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pannirbr — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 14:00:37 CST

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Biofuel from waste glycerol

pannirbr — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 06:44:22 CDT

The waste problems of salts and Glycerol

The following is reproduced from Biofuel list members texts owned by Keith

Pannir wrote in Biofuel list :

As Brazil's having almost 46 percent of the best land that are very good for irrigation as well as have very good water resource distributed, the world bio fuel business is very keen on Brazilian biofuel project , as this country is now world leader about bio fuel at present. However this position is disputed now also by USA, the future is uncertain about the same who will win .As the two country business model is different, where micro distillery of Brazil can produce about half of the price of etanol and Biodiesel, the small one is competting well with the bigger on , as the micro ethanol distillary can make rapadura , animal feed , liquid fertilizer , without problem of distribution of these far way .The same model is also true for biodiesel Thus the big company can also accommodate small one.Thus we hope the glycerine waste need to be for internal market for local comunity as everything is imported in the area where biofuel glycerine is now mostly lost only very less is used. Eventhoug these waste can be used for compost and biogas very successfully our research is sure that biodegrable plastics, some protective films for the fruits can be more viable due to local market. We wish to have decentralized market oriented products development from glycerol waste . In the same direction of thinking of the most of the list members here , we wish the intermediate and social oriented technology .Any green investments , Eco business venture for the benefit of the several farmers , who are responsible for the bio fuel production are more welcome , as the Brazilian central government is now giving green seal and certificate , financial loan independent of brazilian or foriegn investor . Any collaboration , foreign investment are welcome .We will be happy to support any project for the benefit for the small farmer based on waste glycerol. Please feel free to contact us , as this business model will have great impact on future Bio fuel . Thanking You Yours sincerely Pannirselvam 2007/7/1

, The biofuel list member wrote in the biofuel list :

: *We will be interested to look at this project more carefully to make it a into production process. Will it be possible to provide us with more information on your exact direction on this project. * On 27/06/07,

Pagandai Pannirselvam wrote:

Dear list members

A very large quantities of liquid effluents (all acid, catalysts, glycerol) , after producing biodiesel are disposed as waste in one of the big projects which had been given social green seal from Federal , Government of Brazil.

The JTF and this list have very extensively given importance to this topic focusing on biogas , fuel and soap production .

Is any one have other biodegradable plastics, solid biofuel and simple polymer products that can be produced in a decentralised , ecologically sustainable way for employment generation form this huge amount of waste.possible to make wealth for many . Any help in this regard are very welcome .

> > sd >

Pannirselvam

The solution to the waste problems of Biodeisel

Glycerine and biogas

The following is reproduced from Biofuel list members texts owned by Keith and also availble in http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_glycerin.html#biogas

A visitor to our website told us this:

"I work at a wastewater treatment plant and I was doing a search on glycerin and biofuels and came across your website. It has good information, thanks.

"Here's another use of glycerin: Our treatment is accepting the glycerin from a biofuel producer, we feed it to our digesters, slowly very slowly. The addition of glycerin has dramatically increased our gas production, so that we run all three engines that produce electricity for our plant and occasionally need to flare off the excess methane (we have four4 flares).

"This might be of interest to your readers who use digestion for electricity."

The biogas is used as fuel in diesel engines which power electricity generators. But this wasn't raw by-product, it was separated glycerin from a commercial producer:

"The glycerine is agricultural grade and looks similar to thin maple syrup.

"As for pH, since the chemistry in the anaerobic digester is healthy, a high pH wasn't much of a concern. Our main concern was foaming with the introduction of glycerin, and we did see an increase hence the slow feed rate to the digester."

Can the unseparated by-product, the whole glycerin-catalyst-soap cocktail, also be used to increase biogas production?

Biofuel mailing list member, researcher Prof. Pagandai Pannirselvam in Brazil, said:

"Very good news to make the gas and liquid biofuel in an integrated way.

"There are many published papers about the enhanced production of biogas from oily wastes and glycerine is a good intermediate metabolite, hence the results agree with theory.

"But here too we need a mixed microbial population to work well and they will need a lot of adoption time for glycerine, otherwise one may totally fail to produce gas.

"There are two routes to get energy from waste of the BioDiesel making process, bioconversion and thermo-conversion. I believe the combined Biogas generation is better than combustion. The correct mixture of proteins and glycerine and salt needs to be carefully solved by practical work."

Anaerobic Digestion of Glycerol and

Methanol-Water-Mixture from Transesterification

Methanol-Water-

Mixture: ca. 10 kg/t Biodiesel

970 m3Biogas/t Methanol = 730 m3CH4/t Methanol

= 7,3 m3 CH4/t Biodiesel = 73 kWhTotal

helektr. = 0,35 htherm. = 0,5

219 kWhelektr. (0,1 €/kWh) 314 kWhtherm.(0,03 €/kWh)

Glycerol: ca. 130 kg/t Biodiesel

730 m3Biogas/t Glycerine = 426 m3CH4/t Glycerine

= 55,4 m3 CH4/t Biodiesel = 554 kWhTotal

Ecologia

pannirbr — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 16:57:31 CDT

ON line Ecologia CTUFRN

Curso ciam2006 professor Pannir

Topico: Ecologia para Engenharia

Capitulo 1:Ecologia , energia e Meiambiente :Fundamentos

Capitulo 2:Ecologia , energia e meioambiente: Modelagem

Capitulo 3: Os Ciclos e fluxos de Ecosistemas

Capitulo 4:Cadeia Alimentar e qualidade de Energia

Capitulo 5: Poluiçao ambiental

5.1.Poluiçao atmosfericas

5.2 efeito estufa

5.3 inverçao termica

5.4 Poluiçao de residuos solidos

Frequently Asked Question, FAQ

pannirbr — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 06:10:53 CDT

You ask the technical questionwe will post the quick answer here

Question 01

To : pannirbr,

thanks for mail, recently I am looking for bioethanol production from glycerol, I read teh article that glycerol can as source of bioethanol production by microbe (E .coli) fermentation. Is all the E coli can ferment this material? How I can get this microbe?

Thanks and awaiting your respones

Sincerely

Wiwid_ani

Original Message --
From: pannirbr
To: wiwid_ani
Sent: Apr 1 108, 9:48 pm EDT
Subject: Update your profile page

Answer by Pannirbr

These microbes are anerobic bacteria which you need to isolate from chicken manure .

Please see some interesting wel made recent research about making ethanol using syngas from netherland which you can easily find as resouce link page the last link .
This is very good project surely let us have more contact too.

As glycerol is very viscose one , gasification route seems to the economic energy path way for microbe to produce ethanol.Some type of food yeast such as Tourula , Candida can give both the etanol and protein .
the best source for your question you can easily obtain from the book Industrial microbiology by Prescot and Dun.

Feel free to read , comment and contribute here .For the same I wish to help.
We , Rajesh from Thailand , I am from Brazil too look towads glycerol use for gasification , then ethanol via gas to liquid route .Surely you may join too this technological route, where I have already have experience of immobilized microbes very goog for anerobicos mixed culture of microbes , which can be easily scaled up in trickle bed reactor.

You are welcome to jion with us , as GM , very big company too are very ahead of us , we can move , but slowly, one day by joint effort can win too

Yours truely
Pannirselvam

-- Original Message --
From: wiwid_ani
To: pannirbr
Sent: Apr 1 108, 6:25 pm EDT
Subject: petrol engine

Both diesel engines and gasoline engines covert fuel into energy through a series of small explosions or combustions. The major difference between diesel and gasoline is the way these explosions happen. In a gasoline engine, fuel is mixed with air, compressed by pistons and ignited by sparks from spark plugs. In a diesel engine, however, the air is compressed first, and then the fuel is injected. Because air heats up when it's compressed, the fuel ignites(more pressure nearly double the gasiline engine)

See animation , to know how they work
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/diesel1.htm

-- Original Message --
From: melwayne
To: pannirbr
Sent: Oct 12 2009, 6:28 am EDT
Subject: petrol vs diesel

hello

could you please explain the difference between a diesel engine and a petrol engine.

thank you
melwayne

--

EDU LMS WEB DESIGN

pannirbr — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 12:37:12 CDT

Recent

Meus sites em biomassa.eq.ufrn.br

bioenergy ‎appropriate alternate technology‎ Compartilhado com os usuários de todo o mundo Eco products, eco design, agroenergy
Caju ‎estudo de caso caju‎ Não compartilhado projeto de desenvolvimento de caju
Ciencia do Ambiente,CIAM ‎educational‎ Compartilhado com os usuários de todo o mundo Site do Prof Pannir Curso online
GRUPO DE PESQUISA EM ENGENHARIA DE CUSTOS - UFRN ‎engenharia‎, ‎frutas‎, ‎processamento‎, ‎inovação‎ Compartilhado com os usuários de todo o mundo Grupo de desenvolvimento de novos produtos e processos através da utilização integral de frutas tropicais.
moderator ‎moderacao‎ Compartilhado com todos os usuários em biomassa.eq.ufrn.br
P+Limpa ‎meioambiente‎ Compartilhado com todos os usuários em biomassa.eq.ufrn.br Tudo relacioando producao mais limaps
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Plano de negocios ‎financas‎ Compartilhado com os usuários de todo o mundo Small business economic modeling
Small Biofuel Project Design Compartilhado com os usuários de todo o mundo
SmallEnergyEcoEnterprise ‎energy‎, ‎enterprise‎ Compartilhado com todos os usuários em biomassa.eq.ufrn.br On Line Course
Techlimp ‎edicational‎ Compartilhado com os usuários de todo o mundo Tecnologia mais limpas
Tecnologia Alcool ‎eductation‎ Compartilhado com todos os usuários em biomassa.eq.ufrn.br Tecnologia de alcool
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EDU GRUPO GOOGLE :PLP(Planejamento Projeto)

EDU GRUPO GOOGLE :CIAM(ciençia de ambiente)

EDU GRUPO GOOGLE :OTIMO( oimizaçao de projeto industrial)

Small Oxidation Pond Municipal waste water system

pannirbr — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 15:26:39 CDT

There is no abstract available for this page revision.

