Assessment of agricultural residue-based electricity production from biogas in India: Resource-environment-economic analysis

Anaerobic digestion (AD) plays a significant part in accomplishing the circular economy objective since it re-covers energy from biomass and helps with nutrient recovery and greenhouse gas reduction. Biogas may be produced from a variety of feedstock. Amongst these feedstocks, animal manure, municipal solid waste (organic fraction), and wastewater are available throughout the year, but crop residue generation is based on the harvest season (Kharif and Rabi). The growth of biogas production necessitates a study of the state-wise distribution of biogas potential, taking into account seasonal variations in residue production. This study also evaluated biogas for electricity generation from an environmental and economic aspect. If properly utilized, crop residue biomass can produce 75,444.01 GWh of electricity annually in India. Production in Kharif and Rabi seasons is 60,863.35 GWh and 14580.66 GWh per annum, respectively. The findings also demonstrate that electricity from biogas emits less carbon equivalent (GHGs) along its value chain (from production to use) than alternative fuel. Furthermore, from economic evaluation, it is found that there is a 99.98% chance that biogas plants are prof-itable. Overall, the study finds that using agricultural residue for power generation has enormous potential and is beneficial from environmental and economic perspectives.

Automated summary

Anaerobic digestion plays a significant role in achieving the circular economy objective by recovering energy from biomass and aiding in nutrient recovery and greenhouse gas reduction. Utilizing crop residue biomass in India has the potential to generate a substantial amount of electricity, with lower carbon emissions compared to alternative fuels.