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Prairie Swine Centre is an affiliate of the University of Saskatchewan
Prairie Swine Centre is grateful for the assistance of the George Morris Centre in developing the economics portion of Pork Insight.
Financial support for the Enterprise Model Project and Pork Insight has been provided by:
Energy Efficiencies – Strategies for Minimizing Utility Costs in the Barn
Posted in: Economics, Energy, Pork Insight Articles by admin on April 5, 2006 | No Comments
Heating, lighting, and ventilation are necessary to keep pigs at optimal performance, but there are strategies to reduce costs without impacting performance. For energy, a longer term contract may be beneficial, as energy prices have risen and are expected to continue up. Heat and ventilation need to be balanced, especially in the colder seasons. Heat loss from ventilation increases with pig size, but reducing ventilation will affect air quality. In rooms with multiple fans it is a good idea to have one capable of reaching winter minimum and one for summer maximum. In smaller rooms, an oversized fan can be used by setting it on a timer. Heaters, unfortunately, are usually oversized to be capable of heating during the lowest temperature, a second heater or split burner can reduce this, but requires capital cost. Convective heaters systems can use direct-fired forced air or hot water heating systems, and radiant heating systems can be gas tube heaters, open flame brooders, or in-floor radiant. Costs and advantages/disadvantages vary for each system. Wiring, amperage, voltage, CFM/W, size, wind breaks, and chimneys can all increase ventilation efficiency. Currently the most durable and efficient light bulb is the T-8 fluorescent tube, or high intensity discharge fixtures can be used with higher ceilings. Simply taking time to understand the controls for heating and ventilation can help reduce energy usage as well. Heat exchangers can help recover heat lost through ventilation, but require maintenance and can cause drafts. Alternative fuels and renewable energy show promise, but have problems that need to be worked out before use in a commercial barn.
An Integrated Index of Electrical Energy Use in Canadian Agriculture with Implications for Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Posted in: Energy by admin on January 1, 2006 | No Comments
Electricity is fundamental to many farm chores. In this paper quantitative indices of electrical energy use were developed which reflect direct on-farm decisions for measures that farmers can adopt to reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. With commonly available historical agricultural records as inputs, the indices allowed extrapolation backward in time with the same analytical methods as used for current energy use estimates. Each index was derived from one or more literature sources dealing with energy use in operations associated with different farming systems. Development focused on six major Canadian farm types, including two for crop production systems and four for livestock. The scale of application is national with required inputs being populations of pigs, poultry, beef and dairy cows, and crop production for small grain cereals, grain maize and canola, and greenhouse floor area. The indices were initially compared to the 1996 Farm Energy Use Survey (FEUS) of Canada and were within 5% of the FEUS electrical energy value. The integrated index was then converted to equivalent CO2 emissions for comparison with two independent sources CO2 emissions from farm energy. It agreed more closely with the 2004 Energy Use Data Handbook from Natural Resources Canada than with the 1999 Health of our Air report by Agriculture and Agri-food Canada, but was between these two sources. The comparisons of CO2 emissions took account of energy use for household as well as farm operations. The impact of the changing share of electrical energy generated by fossil fuel, rather than by nuclear or hydro-power plants was also considered. Between 1996 and 2001 Canadian farm and household use of electrical energy resulted in GHG emissions from 18 to 24 Tg of CO2, while use for farm operations only (household excluded) remained at 11 Tg from the 1980s to 2001 when electrical generation by fossil fuel was fixed at 1996 levels. The integrated index is well within the required accuracy to be a useful tool for reporting on the Kyoto Protocol.
DEVELOPMENT OF 3−D ANAEROBIC DIGESTER HEAT TRANSFER MODEL FOR COLD WEATHER APPLICATIONS
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Electricity generation from swine wastewater using microbial fuel cells
Posted in: Energy by admin on January 1, 2005 | No Comments
Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) represent a new method for treating animal wastewaters and simultaneously producing electricity. Preliminary tests using a two-chambered MFC with an aqueous cathode indicated that electricity could be generated from swine wastewater containing 83207190 mg/L of soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD) (maximum power density of 45mW/m2). More extensive tests with a single-chambered air cathode MFC produced a maximum power density with the animal wastewater of 261mW/m2 (200O resistor), which was 79% larger than that previously obtained with the same system using domestic wastewater (14678mW/m2) due to the higher concentration of organic matter in the swine wastewater. Power generation as a function of substrate concentration was modeled according to
saturation kinetics, with a maximum power density of Pmax ¼ 225mW=m2 (fixed 1000O resistor) and half-saturation concentration of Ks ¼ 1512mg=L (total COD). Ammonia was removed from 19871 to 3471 mg/L (83% removal). In order to try to increase power output and overall treatment efficiency, diluted (1:10) wastewater was sonicated and autoclaved. This pretreated wastewater generated 16% more power after treatment (11074mW/m2) than before treatment (9674mW/m2). SCOD removal was increased from 88% to 92% by stirring diluted wastewater, although power output slightly decreased. These results demonstrate that animal wastewaters such as this swine wastewater can be used for power generation in MFCs while at the same time achieving wastewater treatment.
Energy Efficiencies Strategies for Reducing Utility Cost in the Barn
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Energy resources should be efficiently managed to reduce expenses, pollution, and improve barn air quality. New lighting systems in barns allow for customizable lighting intensity and duration to be barn specific (for example, dimmer switches). $600.00 per year can be saved by using T-8 4’ vapour proof fluorescent lights as opposed to incandescent. Incandescent lights are obsolete, as they waste energy and have a short life. Convective heat systems are used to heat air itself. The drawback from the combustion is the CO2, carbon monoxide, and oxygen consumption. This is why ventilation is required, but with proper settings this can be minimized, or alternatively using a hot water heating system. Radiant heaters work much like microwaves because they heat the objects in the barn (i.e. – the pigs) directly. Of the gas tube heaters, catalytic/open flame brooders, and in-floor radiant heaters the in-floor has the best attributes. CFM/W (cubic feet of air per minute per watt) should be looked at when purchasing fans. The higher the CFM/W, the more efficient the fan is. This indicates how much air is moved throughout the day and how much it cost to move that air. Fans should be sized to match the stage requirements and they should have adequate hoods for optimum airflow. Monitoring equipment is used to monitor the quality of the environment. Some of this equipment can be used to measure general airflow, temperature and relative humidity, static pressure, inlet management, and gas detection. Gases of particular importance include ammonia, hydrogen sulphide (H2S), carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide.
Dilute acid pretreatment of rye straw and bermudagrass for ethanol production
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COMPARISON OF ENGINE PERFORMANCE AND EMISSIONS FOR PETROLEUM DIESEL FUEL, YELLOW GREASE BIODIESEL, AND SOYBEAN OIL BIODIESEL
Posted in: Energy by admin on January 1, 2003 | No Comments