Sugarcane straw removal for bioenergy production: implications on plant and soil responses

• Autor(a) principal: Lisboa, Izaias Pinheiro
• Data de Publicação: 2018
• Tipo de documento: Tese
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Biblioteca Digital de Teses e Dissertações da USP
• Texto Completo: http://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/105/105131/tde-18012019-175549/
• topic: Crescimento da cana-de-açúcar; Palha de cana-de-açúcar; Plant growth; Qualidade do solo; SMAF; SMAF; Soil Quality; Straw-raking; Sugarcane

The usage of crop residues, among other lignocellulosic biomass, has being considered a promising alternative feedstock for bioenergy (i.e., second generation ethanol - ethanol 2G and bioelectricity) production. With the adoption of sugarcane-mechanical harvesting in Brazil, in average 15 Mg ha-1 of straw are left on the field annually. Partial straw removal for bioenergy production has become a common practice, while partial straw retention on the field ensures several benefits for the soil-plant system. Efforts have being done in order to establish the best route to straw recovery from the field and defining the amount which meeting both needs. Thus, the aims of this study were: i) to establish a step-by-step guidelines to straw recovery from the field; ii) to determine the implications of increasing rates of straw removal on plant growth, stalk yield and stalk industrial quality; iii) to evaluate the effectiveness of straw-blanket raking practice on plant growth and yield, and iv) to use Soil Management Assessment Framework (SMAF) as a tool to perform an integrated approach of soil quality (SQ) under different rates of straw removal. To achieve the proposed goals, a 2-years experiment was set up within the dry and wet seasons at Valparaíso and Capivari, São Paulo, locations with different edaphoclimatic conditions. Increases of primary extractor fan\'s velocity on the harvester lead to placement and removal of straw rates proportionally to 0, 25, 50, 75 e 100%. After two years, parameters associated to the soil- chemical [(Phosphorus-P, Potassium-K and pH), physical-(bulk density) and biological- (microbial biomass carbon-MBC and SOC)] attributes were analyzed within the 0-5, 5-10, 10-20 and 20-30 cm. Under colder climatic condition, plant tillering improved by the increasing rates of straw removal, however plant growth and stalk yield are slightly affected by the straw management. Stalk harvested in the dry season presented higher industrial quality than those harvested within the wet season but this parameter is unaffected by straw removal. Further, under colder climatic condition, to rake the straw blanket enhanced plant tillering while plant growth and stalk yield were not influenced by raking the straw blanket. No straw removal increases P content on plant tissue, regardless of blanket management, especially under the poorest inherent soil condition. The SMAF tool was able to detect changes on soil quality under different rates of straw removal and Oxisol responds faster to straw removal management than Ultisol in the short term. Total straw removal leaded to Oxisoil physical quality degradation; among the soil attributes, soil-physical attribute within the 0-10 cm is correlated with stalk yield. The partial straw removal for bioenergy production leads to the optimization on sugarcane biomass usage. However, the appropriate rate of straw to be removed is site specific and ranged 4-9 Mg ha-1 under the conditions in which this study was performed. The stalk yield was unaffected by raking the straw blanket. The monitoring of SOC, adoption of traffic controller and application of subproducts from the sugarcane industry are strategies to increase soil quality and, consequently, the sustainability of the crop cultivation.