Energy Assessment of Sorghum Cultivation in Southern Ukraine

Oleg Bazaluk, Valerii Havrysh, Mykhailo Fedorchuk and Vitalii Nitsenko
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Oleg Bazaluk: Belt and Road Initiative Institute for Chinese-European Studies, Guangdong University of Petrochemical Technology, Maoming 525000, China
Valerii Havrysh: Department of Tractors and Agricultural Machinery, Operating and Maintenance, Mykolayiv National Agrarian University, 54020 Mykolaiv, Ukraine
Mykhailo Fedorchuk: Department of Crop and Horticulture, Mykolayiv National Agrarian University, 54020 Mykolaiv, Ukraine
Vitalii Nitsenko: Department of Economics and Finance, Odesa National Maritime University, 65029 Odesa, Ukraine

Agriculture, 2021, vol. 11, issue 8, 1-22

Abstract: Global climate changes and fossil fuel reserve depletion are drivers for the search for environmentally friendly renewable energy sources. In Europe, biomass represents the main alternative to fossil fuels. Among energy crops, sorghum is a promising crop for arid regions. The biomass yield and energy efficiency of sorghum (both silage and grain) were studied based on field experiments conducted in Southern Ukraine. The following climate changes were identified: an increase in temperature and a decrease in precipitation. The total energy inputs for sweet sorghum were estimated at 11.256 GJ/ha. The main contributors to the energy inputs are mineral fertilizers (56.99%). The experiment showed that a yield of 40.6 t/ha could be achieved with annual precipitation of 350 mm. The energy efficiency ratio was determined to be 11.18. The total energy inputs for grain sorghum was 16.081 GJ/ha. Its yield (grain) varied from 1.92 to 7.05 t/ha. The energy efficiency ratio of grain sorghum ranged from 2.8 to 16.7.

Keywords: biomass; energy inputs; energy output; energy efficiency ratio; sorghum; yield (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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