Life Cycle Assessment of a Pilot Scale Farm-Based Biodiesel Plant
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Life Cycle Assessment of a Pilot Scale Farm-Based Biodiesel Plant by Eli Shawn Jordan Wasserman A Thesis presented to The University of Guelph In partial fulfilment of requirements for the degree of Masters of Applied Science in Engineering Guelph, Ontario, Canada © Eli Shawn Jordan Wasserman, May, 2013 ABSTRACT LIFE CYCLE ASSESSMENT OF A PILOT SCALE FARM-BASED BIODIESEL PLANT Eli Shawn Jordan Wasserman Advisors: University of Guelph, 2013 Prof. William David Lubitz, Prof. Rob Nicol and Prof. Goretty Dias This study used environmental life cycle assessment (LCA) to investigate waste vegetable oil (WVO) biodiesel production at the University of Guelph, Ridgetown Campus, Centre for Agricultural Renewable Energy and Sustainability (CARES). CARES production data and Natural Resources Canada’s GHGenius LCA data were utilized to conduct a well-to-gate LCA. A range of scenarios were studied including using soybean oil feedstock and implementing methanol recovery. Results suggest that methanol is the environmental bottleneck of the WVO biodiesel production system. Results also suggest soybean biodiesel production released more GHG emissions and consumed more energy than both WVO biodiesel or petroleum diesel production. LCA is an iterative process. Due to the study’s limited scope, and status as a screening study, it is recommended that the study of the impacts of the CARES facility be redone with more reliable facility data, that it include the anaerobic digester, as well as a well-to-wheels boundary. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the guidance, understanding, gentle heart and youthful spirit of Prof. Lubitz. I will miss my time learning as your student and working as your TA. Most of all I will miss our conversations after our weekly meetings where we talked on any and all subjects. I would like to thank Prof Dias who taught me the wonderful world of LCA. You have always been tough, firm, and fair but with a gentle nurturing hand. I will miss your passion for the environment, and your dedication to integrity. I would like to thank Prof. Nicol who taught me to never miss the details and that nothing is ever as simple as it seems. You are a great role model and a trusty leader. I will miss your happy spirit, sense of humour and talking about our common interests. I would like to thank Kim VanOverloop who taught me the ins and outs of the CARES biodiesel plant and gave this city boy a taste of the farm. You are a great friend, trusted advisor, and amazing source of knowledge. I will miss hanging at the plant, and your bubbly character that lightens a room. Thanks to Olds College for supplying biodiesel production data. Though it was not used directly in this study as a data source, it did help to frame our data collection standards. Thanks to Don O’Connor. Your GHGenius knowledge was invaluable. I could not have completed my thesis without you. I would like to thank my family, friends and housemates. Your love gave me the will to continue. I know I have made you proud. Thanks to AUTO21 for funding my original project. I am sorry things did not work out. Thank you to the University of Guelph for continuing my funding. iii Special thanks go to Sue Shaw who allowed me to “dream a dream.” To Ryan DeBoar and Malaya Nanda who “joined me at the barricade.” To Tony Vannelli and Abdullah Hussein who “heard the people sing.” To Bill Van Heyst that “brought me home.” And finally, to Bill Lubitz, Goretty Dias and Rob Nicol who showed me “everyday you walk with stronger step.” iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements........................................................................................................................iii Table of Contents............................................................................................................................ v List of Tables ................................................................................................................................ vii List of Figures..............................................................................................................................viii Nomenclature and Abbreviations .................................................................................................. ix 1.0 Introduction............................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Biodiesel....................................................................................................................... 3 1.1.1 Biodiesel Production ............................................................................................. 6 1.2 Life Cycle Assessment ........................................................................................... 12 1.2.1 General form of LCA .......................................................................................... 12 1.3 LCAs and other Environmental Studies of Biodiesel Production.............................. 17 2.0 Methodology........................................................................................................................... 23 2.1 Goal of the Study........................................................................................................ 23 2.2 Scope of the Study...................................................................................................... 24 2.2.1 Functional unit..................................................................................................... 24 2.2.2 System Description and Boundary ...................................................................... 25 2.2.2.1 Scenario Description .................................................................................... 29 2.2.3 Data...................................................................................................................... 36 2.2.3.1 Missing Data................................................................................................. 36 2.2.3.2 Data Requirements ....................................................................................... 36 2.2.4 System Calculations and Estimation Procedures ................................................ 38 2.2.4.1 GHGenius Model vs. Excel Macro .............................................................. 38 2.2.4.2 The Building................................................................................................. 39 2.2.4.3 The Mezzanine ............................................................................................. 40 2.2.4.4 Equipment..................................................................................................... 40 2.2.4.5 On Site Estimations ...................................................................................... 41 2.2.4.6 Petroleum Diesel estimations ....................................................................... 43 2.2.5 LCIA Methodology ............................................................................................. 43 2.2.6 Allocation ............................................................................................................ 44 3.0 Life Cycle Impact Assessment................................................................................................ 48 3.1 Contribution Analysis................................................................................................. 48 3.2 Benchmark and Scenario Analysis............................................................................. 50 3.2.1 Soybean Biodiesel Scenario ................................................................................ 52 3.2.2 Methanol Recovery Scenario .............................................................................. 54 3.2.3 Local KOH Scenario ........................................................................................... 54 3.2.4 Remaining Scenarios........................................................................................... 54 3.3 Comparison to Literature............................................................................................ 55 4.0 Life Cycle Interpretation......................................................................................................... 61 4.1 Sensitivity Analysis.................................................................................................... 61 4.1.1 Allocation Choice Sensitivity.............................................................................. 61 4.1.2 Measured and Estimated Input Sensitivity.......................................................... 62 4.2 Consistency Check ..................................................................................................... 65 4.3 Study Limitations ....................................................................................................... 65 4.4 Discussion.................................................................................................................. 67 v 4.5 Recommendations ...................................................................................................... 69 4.6 Conclusions ................................................................................................................ 70 References..................................................................................................................................... 72 Appendix A: The Excel Macro program ...................................................................................... 90 Appendix B: Data and Sources....................................................................................................