Moringa Plant Protein

pannirbr — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 10:59:10 CDT

development potential for Moringa products ? October 20th - November 2nd 2001. Dar Es Salaam
THE POTENTIAL OF MORINGA OLEIFERA
FOR AGRICULTURAL AND INDUSTRIAL USES
Foidl N., Makkar H.P.S. and Becker K.
Nikolaus Foild, P.B. 432, carr. Sur Km 11, casa N°5, Managua, (Nicaragua)
tel : +505 2 265 85 88 email : Biomasa@ibw.com.ni,
INTRODUCTION
Moringa oleifera Lam (synonym: Moringa pterygosperma Gaertner) belongs to a onogeneric family of shrubs and tree, Moringaceae and is considered to have its origin in Agra and Oudh, in the northwest region of India, south of the Himalayan Mountains. Although the name “Shigon” for M. oleifera is mentioned in the “Shushruta Sanhita” which was written in the beginning of the first century A.D., there is evidence that the cultivation of this tree in India dates back many thousands of years. The Indians knew that the seeds contain edible oil and they used them for medicinal purposes. It is probable that the common people also knew of its value as a fodder or vegetable. This tree can be found growing naturally at elevations of up to 1,000 m above sea level. It can grow well on hillsides but is more frequently found growing on pastureland or in river basins. It is a fast growing tree and has been found to grow to 6 – 7 m in one year in areas receiving less than 400 mm mean annual rainfall (Odee, 1998).
In the Dravidian language, there are many local names for this tree but all are derived from the generic root “Morunga”. In English it is commonly known as Horseradish tree, Drumstick tree, Never Die tree, West Indian Ben tree, and Radish tree (Ramachandran et al., 1980).
It is now cultivated throughout the Middle East, and in almost the whole tropical belt. It was introduced in Eastern Africa from India at the beginning of 20th century. In Nicaragua the Marango (local name for Moringa oleifera) was introduced in the 1920s as an ornamental plant and for use as a live fence. The tree grows best and is most commonly found in the Pacific part of Nicaragua but can be found in forest inventories in every part of the country. As a non-cultivated plant it is known for its resistance to drought and diseases. Because this tree has so many potential uses, we have been conducting an extensive research program on it over the last 10 years with the financial assistance of the Austrian government and University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart. The plant possesses many valuable properties which make it of great scientific interest. These include the high protein content of the leaves twigs and stems, the high protein and oil contents of the seeds, the large number of unique polypeptides in seeds that can bind to many moieties, the presence of growth factors in the leaves, and the high sugar and starch content of the entire plant. Equally important is the fact that few parts of the tree contain any toxins that might decrease its potential as a source of food for animals or humans. For the sake of simplicity and clarity we will refer to the plant, Moringa oleifera as Moringa throughout this article.
SOCIO-ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE
Moringa is one of the most useful tropical trees. The relative ease with which it propagates through both sexual and asexual means and its low demand for soil nutrients and water after being planted make its production and management easy. Introduction of this plant into a farm which has a biodiverse environment can be beneficial for both the owner of the farm and the surrounding eco-system.
MORPHOLOGY AND PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS What development potential for Moringa products ? October 20th - November 2nd 2001. Dar Es Salaam
Moringa is a fast growing, perennial tree which can reach a maximum height of 7-12 m and a diameter of 20-40 cm at chest height.
Stem
The stem is normally straight but occasionally is poorly formed. The tree grows with a short, straight stem that reaches a height of 1.5-2 m before it begins branching but can reach up to 3,0 m.
Branch
The extended branches grow in a disorganized manner and the canopy is umbrella shaped.
Leaves
The alternate, twice or thrice pinnate leaves grow mostly at the branch tips. They are 20-70 cm long, grayish-downy when young, long petiole with 8-10 pairs of pinnae each bearing two pairs of opposite, elliptic or obovate leaflets and one at the apex, all 1-2 cm long; with glands at the bases of the petioles and pinnae (Morton, 1991).
Flowers
The flowers, which are pleasantly fragrant, and 2.5 cm wide are produced profusely in axillary, drooping panicles 10 to 25 cm long. They are white or cream colored and yellow-dotted at the base. The five reflexed sepals are linear-lanceolate. The five petals are slender-spatulate. They surround the five stamens and five staminodes and are reflexed except for the lowest (Morton, 1991).
Fruits
The fruits are three lobed pods which hang down from the branches and are 20-60 cm in length. When they are dry they open into 3 parts. Each pod contains between 12 and 35 seeds.
Seeds
The seeds are round with a brownish semi-permeable seed hull. The hull itself has three white wings that run from top to bottom at 120-degree intervals. Each tree can produce between 15,000 and 25,000 seeds/year. The average weight per seed is 0.3 g and the kernel to hull ratio is 75 : 25 (Makkar and Becker, 1997). Physical characterization of pods and seeds are given in Table 1.

Table 1. Physical properties of pods and seeds of Moringa Determination	1	2	3
Average weight of pod (g)	7.60	-	7.95
Average weight of seeds (g) / pod	3.59	5.03	4.83
Average number of seeds / pod	12	17	16
Average weight (g) / 100 seeds	29.9	29.6	30.2
Average weight of kernels (g) / 100 seeds	21.2	-	22.5
Percent weight of kernel in relation to entire seed	72.5	-	74.5
Percent weight of hull in relation to entire seed	27.5	-	25.5
Moisture in kernel (%)	4.5	-	6.5
Moisture in hull (%)	9.2	-	12.9
Moisture in whole seed (%)	5.8	-	7.5

syngas link

pannirbr — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 20:37:22 CDT

Video links
meebo.com - Pesquisa Google
YouTube - The bio diesel car and the bio gas generators
YouTube - Natural draft woodgas stove and biochar trial findings
YouTube - CHARCOAL GASIFIER PARTS
YouTube - guns4toys Homemade Mini Wood Gas Burner-Stove
YouTube - Gasifier 08 di rumah Cina by Mandarin
YouTube - Gasifier 02 di Rumah Cina by Mandarin
YouTube - rice husk gasifier stove_double burner_part2_operation
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YouTube - Cottle stove with fan
YouTube - Canal de WorldStove rukhamandiri rukhamandiri rukhamandiri
YouTube - Canal de rukhamandiri
YouTube - Gasifier 10 no blower , without blower by mandarin
YouTube - Homemade downdraft gasifier with heat exchanger (appr. 4 kW)
YouTube - Small generator on wood gas - www.gekgasifier.com YouTube - Making the cyclone * Episode #9 of the GEK Channel
YouTube - GEK gasifier YouTube - Canal de GREENPOWERSCIENCE YouTube - HYDROGEN GENERATOR DIY POWERFUL GAS ALTERNATIVE HHO WATER MAKE HYDROGEN
YouTube - Trash Powered Honda - DIY - www.gekgasifier.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8SEv_FKSPY

Pyne

www.pyne.co.uk/?_id=20

14 de julho de 2008

14/07/08

PyNe newsletters PyNe newletters 4 to 21,are available to downloadin PDF format. Simply click on the links below. These are all also available in quality hard copy format. Please contact Emily Wakefield to receive a copy by post. The contents of issues 3, 2 and 1 are listed below and copies can be supplied on request. Issue 21 Issue 20

Comentário

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A team of University of Georgia (UGA) researchers has developed an enhanced pyrolysis-derived bio-oil from pine wood chips. The new and still-unnamed fuel ...

Untitled
http://www.cbpol.com.br/arquivos/9CBPol.pdf

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Gmail - VEJA AS DENÚNCIAS CABAIS DO PRÓPRIO PROFESSOR PANNIR com conversa recente no bate papo -

mail.google.com/mail/#inbox/11aca351809905a4

14 de julho de 200814/07/08

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"Energy and food from wate using water reuse solid wastes " - Ir para a nota

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Hydrogen Production by Steam Reforming of Bio-Oil Using ...

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Catalytic steam reforming of bio-oil is a promising process for hydrogen production from biomass. Bio-oil is a complex mixture of a large number of ...
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Biomass Gasification

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Redefining Ag Wastes As Coproducts :: BioCycle, Advancing Composting, Organics Recycling & Renewable

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Redefining Ag Wastes As Coproducts

BioCycle April 2008, Vol. 49, No. 4, p. 42 Once considered products of the waste stream, a nonprofit in Minnesota shows that agricultural residues and coproducts are powering the future.

Comentário

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sustainable slow pyrolysis - Pesquisa Google

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Thermal waste treatment for sustainable energy

9 nov. 2007 ... sustainable cities of the future. In a world with finite ..... Slow pyrolysis is a conventional technology with a ...
www.atypon-link.com/doi/pdf/10.1680/ensu.2007.160.3

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GORAVOX - The Citizen Media

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Today, biojet fuel does not seem to be entirely competitive though, ... To produce one billion liters of biojet fuel, [270 million gallons] at least 300 ...
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co2 steam hydrogen biomass - Pesquisa Google

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wet biomass gasification - Pesquisa Google

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wet Scrubbing for Biomass Gasification Emissions - Feature Article ...

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Wet Scrubbing for Biomass Gasification Emissions by Andrew Bartocci Ronald G. Patterson Ph.D. June 1, 2008. ARTICLE TOOLS. Email Email Print Print Reprints ...
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[PPT]

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Carbon Dioxide Removal - RTI International

www.rti.org/page.cfm?objectid=BE844857-C6F6-439...

