Insights about the use wood waste from the neotropical Amazonian for the generation of renewable energy

The abundance and availability of wood waste in the Amazon region pose a great challenge in terms of their use, such as to generate clean and renewable energy. The use of blends of the most different species constitutes a challenge in view of the energetic characteristics that are unknown for the replacement of fossil fuels. Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate the energy potential of wood waste from Amazonian species (Dinizia excelsa and from Manilkara elata, commonly used as lumber) as a way to support the generation of clean and sustainable energy. The wood waste of two Amazonian species were collected during the mechanical processing of logs; the sawdust of Eucalyptus spp. was collected in a biomass company. The contents of total extractives, total lignin, ash, moisture, bulk density, calorific value and energy density were investigated in different blends of residual biomass. The Dinizia excelsa species stood out for presenting higher values of extractives, total lignin, calorific value and energy density. The waste of Amazonian species showed satisfactory characteristics for energy use, which encourages the use of this biomass from wood processing. In addition, forest biomass waste enable the production of various compacted solid fuels, such as pellets and briquettes.