Bagasse, surplus at mill gate {AU-QLD}| sugarcane milling | AusLCI, U

Unit process v00.00.000

This dataset represents the milling of sugarcane to produce raw sugar, with co-products of molasses and exported electricity from surplus bagasse. The yield is 14.3 tonne raw sugar/100 tonne sugarcane, with sugarcane having moisture content of 0.489 Documentation for this dataset can be found in the 'LCAgMetrics Methodology for developing Life Cycle Inventory' report, available at https://agrifutures.com.au/. It was developed as part of the LCAgMetrics project, a partnership between Agrifutures Australia and Lifecycles, funded by the Australian Government’s Sustainability Reporting Uplift Grant as part of the National Agriculture Traceability Grants Program. Production volume: 31230689000 kg/yr raw sugar. It represents typical sugar milling processes across Queensland sugar mills. Activities include transport of harvested cane to sugar mills, milling of sugarcane to produce bulk raw sugar and co-products, combustion of bagasse to generate steam and power for the mill with surplus electricity exported to the grid, land appliation of mill mud. Energy value of raw sugar: 15.6 MJ/kg (gross). Geography:Queensland, Australia. Time period: 2024. Technology level: Representative of current practices for the time period (2024), based on consultation with sugar milling companies. Record: Marguerite Renouf; Tel: +61(0)3 9417 1190; email: office@lifecycles.com.au; company: Life Cycle Strategies; Country: AU Generator: Marguerite Renouf; Tel: +61(0)3 9417 1190; email: office@lifecycles.com.au; company: Life Cycle Strategies; Country: AU

Sector
Material
Contributor
—
Last updated
11 Sep 2012
Reference ID
612e6af7-abd8-3034-96dd-78855ae66d6b

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Documentation

Quantitative reference
Bagasse, surplus at mill gate {AU-QLD}| sugarcane milling | AusLCI, U
Sampling procedure
Secondary data derived from industry studies
Creation date
11 Sep 2012
Is copyright protected
No
Is infrastructure process
No
Tags
material
Sources
National Greenhouse Accounts Factors/2024/Commonwealth of Australia
Feedipedia/2012/INRAE, CIRAD, AFZ, FAO
Life cycle assessment of Australian sugarcane growing./2010/Renouf
Life cycle assessment of Australian sugarcane processing/2011/Renouf
Mill energy balance model/2012/QUT
NGER wastewater (industrial) calculator/2012/NGER
Sugarcane transport study/2012/Pernase and Pekol

Product outputs

Flow AmountUnitComment
Bagasse, surplus at mill gate {AU-QLD}| sugarcane milling | AusLCI, U 1.44 t 28t bagasse generated from the reference flow of 100 t cane, of which 60% combusted for mill energy (~17t), 35% combusted for electricity export ~ ( 10t) and 5% as surplus (1t), derived from LCA of Australian sugarcane systems/2011/Renouf (Table 3), with adjustments to recognise a degree of surplus bagasse directed to other uses. Biogenic carbon content is 0.228 kgC/kg bagasse

Technical inputs

Flow AmountUnitComment
Bagasse, surplus at mill gate , biogenic C not balanced {AU-QLD}| sugarcane milling | AusLCI, U 1.44 t —
Carbon correction factor {AU}| | AusLCI, U -277.4584577922078 kg Allocation correction for surplus bagasse, which adjusts the C flows to ensure a correct C balance.

