass were intercropped. The timing of intercropping is an important factor in sorghum grain yield and forage production. Palisade grass or guinea grass must be intercropped with sorghum with topdressing fertilization to achieve the highest sorghum grain yield, but this significantly reduces the forage production. Intercropping sorghum with guinea grass sown simultaneously yielded the highest revenue per ha (€ 1074.4), which was 2.4 times greater than the revenue achieved by sowing sorghum only. © 2013 Elsevier B.V.

Aplicação do hipoclorito de sódio na nutrição da soja e do feijão

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Procedimento híbrido envolvendo os métodos primal-dual de pontos interiores e branch and bound em problemas multiobjetivo de aproveitamento de resíduos de cana-de-açúcar

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Efeitos da exposição a queima de biomassa na função pulmonar e transportabilidade mucociliar e investigação de doenças ocupacionais dos trabalhadores rurais do setor canavieiro

Pós-graduação em Fisioterapia - FCT

Avaliação termodinâmica, termoeconômica e econômica da integração de sistemas de gaseificação da biomassa em uma usina sucroalcooleira

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Desenvolvimento de programa computacional aplicado ao empacotamento do palhiço de cana-de-açúcar

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Utilização de um algoritmo de caminho mínimo no processo de recolhimento do palhiço da cana-de-açúcar

Pós-graduação em Agronomia (Energia na Agricultura) - FCA

Programação linear inteira aplicada ao aproveitamento do palhiço da cana-de-açúcar

Pós-graduação em Agronomia (Energia na Agricultura) - FCA

Relações entre as propriedades físicas de combustíveis sólidos e sua reatividade

Pós-graduação em Física - IGCE

Balanço de gases de efeito estufa em áreas de cana-de-açúcar sob diferentes cenários de manejo, considerando-se mitigações

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Influência da queima de cana-de-açúcar na presença de HPAs em ambiente residencial

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Estudo da determinação do 1-Nitropireno em material particulado atmosférico

Pós-graduação em Química - IQ

Ciclo combinado com gaseificação integrada de biomassa – análise de penalidade exergética de emissão de CO2

Pós-graduação em Engenharia Mecânica - FEG