Considerations on Potentials, Greenhouse Gas, and Energy Performance of Biofuels Based on Forest Residues for Heavy-Duty Road Transport in Sweden

Shveta Soam,Pål Börjesson

doi:10.3390/en13246701

Abstract

This case study investigates the potentials, greenhouse gas (GHG), and energy performance of forest residue biofuels produced by new and emerging production technologies, which are commercially implemented in Sweden for heavy transport. The biofuel options included are ethanol (ED 95), hydro-processed vegetable oil (HVO), and liquefied biogas (LBG) produced from logging residues in forestry and sawdust generated in sawmills. The calculated life cycle GHG emissions, based on the EU Renewable Energy Directive calculation methodology, for all three pathways are in the range of 6–11 g CO2eq./MJ, corresponding to 88–94% GHG emission reductions as compared to fossil fuel. Critical parameters are the enzyme configuration for ethanol, hydrogen supply systems and bio-oil technology for HVO, and gasifier size for LBG. The energy input is ranging from 0.16 to 0.43 MJ/MJ biofuel and the total conversion efficiency from the feedstock to biofuel, including high-value by-products (excluding heat), varies between 61 and 65%. The study concludes that the domestic biofuel potential from estimated accessible logging residues and sawdust is equivalent to 50–100% of the current use of fossil diesel in heavy-duty road transport in Sweden, depending on the biofuel production technology selected and excluding energy by-products. Thus, an expansion of forest-based biofuels is a promising strategy to meet the ambitious climate goals in the transport sector in Sweden.

Highlights

The global production and use of biofuels represent around 3% of the total fuel consumption in transportation today [1]
This section describes the results in three parts: (i) logging residue and sawdust potentials for biofuel production; (ii) greenhouse gas (GHG) performance; and (iii) energy analysis of ethanol, hydro-processed vegetable oil (HVO), and liquefied biogas (LBG)
The assessment of the forest residue biomass potential in Sweden shows that the long-term sustainable potential of logging residues for energy purposes amounts to about 100 PJ per year

Summary

Introduction

The global production and use of biofuels represent around 3% of the total fuel consumption in transportation today [1]. The dominant biofuels are ethanol, representing 65% in energy terms, followed by biodiesel (or FAME, fatty acid methyl esters) 29%, and HEFA (hydro processed esters and fatty acids)/HVO (hydro-processed vegetable oil) or renewable diesel (RD), representing 6% [2]. The biofuel consumption in Sweden is around 21% today, where HVO is the dominant fuel representing ≈67% of total biofuel usage. Biofuels in the transport sector, the major part, approximately 90%, of the biofuels or feedstocks used for production are imported from within the EU and the rest of the world [3]. There is a mix of feedstock, including agricultural crops and residues used for various types of biofuel production

Objectives

Results

Conclusion