BIOETHANOL THE MAIN BIOFUEL SUBSTITUENT OF GASOLINE Alexandru GRIBINCEA, University Professor PhD

Department of Department of ar!etin" and International E#onomi# Relations, U$ ar!etin" and International E#onomi# Relations, U$

%ea#eslav B&RDAN, $enior University 'e#turer PhD,

The issue of energy resources is quite old and can be solved by using alternative sources of fuel, a part of which can be obtained from biomass. The need of using bioethanol is driven by the reduction of world reserves of fossil fuel and global climate change. Due to certain economists - if the world economy starts using biofuel, food security can be affected, as the production of the main biofuel implies a lot of expensive food and feed crops. Keywords: biofuel, biodiesel, bioethanol, energy security, alternative energy sources. The world has entered the bioeconomy era, a time when the economy based on biotechnologies uses renewable raw materials for the production of energy and materials. Scientists are long searching for new sources of transport alimentation, sources that can also reduce air pollution. Some results are indeed ingenious. The Philippines produce fuel from coconut shell, in Thailand diesel is replaced with palm oil, while Malaysia has made great plans and publicly announced of giving up diesel fuel produced from petroleum. Generally, the notion of biofuel is referring to gaseous and li uid fuels !for e"ample# methanol and ethanol$, which are produced from carbon%containing materials, &nown as biomass ' organic matter of vegetable or animal origin obtained from crops, herbs, trees !fast growing ones# willow, poplar, miscanthus$ and shrubs, as well as from fish oil, household waste, vegetable oils and fats, food industry waste, (ootechnics and other domains, agricultural wastes and residues !including vegetable and animal substances$, forestry and its afferent industry, along with some fractions of industrial and municipal waste. )iofuels are neutral regarding to the greenhouse effect. * fuel is told to be neutral when it is not producing any +,- surplus in the atmosphere while it burns. )iofuels are neutral because at their burning in the atmosphere is released an e uivalent amount of carbon dio"ide which was fi"ed through plant photosynthesis when the raw material from which biofuels were obtained was produced. *ccording to the e"isting regulations, only the products presented below can be considered as biofuels# a. b. bioethanol# biodiesel# ethanol produced by fermentation of biomass and. or the by transesterification of vegetable or 0 biodegradable fraction of waste/ a methyl%ester produced animal oil, of a diesel uality/

c. d. e.

biogas# a fuel gas produced from biomass and . or from the biodegradable biomethanol# methanol produced by fermentation of biomass and . or the biodimethylether# dimethylether produced from biomass/

fraction of waste, that can be purified to natural gas uality/ biodegradable fraction of waste/ f.bio%1T)1 !ethyl%tertio%butyl%ether$# 1T)1 produced on the basis of bioethanol. The percentage by volume of bio%1T)1 that is calculated as biofuel is 23 4/ g. h. bio%MT)1 !methyl%tertio%butyl%ether$5# a fuel produced on the basis of synthetic biofuels# synthetic hydrocarbons or mi"tures of synthetic biomethanol. The percentage by volume of bio%MT)1 that is calculated as biofuel is 67 4/ hydrocarbons, which have been produced from biomass/ i. biohydrogen# hydrogen produced from biomass, and.or from the biodegradable fraction of waste, to be used as biofuel/ 8. pure vegetable oil# oil produced from oil plants through pressing, e"traction or comparable procedures, crude or refined but chemically unmodified, when compatible with the type of engines involved and the corresponding emission re uirements. The time when ethanol was considered only a fuel solvent of restricted utili(ation has passed. +urrently, ethanol is considered a basic component of gasoline, due to the high o"ygen content and a high octane number % 09:%09;. The e"pansion of biofuel production and utili(ation is due not only to the above mentioned reasons, such as the ones related to the reduction of artificial greenhouse effect. There are other reason for producing and using biofuels, reasons that are less evident at a superficial analysis. ,il prices, agricultural surpluses, the volatility of the Middle 1ast area !the main oil%e"porting region$, the attitude of <ussia !the main supplier of natural gas$ and energy dependence !waste$ have led 1uropean governments !and other industriali(ed countries$ to stimulate production and utili(ation of biofuels. ,n top of that, ethanol production can be placed in rural areas, thus creating 8obs and providing local budgets with financial resources. 1very million liters of produced bioethanol contributes to the creation of 6; new 8obs =->. 1thanol also brings a significant contribution to the energy and economic security of the country, being also the means to fight against gases that cause the greenhouse effect.

