Thesis (M.Sc.)--Victoria University of Wellington, [2008] / Includes bibliographical references.

This study analyzes the sustainability of various energy sources including micro hydro power and biodiesel in the context of Nepal. The main focus is on the development of biodiesel fuels from non-edible oil resources including waste cooking oil, jatropha and soapnut oil feedstocks grown on the marginal lands of Nepal. Biodiesel fuel samples were prepared by acid and/or base catalyst transesterification. Both single stage and dual stage transesterification processes were employed depending on the free fatty acid content of the oil feedstock. The oil to biodiesel conversion rate and total yield were monitored. The quality of the biodiesel fuels including viscosity etc was confirmed by an external laboratory and all fuels met the ASTM fuel quality requirements. Canola, jatropha and soapnut biodiesel fuels were tested to determine some atomization properties - density, surface tension and viscosity - at elevated temperatures and pressures. The density of three biodiesel fuels and diesel were determined up to 523 K and 7 MPa using a capacitance type densitometer. The results showed a linear relationship with temperature and pressure over the measured range. The experimental data were well within the range of canola and other biodiesel fuels found in the literature. Kay’s mixing rule was used to predict the density of some biodiesel blends and the results were found to be in agreement with less than 5% error with the measured data. The surface tension was measured using a pendant drop apparatus for all three biodiesel and diesel fuels for temperatures and pressures up to 473K and 7 MPa. Results showed a linear relationship with temperature as well as with pressure. Temperature has a higher effect on surface tension than pressure. The viscosity of all three biodiesel and diesel fuels were measured using a torsional vibration viscometer up to 523 K and 7 MPa. Results showed that the viscosity-temperature relationship of all three biodiesel fuels tested followed a modified Andrade equation which was also applicable when temperature and pressure were both applied simultaneously. The measured and regressed kinematic and dynamic viscosities obtained were comparable with values in the literature. / This thesis is focused on sustainability analysis of alternative fuels in Nepal and presents the resullts of the tests on fuel and atomization characterisation of different biodiesel feedstocks including canola, jatropha, soapnut and waste cooking oil. A new model to evaluate sustainability of renewable alternatives energy resources has been developed and tested.

Resumo: A conjuntura energética internacional aponta para o esgotamento das reservas de petróleo em curto prazo. O Brasil, face às suas potencialidades, tem procurado através de políticas públicas, incentivar o estudo de formas alternativas de energia. Muitas destas formas são baseadas em produtos e sub-produtos agrícolas, com destaque para a indústria de álcool para fins combustíveis. Outra alternativa de origem vegetal, mais recentemente discutida, seria a produção de óleo combustível denominado biodiesel. Para este fim, iniciativas tem sido tomadas em nível internacional, já sendo possível a obtenção e uso deste combustível de forma comercial. Em nossa região, muitas plantas oleaginosas podem ser potencialmente exploradas para esta finalidade, cujo potencial tem sido pouco estudado. Este trabalho dedica-se ao estudo de uma espécie oleaginosa, a macaúba [Acrocomia aculeata (Jacq) Lodd. ex Mart], para verificar seu potencial energético e econômico. Para este fim, foram realizadas diferentes caracterizações físico-químicas nos constituintes do fruto da macaúba, incluindo a avaliação qualitativa do óleo da polpa e da castanha. Verificou-se que esta espécie apresenta boas características como fonte de óleo vegetal para fins energéticos e/ou industriais, comparável e até superior a outras oleaginosas. Verificou-se que os parâmetros físico-químicos indicam que a espécie é importante como fonte energética, principalmente baseado nos valores calorimétricos. As análises cromatográficas revelaram que os óleos da macaúba podem ser distintamente empregados, com potencial energético para o óleo da polpa e farmacológico para o óleo da amêndoa. / Abstract: The international energetic context shows a run out of fuel reserve in a short term. Brazil due to its natural resources has tried through public politics to stimulate the research of alternative ways of energy. Several of these ways are based upon agricultural products and by-products with emphasis on the alcohol-fuel