Total Biofuel Production Research Articles

Cost‐effective use of abandoned agricultural land for biofuel production

AbstractBiofuel can be used to abate greenhouse gas emissions in the transport sector, by replacing fossil fuel. To avoid the problem of competition with food production, the use of abandoned agricultural land (AAL) for production of the feedstock for biofuel has been proposed. AAL has generally low productivity but has also low opportunity costs, and production of perennial bioenergy crops on it can lead to carbon sequestration. A spatially explicit optimization model of biofuel production and transport fuel consumption, applied to Sweden, was used for an analysis of how AAL can alter costs for greenhouse gas emissions abatement. Results show that, compared to the case without AAL, AAL could decrease the costs of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 29%, for emissions reductions equivalent to 50% of current emissions from gasoline in Sweden. The carbon sequestration from establishing perennial bioenergy crops on AAL is the main driver of the positive results. High carbon sequestration on AAL implies larger emissions reduction for a given volume of biofuel, and the results show that the total biofuel production can be both smaller and larger with AAL. The use of arable land for biofuel production is generally smaller with AAL, but larger at some of the highest analyzed target levels. The low AAL feedstock costs contribute to lower costs of the total biofuel production, which pushes for more total biofuel production and less fuel use reduction and therefore counteracts the reduced use of arable land.

The Effects of Biofuels on Food Security in Selected Countries

Biofuels are produced as replacements for fossil fuels. Nevertheless, these fuels may jeopardize food security. No research has examined the relationship between the production of biofuels and food security in terms of their various dimensions. This study examined the effects of biofuels on food security in several developed and developing countries comprising oil-producing and developed countries. Dimensions of food security were including food availability, food accessibility, food utilization, and food stability. To this end, standard and neo-Malthusian theories combined with the food availability decline (FAD) theory were employed. In addition, the panel generalized method of moments (GMM) was used to estimate the relationships between variables. The results showed that food stability, population growth, and income inequality were measured by the Gini index, and unemployment was significantly higher in developing countries than in developed countries. Conversely, food security, food availability, food accessibility, food utilization, land area, total biofuel production, agricultural credit allocation, and food product prices were higher in developed countries than in developing countries. The increase in biofuel production reduced food security by 0.031%, 0.047%, and 0.064% in all countries, developing and developed countries, respectively. In developing countries, biofuels had a significant impact on food accessibility and food availability. However, biofuels had significant and positive effects on food stability and utilization. In developed countries, biofuels had negative effects on food accessibility, stability, and availability and positive effects on food utilization (0.016%). In conclusion, policies are needed to mitigate the negative effects of biofuels on food security.

Life‐cycle analysis of sustainable aviation fuel production through catalytic hydrothermolysis

AbstractCatalytic hydrothermolysis (CH) is a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) pathway that has been recently approved for use in aircraft fuel production. In alignment with broader sustainable aviation goals, SAF production through CH requires a quantitative assessment of carbon intensity (CI) impacts. In this study, a current‐day life‐cycle analysis (LCA) was performed on SAF produced via CH to determine the CI. Various oily feedstocks were considered, including vegetable oils (soybean, carinata, camelina and canola) and low‐burden oils and greases (corn oil, yellow grease and brown grease). Life‐cycle inventory data were collected on all processes within the CH LCA boundary: feedstock cultivation and/or collection, preprocessing, hydrothermal cleanup and CH, biocrude refining, fuel transportation and end use through combustion. Baseline results show that the CH‐produced SAF can be generated with CI reductions ranging from 48 to 82% compared with conventional jet fuel. Modest improvements to CI can be achieved through incremental changes to the brown grease CH process, such as relaxing the dewatering specification and implementing renewable natural gas and electricity, which could decrease the CI from 22.9 to 7.9 g CO2e/MJ. Total CH fuel production potential was also assessed on the basis of current or near‐future feedstock availability and CI. The total biofuel production potential of CH (SAF and renewable fuel co‐products) in the US sums to approximately 3487 million gallons per year, with 97% of these volumes having a CI below 50% of that for petroleum jet fuel. The study shows that from an LCA perspective, CH offers a viable SAF pathway that is comparable with existing SAF pathways like hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids.

