The Innovation Team of Resources Utilization and Regional Planning of Agriculture obtained 1,743 farmer household questionnaires through field research, and used the propensity score matching method to estimate the true benefits of the operation of household biogas digesters (HBD). The team used the Logit model to explore the driving and obstacle factors for farmers to keep using HBD, and used the Tobit model to determine the determinants of the time for HBD to produce gas, and to provide policy references for the sustainable development of biogas energy projects.

The relevant research results were published in the top international energy academic journal "Energy" under the title of "Challenges and strategies for biogas production in the circular agricultural waste utilization model: A case study in rural China".

According to researcher Yin Changbin, as a renewable energy source, biogas production and utilization are of great significance for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, reducing dependence on fossil fuels, and promoting the recycling of livestock and poultry manure and straw. At present, biogas has been widely promoted in rural China, but the benefits and drawbacks  of the operation of HBD are still unclear, resulting in the operation of HBD failing to live up to expectations..

The results of the study show that among the interviewed farmers, 42% of the households use biogas digesters, and the average biogas production time using HBD was 6.66 months per year.. It is estimated that HBD owners could save 474 Chinese yuan annually by using HBD and that the net present value of the HBD program would be generated after eight years of operation..

However, lack of technical training and subsidies for HBD operation were the key barriers for households to carry on using HBD. Conversely, a warm local climate and HBD with larger size had positive effects on households deciding to continue using HBD. Therefore, comprehensive policies addressing construction and operation of HBD, as well as new methods for a high-value supply chains to comprehensively utilize biogas products could solve dilemmas in HBD operation..

This research was funded by Major Program of National Philosophy and Social Science Foundation of China (18ZDA048), China Agriculture Research System-Green Manure (CARS-22-G-25) and the National Agricultural Innovation Project of Chinese Academy of Agriculture Science for Incentive Mechanism on Agricultural Waste Resource Utilization (2015-2020). Dr. Huang Xianlei is the first author, and researcher Yin Changbin is the corresponding author.

It is reported that "Energy" is an international multidisciplinary journal in energy engineering and research, with the latest impact factor of 8.857, aiming to become a leading peer review publication and an authoritative source of energy-related analysis, reviews and evaluations.

Paper link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2021.122889