?ig. 0# Global needs !e"isting and e"pected$ of oil compared to e"isting and estimated production

@owadays, the production and consumption of ethanol is increasing all over the world, with the most part being produced in @orth and South *merica. +urrently, the industry of ethanol fuel is developing fast and securely. Aorld leaders in this area are BS* and )ra(il. *t this moment, ;: ethanol plants are functioning in the BS*, -2 others are in construction, 0C plants are at the stage of moderni(ation and another :9 are said to be in various stages of planning. )ra(il has developed a policy regarding the use of ethanol as the only source of fuel for cars in the entire country/ with sugar cane serving as raw material !sugar cane is produced locally in sufficient uantities$. Three new ethanol plants of high capacity are built currently in Germany, in collaboration with Sud(uc&er, a German sugar processing company !wor&ing also in Moldova$, which will use sugar beet as raw material. Sud(uc&er also plans to build two new plants in *ustria and )elgium. The main factor for the rapid growth of ethanol industry is the increasing cost of oil. *t the initial stages of development, the industry of ethanol production was subsidi(ed because of the low ratio between gasoline and corn prices. ?or e"ample, in the late ;9s and early C9s, the B.S. price of corn was D - a bushel. *t that time, the cost of gasoline was between 0 and 0.: dollars per gallon !6.3;: liters$. Ahile corn prices have remained mostly stable, gasoline prices have almost doubled, so that ethanol has become very competitive, its cost of production being 0D per gallon. The situation in the 1B is similar# one ton of ethanol costs -99 E, less than one ton of petrol. Today, ethanol production is economically feasible without the need of subsidies. Fn addition to cost benefits and energy independence, the environment played an important role in the rapid development of this certain industry. 1thanol as a gasoline component produces a fuel that burns better and which, at the same time, increases the octane number and decreases gas emissions into the atmosphere. ?or this reason, both the BS* and the 1B have passed laws on reuse of this fuel, by increasing the share of mi"ture of ethanol and gasoline. 6

The perspective of development of world biofuel production depends on many factors, including oil prices, presence of cheap fodder for livestoc&, government support, technological progress !which may reduce the price of second generation biofuels$, the competition from non% traditional fuels and alternative mineral resources . (hat is )ioethanol* )ioethanol is ethanol with C;4 purity, produced from biomass and .or the biodegradable fraction of waste, mainly for use as biofuel for gasoline engines. 1thanol is not to"ic, is soluble in water and does not pollute it. Fn cases of discharges, ethanol decomposes faster than gasoline components. There are two types of ethanol# hydrated and non%hydrated !CC.C4$. Aater% based ethanol !C:4 of volume$ is used as a substitute for gasoline in card with modified engines !in )ra(il is mi"ed with regular fuel at a rate of -9%-24 and re uires no engine modification$. Gemand for non%hydrated ethanol is decreasing, while demand for hydrated ethanol is increasing. ?or ethanol%based gasoline there are used mar&ings that contain both letters and numbers# 1:, 13, 109, 1;:. The letter 1 comes from ethanol, while the numbers show the percentage of ethanol contained in fuel !weight by volume$. +urrently, for most cars, the best fuel is the one containing :4 of ethanol !1:$. * higher concentration of ethanol !up to ;:4, 1;:$ is characteristic for fle"ible fuel vehicles !?le"%?uel$. Bsed as biofuel, ethanol reduces the aromatic hydrocarbons in the fuel, increases the octane number !with -%6 units for 109$, prevents engine overheating, performs the role of antifree(e for fuel pipes, does not cause dirty fuel in8ectors, and most important, reduces releases in the environment. The development of the world industry of biofuels becomes economically rentable due to the increasing prices of hydrocarbons. 1thanol is a wea&er energy source than gasoline# the distance traveled by a car consuming 1;: fuel in unit volume is about 3:4 of distance traveled by an ordinary car. <egular cars cannot run on 1;: !only the ones with ?le"%?uel$, although internal combustion engines can operate with 109 !or even 10:$. The mi"ture of gasoline and ethanol &nown as 109 has been used by *merican motorists for over -: years and is accepted for use by all ma8or B.S. car% ma&ers. *t )ra(ilian gas stations, motorists are offered 1-9 or 1-: under the name of regular gasoline or a(eotrope of ethanol. 1thanol, being cheaper than gasoline, causes many to dissolve 1-9 with a(eotrope, leading to a concentration of up to 294 ethanol. Cultures, te#hnolo"i#al pro#edures and types of )ioethanol ,ne of the basic methods used in obtaining ethanol is the microbiological method%based on the fermentation of organic products containing sugar or starch !beet, potatoes, rice, corn, rapeseed, fla", sunflower, etc.$. Fn result, there is obtained something similar to the classical +-H:,H, which then goes through a shorter path of distillation. * ton of corn !i.e. the starch that is contained in the ton$ can produce more than 209 liters of ethanol, while a ton of rye can ma&e no less that 63: liters 2

