Comparison of three Mexican biomasses valorization through combustion and gasification: Environmental and economic analysis

Abstract

The energy production from biomass through thermochemical processes is a promising technology to reduce the negative environmental impact. This study evaluates the environmental effects of the use of different Mexican biomasses (castor husk, coffee pulp and Pinus sawdust) on the combustion and gasification processes applied to energy production. The objective was to carry out the environmental and economic analysis associated with the generation of 1 MJ of energy for three proposals to determine which biomass is better to use as a raw material, which process is more respectful with the environment and economically viable. The life cycle assessment analysis showed that the combustion process is less harmful to the environment than the gasification process. In addition, for the two thermochemical processes studied, it was observed that the equipment that most damaged the environment was the Rankine cycle due to the emissions released and the energy consumed. Therefore, the coffee pulp was identified as the biomass with the most negative impact for both processes and the Pinus sawdust as the one that least affects the environment. The energy production through combustion process is more economically viable than the gasification, but both processes can be considered highly competitive for the biomass valorization.