14 de julho de 2008

14/07/08

Fossil fuels are the primary sources of carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere. Much of the anticipated worldwide effort to reduce carbon dioxide emissions will focus on large point sources such as power plants and petroleum refineries. To contribute to this effort, RTI is actively engaged in a research and development project to develop a new process for removing carbon dioxide from industrial gas streams. RTI's process uses a solid, regenerable, sodium-based adsorbent to remove carbon dioxide from flue gases that fuel power plants. The regeneration of this sorbent produces a gas stream containing only carbon dioxide and water. Condensation separates the water out, leaving a pure carbon dioxide stream that can be used or sequestered. One of the relevant reactions based upon the use of sodium bicarbonate as the sorbent precursor is as follows: 2NaHCO3(s)<--> Na2CO3(s) + CO2(g) + H2O(g) RTI has developed a 2-reactor system for removing the carbon dioxide. Both the adsorption of carbon dioxide and regeneration of the sorbent take place at low temperature (under 150°C). Laboratory experiments at RTI have demonstrated multiple cycles of the adsorption and regeneration phases. In addition, we have developed process information on

Effect of operating conditions
Effect of other feed stream components
Reaction kinetics
Heat and material balances from process simulation.

"Energy and food from wate using water reuse solid wastes " - Ir para a nota

BEST Pyrolysis, Inc. | Slow Pyrolysis - Biomass - Clean Energy ...

www.bestenergies.com/companies/bestpyrolysis.html

14 de julho de 200814/07/08

"Energy and food from wate using water reuse solid wastes " - Ir para a nota

Operating Engines on Woodgas by Bill Olsen

www.slideshare.net/ncenergy/operating-engines-o...

14 de julho de 2008,14/07/08

Operating Engines on Woodgas by Bill Olsen

"Energy and food from wate using water reuse solid wastes " - Ir para a nota

dry reforming - Pesquisa Google

www.google.com.br/search?hl=pt-BR&client=firefo...

Highly active catalysts employed for coke-free, stable dry reforming ... It is calculated that the application of dry reforming to the Natuna field alone, ...

"Energy and food from wate using water reuse solid wastes " - Ir para a nota

syngas bioethanol - Pesquisa Google

www.google.com.br/search?q=syngas+bioethanol&ie...

14 de julho de 2008

14/07/08

Bio-ethanol from bio-syngas - October 2005 -

Formato do arquivo: PDF/Adobe Acrobat - Ver em HTML
of bioethanol from syngas. 1.1 Goal. The goal of this project is investigate the technical and economical feasibility of a process for the ...
www.ingenia.nl/Flex/Site/Download.aspx?ID=160

Comentário

Editar marcadores: syngas

Localizada em "Energy and food from wate using water reuse solid wastes " - Ir para a nota

Method for producing alkali carbonate - Google Patents

www.google.com/patents?id=39YuAAAAEBAJ&pg=PA2&d...

14 de julho de 2008

14/07/08

Comentário

Editar marcadores: syngas

Localizada em "Energy and food from wate using water reuse solid wastes " - Ir para a nota

Biomass Project :Thermoconversion

pannirbr — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 09:02:38 CDT

Here is our project proposal for small rural power project combind with you to make rural power 5000 us dolar for rural power generations

There is one more possibility too to make full use of IC gas engine exit gas CO2 ; first to to make the CO2 and use the heat for the pyrolysis process to make charcoal, and also a latter water use for gasification , to get charcoal ,thus using significant amount of the CO2 for heat recovery; secondly the remaining exit gas , can go for CO2 based gasification known as charcoal and co2 gasification where 18 porcent recycle is the limit , the remaining left CO2 that remains can be used to make Biochar fertilizer by catalytic process made both the charcoal replacing the costlier zeolite or natural mineral zeolite as per Benzamin good project proposal; but need te be combined with lime and urea as these latter can make possible the catalyst to work in hot conditions of the exit gas too.All these can be lead to good C02 recycle for biomass , to make sustainable decentralised power based on well known simple process.

Thus a decentralised charcoal making in rural decentralised small scale IC engine power plants can be the more viable Biomass project for Rural Energy Problems,as how Brazil is able to make huge quantity of charcoal , this in a sustainable way of steel production even now competing well with the other source , and biochar is important to recycle de CO2 to make the biomass production into sustainable power production.

The 100 porcent recycle and reuse in only the gasification can be impossible in such gasification as this can lead to built up in the integrated process of the gasification and combustion

Both CO2 and heat recovery is very important problems that have been already pointed out here , where ic engine Co2 recycle can be better solution not only for the charcoal gasification as in Källe's WWII charcoal gasifier model ( see reference below )as well as the CO2 based pyrolysis for charcaoal making in rural area.But this complex project need detailed mass and energy balance study as CO2 with carbon is and endo thermic reaction which can also positive with respect to energy input needed.

Can some one with along experience like REED, TOM , Benzamin bring here about the use of CO2 pyrolysis in the small scale with little use of air if needed as this one is the critical step for practical biomass project development for rural area.

This project can surely compete with 10000 US micro fueler of home made ethanol project
http://www.efuel100.com/t-product.aspx based on the sugar which is reprted to be be made in a large sacle for the world market .Micro Bio Char small power plant can be made half the price , which yet need to be more useful , acessible and afordabale for many rural areas.This list members can possible to make such an ideal project as we have experiened people such as PROF .Dr. REED, TOM and ANDERSON , who all have always contributed here with the open mind , sharing their high valued experience freely .With their help we , Benzamin from Argentina can come up a very good micro pyrogas biochar fueler of low investment project like one of etanol with all our help as he is more active member here putting several data , analysing all the latest work , giving feeed back .This make our list much dynamic as not possible for many to have time like him , and I wish to express my thanks on behalf several members on the list , as we all from South America, as we hope the real green , the past present and future Green Bioenergy Biochar Project has the Place that is South America. Every one is welcome to follow for leading position for this green power

References:

Gasification list and bioeneregy lists Tom reed reply

Dear Arnt and All:

Producer gas is typically 50% N2 and has a heating value of 150 Btu/scf
((6 MJ/m3).

If it is made with oxygen or the N2 in other ways avoided the HHV is 300
Btu/scf (12 MJ/m3).

H2 and CO have a high heat of combustion 280 kJ/mole. H2 has a low
heating value of 20 kJ/mole.

Onward,

TOM REED BEF

Arnt Karlsen wrote:
> On Sun, 18 May 2008 21:34:07 -0400, gfwhell@aol.com wrote in message
> <8CA876790769977-1480-46B7@webmail-stg-d04.sysops.aol.com>:
>
>
>> What would the likely BTU value of Syngas be If it was free of
>> nitrogen? Lets say we removed the nitrogen from the primary and
>> secondary air used for combustion within the gasifier and replaced it
>> with CO 2. This is not such a far fetched idea. The CO 2 could be
>> the hot exhaust from an engine.
>>
>

> ..KÃ?lle's WWII charcoal gasifier recycles 18% of the exhaust gas back

> into the gasifier, these 18% are also used to transport charcoal fines
> from the gasifier's gas cyclone and right back into the combustion
> "bulb" along with the primary air. Finally, the CO2 gas recycled,
> helps brings down the air tube screen into a survivable range.
>
>
>> which would be?added to the oxygen rich air stream coming from a set
>> of zyolite columns. The CO 2 could be converted into CO at the
>> cracking stage where the steam is admitted yielding some extra
>> Hydrogen. Oxygen concentrator development has reached a stage where
>> they will work at ambient pressure.
>>
>
> ..aye, but you do have a gasifier and an engine and a wee bit
> of piping handy, no? ;o)
>
>

On Mon, May 19, 2008 at 6:39 PM, Benjamin Domingo Bof <benjaminbof@yahoo.com.ar> wrote:

Arnt;
Two questions;
1- Can you explain more about 18 % of recycled gasses?
2-If we use calcium oxide replacing zeolite by low cost
we perhaps can trap CO2 in water solution of calcium hydroxide.
Regards< Ben

Arnt Karlsen <arnt@c2i.net> escribió: On Sun, 18 May 2008 21:34:07 -0400, gfwhell@aol.com wrote in message

<8CA876790769977-1480-46B7@webmail-stg-d04.sysops.aol.com>:

> What would the likely BTU value of Syngas be If it was free of
> nitrogen? Lets say we removed the nitrogen from the primary and
> secondary air used for combustion within the gasifier and replaced it
> with CO 2. This is not such a far fetched idea. The CO 2 could be
> the hot exhaust from an engine.

..Källe's WWII charcoal gasifier recycles 18% of the exhaust gas back
into the gasifier, these 18% are also used to transport charcoal fines
from the gasifier's gas cyclone and right back into the combustion
"bulb" along with the primary air. Finally, the CO2 gas recycled,
helps brings down the air tube screen into a survivable range.

> which would be?added to the oxygen rich air stream coming from a set
> of zyolite columns. The CO 2 could be converted into CO at the
> cracking stage where the steam is admitted yielding some extra
> Hydrogen. Oxygen concentrator development has reached a stage where
> they will work at ambient pressure.

. but you do have a gasifier and an engine and a wee bit of piping handy, no? ;o)

with Kind Regards from Arnt... ;o)
...with a number of polar bear hunters in his ancestry...
Scenarios always come in sets of three:
best case, worst case, and just in case.

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C

www.ecosyseng.wetpaint.com

Small projects wood gas stove project

http://tilz.tearfund.org/Publications/Footsteps+41-50/Footsteps+46/Alternative+fuels.htm
Alternative fuels

Charlie Forst gives details of two cooking fuels which may be new to some readers. He works with ECHO, 17391 Durrance Road, North Fort Myers, FL 33917-2200, USA. Sawdust stove This stove is very simple to make and use if there is a good supply of sawdust available. It burns with a high temperature and makes little smoke. This design uses 28 fireproof bricks to make a small square. It could also be made in a large tin or metal bucket. If you have no wood sawdust, try using this idea by putting maize husks through a grinder or mill to obtain powder. Rice husks, wood shavings and other dry organic materials can also be used. 1. Fit a narrow bamboo or plastic pipe at the base, going into the centre to act as an air inlet (A). Balance or hold in place a wider bamboo tube or pipe in the centre of the stove and tightly pack sawdust around this until the stove is filled (B). Remove the pipes very carefully by slowly twisting them. Place four bricks on the top to hold a pan. Light the sawdust at the bottom by first dropping in some paper and then a lighted match. If too much air is entering through the air inlet hole and the stove is too hot, partly close the inlet with a brick or stone (C).

