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Abstract:It is well known that a large proportion of available logging residues intended for extraction will not reach the energy-conversion industry, because some are lost during transportation or left on the clear-felled area. However, there is little understanding of where logging residue losses occur in the supply chain. In this study, the distribution of logging residues for two methods (dried-and fresh-stacked method) to extract logging residues were studied in one clear-felled area. In addition, residue fractions were examined in a detailed comparison. Even though the fresh-stacked method left somewhat more logging residues at the clear-felled area, the differences are small between the methods. Approximately 30% of the total amount of logging residues was left behind between the harvester heaps, with an additional 10%-15% under these heaps and approximately 2%-3% beneath the windrows. The final product that was delivered to the energy-conversion industry was very similar, regardless of the extraction method used. The delivered chipped logging residues had moisture contents of 37% and 36% following fresh-and dried-stacked methods respectively, and in both cases the needle content in the processed logging residues was approximately 10%. However, the total amount of fine fractions (needles and fines) was slightly higher following dried-stacking. OPEN ACCESSForests 2015, 6 4213

A field study of the mixing process of lime-cement columns for deep mixing has been carried out at a test site in Håby, Sweden. The study aimed to investigate the influence on the stabilisation effect and the coefficient of variation for excavated columns, when a number of factors related to the installation process were varied. The influencing factors investigated were the retrieval rate, number of mixing blades, rotational speed, air pressure in the storage tank, and diameter of the binder outlet hole. A large number of hand-operated penetrometer tests were carried out on the excavated column cross-sections. Statistical multifactor analyses were used to evaluate the influence on the stabilisation effect and the coefficient of variation of the varied factors. The results showed that the retrieval rate and the number of mixing blades were found to have a significant effect. The effect of rotational speed and the diameter of the outlet hole were found to be insignificant. The field study showed that the strength and deformation properties of the soil and the upper pair of mixing blades, with respect to the binder outlet hole, had a major influence on the binder dispersion over the column cross-section. The blade rotation number can be used as an indirect value of the mixing work and can be used as a measure of the mixing tool effectiveness.

In the continual desire to reduce the environmental footprints of human activities, research efforts to provide cleaner energy is increasingly becoming vital. The effect of climate change on present and future existence, sustainable processes, and utilizations of renewable resources have been active topics within international discourse. In order to reduce the greenhouse gases emissions from traditional materials and processes, there has been a shift to more environmental friendly alternatives. The conversion of biomass to bioenergy, including biofuels has been considered to contribute to the future of climate change mitigation, although there are concerns about carbon balance from forest utilization. Bioenergy accounts for more than one-third of all energy used in Sweden and biomass has provided about 60% of the fuel for district heating. Apart from heat and electricity supply, the transport sector, with about 30% of global energy use, has a significant role in a sustainable bioenergy system. This review presents the state of the art in the Swedish bioenergy sector based on literature and Swedish Energy Agency’s current statistics. The review also discusses the overall bioenergy production and utilization in different sectors in Sweden. The current potential, challenges, and environmental considerations of bioenergy production are also discussed.

Nutrient removal has been one of the key issues since the harvesting of logging residues started in Sweden. This study examined the actual removal of nutrients by measuring the amounts of biomass removed (from a forest products perspective) combined with their respective nutrient concentrations (N, P, Ca, K and Mg), from a clear-felled area when using the dried-stacked and fresh-stacked methods. The most important finding is that the two methods were very similar regarding nutrients remaining at the clear-felled area. Of the nutrients remaining there, most were found to be well distributed between the harvester heaps. Both methods fulfilled the requirements of the Swedish Forest Agency. A sensitivity analysis showed that even if the dried-stacked method left more needles, or the fresh-stacked method extracted more logging residues, there would only be a small impact on the levels of nutrients removed. The sensitivity analysis also showed that the amount of logging residues remaining between the harvester heaps seems to be much more important for nutrients left behind, regardless of extraction method. With this in mind, it is highly probable that improvements to the extraction of logging residues, without increasing nutrient removal, can be made. ARTICLE HISTORY