Exploring the spatiotemporal evolution of bioenergy with carbon capture and storage and decarbonization of oil refineries with a national energy system model of Colombia

Bioenergy combined with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) has a high mitigation potential of greenhouse gases in the energy system. However, the feasibility of its deployment depends on co–location of suitable storage basins and biomass resources with low-carbon stocks. Moreover, national transition analyses towards low–carbon energy systems have often given little attention to the mitigation potential of existing oil refineries, which are major components of current energy systems. We parametrized and incorporated these knowledge gaps into an energy system optimization model and used it analyze mitigation pathways towards carbon neutrality of the Colombian energy system by midcentury.Our results show that modern bioenergy could contribute 0.8–0.9 EJ/y (48–51 %) to the final energy consumption by 2050 at a system cost of 29–35 B$/y. BECCS value chains could deliver a mitigation potential of 37–41 % of the cumulative avoided emissions between 2030 and 2050. Low–carbon retrofitting of existing oil refineries could contribute up to 19 % of the total biofuel production and 10 % of the total CO2 capture by 2050. The Andes and Caribbean could be promising regions for BECCS because of their high potential for biomass supply and carbon sinks. In contrast, Orinoquía has a high potential for bioenergy and more uncertainty of CCS, depending on the access to nearby carbon sinks.This framework could be used to harmonize between the visions of the energy and agricultural sectors, national government and the oil sector, and national and regional governments, towards integrated planning for low-carbon development.

Associations Between Biofuel Production and Sustainable Development Goals 2, 6, 7, 13, and 15

Total biofuel demand in areas like transport and energy is set to grow by almost 30% annually to reach 50 billion gallons by 2026. Biofuels' association with sustainable development has been a subject of discussion among researchers and policymakers. Even the most robust studies on this topic examine only a small number of sustainable development indicators across a limited number of countries. This study analyzes whether biofuel production could advance, impede, or have no association with targets of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 2, 6, 7, 13, and 15, which relate to biofuel production on a global scale. Correlations between ethanol, biodiesel, and total biofuel production datasets and 23 indicators of the selected targets in 34 of the world's largest biofuel-producing countries for 2009–2019 were compiled and analyzed in the context of the existing literature. Findings suggest that biofuel production has varying associations with SDG targets.

Ecological Bio Energy Materials in Ukraine Current State and Prospects of Production Development

The article presents the results of the analysis of the state of bioenergy in Ukraine in recent years, and notes a significant gap between its development indicators and those of other countries in the world. Measures for accelerated rates of biofuel production for the period up to 2025 and its projected indicators are substantiated. In particular, total biofuel production in Ukraine should increase from 2.83 million to 6.2 million tons, including: solid types up to - 3.5 million tons BOE, liquid-up to 0.7 million tons BOE, biogas-up to 2.0 million tons BOE. The list of main types of raw materials for biofuel production is given. The economic, technological, and economic characteristics of the main bioenergy crops, plantations of which are recommended to be laid in the coming years, are given. These performance indicators are obtained in production experiments, especially the ability to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and release oxygen, as well as reduce emissions of harmful substances during combustion. It is established that such a crop as Paulownia is the fastest growing plant (5-6 m per year). Another advantage of Paulownia is the high degree of environmental friendliness. One hectare consumes 1200 tons of CO2, significantly improving degraded, marginal land. The recommendations for the creation of industrial plantations of bioenergy crops and the material and technical base for processing are substantiated. Total costs for bioenergy by 2025 in the amount of $ 1,379 million have been determined. Proposal for co-operation of producers and processors of bio-raw materials at the local level is suggested.

Perennial biomass production from marginal land in the Upper Mississippi River Basin

AbstractMarginal land is considered promising for biomass production. However, understanding on biomass crop growth and total biofuel production from this land type is very limited. This study evaluated potential production of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) and Miscanthus (Miscanthus × giganteus) on marginal lands in the Upper Mississippi River Basin. A soil and water assessment tool model with detailed representation of marginal lands and their suitability for growth of the 2 grasses was setup. Marginal land was defined as cropland and grassland with land capability class from 3 to 8. All marginal lands were included as new land covers in the land use map and were preserved when HRUs were defined. The soil and water assessment tool model was calibrated for flow at 13 sites within the Upper Mississippi River Basin region at monthly scale. The predicted biomass by growing switchgrass and Miscanthus on marginal lands in the study area can produce up to 37% of the 132 × 109 L biofuel goal set by the 2010 Energy Independence and Security Act in the USA. The simulated flow was lower when marginal lands were converted to grow perennial bioenergy crops. The results from this study improved our understanding on growth of perennial crops on marginal land and their contributions to biofuel development.

