Soybean Straw, Corn Stover and Sunflower Stalk as Possible Substrates for Biogas Production in Croatia: A Review

Đ. Kovačić, D. Kralik, S. Rupčić, D. Jovičić, R. Spajić and M. Tišma

Abstract
Biomass availability is one of the key factors for biogas production in the future. The current status and possibilities for utilizing harvest residues (soybean straw, corn stover and sunflower stalk) in Croatia for biogas production is given. In the last few decades, different pretreatment methods have been developed for the degradation of different lignocellulosic biomass, but many of them are environmentally unfriendly and sometimes very expensive. More research and development is necessary in order to find both economically and environmentally friendly pretreatment methods. This paper provides a review on the mechanical, physical, and biological methods used for different lignocellulose material pretreatment. Harvest residues are usually left in the field, but with the improvement of the pretreatment process along with soil protection, they could be used for the production of huge amounts of energy in the future. (This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.)

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License

Keywords
biodegradation, biogas, harvest residues, lignocellulosic biomass, pretreatment