and a ton of millet ' :09 liters. +assava has also a great potential. *mong countries listed as big producers of cassava there are +hina, @igeria, and Thailand. Fn Thailand the cost of producing bioethanol from cassava is about D6: for an e uivalent barrel of oil. Ft should be noted that besides ethanol, a ton of corn can produce corn oil, carbon dio"ide, sweeteners !glucose and maltose syrups$, dry bard, feed for livestoc&. These products often provide higher income than the very production of bioethanol. Today, an average capacity plant produces 0:9 million liters of ethanol annually.

?ig. -# * diagram which e"plains how to obtain main fuels

(orld produ#tion of ethanol The first people who started to convert alcohol into fuel were the )ra(ilians, who now use it on circa -94 of cars in the country !3 cars out of 09 are fle" cars$, which are supplied at -C thousand speciali(ed stations. Fn the +FS the first ethanol%producing plant was opened in September -997 in Ia(a&hstan. Fn -99C the global consumption of ethanol fuel was 32 billion liters !:;.7: million t$, representing an increase of 2994 compared to -999. *dded to gasoline, this ethanol is the most voluminous product which is added to gasoline, its share in -99C was about 74 of the global oil consumption !in the 1B the share was 6,-24, contravention of Girective -996.69, which established :4$. +urrently there are :3: ethanol%producing plants with a capacity of ;9,760 million tons summary, in appro"imately 29 countries. Most of the production !in -99C$ was concentrated in the B.S. % :2.64 and )ra(il %66.34. The B.S. produced 29 billion liters of ethanol from corn !according to the <?* ' <enewable ?uels *ssociation$, and )ra(il produced about -: billion gallons of ethanol from sugar cane !according to )ra(ilian Sugarcane Fndustry *ssociation$ =2>. *dding ethanol in gasoline in -99;%-99C saved circa 22%27 million tons of oil, which is e uivalent to the annual consumption of the @etherlands and

Poland combined. Bse of ethanol fuel in -99C reduced B.S. gasoline consumption by 094, 1B % 64 and Germany % 2.24. ,n continents, the leader in ethanol production !in -99C$ is @orth *merica with 20.; billion liters, or :7.:4 of the world total, followed by South *merica with -:.2 billion liters !62.64$. 1B is the third largest producer with 6.3 billion liters !:.04, an increase of 694 compared to -99;$ and South 1ast *sia is the fourth % -.; billion liters !6.;4$, of which only +hina produced two billion liters. *ustralia and @ew Jealand have produced 9.- billion gallons of ethanol summary =2>. Fn -909 *ustralia produced 6:9 million liters of biofuel, which is less than 04 of the fuel mar&et. Fn *frica, the leader in ethanol production is the South *frican <epublic, where the molasses are used to produce 394 of the ethanol made in this region. The 1B !0; ethanol producers of -3 member states$ has observed a sharp increase in ethanol production. ?rance remains the main producer !66.64 of total$ which increased its production in -99C by -:4 compared to -99;. Germany % -94 of the total !K6-4# from :7;%3:9 million liters$ and Spain % 0-.24 of total !K274# from 627%27: million liters$ hold positions number two and number three respectively. Some countries have almost doubled production ' *ustria !K09-4# from ;C million to 0;9 million liters$ and Sweden !K0-24# from 3; to 03: million liters$, with shares of 2.;4 and 2.34 in the 1B5s total production. Such increases in production have led to increases in consumption# by -64 in -99C compared to -99; !from 6.: to 2.6 billion liters$. The main consumer is Germany % 0026 million liters !9.C92 million tons$, ?rance % 3C; million liters !9.766 million tons$ and Sweden % 633 million liters !9.-CC million tons$. 1uropean consumers5 deficit is covered by imports from )ra(il, though these have dropped in -99C to -99 million liters =2>. Table 0. * comparative analysis of ethanol and gasoline !prices are for September the -9th, -909$
+ Country Pri#es for , liter of "asoline Pri#es for , liter of ethanol Cost of produ#tion for , liter of ethanol 9,66 BSG 9,0C BSG 9,:: BSG

