Biodistillate Transportation Fuels 3 - Life Cycle Impacts

Life-cycle assessments (LCA) of biodistillate fuels are becoming increasingly important for policy decisions regarding alternative fuels. However, due to the dataintensive and assumptive nature of LCAs, rarely do two different studies produce comparable results. To add to the complexity, effects of indirect land use changes are now being incorporated into LCA models. This development is influencing policy decisions and generating much controversy. A literature survey of 55 different LCA studies of biodistillate fuels was conducted. The comparison of energy requirements and global warming potential (GWP) impacts of these studies help to illustrate which data inputs and assumptions most strongly affect the results, and wherein the major discrepancies lie. Life-cycle energy results are typically reported as energy return (ER), meaning the heating value of the biofuel divided by the total fossil energy inputs to produce the fuels. Most studies report significantly higher ER values for biodistillates (both biodiesel and renewable diesel) compared to conventional diesel fuel. Similarly, most LCA studies show significant GWP reductions for biodistillates compared to conventional diesel. However, due to lack of consistency in LCA approaches and assumptions, considerable uncertainty still exists regarding the accuracy of most LCA results.

[1]  L. Verchot,et al.  Jatropha bio-diesel production and use , 2008 .

[2]  Chiung-Lung Su,et al.  Development status and life cycle inventory analysis of biofuels in Taiwan , 2009 .

[3]  R. Douglas,et al.  PRODUCTION AND PROPERTIES OF C15 , 1956 .

[4]  Hiederer Roland,et al.  Background Guide for the Calculation of Land Carbon Stocks in the Biofuels Sustainability Scheme Drawing on the 2006 IPCC Guidelines for National Greenhouse Gas Inventories , 2010 .

[5]  Benoit Gabrielle,et al.  Well to Wheels Analysis of Biofuels vs. Conventional Fossil Fuels : a Proposal for Greenhouse Gases and Energy Savings Accounting in the French Context , 2008 .

[6]  Keith A. Smith,et al.  N 2 O release from agro-biofuel production negates global warming reduction by replacing fossil fuels , 2007 .

[7]  Tom N. Kalnes,et al.  Green Diesel: A Second Generation Biofuel , 2007 .

[8]  Daniele Cocco,et al.  Comparative study on energy sustainability of biofuel production chains , 2007 .

[9]  Eric D. Larson,et al.  A review of life-cycle analysis studies on liquid biofuel systems for the transport sector , 2006 .

[10]  D. Pimentel,et al.  Ethanol Production Using Corn, Switchgrass, and Wood; Biodiesel Production Using Soybean and Sunflower , 2005 .

[11]  S. Polasky,et al.  Environmental, economic, and energetic costs and benefits of biodiesel and ethanol biofuels. , 2006, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

[12]  Vincent Mahieu,et al.  Well-to-wheels analysis of future automotive fuels and powertrains in the european context , 2004 .

[13]  Sven Bernesson,et al.  Future fuel supply systems for organic production based on Fischer–Tropsch diesel and dimethyl ether from on-farm-grown biomass , 2008 .

[14]  Henrik Wenzel,et al.  Life cycle inventory modelling of land use induced by crop consumption , 2007 .

[15]  John Sheehan,et al.  Life Cycle Inventory of Biodiesel and Petroleum Diesel for Use in an Urban Bus , 1998 .

[16]  S. Hoekman,et al.  Investigation of Biodistillates as Potential Blendstocks for Transportation Fuels , 2009 .

[17]  A. Bakyb,et al.  Self-sufficiency of motor fuels on organic farms – evaluation of systems based on fuels produced in industrial-scale plants , 2009 .

[18]  Green diesel production by hydrorefining renewable feedstocks , 2008 .

[19]  G. Venturi,et al.  Analysis of energy comparison for crops in European agricultural systems , 2003 .

[20]  John J. Sheehan,et al.  Sustainable biofuels: A commonsense perspective on California’s approach to biofuels & global land use , 2009 .

[21]  Mark A. Delucchi,et al.  Overview of the Lifecycle Emissions Model (LEM) , 2002 .

[22]  Akira Koyama,et al.  Vegetable Oil Hydrogenating Process for Automotive Fuel , 2007 .

[23]  Eric Johnson,et al.  Goodbye to carbon neutral: Getting biomass footprints right , 2009 .

[24]  Alan W. Gertler,et al.  Biodistillate Transportation Fuels 1. Production and Properties , 2009 .

[25]  Alan W. Gertler,et al.  Biodistillate Transportation Fuels 2. - Emissions Impacts , 2009 .

[26]  Tom N. Kalnes,et al.  A technoeconomic and environmental life cycle comparison of green diesel to biodiesel and syndiesel , 2009 .

[27]  Vittorio Rocco,et al.  Brassica carinata as an alternative oil crop for the production of biodiesel in Italy: agronomic evaluation, fuel production by transesterification and characterization , 2003 .