industry. Another alternative from plants recently discussed would be the production of biodiesel fuel. Initiatives have been internationally performed in order to obtain and use such fuel commercially. Within our region several oil plants can be potentially explored and have also been researched. This work aims to study an oil plant - macaúba [Acrocomia aculeata (Jacq) Lodd. ex Mart] to analyze its energetic and economical potential. Different physicochemical characterization was performed in macaúba plant including quality evaluation of its oil from pulp and nut. It was observed that such plant shows good characteristics as a source for plant oil for energetic and/or industrial uses being superiorly compared to other oil plants. It was also verified that the physicochemical parameters for this species indicate her importance as energetic source, considering its calorimetric values. The chromatographic analysis revealed that the macauba oils could be used for different purposes, like energetic potential for the pulp oil or pharmaceutical uses for the nut oil. / Orientador: Fernando Broetto / Coorientador: César Benedito Batistella / Coorientador: Sonia Maria Alves Jorge / Banca: José Pedro Serra Valente / Banca: Luiz Antonio Gallo / Mestre

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:24:39Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2007-12-17Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T20:52:17Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 amaral_fp_me_botfca.pdf: 322336 bytes, checksum: 734946ffb373e6bcd1a5815e121a7e24 (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / A conjuntura energética internacional aponta para o esgotamento das reservas de petróleo em curto prazo. O Brasil, face às suas potencialidades, tem procurado através de políticas públicas, incentivar o estudo de formas alternativas de energia. Muitas destas formas são baseadas em produtos e sub-produtos agrícolas, com destaque para a indústria de álcool para fins combustíveis. Outra alternativa de origem vegetal, mais recentemente discutida, seria a produção de óleo combustível denominado biodiesel. Para este fim, iniciativas tem sido tomadas em nível internacional, já sendo possível a obtenção e uso deste combustível de forma comercial. Em nossa região, muitas plantas oleaginosas podem ser potencialmente exploradas para esta finalidade, cujo potencial tem sido pouco estudado. Este trabalho dedica-se ao estudo de uma espécie oleaginosa, a macaúba [Acrocomia aculeata (Jacq) Lodd. ex Mart], para verificar seu potencial energético e econômico. Para este fim, foram realizadas diferentes caracterizações físico-químicas nos constituintes do fruto da macaúba, incluindo a avaliação qualitativa do óleo da polpa e da castanha. Verificou-se que esta espécie apresenta boas características como fonte de óleo vegetal para fins energéticos e/ou industriais, comparável e até superior a outras oleaginosas. Verificou-se que os parâmetros físico-químicos indicam que a espécie é importante como fonte energética, principalmente baseado nos valores calorimétricos. As análises cromatográficas revelaram que os óleos da macaúba podem ser distintamente empregados, com potencial energético para o óleo da polpa e farmacológico para o óleo da amêndoa. / The international energetic context shows a run out of fuel reserve in a short term. Brazil due to its natural resources has tried through public politics to stimulate the research of alternative ways of energy. Several of these ways are based upon agricultural products and by-products with emphasis on the alcohol-fuel industry. Another alternative from plants recently discussed would be the production of biodiesel fuel. Initiatives have been internationally performed in order to obtain and use such fuel commercially. Within our region several oil plants can be potentially explored and have also been researched. This work aims to study an oil plant – macaúba [Acrocomia aculeata (Jacq) Lodd. ex Mart] to analyze its energetic and economical potential. Different physicochemical characterization was performed in macaúba plant including quality evaluation of its oil from pulp and nut. It was observed that such plant shows good characteristics as a source for plant oil for energetic and/or industrial uses being superiorly compared to other oil plants. It was also verified that the physicochemical parameters for this species indicate her importance as energetic source, considering its calorimetric values. The chromatographic analysis revealed that the macauba oils could be used for different purposes, like energetic potential for the pulp oil or pharmaceutical uses for the nut oil.

