ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS OF THE PRODUCTION AND USE OF CORN OIL BIODIESEL

Abstract

The present paper reviews the environmental aspects of the production and use of corn oil-based biodiesel. The environmental aspects are analyzed by considering the used-corn oily feedstocks and production technology. Besides that, the possibilities for the improvement of the biodiesel production process are emphasized. The most valuable corn-oil feedstocks are waste corn oil and corn distillers oil obtained primarily from dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS). The use of DDGS, a by-product of ethanol production, for biodiesel production and glycerol, a by-product of biodiesel production, as a substrate for ethanol production, allows the development of an integrated ethanol/biodiesel production and contributes to the elimination or minimization of wastes and the production of the added-value products. Biodiesel is a degradable, less-toxic, safe, and generally, clean-burning fuel with exception of NOx emission that can be reduced by the appropriate methods but further investigations are desirable. Key words: corn oil, biodiesel, environmental aspect, ghd emission, pollution