Driftwood Biomass in Italy: Estimation and Characterization

Franco Cotana, Cinzia Buratti, Marco Barbanera, Gianluca Cavalaglio, Daniele Foschini, Andrea Nicolini and Anna Laura Pisello
Additional contact information
Franco Cotana: CIRIAF—Interuniversity Research Center, University of Perugia, Perugia 67-06125, Italy
Cinzia Buratti: CIRIAF—Interuniversity Research Center, University of Perugia, Perugia 67-06125, Italy
Marco Barbanera: CIRIAF—Interuniversity Research Center, University of Perugia, Perugia 67-06125, Italy
Gianluca Cavalaglio: CIRIAF—Interuniversity Research Center, University of Perugia, Perugia 67-06125, Italy
Daniele Foschini: CIRIAF—Interuniversity Research Center, University of Perugia, Perugia 67-06125, Italy
Andrea Nicolini: CIRIAF—Interuniversity Research Center, University of Perugia, Perugia 67-06125, Italy
Anna Laura Pisello: CIRIAF—Interuniversity Research Center, University of Perugia, Perugia 67-06125, Italy

Sustainability, 2016, vol. 8, issue 8, 1-12

Abstract: In Italy, the accumulation of driftwood along the shore is a significant issue, especially for the coastal municipalities of the Central and Northern regions. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the distribution and availability of the coastal driftwood in Italy and its impacts, as well as analyzing its chemical–physical properties to evaluate possible employment in combustion applications. On the basis of a data gathering campaign for the period 2010–2014, about 60,000 tons of driftwood are reported to accumulate along the Italian shores every year. The two regions hardest-hit were Liguria and Veneto, with about 15,000 tons and 12,000 tons, respectively. Three sites were selected for driftwood sampling. The main issue deriving from chemical characterization was the high chlorine content (up to 2% on dry basis) and metal oxides in the ashes. Driftwood samples were then subjected to a natural washing cycle for 1 month; results revealed a significant drop in chlorine and metal oxides contents (up to 80%) and a low decrease of the lower heating value (about 20%). Furthermore, the percolated water was analyzed in terms of chemical oxygen demand (COD), showing values (up to 1100 mg O 2 /L) above the Italian limits for discharges into surface waters.

Keywords: driftwood; seawater salt; biomass; washing; fouling; slagging (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/8/725/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/8/8/725/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:8:y:2016:i:8:p:725-:d:74977

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().