2. Once lit, the stove will produce a great deal of heat and burn for up to six hours. It may be useful to place a flat piece of metal with a hole cut in it, on top of the sawdust. This metal plate drops down as the sawdust burns and helps to ensure even burning

(projeto pequena)

Double-Drum Sawdust Stove

JEFFREY L. WARTLUFT

This bulletin describes an inexpensive home-made stove for burning loose
sawdust. Constructed from empty oil drums, the stove can heat a room 20
feet square for 6 to 8 hours without tending.

Jeffrey Wartluft is a VITA Volunteer who is a forest products technologist
with the United States Forest Service. While working on the design for the
sawdust stove, he researched old VITA plans from Afghanistan and compared
them with stoves he had seen while in Chile as a Peace Corps Volunteer. The
result has been published as Forest Service Research Note NE-208, 1975,
from which this bulletin was taken.

Please send testing results, comments, suggestions and requests for further
information to:

Technical Bulletins
VITA Publications Service
1600 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 500
Arlington, VA 22209 USA

ISBN 0-86619-109-7

Volunteers In Technical Assistance
1600 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 500
Arlington, VA 22209, USA

VITA TECHNICAL BULLETINS

This Technical Bulletin is one of a series of
publications that offer do-it-yourself technology
information on a wide variety of subjects.

Technical Bulletins are idea generators, intended
not so much to provide a definitive answer as to
guide the user's thinking and planning. Premises
are sound and testing results are provided, if
available.

Users of the information are asked to send us their
evaluations and comments based on their experiences.
Results are incorporated into subsequent
editions, thus providing additional guidelines for
adaptation and use in a greater variety of conditions.

In the United States, sawdust traditionally has been burned in large furnaces
for industrial heating, in smaller furnaces for home heating, and in fireplaces
in the form of compressed logs. In other parts of the world, loose sawdust has
been burned for years in inexpensive double-drum stoves. These stoves are well
suited for heating cabins or workshop areas.

The double-drum sawdust stove has other advantages. It is inexpensive to
fabricate; it uses recycled components; it burns inexpensive fuel; and it heats
a long time with minimum tending.

After seeing these stoves heating homes in Chile and reviewing plans(1) for the
types used in Afghanistan and England, I fabricated an experimental stove
(Figure 1) at the Forest Products Marketing Laboratory in Princeton, West

02p01a.gif (486x486)

Virginia. Then I learned how to use the stove by firing it with several kinds
of fuel having different moisture contents.

(1) Wood Waste as a Fuel,
Forest Products Research
Lab. Research
Leaflet 41. Princes
Risborough, England.
11 pp. 1956.

Fabrication

The experimental double-drum stove was made from a 55-gallon steel drum and a
30-gallon drum, plus about $25 worth of other materials, including stovepipe.
Tools needed for fabrication are tin snips, hammer and anvil, rivet tool, drill
and bit, metal-cutting saber saw, and equipment for brazing with bronze.

The stove (Figure 2) consists of two drums, one inside the other. A false

02p01b.gif (600x600)

floor inside the outer barrel supports the inner barrel. A drawer opening
below the false floor provides draft, and the drawer catches dropping ashes,
which are then easily
removed. Three-inch
holes in the center
of the false floor
and the inner barrel
bottom let air pass
up to the fuel and
let ashes fall into
the drawer.

A tightly fitting lid covers the outer barrel. Under this lid are about
3 inches of clearance to the top of the inner barrel. Two 6-inch diameter
stovepipes exit from the outer barrel, allowing smoke to exhaust. The outer
barrel is supported by three legs to keep excess heat from the floor and
prevent rocking.

The false floor and drawer were fashioned from 20-gage sheet metal. Drawer
tabs and curved front were fastened with rivets. The false floor rests on
two parallel 1/2-inch steel rods, which were run through holes on opposite
sides of the outer barrel, and were brazed to it.

Two handles of the lid and one on the drawer were made of 1/2-inch steel
rod, bent to shape, and attached by brazing.

The two joints of stovepipe were brazed to the outer barrel, one near the
top of the stove and the other directly beneath it. These two horizontal
pipes join into a common vertical pipe. The upper horizontal pipe is
fitted with a damper. The vertical pipe is fitted with elbows, straight
lengths, wall or ceiling thimble, and a vent cap to suit the individual
installation.

Smaller or larger stoves can be fabricated with heavy-gage sheet metal
(about 14 gage). The relative sizes of the components should be roughly
proportional to the dimensions of our experimental stove.

Installation

The stove should be placed at least 24 inches away from any combustible
wall or floor material.(2) It should be set on a fireproof floor pad that
extends at least 18 inches in front of the drawer opening. A wall thimble
or triple wall pipe should be used where the pipe goes through the wall or
ceiling and roof. The flue pipe should not have long horizontal sections,
as they favor condensation of flue gas. The condensates leak at the joints
and cause pipe corrosion.

(2) Using Coal and Wood Stoves Safely. National Fire Protection Association
NFPA HS-8. 12 p. Boston. 1974.

Fuels

In addition to sawdust, bark residue from sawmills and planer shavings from
planing mills can be burned in the stove. The limiting factor for fuels is
their moisture content. Though fuel having more than 100 percent moisture
content (oven-dry basis)(3) will burn, most of the heat is used in evaporating
fuel moisture. Fuel below 60 percent moisture contents works well. Fresh
sawdust, shavings, and bark typically have moisture contents ranging from 50
to 110 percent. The best source of fuel is sawdust or shavings from dried
lumber.

(3) The water in the material weighs as much as the dry material itself.

Fuel can be stored in a bin or in plastic garbage bags. If a bin is used,
the inner barrel is either removed and taken to the bin for filling, or a
large bucket is used to transfer the fuel from bin to stove.

How to Use the Stove

A round wooden mold, 3 feet long, tapering from 5 inches to 2 7/8 inches, is
used to shape the fuel charge.

To fill the stove, place the small end of the wooden mold in the hole at the
bottom of the inner barrel. Then tamp sawdust or bark around it until the
inner barrel is full. Wet fuel should not be tamped as much as dry fuel.
Carefully remove the mold, leaving a vertical hole in the center of the fuel
charge (Figure 3).

02p03y.gif (600x600)

Before lighting the fire, open the drawer and damper. Then crumple waste
paper, drop it down the hole in the fuel, and place the lid on the outer
barrel. Place additional crumpled paper in the drawer and light it; move
the drawer in so the flames will ignite the paper in the hole.

Once the fuel is burning, adjust the drawer and damper to obtain the desirable
rate of burning and output of heat. Closing the damper forces hot air
to circulate lower in the stove before leaving through the bottom stovepipe.
Thus more heat is transferred to the room and less is lost through the pipe.

CAUTION: Do not open the lid while the fuel is burning. Oxygen thus mixed
with flammable gases can cause a flare-up.

With dry sawdust and a good draft, one charge of this stove can heat a room
20 feet square for 6 to 8 hours with no tending. Wetter fuel heats less but
lasts longer. During the first 2 hours of burning, there is enough heat at
the center of the lid to boil water or cook with. As burning progresses,
the heat on the lid is distributed more toward the rim.

VITA
VOLUNTEERS
IN TECHNICAL
ASSISTANCE

ABOUT VITA

Volunteers in Technical Assistance (VITA) is
a private, nonprofit, international development
organization. Started in 1959 by a
group of concerned scientists and engineers,
VITA maintains an extensive documentation
center and worldwide roster of volunteer
technical experts. VITA makes available to
individuals and groups in developing countries
a variety of information and technical
resources aimed at fostering self-sufficiency--needs
assessment and program development
support; by-mail and on-site consulting
services; information systems training. It
also publishes a quarterly newsletter and a
variety of technical manuals and bulletins.

For more information, contact:
VITA
1600 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 500
Arlington, VA 22209 USA

========================================
========================================

Charcoal webresourecs

pannirbr — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 08:06:44 CDT

Charcoal production, links

http://www.fao.org/docrep/X5328e/x5328e00.htm#Contents

IntroductionChapter 1 - Logistics of charcoal production

1.1. Developing a fuelwood and charcoal energy policy
1.2. The energy balance concept
1.3. Calculating an energy balance
1.4. Unit processes of charcoal production
1.4.1. What is charcoal?
1.4.2. Unit processes of charcoal-making

Chapter 2 - Growing the wood raw material

2.1. Forest management and fuelwood supply
2.2. Natural forest for fuelwood
2.3. Forest types for charcoal-making
2.4. Fuelwood plantations
2.5. Cost of plantation establishment
2.5.1. Land price
2.5.2. Reforestation
2.6. Fundamental factors in fuelwood supply

Chapter 3 - Harvesting and transporting fuelwood

3.1. Key factors in harvesting and transport
3.2. Laying out a charcoal production area
3.3. Equipment for harvesting and transport
3.3.1. Felling and block preparation
3.3.2. Drying of fuelwood
3.3.3. The role of Government in maintaining forest productivity.
3.3.4. Description of a fuelwood harvesting operation.