0. BS* 9,3- BSG 9,:: BSG -. )ra(il 0,76 BSG 9,70 BSG 6. 1B !<otterdam$ 0,C- BSG 9,;- BSG Source: developed by the authors after the procession of various data

)y -90: the ethanol production is e"pected to increase to 07- billion liters, which will surpass the demand of 0:9 billion liters !according to the report made 8ointly by ?*,, the B@ 1conomic +ommission for Latin *merica !1+L*+$ and the )ra(ilian )an& of 1conomic and Social Gevelopment !)@G1S$. -he impa#t of ethanol produ#tion and #onsumption on natural and so#ial environment 7

1nvironmentalists have various opinions about bioethanol. Fn -997 in the B.S. through the use of bioethanol it was possible to reduce the release of greenhouse gases by ; million tons, a uantity e uivalent to the one emanated by 0.-0 million cars. *ccording to the B.S. Gepartment of environmental protection, fuel represents the largest source of artificial carcinogens. Gue to the addition of ethanol, gasoline increases its o"ygen content/ ethanol contributes to the burning of gasoline and reduces its release of carbon mono"ide by 694. 1thanol also reduces the emanation of to"ic substances by 694 and volatile organic components by about -:4. *naly(ing the life cycle of ethanol, the B.S. Gepartment of *griculture concluded that ethanol produces 0624 of the energy spent in its growing, harvesting and processing, while gasoline returns only ;94 of the energy used for its production. *ccording to forecasts made by the ,1+G and ?*,, by -9-9 biofuel consumption will increase sharply, leading to the fact that about 064 of feed wheat, 0:4 of vegetable oils and 694 of sugar cane will be used in the production of biofuel. Fncreasing oil prices will lead to a growing demand for raw materials for biofuels, and in case of considerable increases in oil prices in many countries, biofuel production will be profitable even in the absence of certain policies of support !)ra(il has already reached the situation where there is no need of subsidi(ing the production of ethanol from sugar$. The Aorld )an& <eport states that the change in the structure of used lands was initiated in -996, when countries started to develop policies on the production of biofuels. Fn -99; the total area occupied by energy crops was 67 million ha, which is about - times more compared to -992. *ccording to the B@ representatives, the global crisis caused by higher prices of agricultural products endangers the fate of about 099 million people, which will suffer famine and social and political disasters. Ff countries will continue to invest in biofuels instead of grain, then by -9-: the number of people going hungry will increase by 799 million =6>. Ahile the wheat mar&et has e"perienced an e"plosive conte"t due to impact of the withdrawal of a ma8or producer !<ussia, which has bloc&ed e"ports last year$, tensions on the corn mar&et are e"treme. The ratio of grain reserves to consumption is -34, but there are worries about the small amount of uality wheat available from leading mar&et players. ?or corn, however, the ratio of reserves to consumption is below 074. Here, while total production decreased greatly, the demand for ethanol and feed production has risen. ?*,Ms monthly inde" showed a record of -69.3 points !Nuly -900$ in comparison with --6.0 points in Gecember -909. This inde" measures price changes of a bas&et of products including cereals, vegetable oils, dairy, meat and sugar. Ft is the highest level since 0CC9.

