Speaker
Description
This study assesses the quality and energy potential of softwood plantation harvest residues from south-east Queensland, with the aim of supporting emerging biomass markets. The focus is on the effect of different comminution methods—chipping and grinding—and, for chipped material, the influence of screening.
Harvest residues, mainly clearfall tops and other off-cuts, were collected from two common harvesting systems: whole-tree processing at the roadside and cut-to-length processing at the stump. A total of 26 samples from 16 harvesting sites were analysed, with almost all samples originating from Southern Pine plantations. Key properties examined included moisture content, ash content, and net energy value.
Although the limited sample size prevented statistically robust comparisons, several clear trends were observed. Unscreened Bruks mobile chips produced at roadside processing sites showed higher moisture content but lower ash content compared with unscreened grindings from cut-to-length operations, while net energy values were similar. Screening of Bruks mobile chips reduced moisture content but had little effect on ash content or energy value. In contrast, screened fines contained substantially higher ash content than screened chips, despite similar moisture and energy values.
These findings highlight how harvesting system, comminution method, and screening can influence biomass quality and should be considered when supplying plantation residues to energy and bio-based markets.
| Keywords | Biomass residues screening moisture |
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