[28]  He Li,et al.  Energy efficiency and potentials of cassava fuel ethanol in Guangxi region of China. , 2006 .

[29]  Mark A. Delucchi,et al.  Lifecycle Analyses of Biofuels , 2006 .

[30]  L. Verchot,et al.  JATROPHA BIODIESEL PRODUCTION AND USE , 2008 .

[31]  Sven Gärtner,et al.  Rain forest for biodiesel? : Ecological effects of using palm oil as a source of energy , 2007 .

[32]  Cristian Carraretto,et al.  Biodiesel as alternative fuel: Experimental analysis and energetic evaluations , 2004 .

[33]  Michael Narodoslawsky,et al.  Life cycle assessment of the production of biodiesel from tallow and used vegetable oil , 2004 .

[34]  Jan F. Kreider,et al.  Comprehensive Evaluation of Impacts From Potential, Future Automotive Fuel Replacements , 2007 .

[35]  Timo Murtonen,et al.  Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil as Fuel for Heavy Duty Diesel Engines , 2007 .

[36]  John Sheehan,et al.  Life cycle inventory of biodiesel and petroleum diesel for use in an urban bus. Final report , 1998 .

[37]  E. Gnansounou,et al.  Life cycle assessment of soybean-based biodiesel in Argentina for export , 2009 .

[38]  Daniela Russi,et al.  An integrated assessment of a large-scale biodiesel production in Italy: Killing several birds with one stone? , 2008 .

[39]  Richard G. Nelson,et al.  ENERGETIC AND ECONOMIC FEASIBILITY ASSOCIATED WITH THE PRODUCTION, PROCESSING, AND CONVERSION OF BEEF TALLOW TO A SUBSTITUTE DIESEL FUEL , 2006 .

[40]  Jesse S. Fleming,et al.  Policy Considerations Derived from Transportation Fuel Life Cycle Assessment , 2007 .

[41]  Walter Klöpffer,et al.  Life cycle assessment , 1997, Environmental science and pollution research international.

[42]  H. von Blottnitz,et al.  A life-cycle comparison between inorganic and biological catalysis for the production of biodiesel , 2008 .

[43]  Mark A. Delucchi,et al.  A Lifecycle Emissions Model (LEM): Lifecycle Emissions from Transportation Fuels, Motor Vehicles, Transportation Modes, Electricity Use, Heating and Cooking Fuels, and Materials , 2003 .

[44]  Kritana Prueksakorn,et al.  Full chain energy analysis of biodiesel from Jatropha curcas L. in Thailand. , 2008, Environmental science & technology.

[45]  Sven Bernesson,et al.  A limited LCA comparing large- and small-scale production of rape methyl ester (RME) under Swedish conditions , 2004 .

[46]  Michael Narodoslawsky,et al.  Ecological evaluation of processes based on by-products or waste from Agriculture : Life cycle assessment of biodiesel from tallow and used vegetableoil , 2006 .

[47]  Hong Huo,et al.  Life-cycle assessment of energy use and greenhouse gas emissions of soybean-derived biodiesel and renewable fuels. , 2009, Environmental science & technology.

[48]  Hans-Jürgen Dr. Klüppel,et al.  The Revision of ISO Standards 14040-3 - ISO 14040: Environmental management – Life cycle assessment – Principles and framework - ISO 14044: Environmental management – Life cycle assessment – Requirements and guidelines , 2005 .

[49]  P. Janulis,et al.  Reduction of energy consumption in biodiesel fuel life cycle , 2004 .

[50]  Reinout Heijungs,et al.  Calculating the influence of alternative allocation scenarios in fossil fuel chains , 2007 .

[51]  Makame Mbarawa,et al.  Performance, emission and economic assessment of clove stem oil–diesel blended fuels as alternative fuels for diesel engines , 2008 .

[52]  Sven Bernesson,et al.  Self-sufficiency of motor fuels on organic farms , 2007 .

[53]  G. Heath,et al.  Life-Cycle Assessment of the Use of Jatropha Biodiesel in Indian Locomotives (Revised) , 2009 .

[54]  S. Polasky,et al.  Land Clearing and the Biofuel Carbon Debt , 2008, Science.

[55]  Dara Entekhabi,et al.  Water implications of biofuels production in the United States , 2008 .

[56]  Jacinto F. Fabiosa,et al.  Use of U.S. Croplands for Biofuels Increases Greenhouse Gases Through Emissions from Land-Use Change , 2008, Science.

[57]  H. Halleux,et al.  Comparative life cycle assessment of two biofuels ethanol from sugar beet and rapeseed methyl ester , 2008 .

[58]  Tan Piqiang,et al.  Life cycle energy, environment and economic assessment of soybean-based biodiesel as an alternative automotive fuel in China , 2008 .