only Proof of concept in the file
ENRP20001: Engineering Research Project Planning Term 1, 2020 Prospect and challenges of biodiesel production from first-generation biodiesel feedstocks Name: P. Sai Swaroop Student ID: 12106376 Submitted on: 05-06-2020 Project Advisor: Dr. Kalam Azad Unit Co-rdinator: Dr. Raj Sharma School of Engineering and Technology Central Queensland University Australia Abstract Two driving forces of global change will have a decisive influence on the future of world agriculture and forestry, and therefore on poverty reduction, the environment and economic growth in developing countries. These are the ongoing climate change, and our increasingly pressing need to switch to renewable, i.e. sustainable energy. Progress towards substituting fossil fuels with renewable energy sources will mitigate the risk of severe climate change. Biomass will provide one principal source of future renewable energy, in addition to wind, solar, water, and other sources. We focus on biomass from agriculture and forestry, with the objective of reviewing the current situation and probable future trends in developed and developing countries concerning the production of biofuels, i.e . energy produced from biomass. Biofuels hold a number of promising prospects, but also present challenges, especially for developing countries. A review of these potentials and challenges is presented, which lead to the conclusion that the production and use of biofuels in developed and developing countries could potentially provide a win-win proposal for economic growth, poverty reduction and environmental sustainability, if the appropriate policies and related institutional and technological innovations are promoted. The important challenges that biofuels represent are identified and discussed, most importantly, the exclusion of smallholders in producing biomass for biofuels, the issue of food security and rising food prices in global and local markets. We The study conclude that in order to master identify the challenges and capitalizse capitalise on the promising prospects biofuels hold for sustainable development, massive investments in agricultural research and appropriate institutional and policy frameworks are required.Comment by Kalam Azad: Rewrite this sentence like a topic sentence. Comment by Kalam Azad: Too long sentence. Please rewrite it. Does not make any sense. Acknowledgement I would like to take this opportunity to express my immense gratitude to all those people who have given their invaluable support and assistance to me in my research term. First, I would like to express my utmost gratitude to my Project Supervisor, Dr. Kalam Azad for his extended support. He consistently allowed this project to be my own work, but steered me in the right the direction whenever needed. Secondly, I would like to thank Dr. Raj Sharma who is Mechanical Engineering Research Project Co-ordinator for providing the opportunity to continue this subject at the end of the project selection and for his valuable advices and wise guidance. I would also like to acknowledge about how I am gratefully indebted to lab technician Naveen Murugan who has relentlessly supported me to complete the research project planning, in accumulating the data and for his very valuable supervision. Finally, I must express my profound gratitude to my parents and friends for providing me with unfailing support and constant encouragement throughout my research term. Table of Contents Table of Contents Abstract2 Acknowledgement3 Table of Contents4 List of Tables5 List of Figures6 Glossary/Nomenclature7 1.0 Introduction9 a)Establish the Problem9 b)Overview of Existing Research10 c)Research Gap10 d)Research Question10 e)Significance of Project to its stakeholders11 2. Research Aim11 3. Objectives of Study11 4. Literature Review12 a)Overview of Biofuel Industry12 b)Sustainability Impacts13 c)Atmospheric Pollutants13 d)Australian Biofuel Industry14 e)Cost of Biodiesel15 5. Methodology- Approach16 Feedstock iCrop iSupply iCurves16 Cellulosic Feedstock Estimates20 Environmental and Social issues20 6. Methodology – Plan and Resources23 7. Blending Challenges & the Opportunities in Biodiesel production24 8. Recommendations27 9. Proof of Concept28 10. Risk Assessment32 Occupational Health & Safety Unit32 Task / Activity Risk Assessment32 11. Gantt Chart39 12. Conclusion40 13. References41 Appendix I : Weekly Meeting Minutes 142 Appendix II : Weekly Meeting Minutes 243 List of Tables Table 1: Table showing Pros and Cons of Biodiesel15 Table 2: Biofuel Feedstocks and Blending Targets30 Table 3: Table showing minutes of meeting 141 Table 4: Table showing minutes of meeting 242 List of Figures Figure 1: Graph showing biofuel production in 201911 Figure 2: Example of Brazilian Sugarcane Supply Curve projected to 2027. In these curves, a given point represents the projected cumulative supply for all purchase values (prices) up to that point.17 Figure 3:Historic Trend and Potential Supply Projections for Brazilian Sugarcane.18 Figure 4: Flow chartiof Biodiesel production21 Figure 5 : Steps showing the methodology of objectives.22 Figure 6 :showing flow chart of biodiesel plant based on Mcgyan process (24 Figure 7: Production of Ethanol in Different Countries27 Figure 8:Annual iEthanol iProduction of conventional hydrocarbon and diesel fuels in 2010 as forecast by Global Future Alliance (GRFA).28 Figure 9 :Annual Biodiesel Production29 Figure 10: Gantt chart showing