Abstract
Biodiesel is a renewable vehicle fuel based on biomass. Although environmental benefits can be assumed, both positive and negative impacts have been stated in the past, raising some doubts on the effective environmental performance of biofuels. They therefore need to be carefully examined through the established methods of Life Cycle Analysis (LCA). Such studies, though, have been known to give conflicting results and, for non-specialist users of environmental performance information, such variations in literature between studies will be a cause of concern.Following the principles of the ISO 14040 and 14044 standards for LCA, we have explored the variations in LCA methodology and parameter choices in a comparative analysis of 11 published studies of the production of biodiesel from palm oil. This study highlights inconsistencies between individual studies in aspects such as data coverage and completeness, system boundaries, and input and output streams. The importance of including factors such as plantation carbon sequestration and land use change demonstrates a need for consistent and appropriate methodologies. These factors are some of the most important drivers for variation in the results of LCA studies of palm oil systems, as well as being necessary for a comprehensive perspective. The results of this study also highlight the importance of geographical location and the fact that studies are often based on very limited data sources.A variance analysis identified the greatest source of variation across the chosen data sets, highlighting key methodology steps and pointed at pitfalls in employing supposedly environmentally benign technologies. The paper offers suggestions to i) assist inter-study comparisons, ii) offer non-LCA specialist users insight into the causes of variable results between LCA studies, and iii) guide further in-depth research.
Highlights
As the human population increases, the growing demand for food, energy, water, and materials has the potential to considerably increase the amount of pollutants and greenhouse gases (GHG) being emitted into the environment [1]
Following the principles of the ISO 14040 and 14044 standards for Life Cycle Analysis (LCA), we have explored the variations in LCA methodology and parameter choices in a comparative analysis of 11 published studies of the production of biodiesel from palm oil
The normalised values of the resultant Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) dataset of the Palm Oil Biodiesel (POBD) production process are presented below, together with detailed presentation of the ranges of results and uncertainties deriving from the individual sources
Summary
As the human population increases, the growing demand for food, energy, water, and materials has the potential to considerably increase the amount of pollutants and greenhouse gases (GHG) being emitted into the environment [1]. The principal advantages claimed for biodiesel are that it is renewable and, the ‘Tank to Wheel’ energy density of biodiesel at 39 MJ/kg is marginally lower than the 42.8 MJ/kg of fossil diesel, its GHG emissions are lower [8,9,10]: 3 kg CO2/litre biodiesel versus 3.16 kg CO2/litre fossil diesel Including factors such as feedstock carbon sequestration during growth [11] and land use change [12,13,14,15,16], two influential factors for biofuel production, is becoming increasingly important, as they directly contribute to the overall carbon impact of the biodiesel
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