Forest-based biofuel production in the Nordic countries: Modelling of optimal allocation

Biofuels have been promoted as a likely avenue for the future transportation energy mix. Hence, production of biofuels using lignocellulosic feedstocks, such as forest-based biomass, is expected to increase globally. Forest biomass abundance and experience with applying biomass conversion technologies gives the Nordic countries an advantage in catering to biofuel production capacity investment. Yet, given uncertainties in the techno-economic variables of biofuel conversion technologies, as well as differences between the Nordic countries in terms of labor costs, bioheat market prices and electricity and forest biomass costs and prices, it is unclear which of the Nordic countries are comparatively attractive for future investment in forest-based biofuel production capacity. In this paper, we quantify how techno-economic cost components of a novel forest-based biofuel production technology affect optimal allocation of biofuel production capacity in the Nordic countries at a regional level. We apply a scenario analysis approach using an endogenous biofuel capacity investment module in the Nordic Forest Sector Model (NFSM). In each scenario, we alter the techno-economic features of the technology and quantify total biofuel production allocation volume in each region and at a national level. We find that optimal capacity allocation is affected by the type of feedstock used in the technology and will affect existing industries dependent on forest feedstocks. Electricity selling or purchasing will have little effect on allocation because it comprises a small revenue or cost proportion. Bioheat may affect allocation, but this will depend on local demand. Finally, labor costs may affect allocation, but this will depend on the labor intensity, which changes with scale. The results are relevant for policy incentives to proliferate future forest-based biofuel production in the Nordic countries.

A review on socio-economic aspects of sustainable biofuels

Biofuels are renewable eco-fuel, produced from biological resources. They are classified into 1st, 2nd and 3rd generations based on their feedstocks. The 2nd and 3rd generation biofuels are called advanced and sustainable biofuel. The study reviewed and discussed about socio-economic aspects of the sustainable biofuel in Australia because economy is seen to be a key driver for use of biofuels. Recent researches focused on sustainable biofuel production, their commercialisation worldwide. The world biofuel scenario is presented in this study which shows that total biofuel production is progressively moving towards advanced biofuels. Australian total biofuel production, consumption and available present production facilities are also outlined. The study briefly discussed about Australian energy economy such as energy export, import and trades etc. The study concluded that the 2nd generation biofuel can be considered as sustainable alternatives to petroleum fuel in transport sector providing great economic and environmental benefits to Australia.

Theoretical lessons for increasing algal biofuel: Evolution of oil accumulation to avert carbon starvation in microalgae

Microalgae-derived oil is considered as a feasible alternative to fossil-derived oil. To produce more algal biomass, both algal population size and oil accumulation in algae must be maximized. Most of the previous studies have concentrated on only one of these issues, and relatively little attention has been devoted to considering the tradeoff between them. In this paper, we first theoretically investigated evolutionary reasons for oil accumulation and then by coupling population and evolutionary dynamics, we searched for conditions that may provide better yields. Using our model, we assume that algae allocate assimilated carbon to growth, maintenance, and carbon accumulation as biofuel and that the amount of essential materials (carbon and nitrate) are strongly linked in fixed proportions. Such stoichiometrically explicit models showed that (i) algae with more oil show slower population growth; therefore, the use of such algae results in lower total yields of biofuel and (ii) oil accumulation in algae is caused by carbon and not nitrate starvation. The latter can be interpreted as a strategy for avoiding the risk of increased death rate by carbon starvation. Our model also showed that both strong carbon starvation and moderately limited nitrate will promote total biofuel production. Our results highlight considering the life-history traits for a higher total yields of biofuel, which leads to insight into both establishing a prolonged culture and collection of desired strains from a natural environment.

Corn oil biofuel land use change emission impacts: sharing emission savings between ethanol and biodiesel

“The results obtained from these simulations indicate that extracting corn oil reduces the induced land use emissions due to total biofuel production…. The bottom line is that more biofuel is produced from the same or fewer land resources, so total system land use emissions fall.”