*nother matter of overall efficiency of production of biofuels that should be considered is related to the amount of biofuels5 1ro1F !1<o1F O How much 1nergy is <eturned on 1nergy Fnvested O How much energy you get from the energy investedP$ )iofuels have a small 1<o1F e"cept for biodiesel from algae !see also Table -$. Ff the engine efficiency is ta&en into account !TTA % Tan& to wheel$, the energy efficiency of algae%based biodiesel is approaching that of gasoline. Ahen computing the 1<o1F, most energy alternatives fail, even at a shallow e"amination. +ommercial hydrogen is a good e"ample of how to consume more energy than produce it. +ommon source for hydrogen is natural gas. @atural gas is treated with steam. Steam is produced by boiling water and using more natural gas, oil, coal. )urning is producing carbon dio"ide which has a greenhouse effect. +ommon sense says that commercial hydrogen produced from natural gas is not a solution to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. Table -. 1ro1F values for biofuels ATT ' efficiency of production and distribution Gasoline <apeseed%based biodiesel )iodiesel from used food oils *lgae biodiesel )ioethanol from corn starch )ioethanol from cellulose Hydrogen from natural gas 09 6,: Q: 0,62 -,9,:-; TTA ' efficiency of internal combustion engines 9,6 9,2: 9,2: 9,2: 9,6 9,6 9,29: ATA ' efficiency of production, distribution and utili(ation 6,9 0,22 -,-: Q-,-: 9,299,77 9,-02

Ahen spea&ing of fuel, the si(es of areas meant for cultivation should also be considered. 0 ha of rapeseed produces about 0 ton of biodiesel. * one%way truc& for Giurgiulesti % +riva !6:9 &m to -: litres.099 &m$ consumes 069.: liters of diesel. ,ne way, one TF< O 9.069 ha cultivated for a yearR ?or the reasons outlined above !negative impact on environment, in particular on soil, increased production of greenhouse gases in the soil$, the optimal solutions are ecologically integrated systems, which pursue to simultaneously produce biofuels, land rehabilitation and reduce emissions of greenhouse gases in the soil. $tandards and poli#ies in various states +ommercial operations with oil are a sector of the world5s economy in which the main development factor isn5t represented by mar&et mechanisms, but by political decisions of a national and international level. Therefore, as the e"perience of 1B countries and *merica shows, the ;

problem

of replacing gasoline with on the

biofuels !mainly ethanol$ is policy. The

only a

matter e"ample

of

policy, a

whose solution depends

country5s

most concrete

of such

policy promoted in recent years is in the B.S. Production and consumption of ethanol is increasing both in B.S. and worldwide. Fn the B.S. ethanol demand was caused by amendments to the *ct on clean air from 0CC9, which specified the use of o"ygen%enriched fuel in areas with an air pollution that e"ceeded the allowable ma"imum, especially in megalopolises. Fn early -993, B.S. President George A. )ush, in his annual addressing to the +ongress, proposed the -9 to 09 plan, which aimed to reduce gasoline consumption by -94 for 09 years, reduce oil consumption by 094 and replace circa 0:4 of petrol with biofuel. That same year the law on 1nergy Fndependence and Security !1FS* of -993$ was signed, which stated that by -9--, the country was e"pected to produce 67 billion gallons of ethanol. ,f these 67 billion gallons of ethanol, 07 billion are to be produced from cellulose. Fn the program +ontemporary 1nergy Fnitiative the B.S. intends to process agricultural waste and produce ethanol capable of replacing 3:4 of fuel imported from unstable regions. *ccording to the B.S. government, in the last 69 years the B.S. has bought from ,P1+ countries oil worth 3 trillion dollars. 1thanol industry in -997 brought the B.S. economy 079,-60 new 8obs in all sectors, including -9,999 in construction/ household income increased by 7.3 billion dollars/ the budget gained -.3 billion and -.6 billion dollars were brought on account of federal and local ta"es =6>. Fn Nuly -900 the B.S. announced that for the first time in its economic history more corn was used to produce ethanol than livestoc& feed. Thus, in the last 0- months for ethanol production were used :.9: billion bushels of corn !0 bushels O -3.6 &g$ or 294 of the harvest, while for birds and animals % at international of the corn one. Fn 0CC3 the 1uropean Bnion adopted the Ahite +harter, which indicates the need to increase the share of biofuels used in transportation. This follows from the need to provide an additional uantity of li uid biofuel given the unpredictability of oil prices, and because the reserves of fuel will run out in the future. ?or these reasons, one of the priorities is to reduce production costs of biofuels in 1urope. *nother area of action would be to create ta" e"emptions and give subsidies to biofuel producers. 1B5s Green +harter, adopted in -999, stressed the importance of biomass for the energy security. Ft was recogni(ed that forestry and agricultural potential is not used completely. The use of biomass helps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at a rate of 29%;94 comparing with C : billion bushels. This stoc& increase has the fact led to a rise in corn prices by the B.S. is the about C94 e"changes, given that main producer