In the introduction this thesis brings a short summary of the energy, environmental and economical balance, related to the production and use of conventional fuels for diesel engines, and compares them with possibility of using recycled cooking vegetable oils as a fuel. The main part focuses on the laboratory analysis of major physical and chemical properties of this alternative fuel and on their comparison to diesel fuel, especially according to ČSN EN 590 norm. In conclusion there is a proposal of diesel vehicle modification to be propelled with waste vegetable oils.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T14:09:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 FatimaRDF_TESE.pdf: 1276993 bytes, checksum: e49848d3c2dd72aa79cb38ebe1d84d84 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-11-26 / Since the beginning of the National Program for Production and Use of Biodiesel in Brazil, in 2004, different raw materials were evaluated for biodiesel production, trying to combine the agricultural diversity of the country to the desire to reduce production coasts. To determine the chemical composition of biodiesel produced from common vegetables oils, international methods have been used widely in Brazil. However, for analyzing biodiesel samples produced from some alternative raw materials analytical problems have been detected. That was the case of biodiesel from castor oil. Due the need to overcome these problems, new methodologies were developed using different chromatographic columns, standards and quantitative methods. The priority was simplifying the equipment configuration, realizing faster analyses, reducing the costs and facilitating the routine of biodiesel research and production laboratories. For quantifying free glycerin, the ethylene glycol was used in instead of 1,2,4-butanetriol, without loss of quality results. The ethylene glycol is a cheaper and easier standard. For methanol analyses the headspace was not used and the cost of the equipment used was lower. A detailed determination of the esters helped the deeper knowledge of the biodiesel composition. The report of the experiments and conclusions of the research that resulted in the development of alternative methods for quality control of the composition of the biodiesel produced in Brazil, a country with considerable variability of species in agriculture, are the goals of this thesis and are reported in the following pages / No Brasil, desde o in?cio do Programa Nacional de Produ??o e Uso do Biodiesel, em 2004, diversas mat?rias primas foram avaliadas para a sua produ??o, tentando aliar a diversidade agr?cola do pa?s ao desejo de diminuir os custos de produ??o. Para determinar a composi??o qu?mica de amostras de biodiesel produzidas a partir dos ?leos mais comuns, os m?todos internacionais t?m sido largamente utilizados no Brasil. Por?m, para an?lises de biodiesel produzido a partir de algumas mat?rias primas alternativas, alguns problemas anal?ticos foram detectados. Esse foi o caso do biodiesel de mamona. Devido ? necessidade de contornar esses problemas, novas metodologias foram desenvolvidas, utilizando colunas cromatogr?ficas, padr?es e diferentes m?todos para quantifica??o, privilegiando a sempre simplifica??o dos equipamentos, a realiza??o de an?lises mais r?pidas, diminuindo os custos e facilitando a rotina dos laborat?rios de pesquisas e de produ??o do biodiesel. No caso das an?lises para quantifica??o da glicerina livre, o etilenoglicol, padr?o muito mais barato e de f?cil aquisi??o, foi utilizado no lugar do 1,2,4-butanotriol, sem perda da qualidade dos resultados. Nas an?lises do metanol a n?o utiliza??o do headspace, diminuiu os custos do equipamento utilizado. A determina??o detalhada dos ?steres presentes ajudou o conhecimento mais profundo da composi??o de amostras de biodiesel provenientes de mat?rias primas alternativas. O relato dos experimentos e as conclus?es das pesquisas que resultaram no desenvolvimento de metodologias alternativas para controle de qualidade da composi??o do biodiesel produzido no Brasil, pa?s com enorme variabilidade de esp?cies na agricultura, s?o os objetivos dessa tese e est?o relatados nas p?ginas seguintes