Parameters

NameValueFormulaDescription
total_mass 0.45899999999999996 Yield_sugar+Yield_molasses+Yield_bagasse —
DM_bagasse 0.5 — kg/kg Dry matter fraction from LCA of Australian sugarcane systems/2011/Renouf (Fig 2.3)
Prod_Herbert 4371587.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/yr Sugarcane production in Herbert district of Nth Queensland growing region, from Queensland sugarcane production statistics/2024/QLD Canegrowers
Prod_SQld 3106258.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/yr Sugarcane production in Southern Queensland growing region, from Queensland sugarcane production statistics/2024/QLD Canegrowers
Prod_SJohnstone 1580176.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/yr Sugarcane production in South Johnstone district of Nth Queensland growing region, from QLD Canegrowers statistics
CC_molasses 0.274 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)kg/kg Carbon fraction of dry matter
Alloc_mass_BagElect 21.960784313725487 100*(Yield_bagasse*FracBagElect)/total_mass —
BioC_Outputs 13.42926 BioC_Actual_Sugar+BioC_Actual_Molasses+BioC_Actual_BagMillEnergy+BioC_Actual_BagElect+BioC_Actual_BagSurplus+BioC_millmud t Total biogenic C exported from the sugar mill, contained in the sugar product and in co-products and wastes, and also C emitted from bagasse combustion attributed to each of the products
CC_bagasse 0.456 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)kg/kg Carbon fraction of dry matter
Price_molasses 250.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)$250/t AUD Queensland sugarcane production statistics/2024/QLD Canegrowers for the year represented by the data (2024)
Yield_sugar 0.143 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/t Raw sugar produced per sugarcane milled, in typical Queensland milling scenario, from LCA of Australian sugarcane systems/2011/Renouf (Table 3)
Energy_sugar 14.6 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)MJ/kg (LHV) Derived from the HHV of 16 MJ/kg for raw sugar from Feedipedia/2017/INRAE, CIROD, AFZ, converted to a LHV of 14.6MJ/kg
alloc_BagSurplus 0.7305194805194805 iff(alloc_switch=0;Alloc_eco_BagSurplus;iff(alloc_switch=1;Alloc_mass_BagSurplus;Alloc_energy_BagSurplus)) —
BioC_all_BagSurplus 0.0508615422077922 (BioC_prods*alloc_BagSurplus)/100 t Allocated flow of biogenic C attributed to raw surplus bagasse.
total_energy 4.381 (Yield_sugar*Energy_sugar)+(Yield_molasses*Energy_molasses)+(Yield_bagasse*Energy_bagasse) —
Alloc_energy_BagSurplus 2.3008445560374344 100*(Yield_bagasse*Energy_bagasse*FracBagSurplus)/total_energy Based on the energy content of the fraction of bagasse that is surplus
Energy_molasses 9.9 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)MJ/kg (LHV) Derived from the HHV of 11.8 MJ/kg for feed molasses from Feedipedia/2017/INRAE, CIROD, AFZ, converted to a LHV of 9.9 MJ/kg
alloc_switch — — 0:economic; 1:mass; 2: energy
BioC_Actual_BagElect 2.29824 Input_sugarcane*Yield_bagasse*FracBagElect*DM_bagasse*CC_bagasse t Physical flow of biogenic C attributed to exported electricity, i.e, that emitted from the fraction of the bagasse combusted to generate the exported electricity.
Herbert_fraction 0.18896257453896234 Prod_Herbert/Prod_represNQld*Prod_NQld/Prod_Qld —
BioC_Actual_Molasses 0.6137600000000001 Input_sugarcane*Yield_molasses*DM_molasses*CC_molasses t Physical flow of biogenic C attributed to molasses, i.e, that contained in the molasses. No biogenic C from combustion of bagasse is attributed to molasses.
Price_bagasse 50.0 — (5,1,3,1,1,na)$50/t AUD, Derived from the value of exported electricity from the industry (0.12 $AUD/kWh) and the conversion factor for electricity generation from bagasse (0.418 kWh/kg) = 5 $AUD/tonne
DM_millmud 0.22 — kg/kg Dry matter fraction from LCA of Australian sugarcane systems/2011/Renouf (Fig 2.3)
BioC_Inputs 13.568 Input_sugarcane*DM_sugarcane*CC_sugarcane t Total biogenic C input to the sugar mill (in the sugarcane)
CC_sugar 0.421 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)kg/kg Carbon fraction of dry matter