Chapter 4 - Carbonisation processes

4.1. How wood is transformed into charcoal
4.2. Industrial safety in carbonization
4.3. Incentives and labour management

Chapter 5 - Earth pits for charcoal making

5.1. The pit method
5.1.1. Making charcoal in miniature pits
5.1.2. Making charcoal in large pits
5.2. Technical and cost data for pit charcoal production

Chapter 6 - Making charcoal in earth mounds

6.1. Types of mound
6.2. Making a typical mound or earth kiln
6.3. Casamance kiln
6.4. Collecting tar from the Casamance kiln
6.5. Cost of charcoal produced by the Casamance earth mound (from experience in Senegal)
6.6. The Swedish earth kiln with chimney

Chapter 7 - Brick kilns

7.1. The half-orange Argentine kiln
7.1.1. Preparation of the site
7.1.2. Design and construction
7.1.3. Fuelwood
7.1.4. Loading
7.1.5. Operation
7.1.6. Bricks
7.2. The Brazilian beehive kiln
7.2.1. Design
7.2.2. Construction
7.3. Slope type beehive kiln
7.3.1. The construction of slope type kiln
7.3.2. Maintenance of the kiln
7.4. The Missouri kiln
7.4.1. Design
7.4.2. Construction
7.4.3. Operation
7.4.4. The Missouri type kiln in the developing world
7.5. Charcoal production centres
7.5.1. Operational cycle of a seven kiln charcoal battery
7.5.2. Operating instructions for beehive brick kilns
7.5.3. Carbonization in slope type kilns

Chapter 8 - Metal kilns

8.1. Available designs of transportable metal kilns
8.2. Metal charcoal kiln made from oil drums
8.3. Advantages and disadvantages of transportable metal kilns
8.4. Manufacture of the TPI metal kiln
8.5. The transportation and location of kilns
8.6. Selection and preparation of site
8.7. Preparation of the raw material
8.8. Method of operating the TPI kiln
8.8.1. Tools required for a 2-3 man operation:
8.8.2. Assembly and loading the kiln
8.8.3. Lighting the kiln.
8.8.4. Reducing the draught
8.8.5. Control of charring
8.8.6. Unloading the kiln
8.8.7. Bagging of charcoal
8.9. Alternative method of operation
8.9.1. Loading
8.9.2. Lighting
8.9.3. Reducing the draught
8.10. Schedule for commercial operation
8.11. The most common operational faults
8.12. Yields of charcoal
8.13. Working life of transportable metal kilns

Chapter 9 - Transport, storage and distribution of charcoal

9.1. Unit operations in transport of charcoal
9.2. Good practice in charcoal protection and storage
9.3. Transport of charcoal in the iron and steel industry
9.3.1. Truck transport
9.3.2. Transport by rail
9.3.3. Aerial rope or cableway transport
9.3.4. Mule packs
9.3.5. Water
9.4. Distribution of charcoal
9.4.1. Charcoal properties
9.4.2. Stockholding

Chapter 10 - Using charcoal efficiently

10.1. The quality of charcoal.
10.1.1. Moisture content
10.1.2. Volatile matter other than water
10.1.3. Fixed carbon content
10.1.4. Ash content
10.1.5 Typical charcoal analyses
10.1.6. Physical properties
10.1.7. Adsorption capacity
10.2. Burning charcoal efficiently 10.2.1. How charcoal burns

Chapter 11 - Briquetting of charcoal

11.1. Properties of charcoal fines
11.2. The techniques of briquetting
11.3. Economics of briquetting
11.4. Briquetting as a cottage industry
11.5. Using fine charcoal without briquetting

Chapter 12 - Recovery of by-products from hardwood carbonization

12.1. Proligneous acid
12.1.1. The yield of pyroligneous acid
12.1.2. Refining pyroligneous acid
12.2. Small scale recovery of tars 12.2.1. Collecting the tar

Chapter 13 - Comparative performance of carbonization systems

13.1. Performance indices of carbonising equipment
13.2. Influence of wood characteristics on carbonization methods
13.2.1. Species
13.2.2. Moisture content
13.2.3. Wood size

Chapter 14 - Problems of economics and cost control in charcoal production

14.1. Economic analysis and cost control
14.2. The methods of economic project analysis
14.3. Cost control in established enterprises
14.3.1. The unit operations
14.3.2. Unit costs and budgeting
14.3.3. Supervision and management overheads

Appendix 1 - Building and Operating the Brazilian Beehive Kiln*

1. Building
2. Operation
Discharging of the kiln must start only when it is sufficiently cool.

Appendix 2 - Building a T.P.I. Steel Kiln*

1. Description
2. Manufacture

Appendix 3 - Building and operating the Argentine Half Orange KilnAppendix 4 - Useful conversion factorsReferences*FAO technical papers

Crtical Analysis of the projects done by http://www.holon.se/folke/carbon/charring_links.shtml

There are a multitude of methods of charcoal making. The only necessity is that the basic requirements are fulfilled. When charring for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, it is important to recall that the emissions from the charring shall not contain methane, because it is an even worse (22 times!) greenhouse gas than carbon dioxde.
Although methane has a much shorter half-time in the atmosphere than the carbon dioxide (12 years vs. hundreds of years), there are no reasons to make evil worse. Charring is a knowledge as old as the knowledge of making fire. I will roughly start with he more primitive methods, go on with small scale, home garden methods and end up with large semi-industrial or industrial methods. One should recall that charcoal making is a large occupation all over the world, because charcoal is excellent for firing, rather smokeless and easy to handle.

'Primitive' methods, no emission reducion

Charcoal Making at Home Charcoal making 2007, Flickr Comparing simple charcoal production technologies Make your own charcoal in an oil drum Making your own charcoal Traditional Earth-Mount Kiln

Simple methods with emission reduction, for the backyard

Bamboo Charcoal Making Charcoal kiln of oil drums Charcoal making, indirect retort method Charcoal retort Convert Wood into Charcoal & Electricity Household Energy How to make a charcoal-making kiln Puffergas The simplest of the simple, my own backyard method. Retort. Stove for cooking, too.

Methods for a small community or a village

Charcoal Production, Low or High volume charcoal production in refractory lined kilns Continuous carbonizations system for light and small pieces of biomass Low-cost retort kiln Making charcoal: The retort method Manufacturing and Marketing Natural Lump Charcoal

Industrial methods

Ekolon plan Continous producion closed retort charcoal reactor Lambiotte retort

Companies

Adam + Partner Advanced Biorefinery Inc. Agri-therm, Ltd. Alterna energy Airless-Systems Appropriate Rural Technology Institute Australian Biochars Best Pyrolysis, Inc Biocarbo Bioenergy Bioware Biopact Carbon Diversion Technologies Cleanfuels Dynamotive Energy Systems Corporation Envipower AS eGenesis Industries Eprida Ensyn Corporation International K&K Enterprise Lambiotte & Cie Newearth Renewable Energy Pronatura Renewable Oil Corporation, Australia Renewable Oil International, USA Russian-Swedish Bioenergy Information and Training Center Terra Humana Clean Technology Topell Wyssmont Terra Preta list: Companies producing agrichar and agrichar technologies - More information about almost all the above companies

Youtube videos

Charcoal producing Micro Gasifier Hybrid Stove Making Charcoal Making Charcoal - drum retort Mr Charcoal - video #1 - video # 2 Modern charcoal producing stove with heated 2nd air The popup stove

Resources

The Biochar Fund Changes in Composition and Porosity Occurring During the Thermal Degradation of Wood and Wood Components, USGS Charcoalab - methods for teaching Charcoal production for carbon sequestration Charcoal Stability and Storage in Soil Comparing simple charcoal production technologies for the Caribbean RENEWABLE CARBON, Biomass Charcoal, Activated Carbon Simple technologies for charcoal making,FAO

TerraCarbona, International Center for Biochar Research and Experiments Terra Preta bioenergy list resource page Terra Preta Google group resource page
Discussion groups
Biochar Ontario Making charcoal, Science forums Terra Preta, Intentional use of Charcoal in Soil Yahoo Group on Biochar use and production "The production and use of biochar at the individual and farm scale including investigations to determine the effectiveness of using charcoal to enhance soil fertility." Yahoo Group on Biochar as climate amendment Using Biochar in soil as a method of sequestering carbon and addressing the problems of Climate Change and Global Warming. Terra Preta Google group Naturally, the ordering above has large flaws, becauce the content often belongs to more than one heading. If you are interested, you should look them all through and decide which method that suits you.

Economic modeling

pannirbr — Tue, 19 May 2009 14:14:49 CDT

Planta de LCC : Tutorial on-line de Analise Econômica

Ol line training curse contents :The language is in Portuguese

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Biografia

pannirbr — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:25:03 CDT

Pannir Page

EDUCATION

Bachelor of Chemical Engineering, Annamalai University ,Chidambaram , Chennai , India ; 1975Master of Chemical Engineering,Annamalai University ,Chidambaram , Chennai , India ; 1977Doctor of Philosophy , IITD,Delhi ,India , 1983

ProfessorEnvironmental/Chemical Engineering DepartmentFederal University RN,UFRN
Natal, RN ,BRAZIL
Tel. 558432171557, Fax 558432153770
e-mail pannirbr@gmail.com

CONFERENCE PUBLICATION

1.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. . DESENVOLVIMENTO DE TECNOLOGIA DE BIOENERGIA RURAL PARA MICRO USINAS DE PRODUÇAÕ DE LEITE, GELO E BIO-FERTILIZANTE. In: AGRENER 2008 GD, 2008, FORTALEZA. AGRENER2008GD. Campinas : UNICAMP, 2008.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; COSTA, G. ; Gilson Gomes de Medeiros ; MELO, H. N. S. . Rural Decentralized Energy Production from Animal Waste Biogas Plant : Evaluation of Options for Water Minimization Using Process Simulation Software. In: 8th IWA Specialized Conference on Small water and waste water system (SWWS), 2008, Coimbatore ,India. 8th IWA Specialized Conference on Small water and waste water system (SWWS). London : IWA, 2008.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SILVA, Rosália Tatiane ; Gilson Gomes de Medeiros ; MELO, M. A. F. . Integrated Pond Design for Energy and Food from Bio wastes: Prospects for Sustainability of Integrated Small Bio Systems using Simulation Software for Rural Development.. In: 8th IWA Specialized Conference on Small water and waste water system (SWWS), 2008, Coimbatore ,India. 8th IWA Specialized Conference on Small water and waste water system (SWWS). London : IWA.

4.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; RAJESH, . RURAL BIOENERGY: INNOVATIVE INTEGRATED BIOSYSTEM DESIGN FOR FUEL AND FOOD FROM AGROWASTES.. In: AGRENER 2008 GD, 2008, FORTALEZA. AGRENER2008GD,Nipe unicamp. Campinas : UNICAMP, 2008.

