Environmental Assessment of Electricity Based on Straight Jatropha Oil on Floreana Island, Ecuador
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Environmental Assessment of Electricity Based on Straight Jatropha Oil on Floreana Island, Ecuador Marilyn Muñoz Mayorga 1 & Israel Herrera Orozco 2 & Yolanda Lechón Pérez 2 & Natalia Caldés Gomez 2 & Eva Iglesias Martínez 1
# Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2017
Abstract The Renewable Energies for Galápagos (ERGAL) project was launched in Ecuador as part of the BZero fossil fuels on the Galápagos Islands^ initiative. The ERGAL project strategy includes the BJatropha for Galápagos^ pilot project, which seeks to generate electricity from jatropha oil (JO) extracted from wild jatropha bushes, which are harvested by small-scale jatropha suppliers. Using life-cycle analysis, this study assessed the environmental impact of electricity produced from this biofuel under three systems: a blend system (BS) with 20% JO and 80% diesel, a reference system (RS) consisting of 100% diesel and a jatropha system (JS) made up of JO. The results show that the BS had slightly better environmental performance than RS, but worse than JS. Under the BS, the main environmental loads resulted from diesel combustion in electricity generation and the transportation of the raw material. An advantage of the BS is the low impact resulting from jatropha production, given that fertilizers are not used. However, this production strategy is highly dependent upon the presently limited yields from jatropha bushes. To increase the environmental sustainability of the BS, the logistics of transporting the fruits and improving their yields are key issues that should be considered. Finally, the low environmental impact of JS is due to diesel not being used in electricity production. However, fuel use for transportation of the high volumes of raw material and the refined product, coupled with the use of the purification substance as part of the refining are major contributors to environmental loads of JS. Keywords Bioelectricity . Jatropha curcas L. . Straight vegetable oil . Living fences . LCA
Introduction Global population growth has driven increased demand for goods and services, with subsequent negative impacts on the environment. The energy sector is the biggest contributor * Marilyn Muñoz Mayorga [email protected] Israel Herrera Orozco [email protected] Yolanda Lechón Pérez [email protected] Natalia Caldés Gomez [email protected] Eva Iglesias Martínez [email protected] 1
Food and Biosystems Engineering at Technical University of Madrid, UPM, Av Complutense s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain
2
Energy Systems Analysis Unit, Energy Department, CIEMAT, Av. Complutense 40, 28040 Madrid, Spain
of greenhouse gas emissions. In response, multiple international initiatives have been developed promoting the production and use of renewable energies as alternatives to fossil fuels and as a means for combating climate change. According to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Ecuador has voluntarily adopted a series of mitigation measures designed to reduce greenhouse gas em
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