Biofuels production is intended to address shortage on fuel supply. This study assessed the energetics and water inventory of the Philippine bioethanol production from sugarcane, aiming to provide a definitive value from where studies for economic assessment for this system could pick up. A 30-million-liter-per-year (MLPY) processing facility was designed using local field and factory data, from surveys and immersion reports. Assessment showed that sugarcane bioethanol processing facility with co-generation and wastewater treatment units gains a net energy equivalent to 18.62 MJ L-1 of bioethanol produced, with an energy returned on energy invested ratio of 2.75. The net energy realized from the production compensates the energy expended during the construction of the bioethanol plant within about eight months of operation. Water is being used up at a rate of 2,832.22 L per L of ethanol produced or 133.60 L per MJ or 197,826.09 L per Mg of cane processed, accounting the water used for plantation and the factory. The water inventory in the construction level amounts to 952.64 ML. The production of bioethanol from sugarcane is practical, energy-wise, but its water consumption might make the industry unviable in locations where water is scarce.
Healthcare waste must be managed properly due to the hazards they impose on public health and the environment. In this study, an alternative method of treating infectious waste via thermal treatment using coconut oil was investigated in a laboratory-scale setup. The effects of oil temperature (121°C, 145°C and 170°C) and treatment time (10, 20 and 30 minutes) on bacterial growth and properties of simulated infectious wastes contaminated with Bacillus subtilis were determined. No bacterial growth was observed in the samples even at the seventh day after treatment using 145oC (20- and 30-minute treatment time) and 170°C (all treatment time). However, growth on enriched media occurred for the samples treated at 170°C, indicating possible spore germination. The treatment at 145°C and 30 minutes was effective in treating contaminated syringes and cloths. The contaminated meat samples underwent thermal degradation and had a maximum weight reduction of 74.1%, which was mainly due to moisture loss. The cloths, however, did not change in its appearance but syringes and other plastics melted and deformed. Thus, the thermal treatment was found to be a good disinfection method, causing severe damage to cells. The treated infectious waste materials can be disposed in landfills without potential recurrence of bacterial growth.
As the Philippine bioethanol industry reaches a decade and the debate on what bioethanol blending shall be imposed, this study assessed the socio-economic and environmental impacts of domestic bioethanol production parallel to the objectives of the biofuels law. Bioethanol production in the country has generated significant jobs or an estimated jobs of about 2,073 based on the actual bioethanol processing data for Crop Year (CY) 2017-2018 for the three bioethanol production systems (BPS) studied; and could potentially reach 10,620 jobs if mill capacities of the two bioethanol plants are met. Additionally, bioethanol industry was perceived to have a positive change for sugarcane farmers in terms of employment opportunities and cash income from bioethanol-related operations. The domestic bioethanol industry has even opened additional revenues to bioethanol-related industries of about PhP 1.2 B (23.9 M USD) for CY 2017-2018 and could even reach to PhP 3.0 B (60.4 M USD) if bioethanol plants can attain its installed mill and cogeneration capacities. Environmental impact assessment study, on the other hand, revealed that domestic bioethanol production can reduce GHG emissions by about 68 to 91% for the four BPS evaluated, compared to business-as-usual scenario of using fossil fuel.
Sieve dusting reduces the efficiency of molecular sieve adsorption during ethanol dehydration. As a result, the recoverable yield of pure ethanol is lowered. This study explored the contribution of congeners (acetone, ethyl acetate, and methanol) in molecular sieve dusting by varying the number of pressure cycles and congener concentrations during ethanol dehydration. A general two-factorial design with three levels was used to statistically test these factors. Degree of dusting was evaluated by measuring cumulative decrease in mass and change in crush strength of sieves. The number of pressure cycles and congener concentration had a positive effect on the decrease in mass of Type 3A molecular sieves and a negative effect with crush strength. There was an 11.20 %, 18.56 %, and 34.11 % change in crushing strength from 400, 800, and 1200 mg L-1 acetone concentration for a five-cycle dehydration run, respectively. Greatest decrease in bulk mass was found to be 0.53% (cumulative) and 0.25% (non-cumulative) for acetone and 0.60% (cumulative) and 0.31% (non-cumulative) for congener mixture. The parameters had no significant interaction towards each other; thus, the effect of the number of pressure cycle and congener concentration was additive to sieve dusting.
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