Showing results for: crop yield Articles
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Estimation of possible energy contributions of crop residues in Nigeria
This study applied a simple methodology to evaluate energy contribution of selected crop residues to the possible replacement of conventional sources of energy and their specific technologies based on Nigerian situations. Using this methodology, energy content, replacement energy value, energy cost and energy return of crop residue (kJ per kg dry matter) were considered. The cost estimates of ...
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USGS Study Points To Biofuel Crop Related Land-Use Change Reducing Honey Bee Habitat
On August 29, 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) published a study on the result of land-use changes on North and South Dakota commercial honey bee colonies in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. USGS scientists found that grasslands and other landscape features favored by beekeepers were decreasing, with crops that are avoided by beekeepers, such as corn and ...
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Weekly Roundup of other biobased news
Reuters, “Genscape Says It Will Fight EPA Move to Boot It from Biofuels Program” University of Bath, “Scientists Make Plastic from Christmas Trees” Washington Examiner, “Energy, Farm Policy Collide in the New Congress” Growth Energy, “Poll: Trump Voters Overwhelmingly Support Ethanol” PETROSS, “Dual-Purpose Biofuel Crops Could Extend ...
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Potential of crop residue in India as a source of energy
Here is given an estimate of crop residue production and different recycling options as a source of renewable energy. India produces 388 Tg crop residues but only 182 Tg equivalent to 2818 PJ is usable. Recycling as manure can replace 15% of 595 PJ national fertiliser energy. Recycling in digester can produce 20.32 billion m? biogas. It can be converted into 182 Tg of biocoal generating 156?258.3 ...
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Training Provision
To help demonstrate the opportunities for growing energy crops and using farm residues in anaerobic digestion, we ran a series of training days for farmers. The events sought to address the technical challenges facing growers and the development of the sector, while providing a network for communication between members of the supply chain. Approach Working on behalf of the UK Department of ...
By NNFCC Ltd.
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Corn stover to sustain soil organic carbon further constrains biomass supply
Sustainable aboveground crop biomass harvest estimates for cellulosic ethanol production, to date, have been limited by the need for residue to control erosion. Recently, estimates of the amount of corn (Zea mays L.) stover needed to maintain soil carbon, which is responsible for favorable soil properties, were reported (5.25–12.50 Mg ha–1). These estimates indicate stover needed to maintain soil ...
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No-till corn after Bromegrass: Effect on soil carbon and soil aggregates
Grasslands in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) in the USA may be converted to grain crops for bioenergy. The effect of no-till conversion of a smooth bromegrass (Bromus inermis Leyss) grassland to no-till corn (Zea mays L.) production on soil organic carbon (SOC) in the western Corn Belt was monitored for over 6 yr. A different 13C/12C isotope signature is imparted to SOC by C4 plants ...
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Scale of biomass production from new woody crops for salinity control in dryland agriculture in Australia
There is scope internationally to utilise surplus and degraded agricultural land for biomass crops that might also be environmentally beneficial. For example, dryland salinity in southern Australian could be ameliorated using profitable woody biomass crops. A model was developed to predict biomass production from such woody crops. At a biomass price of A$35/t (green) and a water use efficiency of ...
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Better photosynthesis for a better world?
There’s no question that plants are better than most other life forms at converting carbon dioxide and sunlight into the sugars that form the basis of our global food web — and eventually, humans’ entire food supply. But fact of the matter is, with conversion rates hovering around 2 percent for our best crop fields, they’re by no means great. Even a slight increase in the ...
By Ensia
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Energy use and carbon dioxide emissions from cropland production in the United States, 1990–2004
Received for publication June 9, 2008. Changes in cropland production and management influence energy consumption and emissions of CO2 from fossil-fuel combustion. A method was developed to calculate on-site and off-site energy and CO2 emissions for cropping practices in the United States at the county scale. Energy consumption and emissions occur on-site from the operation of farm machinery and ...
