Abstract
An assessment of the renewability of microalgae derived biodiesel produced using different transesterification schemes is carried out and the in-situ and conventional transesterification processes are compared. The microalgae biomass cultivation and the biodiesel production process renewability are assessed by comparing the minimum work required to restore the non-renewable resources degraded in the process with the useful work available from the main process products. If the maximum work obtained from the products is larger than the restoration work, the process is considered to be renewable. In a present day scenario, where fossil fuel sources are used for the production of the raw process materials, all the transesterification processes are shown to be non-renewable. The influence of the electricity generation scheme, raw material source and the heating fuel type on the process renewability is also examined. The renewability of the process of in-situ transesterification of microalgae lipids to biodiesel is found to improve significantly when renewable electricity is used, the reacting alcohols are obtained from biomass fermentation, and heat pump technology is used for drying and heating.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Energy-Environment-Economics |
| Publisher | Nova Science Publishers, Inc. |
| Pages | 137-158 |
| Number of pages | 22 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9781629488646 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9781629488622 |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Jan 2014 |
| Externally published | Yes |