5.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; RAJESH, ; marici M .C ; Santos J. M. . Slow Pyrolysis for Rural Small biomass Energy By joint Project Developmentos of Brazil and Thailand. In: AGRENER 2008 GD, 2008, FORTALEZA. AGRENER2008GD,Nipe unicamp. Campinas : UNICAMP, 2008.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SILVA, Rosália Tatiane . GESTÃO TECNOLÓGICA DE BIOSISTEMÃS INTEGRADOS DE QUICULTURA ORGÂNICA DE CAMARÃO E PEIXE: MODELO DE PRODUÇÃO LIMPA E VIABILIDADE DE REUSO DE ÁGUA. In: fenacam(Feira Nacional do Camarão), 2008, Natal. GESTÃO TECNOLÓGICA DE BIOSISTEMÃS INTEGRADOS DE QUICULTURA ORGÂNICA DE CAMARÃO E PEIXE: MODELO DE PRODUÇÃO LIMPA E VIABILIDADE DE REUSO DE ÁGUA. Natal : Fenacam, 2008.

michelle ; SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . ESTUDO DE GESTÃO DE TECNOLOGIA DA CRISE DE CARCINICULTURA DO RIO GRANDE DO NORTE: CENÁRIOS ATUAL E IDEAL BASEADO NA GESTÃO DA SUSTENTABILIDADE E PRODUÇÃO LIMPA. In: V Fenacam - Feira Nacional do Camarão., 2008, Natal. ESTUDO DE GESTÃO DE TECNOLOGIA DA CRISE DE CARCINICULTURA DO RIO GRANDE DO NORTE: CENÁRIOS ATUAL E IDEAL BASEADO NA GESTÃO DA SUSTENTABILIDADE E PRODUÇÃO LIMPA. Natal : Feacam, 2008.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . ESTUDO DE VALORIZAÇÃO ECONÔMICA DA CASCA DO CAMARÃO PARA PRODUÇÃO DE QUITOSANA PARA CONSERVAÇÃO DE CAMARÃO USANDO TECNOLOGIA LIMPA. In: IV Simposium Internacional sobre industria de Camarao cultivado, 2007. IV Simpósio Internacional sobre a Indústria da Aqüicultura e Fenacam2007. Natal : Fenacam, 2007.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; RODRIGUES, Rodrigo Knackfuss ; NANDENHA, Júlio . Estudo do investimento e viabilidade econômica de ferramentas para melhoria da engorda da carcinicultura: um enfoque em pequenos produtores. In: III SIMPÓSIO INTERNACIONAL SOBRE A INDÚSTRIA DO CAMARÃO CULTIVADO, 2006, Natal. FENACAM - Feira Nacional do Camarão, 2006. p. 39-44.

10.	RODRIGUES, Rodrigo Kanckfuss ; Hygu ; SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . Biossistemas integrados (B.S.I.): modelo de produção e viabilidade. In: XIII Simposium de Engenharia de Produçao, 2006, sp. XIII Simposium de Engenharia de Produçao. SP : XIII SIMPEP, 2006. p. 1-6.

11.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; MATTEI, G.simoni S. ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. . Development of co production of hot and cold thermal energy for small dairy plant using inovative clean technology from biomass waste. In: PRES 2005, 8TH CONFERENCE ON PROCESS INTEGRATION, MODELLING AND OPTIMISATION FOR ENERGY SAVING AND POLLUTION REDUCTION, 2005, Taromina. Anais, 2005. v. 1.

12.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. . Sistema integrado de produção de camarão e peixe usando modelagem de tecnologia ecológica. In: FENACAM, 2005, Natal. Anais, 2005. v. 1.

13.	MOURA, Johnson Pontes ; ALEXANDRES, Guimaroes ; SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . Produçao de farinha de Banana utilizando estudo de secadores solares com viablidade tecnica e economica . In: 5 SIMPOSIO LATINO AMERICANO DE CIENCIA DOS ALIMENTOS, 2005, Campinas. Anais, 2005. v. 1. p. 1-1.

14.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. ; FERNANDES, M. R. P . . Sistema integrado de energia, fruta e adubo usando engenharia ecológica. In: INTERNACIONAL CONFERNCE DE ENGENHARIA ECOLÓGICA, 2004, campinas, 2004.

15.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. . Desenvolvimento de projeto para produção de fibra de coco com inovação de tecnologia limpa e geração de energia. In: CONGRESSO NACIONAL DE TÉCNICOS TÊXTEIS, II SIENTEX - SIMPÓSIO INTERNACIONAL DE ENGENHARIA TÊXTIL E VII FENATÊXTIL - FEIRA NACIONAL DA INDUSTRIA TÊXTIL E DE CONFECÇÕEXXI CNTT S, 2004, natal, 2004.

16.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. . Mecanismo de desenvolvimento limpo (MDL). In: AGRENER GD 2004 - 5º ENCONTRO DE ENERGIA NO MEIO RURAL E GERAÇÃO DISTRIBUÍDA, 2004, campinas, 2004.

17.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. ; FERNANDES, M.R.P.COSTA NETO, M. B . Desenvolvimento rural sustentável com inovação tecnológica aproveitamento de biomassa residual. In: CONG INTERNACIONAL CONFERNCE DE ENGENHARIA ECOLÓGICA, 2004, campinas, 2004.

18.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. ; BARBOSA, D.B. FERNANDES, R. . Estudo de viabilidade tecno-economica preliminar para produção de carvão ativado no brasil a partir do residuos do coco: estudo comparativo de cenários de produção. In: 5º EBA - ENCONTRO BRASILEIRO SOBRE ADSORÇÃO, 2004, natal, 2004.

19.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. . Estudo comparativo do uso do processo de pirólise. In: IV BIENNIAL INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ADVANCES IN ENERGY STUDIES, 2004, campinas, 2004.

20.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. . Gaseificação para integração energética no ambiente rural na agroindústria do coco. In: IV BIENNIAL INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ADVANCES IN ENERGY STUDIES, 2004, campinas, 2004.

21.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. . Aproveitamento Energético de Biomassa no Beneficiamento da Castanha de Caju via Pirólise e Gaseificação. In: 15º CIENTEC, 2004, natal, 2004.

22.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; ARAÚJO, K M ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. . SÍNTESE E ANÁLISE ECONÔMICA DE PRODUÇÃO DE BIODIESEL A PARTIR DE MATÉRIAS-PRIMAS REGIONAIS . In: 2º Congresso Brasileiro de P&D em Petroleo e Gás - EXPO PDPETRO, 2003, RIO DE JANEIRO, 2003.

23.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. ; COSTA, Gilmar Benevides . ESTUDO TÉCNICO-COMPARATIVO DE ESTAÇÕES DE TRATAMENTO DE EFLUENTES DE REFINÁRIA DE PETRÓLEO . In: 2º Congresso Brasileiro de P&D em Petroleo e Gás - EXPO PDPETRO, 2003, RIO DE JANEIRO, 2003.

24.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. ; COSTA, Gilmar Benevides ; NOVAES, Willlian de Sá . Utilização de gás natural em sistema integrado acoplado com secador e defumador para beneficiamento de industrias de processamento de alimentos. In: 2º Congresso Brasileiro de P&D em Petroleo e Gás - EXPO PDPETRO, 2003, RIO DE JANEIRO, 2003.

25.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTOS, Hidalgo Pereira dos ; CAMPELO, Ronaldo C . ANÁLISE DE RISCO ENVOLVIDO NO PROJETO DE COGERAÇÃO DE ENERGIA À GÁS NATURAL UTILIZANDO O MÉTODO MONTE CARLO . In: 4o Encontro de Energia no Meio Rural/AGRENER-2002., 2002, Campinas. Anais do 4o Encontro de Energia no Meio Rural/AGRENER-2002.. Campinas : EDICAO ELETRONICA, 2002. v. 1.

26.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTOS, Hidalgo Pereira dos ; COSTA, Gilmar B . SÍNTESE E OTIMIZAÇÃO DE UMA UNIDADE DE GERAÇÃO DE ENERGIA USANDO ESGOTOS URBANOS E RESÍDUOS SÓLIDOS AUXILIADO POR SOFTWARE SIMULADOR.. In: 4o Encontro de Energia no Meio Rural/AGRENER-2002, 2002, Campinas. Anais do 4o Encontro de Energia no Meio Rural/AGRENER-2002.. Natal, 2002. v. 1.

27.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTOS, Hidalgo Pereira dos . COMPUTER AIDED TOOLS FOR PROCESS SYNTHESIS, ANALYSIS AND OPTIMUM DESIGN OF BIOFUEL PRODUCTION.Rural/AGRENER-2002. In: 4o Encontro de Energia no Meio Rural/AGRENER-2002, 2002, Campinas. Anais do 4o Encontro de Energia no Meio Rural / AGRENER2002. Campinas : Edicao eletronica , agrener, 2002. v. 1.

28.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTOS, Hidalgo Pereira dos ; NOVAES, Willlian de Sá . FUEL ETHANOL FROM BRAZILIAN BIOMASS: ECOMONIC RISK ANALYSIS BASED ON MONTE CARLO SIMULATION TECHNIQUES. . In: 4o Encontro de Energia no Meio Rural/AGRENER-2002., 2002, Campinas. Anais do 4o Encontro de Energia no Meio Rural/AGRENER-2002.. campinas : Edicao eletronica Agrener, 2002. v. 1.

29.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. ; NOVAES, Willian de Sá ; OLIVEIRA, Clemax C V ; CASTRO, Sandra de . ESTUDO COMPARATIVO DO COMPÓSITO DA FIBRA DE COCO E DA FIBRA DE VIDRO NA CONSTRUÇÃO DE BIODIGESTORES. In: CIENTEC/2002 -, 2002, NATAL-RN.. Anais do CIENTEC/2002. Natal : UFRN, 2002. v. 1.

30.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; COSTA, Gilmar Benevides ; SANTOS, Hidalgo Pereira dos . ANÁLISE E OTIMIZAÇÃO DA ESTAÇÃO DE TRATAMENTO DE ÁGUAS RESIDUAIS DE PETRÓLEO SITUADA EM GUAMARÉ-RN. In: 13o CIC da UFRN, 2002, Natal. Anais do 13o. CIC da UFRN, 2002. v. 1.

