Integration of Plant and Microbial Oil Processing at Oilcane Biorefineries for More Sustainable Biofuel Production

Abstract

Oilcane — an oil-accumulating crop engineered from sugarcane — and microbial oil have the potential to improve renewable oil production and help meet the expected demand for bio-derived oleochemicals and fuels. To assess the potential synergies of processing both plant and microbial oils, the economic and environmental implications of integrating microbial oil production at oilcane and traditional sugarcane biorefineries were characterized. Due to decreased crop yields that lead to higher simulated feedstock prices and lower biorefinery capacities, current oilcane prototypes result in higher costs and carbon intensities than microbial oil from sugarcane. To inform oilcane feedstock development, the required biomass yields (as a function of oil content) for oilcane to achieve financial parity with sugarcane were calculated. At 10 dwt % oil, oilcane can sustain up to 29% less yield than sugarcane and still be more profitable in 95% of simulated scenarios. With microbial oil production from cane juice, achieving this target results in a minimum biodiesel selling price of 2.14 [1.58, 2.76] USD∙L-1 (presented as median [5th, 95th] percentiles), a carbon intensity of 0.519 [0.475, 0.565] kg·CO2e·L–1, and a total biodiesel yield of 2060 [1770, 2350] L·ha–1·y–1.