FracBagElect 0.35 — (3,3,1,1,1,na)t/t Fraction of generated bagasse that is combusted to produce exported electricity (35%), LCA of Australian sugarcane processing / 2011/Renouf (Table 3).
DM_sugarcane 0.32 — kg/kg Dry matter fraction from LCA of Australian sugarcane systems/2011/Renouf (Fig 2.3)
alloc_BagElect 5.113636363636362 iff(alloc_switch=0;Alloc_eco_BagElect;iff(alloc_switch=1;Alloc_mass_BagElect;Alloc_energy_BagElect)) —
Dist_rail 20.6 — (4,1,3,1,1,na)km Average distances harvested cane is transported by rail between farm and mill, ugarcane transport study/2012/Pernase and Pekol
Input_sugarcane 100.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t Reference flow
alloc_molasses 7.1022727272727275 iff(alloc_switch=0;Alloc_eco_Molasses;iff(alloc_switch=1;Alloc_mass_Molasses;Alloc_energy_Molasses)) —
Energy_bagasse 7.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)MJ/kg (LHV) Derived from the HHV of 9.6 MJ/kg for bagasse from National Greenhouse Gas Accounts /2025/NGA, converted to a LHV of 7.0 MJ/kg
Alloc_energy_BagElect 16.10591189226204 100*(Yield_bagasse*Energy_bagasse*FracBagElect)/total_energy Based on the energy content of the fraction of bagasse that is combusted to generate exported electricity
BioC_Actual_Sugar 6.0203 (Input_sugarcane*Yield_sugar*DM_sugar*CC_Sugar) t Physical flow of biogenic C attributed to raw sugar, i.e, that contained in the sugar plus that emitted from the fraction of the bagasse combusted for mill energy needs to produce the sugar.
Elect_from_Bagasse 0.418 — (4,3,3,1,1,na)LCA of Australian sugarcane processing / 2011/RenoufMWh/t Conversion factor for electricity generation from bagasse in sugar mill co-generation plant, LCA of Australian sugarcane processing / 2011/Renouf (Table 3), based on 4.6 MWh generated from 11t bagasse = 0.418 kWh/kg
Yield_bagasse 0.288 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/t Bagasse generated per sugarcane milled, in typical Queensland milling scenario, from LCA of Australian sugarcane systems/2011/Renouf (Table 3)
alloc_sugar 87.05357142857143 iff(alloc_switch=0;Alloc_eco_Sugar;iff(alloc_switch=1;Alloc_mass_Sugar;Alloc_energy_Sugar)) —
BioC_balance 0.1387400000000003 BioC_inputs-BioC_outputs t C balance check of biogenic C inputs less biogenic C outputs.
Yield_molasses 0.028 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/t Molasses produced per sugarcane milled, in typical Queensland milling scenario, from LCA of Australian sugarcane systems/2011/Renouf (Table 3)
BioC_Actual_BagSurplus 0.32832 Input_sugarcane*Yield_bagasse*FracBagSurplus*DM_bagasse*CC_bagasse t Physical flow of biogenic C attributed to surplus bagasse, i.e, that contained in the surplus bagasse.
Price_sugar 600.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)$600/t AUD, Queensland sugarcane production statistics/2024/QLD Canegrowers for the year represented by the data (2024), which also reflects that long-term average
Prod_BRIA 3984158.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/yr Sugarcane production in Burdekin River Irrigation Area district of Burdekin growing region, from Queensland sugarcane production statistics/2024/QLD Canegrowers
BRIA_fraction 0.13463512860220012 Prod_BRIA/Prod_Qld —
Frac_road 0.12 — (4,1,3,1,1,na)t/t Fraction of sugarcane transported to mills by road, ugarcane transport study/2012/Pernase and Pekol
Frac_rail 0.88 — (4,1,3,1,1,na) t/t Fraction of sugarcane transported to mills by rail, ugarcane transport study/2012/Pernase and Pekol
Prod_represNQld 8397375.0 Prod_SJohnstone+Prod_Tully+Prod_Herbert —
Alloc_mass_BagSurplus 3.1372549019607843 100*(Yield_bagasse*FracBagSurplus)/total_mass —
Prod_NQld 10741338.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/yr Sugarcane production in Nth Queensland growing region, from Queensland sugarcane production statistics/2024/QLD Canegrowers
CC_sugarcane 0.424 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)kg/kg Carbon fraction of dry matter
Prod_Tully 2445612.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/yr Sugarcane production in Tully district of Nth Queensland growing region, from Queensland sugarcane production statistics/2024/QLD Canegrowers