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Symbiotic and growth performance of supernodulating forage pea lines
The exploitation of nitrate-tolerant symbiosis (nts) mutants of pulse legumes is limited by the accompanying supernodulation trait, which causes uncontrolled initiation of excessive symbiotic nodules on the root. The resulting disproportion between the photosynthetic capacity and the catabolic activity of nodules leads to growth deprivation, regardless of the desirable enhancement of symbiotic N ...
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Aquacrop—the FAO crop model to simulate yield response to water
This article introduces the FAO crop model AquaCrop. It simulates attainable yields of major herbaceous crops as a function of water consumption under rainfed, supplemental, deficit, and full irrigation conditions. The growth engine of AquaCrop is water-driven, in that transpiration is calculated first and translated into biomass using a conservative, crop-specific parameter: the biomass water ...
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O3 sensitivity in a potential C4 bioenergy crop: Sugarcane in California
The C4 perennial grasses have many potential virtues as bioenergy crops—high productivity and water use efficiency, multiyear crop cycle that minimizes replanting costs, and wide environmental adaptation. In the productive San Joaquin Valley (SJV) of California, these species also confront high levels of ozone (O3) air pollution. It is often assumed that C4 species will exhibit tolerance to O3, ...
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Energy for 2,150 households: our flagship project in Icknield (UK) - Case Study
Location:Ipsden, Oxfordshire (UK) Capacity:700 Nm³/h biomethane + 360 kWel CHP Input materials:Pig slurry, farm by-products, energy crops Special Features:The plant is capable of supplying enough gas to meet the annual needs of around 2,150 households. The subsequent reuse of the digestate as fertiliser also helps to reduce the use of chemical fertilisers by local agricultural ...
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Simulating switchgrass growth and development under potential and water-limiting conditions
Anticipating a demand for switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) as a source for biofuel production, a crop simulation model of this crop can be a component of a biofuel decision support system. The objective of this effort was to develop and test a model for switchgrass, based on robust empirical relationships between plant behavior and the environment. The model simulates date of annual growth ...
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Watering Scarcity: Private investment opportunities in agricultural water use efficiency
This report was prepared by Rabobank in collaboration with the World Resources Institute. In many regions around the world, demand for fresh water now outstrips renewable supplies. Water scarcity is projected to worsen considerably due to a combination of factors such as population increase, higher incomes and changing lifestyles, pollution, and climate change. Agriculture is by far the biggest ...
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Impact assessment of pre- and post-sown irrigation with Post Methanation distillery Effluent on soil health and crop yield
Field experiments were conducted to assess the optimum dilution of Post Methanation distillery Effluent (PME) to utilise as an organic nutrient source for growing rice and wheat crops. Dilution levels of distillery effluent significantly affected the biomass production as well as grain yield of rice and wheat crops. Levels of organic carbon and NPK were significantly higher in effluent treated ...
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How to Help Grapevines Recover after a Difficult Frost Period
100% : this is the percentage of a vineyard that can be damaged by frost Cold snaps and frosts have hit many orchards and vineyards these last few weeks in France. High yield reduction will be expected due to these cold waves, occurring after weeks of heat and crop development. During dormancy, grapevines can support temperatures as low as -15°C. However, as soon as the vines bud, they ...
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Soil carbon levels in irrigated western corn belt rotations
Proposals promoting the use of massive amounts of crop residues and other lignocellulosic biomass for biofuel production have increased the need for evaluation of the sustainability of cropping practices and their effect on environment quality. Our objective was to evaluate the effects of crop rotation and N fertilizer management and their stover production characteristics on soil organic carbon ...
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The Global Food Challenge Explained in 18 Graphics
The world is projected to hold a whopping 9.6 billion people by 2050. Figuring out how to feed all these people—while also advancing rural development, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and protecting valuable ecosystems—is one of the greatest challenges of our era. So what’s causing the global food challenge, and how can the world solve it? We begin to answer these questions ...
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