for implementation.32 Glossary/Nomenclature Abbreviation Full Name SDS Sustainable Development Scenario FFA Free Fatty Acids ASTM D6751 American standards of biodiesel EN 14214 standards European Union GEP Global Bioenergy Partnership RSB Roundtable for Sustainable Biofuels EROI Energy Return on Investment MARKAL MARKet and ALlocation ETP Energy Technology Perspectives FAO Food and Agriculture Organisation FAOSTAT Food and Agriculture Organisation Statistical Database USDA United States Department of Agriculture FAPRI Food Agriculture and Policy Research Institute WHO World Health Organisation GRFA Global Future Alliance OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development 1.0 Introduction a) Establish the Problem Due to global economic development and rapid growth of population, the demand for renewable sources of energy is steadily increasing. Also, the reserves of fossil fuels are in limited numbers and their distribution is non non-uniform. The major idea behind replacing the fossil fuels with alternate biofuels, is to eradicate the emissions from combustion which are directly associated with global warming, climate change and multiple diseases. Regularly changing energy policies and technological up gradations have developed new demand for the renewable sources of energy like biodiesel, as a potential alternative to fossil fuels. Biodiesel is a biofuel derived from vegetable oils like palm, sesame, rapeseed, jatropha and neem (Mohr & Raman, 2013). The biofuels produced from vegetable oils are these days well accepted by several countries though they are blended up with 20% of petroleum fuels (Mohr & Raman, 2013). The bBiodiesel’s industrialisation has become a significant problem due to its oxidative stability and poor cold flow properties. The vegetable oils can also be blended in various ratios before transesterification to get required properties in the biodiesel oil. Biodiesel is the most appropriate alternate to fossil fuels due to its similarities and improved physicochemical properties like higher cetane, higher lubricity and low content of sulphur. It can be used as a fuel in transport sector, without any modifications in existing diesel engine. Biodiesel is non toxic, safe to use, biodegradable, combustion efficient with high cetane number, greater lubricity and low sulphur content. Earlier several feedstocks (like rapeseed, palm and soybean) have been used to produce biodiesel oil in Europe, Asia and US, respectively (Aro, 2016). At present , the main problem with commercializsation commercialisation and industrializsation industrialisation of biodiesel oil is its poor cold flow characteristics and poor oxidation stability. Many researchers have used synthetic antioxidants to improve its oxidation stability and used several additives to improve its cold flow properties. The biodiesel obtained from different feedstock have has also been blended to refine its properties as per the standards. For example, the palm oil mostly used in Asia, Malaysia and Indonesia has have poor cold flow properties due to greater content of saturated fatty acids. It creates problems in engine operation during the climate of low temperature. The engine may face the problems in starting, fuel starvation, incomplete combustion and clogging of filters. High level of unsaturation in biodiesels causes good cold flow properties but poor oxidation stability. In contrast, a high level of saturated fatty acids leads to good oxidation stability but poor cold flow properties. Therefore, the selection of feedstock is very important for blending with the vegetable oils like palm oil to improve its cold flow properties. The vegetable oils with a greater level of unsaturation may be used to blend with the palm oil. But, it will also reduce the oxidative stability of the resultant product. The biofuel oils like sesame oil are considered most appropriate for blending with the palm oil due to in comparison to other feedstock oils due to a higher level of unsaturation (85%), high oxidative stability and better cold flow properties. Hence, the biodiesel oils like sesame seed oils may be used as potential green fuels as an alternate to petroleum oil.Comment by Kalam Azad: Too long sentence. Does not make any sense. Rewrite it. b) Overview of Existing Research The first generation biodiesel feedstock refers to food sources like starch, vegetable oils, sugar beets, rapeseeds, peanuts, and animal fat etc. The oil is produced from these sources using the conventional method of trans-esterification and is chemically known as fatty acid methyl. The biomass, when mixed with methanol and sodium hydroxide, it gives rise to biodiesel. The biodiesel can be seen as an effective means to alleviate the concerns of global energy. However, very few countries are participating in their production due to a few challenges. Cost of production of biodiesel is very high in comparison to fossil fuels due to which its extensive usage imposes huge substantial economic costs. With increasing global demand for biofuels, the liquid biofuel industry is rapidly increasing. Biodiesel and Bioethanol bioethanol are most extensively produced for the domestic market in European countries, USA, Africa, and Brazil. International trade of biofuels is limited as of now. Biodiesel is a biofuel made from plant seeds. The first generation biodiesel feedstock has attracted attention recently due to many reasons: · Rising demand for alternatives of