Rice straw to biogas (R2B) project

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Unlike rice husks (that cover the grain), rice straw (stems and leaves) is left in the field after harvest and few major uses have been identified, so more than 300 million tonnes of it are simply burned each year as waste. To date, attempts to profitably collect and use this vast resource for clean energy have almost all failed. In this concept note, a consortium of leading experts outline their bold plan to be leaders in this emerging field and provide a route to clean, affordable, reliable energy for the world's 200 million small-scale rice farmers.Innovation: The novel approaches outlined here are designed systematically to overcome the four key barriers identified in the 3 year, UK-funded 'Rice Straw Energy project', which is now ending (September 2016). The barriers are: logistics of straw collection; rice straw fuel characteristics; lack of proven business models and policy support. The respective innovations to overcome them are: a simplified, village-scale supply chain that minimises collection costs and storage; a low-cost 'dry' anaerobic digestion technology appropriate for developing countries; packaged in an innovative business model with support from public funding to reduce the risks.