FracBagSurplus 0.05 — (3,3,1,1,1,na)t/t Fraction of generated bagasse that is surplus to mill energy and electricity export requirements (5%), LCA of Australian sugarcane processing / 2011/Renouf (Table 3).
Tully_fraction 0.10571198510824117 Prod_Tully/Prod_represNQld*Prod_NQld/Prod_Qld —
Alloc_energy_Sugar 75.26592102259757 100*(Yield_sugar*Energy_sugar+Yield_bagasse*energy_bagasse*FracBagMillEnergy)/total_energy Includes the energy content of the produced sugar plus the energy content of the fraction of the bagasse combusted for mill energy needs to produce the sugar
Alloc_mass_Sugar 68.80174291938998 100*(Yield_sugar+Yield_bagasse*FracBagMillEnergy)/total_mass Includes the mass of the produced sugar plus the mass of the fraction of the bagasse combusted for mill energy needs to produce the sugar
total_price 98.56 (Yield_sugar*Price_sugar)+(Yield_molasses*Price_molasses)+(Yield_bagasse*FracBagElect*Price_bagasse)+(Yield_bagasse*FracBagSurplus*Price_bagasse) —
BurdDelta_fraction 0.13463512860220012 Prod_BurdDelta/Prod_Qld —
FracBagMillEnergy 0.6 — (3,3,1,1,1,na)t/t Fraction of generated bagasse that is combusted for the mill's steam and power requirements to produce sugar (60%), based on Renouf et al 2011 (Table 3).
Alloc_eco_BagSurplus 0.7305194805194805 100*(Yield_bagasse*FracBagSurplus*Price_bagasse)/total_Price Value of the bagasse is based on the value of the electricity that can be generated from bagasse
DM_sugar 1.0 — kg/kg Dry matter fraction from LCA of Australian sugarcane systems/2011/Renouf (Fig 2.3)
CC_millmud 0.2 — kg/kg Carbon fraction of dry matter
BioC_millmud 0.22880000000000003 Input_sugarcane*Yield_millmud*DM_millmud*CC_millmud t Physical flow of biogenic C attributed to mill mud, i.e, that contained in the mill mud.
Dist_road 21.3 — (4,na,3,1,1,na)km Average distances harvested cane is transported by road between farm and mill, ugarcane transport study/2012/Pernase and Pekol
DM_molasses 0.8 — kg/kg Dry matter fraction from LCA of Australian sugarcane systems/2011/Renouf (Fig 2.3)
BioC_all_corr_BagSurplus -0.2774584577922078 BioC_all_BagSurplus-BioC_Actual_BagSurplus t Allocation correction for surplus bagasse, which adjusts the C flows to ensure a correct amount of C is attributed.
BioC_Actual_BagMillEnergy 3.93984 Input_sugarcane*Yield_bagasse*FracBagMillEnergy*DM_bagasse*CC_bagasse —
SJohnstone_fraction 0.06830337019134683 Prod_SJohnstone/Prod_represNQld*Prod_NQld/Prod_Qld —
Prod_Qld 29592262.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/yr Sugarcane production in all Queensland growing regions, from Queensland sugarcane production statistics/2024/QLD Canegrowers
Alloc_eco_BagElect 5.113636363636362 100*(Yield_bagasse*FracBagElect*Price_bagasse)/total_Price Value of the bagasse is based on the value of the electricity that can be generated from bagasse
Prod_CQld 7776352.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/yr Sugarcane production in Central Queensland growing region, from Queensland sugarcane production statistics/2024/QLD Canegrowers
Alloc_energy_Molasses 6.327322529102944 100*(Yield_molasses*Energy_molasses)/total_energy —
Mackay_fraction 0.26278329111846876 Prod_CQld/Prod_Qld —
Alloc_eco_Molasses 7.1022727272727275 100*(Yield_molasses*Price_molasses)/total_Price —
BioC_prods 6.96238 BioC_Actual_Sugar+BioC_Actual_Molasses+BioC_Actual_BagSurplus t biogenic carbon in outputs of all products in the inventory before applying allocation
Bundaberg_fraction 0.10496858942381626 Prod_SQld/Prod_Qld —
Yield_millmud 0.052 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/t Mill mud produced per sugarcane milled, from LCA of Australian sugarcane systems/2011/Renouf (Fig 2.3)
Prod_BurdDelta 3984158.0 — (1,1,1,1,1,na)t/yr Sugarcane production in Burdekin Delta district of Burdekin growing region, from Queensland sugarcane production statistics/2024/QLD Canegrowers
Alloc_eco_Sugar 87.05357142857143 100*(Yield_sugar*Price_sugar)/total_Price —
Alloc_mass_Molasses 6.100217864923748 100*Yield_molasses/total_mass —