31.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; OLIVEIRA, C V D ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. ; COSTA, Gilmar Benevides da . PROJETO DE ENGENHARIA E SIMULAÇÃO USANDO MATERIAIS DE BAIXO CUSTO PARA CONSTRUÇÃO DE BIODIGESTORES E GERAÇÃO DE ENERGIA EM PEQUENA ESCALA. In: CBECIMAT/2002, 2002, NATAL-RN.. Anais do CBECIMAT/2002- NATAL-RN.. NATAL : CBECMAT, 2002. v. 1.

32.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B H S ; MARINHO NETO, José ; OLIVEIRA, Clemax V . CONSERAÇÃO E COGERAÇÃO DE ENERGIA COM PRODUÇÃO DE BIOCOMBUSIVEIS DERIVADOS DA LENHA - AGRENER/2002, CAMPINAS-SP. . In: 4o.Encontro de Energia do Meio Rural - AGRENER2002, 2002, Campinas. Anais do 4o. AGRENER2002. Campinas : Edicao eletronica de Agrener, 2002. v. 1.

33.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . ESTUDO COMPARATIVO TÉCNICO E ECONÔMICO DE DIFERENTES ÓLEOS VEGETAIS BRASILEIROS PARA PRODUÇÃO DE BIOCOMBUSTÍVEL. In: 4o. Encontro de Energia do meio Rural - AGRENER2002, 2002, Campinas. Anais do 4o. Encontro de Energia do meio Rural - AGRENER2002. Campinas : Edicao eletronica de agrener, 2002. v. 1.

34.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B H S ; OLIVEIRA, C V D ; MARINHO NETO, José . PRODUÇÃO DE ENERGIA, CARVÃO E ADUBO LÍQUIDO A PARTIR DE RESÍDOS SÓLIDOS DO COCO . In: CIENTEC/2002, 2002, NATAL-RN.. Anais do CIENTEC/2002. Natal : UFRN, 2002. v. 1.

35.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; BAYER, M M . ESTUDO COMPARATIVO DE OTIMIZAÇÃO DA UPGN - GUAMARÉ/RN UTILIZANDO ALGORITIMO GENÉTICO E SIMPLEX SEQUENCIAL NÃO lLINEAR. In: XIV CONGRESSO BRASILEIRO DE ENGENHARIA QUÍMICA, 2002, Natal. Anais do XIV CONGRESSO BRASILEIRO DE ENGENHARIA QUÍMICA. Natal : COBEQ, 2002. v. 3.

36.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; NOVAES, W. S. ; SOUSA, F. C. G. . Process Optimization for Economic Valorization of Sisal Fibers for Composite Material Using Cashew Nut Shell Resin.. In: VI ICFPAN 2001 - International Conference on Frontiers of Polymers and Advanced Materials, 2001, Recife. Resumos. RECIFE : UFPE, 2001.

37.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; ARAÚJO, K. M. ; G, R. N. . Estudo De Suporte De Biocatalisadores Usando Pectina E Alginato De Sódio. In: 53a. Reunião Anual Da SBPC, 2001, Salvador. Resumos. Salvador : SBPC, 2001.

38.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; G, R. N. ; ARAÚJO, K. M. . Estudo De Suporte De Biocatalisadores Para A Fabricação De Álcool A Partir Da Fermentação De Frutas. In: 53a. Reunião Anual Da SBPC, 2001, Salvador. Resumos. Salvador : SBPC, 2001.

39.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; G, R. N. ; ARAÚJO, K. M. . Secador De Túnel Pra Frutas Usando Gás Natural Como Fonte De Energia. In: 53a. Reunião Anual Da SBPC, 2001, Salvador. Resumos. Salvador : SBPC, 2001.

40.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; CAMPELO, R. . Estudo Técnico-Econômico E Otimização De Um Sistema De Cogeração Com Gás Natural. In: I Congresso Brasileiro De P & D Em Petróleo E Gás, 2001, Natal. Resumos. Natal : Resumos, 2001.

41.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; COSTA, G. ; JALES, R. . Modelagem E Simulação Dinâmica De Tratamento De Águas Residuais de Petróleo Usando Bioreator Aeróbico. In: I Congresso Brasileiro De P & D Em Petróleo E Gás, 2001, Natal. resumos. Natal : Resumos, 2001.

42.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SILVA, F. M. ; BAYER, M. M. . Estudo de Produção de banana usando energia alternativa e ecotecnologia. In: Anais do IX Congresso Nordestino de Ecologia, 2001, Natal. Resumos. Natal : Resumos, 2001.

43.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; CABRAL, C. ; MARINHO, J. . Desenho e Engenharia Ecológica de Energia e Alimentos para Desenvolvimento Sustentável da Região Semi-Árida. In: Anais do IX Congresso Nordestino de Ecologia, 2001, Natal. Resumos. Natal : Resumos, 2001.

44.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTOS, Hidaldo Pereira . Projeto De Valorização Econômica De Biomassa De Sisal Para Produção De Biogás, Ração Animal E Adubo. In: Congresso De Iniciação Cientifica, 2001, Natal. Resumos. Natal : Resumos, 2001.

45.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; NOVAES, Willian de Sá . Modelagem Dinâmica E Simulação E Analise De Risco Econômico Para O Projeto De Produção De Etanol Através Es De modelos Estoc Asticos. In: Xii,Congresso De iniciação Cientifica, 2001, Natal. Resumos. Natal : Resumos, 2001.

46.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; OLIVEIRA, R. S. ; BRITO, E. . Estudo Do Aproveitamento Do Subproduto Do Sisal Para Ração Animal. In: Xii, Congresso De Iniciação Cientifica , Ufrn, Natal 2001, Anais Cd-Rom, ET0790., 2001, NataL. Resumos. Natal : Resumos, 2001.

47.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; BAYER, M. M. . Estudo Preliminar De Simulação E Otimização De Uma Upgn . In: I Workshop Em Petróleo E Gás Natal /CT Gás, 2001, Natal. Resumos. Natal : Resumos, 2001.

48.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; BAYER, M M . ESTUDO DE SIMULAÇÃO E OTIMIZAÇÃO DE UMA PLANTA DE PROCESSAMENTO DE GÁS NATURAL.. In: I CONGRESSO BRASILEIRO DE P & D EM PETRÓLEO E GÁS, 2001, Natal. Anais em CD rom I CONGRESSO BRASILEIRO DE P & D EM PETRÓLEO E GÁS. Natal, 2001. p. MS-02.

49.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SOUSA, F. C. G. ; SOUSA, F. C. G. ; NOVAES, W. S. . SIMULAÇÃO DE PROJETO DE PRODUÇÃO DE FIBRAS E ENZIMA BROMELINA ENCAPSULADA AUXILIADO PELO SIMULADOR SUPERPRO DESIGNER. In: SIENTEX2000 - I SIMPÓSIO INTERNATCIONAL DE ENGENHARIA TÊXTIL, 2000, NATAL. ANAIS DO SIENTEX2000, 2000.

50.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SOUSA, F. C. G. ; NOVAES, W. S. ; PAIVA, E. M. . COMPUTER AIDED ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF INTEGRATED MICROBIAL PROCESSES FOR FIBER, FEED AND FERTILIZER PRODUCTION FROM SISAL BIOMASS RESIDUES. In: SIENTEX2000 - I SIMPÓSIO INTERNACIONAL DE ENGENHARIA TEXTIL., 2000, NATAL. ANAIS DO SIENTEX2000, 2000.

51.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . ESTUDO DE ENGENARIA DE PROCESSO E CUSTO PARA VALORIZAÇÃO DE ENERGIA AUXILIADO POR COMPUTADOR. In: XIII CONGRESSO BRASILEIRO DE ENGENHARIA QUÍMICA E XIX INTERAMERICAN CONGRESS OF PHASE EQUILIBRIUM AND FLUID PROPERTIES FOR CHEMICAL PROCESS DESIGN, 2000, CAMPINAS. ASDFDFADF, 2000. v. SDFAWE. p. DF-DFD.

52.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . Estudo e Aplicação de Encapsulação Utilizando Biopolímeros para Produção de Produto Farmacêutico. In: 2º Congresso Pernambucano de Farmacêuticos e 2º Encontro Internacional de Ciências Farmacêuticas, 2000, Recife. Resumos. Recife : Resumos, 2000.

53.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; BAYER, M. M. . MODELAGEM DINÂMICA E SIMULAÇÃO DE PROJETO DE PROCESSO DE PRODUÇÃO DE MICROALGA E ANÁLISE DE RISCO ECONÔMICO PELO MÉTODO MONTE CARLO. In: II CONGRESSO DE ENGENHARIA DE PROCESSOS DO MERCOSUL, 1999, FLORIANÓPOLIS. EMPROMER'99 - TRABALHOS APRESENTADOS, 1999. v. 1. p. 30-36.

54.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . SIMULAÇÃO DE PROJETO DE PRODUÇÃO DE ENZIMA BROMELINA ENCAPSULADA AUXIALIDA PELO SIMULADOR SUPERPRO DESIGNER. In: ENZITEC 99, 1999, RIO DE JANEIRO. ANAIS DO ENZITEC'99, 1999.

55.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; PALHARES, O. L. . ESTUDO COMPARATIVO DOS PROCESSOS DE SEPARAÇÃO E ENCAPSULAÇÃO DE MICROALGAS USANDO POLÍMEROS NATURAIS E DERIVADOS DA BIOMASSA RESIDUAL DO MAR.. In: VI SEMINÁRIO DE HIDRÓLISE ENZIMÁTICA DE BIOMASSAS, 1999, MARINGÁ-PR. LIVRO DE RESUMOS - 83, 1999.

56.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; BELTRAME, L. T. C. . FORMULAÇÃO DE PRODUTOS DE NUTRICÊUTICA A PARTIR DE MICROALGAS ATRAVÉS DE PROGRAMAÇÃO LINEAR. In: VI SEMINÁRIO DE HIDRÓLISE ENZIMÁTICA DE BIOMASSAS, 1999, MARINGÁ-PR. LIVRO DE RESUMOS - 74, 1999.