Made available in DSpace on 2014-12-17T15:01:31Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 SauloHGA_DISSERT.pdf: 5438309 bytes, checksum: adf73f5840135cac15d7a6e65ee7199b (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-08-08 / Coordena??o de Aperfei?oamento de Pessoal de N?vel Superior / With the growth and development of modern society, arises the need to search for new raw materials and new technologies which present the "clean" characteristic, and do not harm the environment, but can join the energy needs of industry and transportation. The Moringa oleifera Lam, plant originating from India, and currently present in the Brazilian Northeast, presents itself as a multi-purpose plant, can be used as a coagulant in water treatment, as a natural remedy and as a feedstock for biodiesel production. In this work, Moringa has been used as a raw material for studies on the extraction and subsequently in the synthesis of biodiesel. Studies have been conducted on various techniques of Moringa oil extraction (solvents, mechanical pressing and enzymatic), being specially developed an experimental design for the aqueous extraction with the aid of the enzyme Neutrase? 0.8 L, with the aim of analyzing the influence variable pH (5.5-7.5), temperature (45-55?C), time (16-24 hours) and amount of catalyst (2-5%) on the extraction yield. In relation to study of the synthesis of biodiesel was initially carried out a conventional transesterification (50?C, KOH as a catalyst, methanol and 60 minutes reaction). Next, a study was conducted using the technique of in situ transesterification by using an experimental design variables as temperature (30-60?C), catalyst amount (2-5%), and molar ratio oil / ethanol (1:420-1:600). The extraction technique that achieved the highest extraction yield (35%) was the one that used hexane as a solvent. The extraction using 32% ethanol obtained by mechanical pressing and extraction reached 25% yield. For the enzymatic extraction, the experimental design indicated that the extraction yield was most affected by the effect of the combination of temperature and time. The maximum yield obtained in this extraction was 16%. After the step of obtaining the oil was accomplished the synthesis of biodiesel by the conventional method and the in situ technique. The method of conventional transesterification was obtained a content of 100% and esters by in situ technique was also obtained in 100% in the experimental point 7, with a molar ratio oil / alcohol 1:420, Temperature 60?C in 5% weight KOH with the reaction time of 1.5 h. By the experimental design, it was found that the variable that most influenced the ester content was late the percentage of catalyst. By physico-chemical analysis it was observed that the biodiesel produced by the in situ method fell within the rules of the ANP, therefore this technique feasible, because does not require the preliminary stage of oil extraction and achieves high levels of esters / Com o crescimento e desenvolvimento da sociedade moderna, surge a necessidade de busca por novas mat?rias primas e por novas tecnologias que apresentem caracter?sticas limpas , e que n?o agridam o meio ambiente, mas que possam suprir as necessidades energ?ticas da ind?stria e do transporte. A Moringa ole?fera Lam, planta oriunda da ?ndia, e presente atualmente no Nordeste brasileiro, apresenta-se como uma planta multiuso, podendo ser utilizada como coagulante no tratamento de ?gua, como rem?dio natural e como mat?riaprima para a produ??o de biodiesel. Neste trabalho, a Moringa foi utilizada como mat?ria prima em estudos sobre os processos de extra??o e posteriormente na s?ntese de biodiesel. Foram realizados estudos sobre as diversas t?cnicas de extra??o do ?leo de Moringa (solventes, prensagem mec?nica e enzim?tica), sendo especialmente desenvolvido um planejamento experimental para a extra??o aquosa com o aux?lio da enzima Neutrase? 0,8L, com o objetivo de analisar a influ?ncia das vari?veis pH (5,5-7,5), temperatura (45-55?C), tempo (16-24 horas) e quantidade de catalisador (2-5%) sobre o rendimento de extra??o. Em rela??o ao estudo sobre a s?ntese de biodiesel, foi inicialmente realizada uma transesterifica??o convencional (50?C, KOH como catalisador, metanol e 60 minutos de rea??o). A seguir, foi realizado um estudo utilizando a t?cnica da transesterifica??o in situ por meio de um planejamento experimental utilizando como vari?veis a temperatura (30-60?C), quantidade de catalisador (2-5%), e raz?o molar ?leo/?lcool (1:420-1:600). A t?cnica de extra??o que obteve o maior rendimento de extra??o (35%) foi a que utilizou hexano como solvente. A extra??o utilizando etanol obteve 32% e a extra??o por prensagem mec?nica alcan?ou 25% de rendimento. Para a extra??o enzim?tica, o planejamento experimental indicou