Quantifying the environmental performance of integrated bioethanol and biogas production

• As the production of biofuels continues to expand worldwide, criticism about, e.g. the energy output versus input and the competition with food has been questioned. However, biofuels have the possibility to be optimized in order to improve the environmental performance. This could be accomplished through the use of concepts from industrial symbiosis. This paper provides a quantification of the environmental performance of industrial symbiosis in the biofuel industry through integration of biogas and ethanol processes using a life cycle approach. Results show that although increasing integration is assumed to produce environmental benefits, not all impact categories have achieved this and the results depend upon the allocation methods, energy system and assumptions chosen.

Subject headings

LANTBRUKSVETENSKAPER  -- Annan lantbruksvetenskap -- Förnyelsebar bioenergi (hsv//swe)

AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES  -- Other Agricultural Sciences -- Renewable Bioenergy Research (hsv//eng)

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Industriell bioteknik -- Bioenergi (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Industrial Biotechnology -- Bioenergy (hsv//eng)

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Naturresursteknik -- Energisystem (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Environmental Engineering -- Energy Systems (hsv//eng)

Keyword

Ethanol

Biogas

Industrial symbiosis

Environmental impacts

Biofuel

Life cycle assessment

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)