Utilisation of cane tops and leaves for energy and food — an integrated system

Abstract This paper deals with a system of better utilisation of cane tops and leaves (CTL), a biomass resource so far under-utilised in cane sugar growing countries. The possibility of producing three products, electricity, ethanol and leaf protein (LP), is considered. Based on laboratory scale experiments conducted with a view to verifying the technical feasibility, an integrated system for use of the several fractions of CTL is proposed. The material and energy balance of this system reveals that every tonne of CTL has the potential to produce around 100 kWh of electricity, 8·3 litres of ethanol and 3·0 kg of LP; their unit costs of production are 5·7, 27·0 and 6·8 US cents (1980) respectively. In Mauritius, such use of CTL (2 million tonnes annually) could bring about savings of around 25% and 75% in terms of foreign exchange in current import of energy and protein rich feed ingredients respectively.