The viability of biofuel production on urban marginal land: An analysis of metal contaminants and energy balance for Pittsburgh's Sunflower Gardens

After three years’ monitoring of the concentration of Al, Fe, Zn, Ni, Pb, As, Cd, Cr and Se in soil, Fe, Pb and As in Pittsburgh's vacant lots were found sometimes to exceed the residential maximum soil contaminant concentrations set by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. Heavy metal uptake by sunflowers was insignificant at the soil metal concentrations observed in Pittsburgh, indicating that sunflowers produced on marginal urban land could be a safe biofuel feedstock. However, there was a risk that sunflowers grown on more contaminated spoils could be unsafe. Calculations of the energy balance of the total biofuel production system suggested that lots in Pittsburgh of over 0.2ha would be able to produce an energy gain, particularly if community volunteers were involved in the process. Using marginal urban land for biofuel production can be a worthwhile strategy to replace costly traditional vacant lot management methods.

Optimal biofuel supply chain design under consumption mandates with renewable identification numbers

The Renewable Identification Number (RIN) system is a tracking mechanism that enforces the U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard by monitoring obligated parties’ compliance with the biofuel consumption mandates. This paper incorporates the RIN system into the design of a biofuel supply chain that addresses independent decisions of non-cooperative farmers, biofuel manufacturers, and blenders. Game-theoretic models are developed to examine the impacts of the RIN system on individual stakeholders’ decisions (e.g., on farmland use, bio-refinery investment, biofuel production) and the competition between food and biofuel industries, in both a perfectly competitive scenario and a monopoly scenario. For the perfectly competitive scenario, Nash equilibrium can be obtained by solving a convex optimization problem. For the monopoly scenario, a bi-level Stackelberg leader–follower model is developed, from which we found that a rigid mandate on blenders may suppress the total biofuel production. To avoid such unintended consequences, a relaxed unit-RIN based penalty scheme is proposed and shown to improve the overall biofuel supply chain performance. Managerial insights are drawn from a numerical case study for the state of Illinois.

Land use and economic effects of alternative biofuel policies in Brazil and the United States

AbstractBeing the two largest ethanol producers in the world, biofuel policies in Brazil and the United States affect both their domestic markets and the global food and biofuel economy. In this article we develop a price endogenous mathematical programming model to simulate and analyze the impacts of biofuel mandates and trade distortions on land use, agricultural commodity and transportation fuel markets, and global environment. We find that an 80% increase in total biofuel production from its 103 billion liter baseline level to the mandated 183 billion liter level in 2022 can be achieved with less than 2% increase in total cropland use in both countries. In the United States, this would occur with cellulosic biofuels meeting nearly half of the biofuels consumed and produced largely on cropland pasture and corn ethanol meeting the rest of the mandate and resulting in a 2% increase in corn price. In Brazil, the expansion in sugarcane production would be achieved by reducing land under pasture and a marginal increase in intensification of livestock production. In the aggregate, biofuel policies increase economic surplus in both countries by 1% and redistribute the benefits from agricultural consumers to agricultural producers and the fuel sector. Finally, we also find that full implementation of the mandates in North America, China, and the European Union would reduce the global life‐cycle global greenhouse gas emissions by about 5%.

Technological Analysis of Sustainable Biofuels Development in Nigeria

Nigeria’s biofuel policy calls for 10% bioethanol and 20% biodiesel substitution in domestic petrol and diesel consumptions of 35 million and 12 million litres per day respectively. Although the policy was approved in 2005, after six years, a vibrant biofuels industry has not taken off in the country. In this paper, using strategic analysis approach, we determined the key technological impediments to biofuel industry development in Nigeria to be inadequate knowledge on feedstock and landmass requirements, the “food vs fuel” debate, fuel subsidy implications, indifference and low market confidence by investors, limited S&T human capability, poor funding, weak institutional framework and poor infrastructure provision. We have established that Nigeria’s total biofuel production at highest demand by 2020 (11.64 Million Tons) would require 51.8 Million Tons of feedstock comprising 48.44 Million Tons of cassava for bioethanol and 3.36 Million Tons of Jatropha curcas for biodiesel. This production demand would require 57.5 Thousand Sq. Km of land. This is less than 8% and 20% of the arable land (726 Thousand Sq. Km) or cultivated land (340 Thousand Sq. Km) in Nigeria respectively. Hence the food vs fuel fears were deemed unnecessary. We argue that the N1.2 trillion (US$8 billion) fuel subsidy claimed by the Federal Government of Nigeria in 2011 be converted as seed capital for the take-off of the biofuels industry in the country.