Page 310 - Refining Biomass Residues for Sustainable Energy and Bioproducts

Potentials of postharvest rice crop residues as a source of biofuel 279

43% are rice residues, the major contributor, subsequently followed by wheat
(21%) and sugarcane (19%) (Jain et al., 2014)(Fig. 13.3).
In a similar fashion, the residues generated from cereal crops accounted for 58%
of the total residues. The rice crop residues alone contributed 53% of the cereal
crop residues followed by wheat residues (33%) and maize and millets each
accounting for 7% of the total cereal residues. The disposal of agricultural residues
by open burning is a common practice. Open burning of rice residues ranges in
between 8% and 80% across various states of India (Gadde et al., 2009). The bio-
mass of postharvest rice residues pose a great economic value and also offer to be
an efficient source of energy. Energy harvested from these residues through various
technological interventions can prove as a better alternative to the gradually deplet-
ing fossil fuels, thus providing an immediate solution to the increasing concentra-
tion of carbon dioxide in the environment (Brar et al., 2000; Lohan et al., 2012;
Dhaliwal et al., 2011). Burning of the residues is not only a great economic loss but

Figure 13.3 Percentage of crop residues generated in India per annum.

Table 13.4 Various types of emissions resulting from the burning of rice crop residues
and their percentage.
Emissions due to burning of rice residues Percentage emissions

Carbon in form of CO 2 70
Carbon in form of CO 7
Carbon in form of CH 4 0.66
Nitrogen in form of NO x 20
Nitrogen in form of N 2 O 2.1
Sulfur in form of SO x 17
Source: Jain, N., Pathak, H., Bhatia, A., 2014. Sustainable management of crop residues in India. Curr. Adv. Agric.
Sci. 6, 1 9.