of corn. +urrently the B.S. uses for ethanol production 0:4 of the harvest of sorghum and 024

fossil fuel, improve the local environmental situation and create additional wor& places. The final report of the Green +harter !-99-$ noted the technical possibility of replacing -94 of diesel and gasoline with biofuel by -9-9 if the necessary political action will be ta&en. Fn -996 the Girective 69 was adopted, a directive which set goals to replace li uid fuels with biofuels to -4 by -99: and :.3:4 by -909. Fn Gecember -99; at the 1B Heads of State summit in )russels the so%called -9%-9%-9 plan was also approved. This plan means to reduce to"ic emissions into the atmosphere with -94 by -9-9, compared to 0CCC, increase the share of renewable sources in the energy balance to -94 and also reduce all energy costs by -94. The most important development trend on the world mar&et of petrol and ethanol is the absorption of ethanol producers by oil companies. The largest independent oil company in the B.S., Salero 1nergy +o. !which has 0: oil processing plants with a capacity of 6.09: million barrels per day, which represents 094 of all oil processing plants in the country$, has announced the ac uisition of seven SeraSun ethanol%producing plants for 233 million dollars. Fn this way even while lowering fuel consumption, companies are investing in the biofuels industry =:>. The future of biofuels is not yet clear, because of competition from fossil fuels and environmental pollution. The most unclear part is referring to the e"tent to which land surfaces needed to produce biofuels can be reduced. *ccording to forecasts of the *rab +enter for <esearch, by -90: oil resources will decrease by about 794 and their e"traction will be reduced by 69%294, while world energy consumption by -969 will increase by 794 =6>. )y -969, from all the biofuels, ethanol will register the highest growth as its production cost will decrease faster than production of biodiesel =->. +urrently the <epublic of Moldova imports nearly 0994 of the re uired energy =0>. <ecent concerns about fuel supplies and rising costs of electricity have led the Moldovan Government to e"amine the domestic production of bio%energy as a possibility to ensure energy security, independence and sustainability of the country. +orn and wheat feed provide e"cellent raw material for ethanol fuel production and uantities produced in Moldova so far indicate the possibility of developing a sustainable and viable business in this area.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
0. Studiu preliminar al fe(abilitTUii pentru producerea etanolului Vn Moldova. ftp#..ftp .moldova.cnfa.org. <1P,<TS.ProducereaW1tanolului.pdf./ -. XYZ[\] XZ\^_\`, abcdceZb]c# fg_Zbdh i[ ej\k\Z[fb l\mdnlc` djoYg, !http#..www.rusrev.org, vi(itat# 00.9;.-900$/ 6. pcjcd^bq X.X., rbjc]c` jglc^ YbcdceZb][# _c_dcnlb\ b e\j_e\^db]g .. sc__bn b Xf\jb^[ ] ttF ]\^\, uZ\^djcllg` l[ovlg` wojl[Z, x-, -99; !http#..www .rusus.ru, vi(itat# 09.9;.-900$/ 2. rbjic\] y., zo{b^ |., a\libl b ud[lcZ ' fbjc]g\ e\j_e\^db]g }ec_cYg ecZov\lbn, _d[lk[jdg, cYicj fbjc]c~c jgl^[ b ejcbi]ckbd\Z\` dceZb][ .. http#..www .bioethanol.ru !vi(itat# 00.9;.-900$/ :. zo{b^ |., abcud[lcZ# YZbwlb\ b k[Z\^b\ e\j_e\^db]g, .. http#..www.newchemistry.ru !vi(itat# 00.9;.-900$.

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