The Effect of Corn Ensiling Methods on Digestibility and Biogas Yield

This study investigates the impact of different corn silage preparation methods, namely the traditional and Shredlage methods, on digestibility and biogas yield in anaerobic digestion and its nutritional value—the first complex study of its kind. Key parameters of both silage types were analyzed, in...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Karol Kupryaniuk, Kamil Witaszek, Iryna Vaskina, Sebastian Filipek-Kaźmierczak, Jakub Kupryaniuk, Piotr Sołowiej, Jacek Dach
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-01-01
Series:Energies
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/1/188
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1841549215232163840
author Karol Kupryaniuk
Kamil Witaszek
Iryna Vaskina
Sebastian Filipek-Kaźmierczak
Jakub Kupryaniuk
Piotr Sołowiej
Jacek Dach
author_facet Karol Kupryaniuk
Kamil Witaszek
Iryna Vaskina
Sebastian Filipek-Kaźmierczak
Jakub Kupryaniuk
Piotr Sołowiej
Jacek Dach
author_sort Karol Kupryaniuk
collection DOAJ
description This study investigates the impact of different corn silage preparation methods, namely the traditional and Shredlage methods, on digestibility and biogas yield in anaerobic digestion and its nutritional value—the first complex study of its kind. Key parameters of both silage types were analyzed, including chemical composition, fiber content, and elemental makeup. Methane and biogas production were assessed under standardized fermentation conditions. The results showed that the Shredlage method, characterized by more intensive chopping, led to higher biogas and methane yields per unit of organic dry matter compared to traditional silage. This improvement is attributed to enhanced digestibility due to the lower content of neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), and crude fiber in Shredlage. An elemental analysis revealed slight differences in carbon-to-nitrogen (C/N) ratios, with both silages showing values suitable for efficient fermentation. Despite minor variations in mineral content, Shredlage demonstrated greater efficiency in biogas production, particularly for rapid fermentation processes. The findings underscore the importance of silage preparation techniques in optimizing biogas yield and suggest Shredlage as a superior option for enhancing energy recovery in biogas plants. Future work should explore the economic trade-offs and scalability of these methods.
format Article
id doaj-art-62d639ac45554a9ca0633d89beb8d2a3
institution Kabale University
issn 1996-1073
language English
publishDate 2025-01-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Energies
spelling doaj-art-62d639ac45554a9ca0633d89beb8d2a32025-01-10T13:17:21ZengMDPI AGEnergies1996-10732025-01-0118118810.3390/en18010188The Effect of Corn Ensiling Methods on Digestibility and Biogas YieldKarol Kupryaniuk0Kamil Witaszek1Iryna Vaskina2Sebastian Filipek-Kaźmierczak3Jakub Kupryaniuk4Piotr Sołowiej5Jacek Dach6Department of Biosystems Engineering, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 50, 60-627 Poznań, PolandDepartment of Biosystems Engineering, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 50, 60-627 Poznań, PolandDepartment of Biosystems Engineering, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 50, 60-627 Poznań, PolandBioTech Agro Africa, Nenckiego 136A, 52-223 Wrocław, PolandDepartment of Economics, Maria Curie-Skłodowska University, Maria Curie-Skłodowska Square 5, 20-031 Lublin, PolandDepartment of the Electrotechnics Energetics Electronics and Automatics, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, Oczapowskiego 11, 10-736 Olsztyn, PolandDepartment of Biosystems Engineering, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 50, 60-627 Poznań, PolandThis study investigates the impact of different corn silage preparation methods, namely the traditional and Shredlage methods, on digestibility and biogas yield in anaerobic digestion and its nutritional value—the first complex study of its kind. Key parameters of both silage types were analyzed, including chemical composition, fiber content, and elemental makeup. Methane and biogas production were assessed under standardized fermentation conditions. The results showed that the Shredlage method, characterized by more intensive chopping, led to higher biogas and methane yields per unit of organic dry matter compared to traditional silage. This improvement is attributed to enhanced digestibility due to the lower content of neutral detergent fiber (NDF), acid detergent fiber (ADF), and crude fiber in Shredlage. An elemental analysis revealed slight differences in carbon-to-nitrogen (C/N) ratios, with both silages showing values suitable for efficient fermentation. Despite minor variations in mineral content, Shredlage demonstrated greater efficiency in biogas production, particularly for rapid fermentation processes. The findings underscore the importance of silage preparation techniques in optimizing biogas yield and suggest Shredlage as a superior option for enhancing energy recovery in biogas plants. Future work should explore the economic trade-offs and scalability of these methods.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/1/188corn silagemethane fermentationbiogas efficiencyraw materials
spellingShingle Karol Kupryaniuk
Kamil Witaszek
Iryna Vaskina
Sebastian Filipek-Kaźmierczak
Jakub Kupryaniuk
Piotr Sołowiej
Jacek Dach
The Effect of Corn Ensiling Methods on Digestibility and Biogas Yield
Energies
corn silage
methane fermentation
biogas efficiency
raw materials
title The Effect of Corn Ensiling Methods on Digestibility and Biogas Yield
title_full The Effect of Corn Ensiling Methods on Digestibility and Biogas Yield
title_fullStr The Effect of Corn Ensiling Methods on Digestibility and Biogas Yield
title_full_unstemmed The Effect of Corn Ensiling Methods on Digestibility and Biogas Yield
title_short The Effect of Corn Ensiling Methods on Digestibility and Biogas Yield
title_sort effect of corn ensiling methods on digestibility and biogas yield
topic corn silage
methane fermentation
biogas efficiency
raw materials
url https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/18/1/188
work_keys_str_mv AT karolkupryaniuk theeffectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT kamilwitaszek theeffectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT irynavaskina theeffectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT sebastianfilipekkazmierczak theeffectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT jakubkupryaniuk theeffectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT piotrsołowiej theeffectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT jacekdach theeffectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT karolkupryaniuk effectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT kamilwitaszek effectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT irynavaskina effectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT sebastianfilipekkazmierczak effectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT jakubkupryaniuk effectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT piotrsołowiej effectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield
AT jacekdach effectofcornensilingmethodsondigestibilityandbiogasyield