que o rendimento da extra??o foi mais afetado pelo efeito da combina??o entre a temperatura e tempo. O rendimento m?ximo obtido nesta extra??o foi de 16%. Ap?s a etapa de obten??o do ?leo, foi realizada a s?ntese de biodiesel pelo m?todo convencional e pela t?cnica in situ. Pelo m?todo de transesterifica??o convencional foi obtido um teor em ?steres de 100% e pela t?cnica in situ, tamb?m foi obtido 100% no ponto experimental 7, com uma raz?o molar ?leo/?lcool de 1:420, temperatura 60?C, 5% em massa de KOH, com o tempo de rea??o de 1,5 h. Pelo planejamento experimental, foi constatado que a vari?vel que mais influenciou no teor de ?steres final foi a porcentagem de catalisador. Pela an?lise f?sicoqu?mica foi observado que o biodiesel produzido pelo m?todo in situ se enquadrou nas normas da ANP, sendo, portanto esta t?cnica vi?vel, pois n?o necessita da etapa pr?via de extra??o do ?leo e alcan?a altos teores de ?steres

Oil palm has flourished as an economically vital crop in Indonesia given its use in both food and non-food products (including biodiesel) for domestic and export markets. However, the expansion of oil palm plantations in Indonesia is controversial. While the crop generates fiscal earnings for the country, and regular income streams for farmers and companies, oil palm plantation expansion is claimed to cause deforestation, environmental degradation and biodiversity losses. At the same time, there is a national target to reduce GHG emissions from land use change and the production of palm oil. Climate change mitigation goals also include ambitious targets to blend biodiesel with fossil diesel in various economic sectors. This thesis looks at the palm oil agro-industry, from oil palm plantation to crude palm oil (CPO) production, and CPO based biodiesel production. It proposes a policy evaluation to verify policy implications in relation to the issue of land use allocation, and the poor profitability in palm oil biodiesel production. The overarching objective is to evaluate the effectiveness of prevailing policies used to promote the palm oil agro-industry for biodiesel production in Indonesia. The thesis is framed by policy research and ex-post policy evaluation. The focus is on the process of policy formulation and implementation, rather than outcome evaluation. Two specific analytical frameworks are used to answer the research questions while addressing the criteria of effectiveness in policy evaluation: (i) policy coherence analysis and (ii) life cycle cost analysis. Qualitative indicators are used to measure the coherence of biofuel policy with other sectoral policies (agriculture, climate and forestry) in relation to land allocation. Quantitative economic indicators are used to compare the costs and benefits of conventional palm oil biodiesel production with a biorefinery conceptual plant. There are valuable lessons to be learnt from this policy evaluation. The results indicate areas in which policy effectiveness can be improved. For land allocation, adjustments and improvements in policy formulation and implementation are crucial. Uncertainties when it comes to the allocation of land to meet multi sectoral policy goals are to be addressed by clarifying land use definitions and categories, which should be backed up by consistent land use definitions in various policy documents. The dual land classification presently applied should move towards a single land classification, linking actual landscape coverage and the legal status of the land. Policy information and guidance across sectoral policies should be compiled in a single database. Such a publicly available database would help enhance the efficiency of land allocation for multiple policy purposes. More importantly, the formulation of biodiesel policy has to engage various sectoral policies that compete for the same resources. The biorefinery conceptual plant allows the reduction of government subsidies, while also providing a pathway to enhance the use of renewable energy and reduce GHG emissions. Policies have been designed to enhance plant profits through the improved utilisation of biomass residues in the palm oil mill for energy generation and composting. However, the low implementation rate of policies indicates the need to improve the effectiveness of policy implementation, and therefore the need for better monitoring processes, and possibly more stringent consequences for non-compliance. / <p>QC 20180223</p>

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