A master thesis from Aalborg University
Life Cycle Assessment of Biochar Production and Soil Application on Danish Dairy Farms
Author(s)
Term
4. Term
Publication year
2023
Submitted on
2023-06-01
Pages
80 pages
Abstract
This thesis analyses the potential for the Danish dairy farming sector to reduce its environmental impacts through carbon storage, by producing biochar from pyrolysis and applying it to their soils. The analysed pyrolysis feedstocks are straw residues and digested manure. This was done through a Life Cycle Assessment, where a consequential model and a model based on the International Dairy Federation’s guidelines were modelled to test methodological differences’ impacts on LCA results. Research interviews were done to collect data and gain an understanding of the pyrolysis process and the agricultural context. The LCA showed impact reductions on global warming and respiratory inorganics for both feedstocks and modelling approaches when compared to the reference scenarios of applying the biomass directly to land without pyrolysis. The results were used in the context of a specific dairy farm to calculate the potential for reducing environmental impacts from the farm’s available biomass. To conclude, pyrolysis can be used as a tool to reduce impacts and help dairy farmers reduce their emissions, but data is still lacking due to the pyrolysis technology being new on a commercial scale
Keywords
Dairy ; LCA ; Carbon ; Sequestration ; Carbon storage ; Biochar ; Agriculture ; Pyrolysis ; Milk ; Farm ; Life Cycle Assessment ; GHG ; Emissions ; CO2 emissions
Documents
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