Plants used as a biofuel production

Table of Contents

Biofuel

Biofuel are the fuel that produces by using agricultural crops and other biomass material within a short period of time.
Common commercial used biofuel are bioethanol, biodiesel, and bio methanol.
Bioethanol made from sugarcane, sugar beet, and algae.
Biodiesel is made from vegetable oil, animal fats and algal lipid and from nonedible crops.
Bio methanol made from organic waste agricultural waste.

Types of Biofuel

Biogas
Bioethanol
Bioethanol
Biofuel

Image Source: European Biofuel Portal

Classification of Biofuel

1. First Generation Biofuel

Also called conventional biofuel
Made from sugar, starch and vegetable oil animal fats
Bio-alcohol
biodiesel
biogas

2. Second Generation Biofuel (Also called Advance Biofuel made from nonedible

Straw
Grass
Jatropha plants
Pongamia plants
Waste vegetable

3. Third Generation Biofuel

Made from Algae and microbes
Algae Species
Alaria esculenta
Palmaria palmata

Raw Material

Sugarcane
Sugar beet
Corn
cassava
Canola oil
Sunflower

Corn as Biofuel

Composition

Starch – 61%
Corn oil- 3.8%
Protein- 8.0%A
Fiber-11.2%

Sugarcane as Biofuel

Milling of sugarcane for separation of juice and bagasse
Fermentation of Sugarcane into Alcohol
Distillation and separation of Alcohol 95%
Dehydration to remove water content

Rice as biofuel

Composition

Starch (70-72%)
Hull (20%)
Rice bran (7%)
Embryo (2-3%)
Rice bran contain oil (15- 23%)

Facts about rice as biofuel

The straw of rice consist of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin
Cellulose embedded in lignin matrix thus pre-treatment to convert cellulose to glucose by popping method
Similar to water impregnated steam explosion method,
sudden explosion with chemical effect from hydrolysis in high temperature
Microthermal explosion with help of so3 gas
Dilution with alkaline to remove lignin
Filtration to remove alkaline solution
Addition of water to form cellulosic mash
Enzyme hydrolyses
Fermentation to ethanol
Biofuel

Jatropha as Biofuel

Jatropha flowering plant belong to family Euphorbiaceae
More than 170 species but jatropha curcas important in case of biofuel (diesel production)
Discover in central America and Mexico
Now a different country like China, Brazil, India, Philippines, Australia
And also Pakistan producing fuel using Jatropha curcas plant.

Facts About Jatropha curcas

Jatropha curcas able to survive without watering 5-6 month
Able to survive at -4 to 45 C
Perennial give flowering 20-25 years
flowering 2 times in the year (First flowering in April, May, and Jun
Second times flowering in September, October and November)
In February plant drop leave
Baby plant appear after 9days of sowing seed 2-6-month plant transfer to the field
Reach to 6-10 feet height
A single branch of the plant contains 4-6 bunches of seeds

Pongamia pinnata

Pongamia pinnata (Leguminoceae. Subfamily Papilionoideae)
First time discover in Bangladesh and India commonly called as pongam or Karanja
Now found in Australia, Florida, Hawaii, Malaysia Thailand, Philippines
Drought resistant, heat, limestone, salinity, sand and shade withstand temperature 0-50C annually rainfall of 500-2500mm/annually
Nitrogen-fixing trees produce seeds containing 30-40% oil
ornamental and shade tree but now a day’s alternative source of bio-diesel
6-8m height, trunk diameter more than 50cm
The bark is grayish-brown dark green leave

Pongamia

flowers are pink light purple or white.
Pods are thickened walled single seed
Seeds 10-20cm long oblong light brown color.

PONGAMIA SEEDS

Seeds contain pongam oil, bitter in taste, red-brown color, thick, non-edible,
Seeds oil has a high content of triglycerides, disagreeable taste, and odor.
use as tanning leather, soap, illuminating oil.

Advantages

price
- The price of regular fuel is increasing due to increasing demand. while biofuel is less expensive due to progress in agriculture.
sources /raw materials
- fuels have limited sources while biofuel has large resources like crops (edible & non-edible) manure and other waste materials.
renewability /biodegradable:
- it takes very long time for fossil fuel to be produce, biofuel is much more easily renewable.
security:
- biofuel can be produce locally, which decrease the nation’s dependence upon foreign energy.
economic stimulation/employment
- biofuel manufacture plants can employ hundreds or thousands of workers, creating new jobs in rural area
carbon cycle
- when biofuel burn produces very low co2 and absorbed this co2 itself.
nontoxic/safer
- biofuel doesn’t contain sulfur and other toxic substance that actually produced by burning of regular fuel.
Greenhouse effect
ethanol blended biofuel such as Ethanol85% reduces up to 37.1% of the greenhouse effect

Disadvantages

Release carbon dioxide result in global warming
Engine problem
Food prices
Food shortages
Water use
High cost
for refining purpose and to and to build a biofuel manufacturing plants to increase biofuel, high initial investment is required.

References

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biofuel
https://auto.howstuffworks.com/fuel-efficiency/biofuels/10-biofuel-crops.htm
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4758376/
https://www.slideshare.net/flanzashebarina/biofuels-28535080

Sources

3% – https://www.dieselworldmag.com/diesel-technology/diy-alternative-fuel-how-to-make-your-own-biofuel-in-nine-easy-steps/
2% – https://www.coursehero.com/file/17789138/Biofuel/
2% – https://lifeunparalleled.blogspot.com/2010/
1% – https://www.slideshare.net/sunnyalha/bioethanol-ppt
1% – https://www.slideshare.net/steamxpress/pongamia-pinnata
1% – https://www.slideshare.net/mjrulzz/biofuels-33429450
1% – https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780081027288000073
1% – https://thesustainabilitycooperative.net/2013/12/26/the-difference-between-biofuel-bioethanol-biodiesel-and-biogas/
1% – https://agsci.oregonstate.edu/sites/agsci.oregonstate.edu/files/bioenergy/generations-of-biofuels-v1.3.pdf
1% – http://www.authorstream.com/Presentation/chhabra61-1753756-biofuel-alternate-source-energy/
<1% – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12180781