Preliminary study on the environmental profile of bioethanol production from Spartina argentinensis. Inventory phase

SACCHI, G; FELDMAN, S; CIVIT, B

chacras de coria

Conferencia; V Conferencia Internacional sobre Análisis de Ciclo de Vida; 2013

UTN FRM - Red Iberoamericana de ciclo de vida

Purpose Energy consumption is one of the most relevant indicators of progress and quality of life. However, the power supply to all sectors of society can be compromised if fossil fuels like oil, coal and gas continue to be heavily relied upon as the major energy sources. The shortage of these resources puts energy availability at risk, but their combustion also poses hazards to air quality and the environmental health of the planet. New technologies, known as alternative energy, have been developed to gradually substitute for other sources of energy, with the aim of driving a shift in the energy matrix of each country. Biomass-derived fuels (biofuels) are presented by many sectors as a sustainable option. However, to achieve sustainability of a product, the raw materials and the processing stages required for its production must be sustainable. The objective of this work was to determine, on a preliminary phase, the environmental profile of the production process of ethanol from Spartina argentinensis, a native perennial species found in abundance in the provinces of Santa Fe, Chaco and Santiago del Estero in Argentina, which holds promise as a sustainable option in the industrial circuit of biofuels. Method The scientifically accepted and worldwide recognized methodology for obtaining objectively the environmental profile of products is Life Cycle Assessment, which complies with ISO 14040 standards. This paper describes and discusses the inventory of energy and materials consumed for obtaining 1MJ of Spartina argentinensis-derived bioethanol. To estimate the energy performance of ethanol, the total energy is allocated considering the product it replaces from the time of resource extraction until processed bioethanol is obtained. Results The data considered were biomass production (Mg dry matter ha-1 yr-1), the energy cost of cutting and collection, ground transportation, pre-treatment (removal of lignin, saccharification and fermentation), and ethanol manufacturing process. Although the results are preliminary, we found that the stage with a dominant contribution along the life-cycle is the collection and transportation to the processing plant. This result is relevant to show that the biofuel under study is environmentally sustainable in the long term, mainly because no work is required to grow the raw material due to the status of Spartina argentinensis as a native perennial species. Conclusions Native species such as S. argentinensis, which are neither used as a human food source nor as quality fodder, but do have good environmental performance and energy efficiency, can be considered a sustainable energy source alternative.