57.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; BAYER, M. M. ; MARINHO NETO, José . ESTUDO TÉCNICO ECONÔMICO DE BIOCONVERSÃO USANDO SIMULADOR SUPERPRO DESIGNER PARA COGERAÇÃO DE ENERGIA ASSOCIADO A SECAGEM. In: VI SHEB, 1999, MARINGÁ-PR. ANAIS DO VI SHEB, 1999. p. 72.

58.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; CHIAVONE FILHO, O. . PROJETOS COMPUTACIONAIS COMO MOTIVAÇÃO NOS CURSOS DE ENGENHARIA DE PROCESSOS.. In: XXVII CONGRESSO BRASILEIRO DE ENSINO DE ENGENHARIA, 1999, NATAL-RN. ANAIS ELETRÔNICOS - COBENGE 99, 1999. p. 2446-2453.

59.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . PROJETO DE TRABALHO PRÁTICO PARA ENSINO DO CURSO DE CIÊNCIAS DO MEIO AMBIENTE PARA ENGENHARIA. In: XXVII CONGRESSO BRASILEIRO DE ENSINO DE ENGENHARIA, 1999, NATAL-RN. ANAIS ELETRÔNICOS DO COBENGE 99, 1999. p. 1190-1197.

60.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . ANALISE DE RISCO DE MEDIDA DE POLUICAO DA AGUA USANDO SIMULACAO ESTOCASTICA DE METODO DE SIMULACAO MONTE CARLO IMPLEMENTADO EM MICROCOMPUTADORES. In: XIX CONGRESSO DE ENGENHARIA SANITARIA E AMBIENTAL, 1997, FOZ DO IGUACU - RS. ANAIS DO XIX CONGRESSO DE ENGENHARIA SANITÁRIA E AMBIENTAL, 1997.

61.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; PAULA, J. B. ; WOLFF, D. M. B. ; ALLOUFA, M. I. A. . ENGENHARIA DE PROJETO DE BIOCONVERSÃO MICROBIANA PARA DESENVOLVIMENTO SUSTENTÁVEL AGROINDUSTRIAL. In: I ENCONTRO NACIONAL SOBRE EDIFICAÇÒES E COMUNIDADES SUSTENTÁVEIS., 1997, PORTO ALEGRE -RS. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO I ENCONTRO NACIONAL SOBRE EDIFICAÇÒES E COMUNIDADES SUSTENTÁVEIS., 1997. v. I. p. 285-289.

62.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; CORTES, I. R. . PROJETO DE ENGENHARIA E SIMULAÇÃO USANDO MATERIAIS DE BAIXO CUSTO PARA GERAÇÃO DE ENERGIA EM PEQUENA ESCALA PARA PRODUÇÃO DE BIODIGESTORES. In: I ENCONTRO NACIONAL SOBRE EDIFICAÇÒES E COMUNIDADES SUSTENTÁVEIS., 1997, I ENCONTRO NACIONAL SOBRE EDIF. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO I ENCONTRO NACIONAL SOBRE EDIFICAÇÒES E COMUNIDADES SUSTENTÁVEIS., 1997. v. I. p. 259-264.

63.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . ENGENHARIA ECOLÓGICA MICROBIANA PARA DESENVOLVIMENTO AGROINDSUTRIAL. In: V ENCONTRO NACIONAL DE MICROBIOLOGIA AMBIENTAL, 1996, FORTALEZA. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO V ENAMA, 1996.

64.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . ESTUDO DE PROCESSOS ALTERNATIVOS DE BAIXO CUSTO PARA PRODUÇÃO DE ENERGIA USANDO BIODIGESTÃO ANAERÓBICA. In: V SEMINÁRIO DE HIDRÓLISE ENZIMÁTICA, 1996, MARINGÁ-PR. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO V SHEB, 1996. p. 68.

65.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; LADCHUMANANANDASIVAM, Rasiah ; MELO, H. N. S. ; NASCIMENTO, M. G. . ESTUDO DE PROJETO PRELIMINAR DE PRODUÇÃO DE MICROALGAS SPIRULINA-SP. In: V SEMINÁRIO DE HIDRÓLISE ENZIMÁTICA DO BIOMASSAS, 1996, MARINGÁ-PR. ANAIS DO V SHEB, 1996. p. 98.

66.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . ESTUDO DE SIMULAÇÃO E ENGENHARIA ECONÔMICA PARA TRATAMENTO DE EFLUENTES DA INDÚSTRIA DE PAPEL USANDO BIOREATOR AERADO, LAGOAS DE ESTABILIZAÇÃO E BIODIGESTORES DE ALTA TAXA.. In: V SEMINÁRIO BRASILEIRO DE HIDRÓLISE ENZIMÁTICA DE BIOMASSA, 1996, MARINGÁ-PR. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO V SHEB, 1996. p. 34.

67.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; LADCHUMANANANDASIVAM, Rasiah . ESTUDO DE FABRICAÇÃO DE PAPEL A BASE DO CAULE DA BANANEIRA. In: V SEMINÁRIO BRASILEIRO DE HIDRÓLISE DE BIOMASSAS, 1996, AMRINGÁ-PR. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO V SHEB, 1996. p. 88.

68.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . HIDRÓLISE ENZIMÁTICA DE BIOMASSA LIGNOCELULÓSICA: MODELAGEM E OTIMIZAÇÃO DE PROCESSO BIOCATALÍTICO. In: SEMINÁRIO BRASILEIRO DE HIDRÓLISE ENZIMÁTICA, 1996, MARINGÁ. ANAIS DO IV SHEB. MARINGÁ, 1996. p. 134.

69.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . INFORMÁTICA APLICADA AO PROJETO DE VALORIZAÇÀO DE BIOMASSAS: OTIMIZAÇÃO E SIMULAÇÃO.. In: V SEMINÁRIO BRASILEIRO DE HIDRÓLISE ENZIMÁTICA DE BIOMASSA., 1996, MARINGÁ-PR. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO V SHEB, 1996.

70.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . MODELOS DE OTIMIZAÇÃO PARA PROCESSO EXTRATIVO DE BIOTECNOLOGIA: IMPLEMENTAÇÃO DE MÉTODO COMPUTACIONAL. In: V SEMINÁRIO BRASILEIROD E HIDRÓLISE ENZIMÁTICA DE BIOMASSAS, 1996, MARINGÁ-PR. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO V SHEB, 1996. p. 128.

71.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; MADEIRA, C. A. G. ; ARAÚJO, E. O. . SIMULAÇÃO ESTOACÁSTICA DO PROCESSO DE PRODUÇÃO DE ETANOL USANDO BIOMASSA LIGNOCELULÓSICA. In: XI CONGRESSO BRASILEIRO DE ENGENHARIA QUÍMICA, 1996. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO XI CONGRESSO BRASILEIRO DE ENGENHARIA QUÍMICA. v. II. p. 625-630.

72.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; MADEIRA, C. A. G. . SIMULAÇÃO ESTOCÁSTICA DO PROCESSO DE PRODUÇÃO DE ETANOL ANIDRO USANDO CANA-DE-AÇÚCAR. In: V SEMINÁRIO BRASILEIRO DE HIDRÓLISE ENZIMÁTICA DE BIOMASSAS, 1996, MARINGÁ-PR. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO V SHEB, 1996.

73.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; MADEIRA, C. A. G. . DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLANTATION OF MONTE CARLO SIMULATION METHOD FOR PRODUCTION OF ETHANOL FROM AGRICULTURAL RESIDUES. In: 4 BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY LIGNIN AND OTHER WOOD COMPONENTS, 1995. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO 4 BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY LIGNIN AND OTHER WOOD COMPONENTS, 1995. v. 1. p. 36.

74.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . ESTUDO E ANÁLISE ESTATÍSTICA DE PARÂMETROS DE CONTROLE DE PRODUÇÃO DE PÓ DE SPIRULINA. In: 4 BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY LIGNIN AND OTHER WOOD COMPONENTS, 1995. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO 4 BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY LIGNIN AND OTHER WOOD COMPONENTS.

75.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . ESTUDO PRELIMINAR DE AVALIAÇÃO TÉCNICA E ECONÔMICA DE PRODUÇÃO DE PÓ DE ESPIRULINA. In: 4 BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY LIGNIN AND OTHER WOOD COMPONENTS, 1995. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO 4 BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY LIGNIN AND OTHER WOOD COMPONENTS.

76.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . MODELAGEM DE DADOS E SIMULAÇÀO PARA PROJETOS INDUSTRIAIS UTILIZANDO PLANILHA ELETRÔNICA. In: 4 BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY LIGNIN AND OTHER WOOD COMPONENTS, 1995. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO 4 BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY LIGNIN AND OTHER WOOD COMPONENTS.

77.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . OPTIMIZATION OF ANAEROBIC BIOREACTOR SYSTEM FOR TREATMENT OF PULP AND PAPER MILL EFFLUENTS USING PROCESS SIMULATOR - HYSIM. In: 4 BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY LIGNIN AND OTHER WOOD COMPONENTS, 1995. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO4 BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY LIGNIN AND OTHER WOOD COMPONENTS.

78.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . SUPERCRITICAL GAS EXTRACTION PRE-TREATMENT PROCESS FOR INCREASE IN DIGESTIBILITY OF BIOMASS. In: 4 BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY LIGNIN AND OTHER WOOD COMPONENTS, 1995. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO4 BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY LIGNIN AND OTHER WOOD COMPONENTS.

79.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . DESENVOLVIMENTO DE MÉTODO MONTE CARLO DE SIMULAÇÃO PARA ENGENHARIA E ANÁLISE DE RISCOS.. In: X CONGRESSO BRASILEIRO DE ENGENHARIA QUÍMICA, 1994. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO X CONGRESSO BRASILEIRO DE ENGENHARIA QUÍMICA, 1994. v. I. p. 846-851.

80.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . DESENVOLVIMENTO E IMPLEMENTAÇÃO DE MÉTODO MONTE CARLO DE SIMULAÇÃO PARA ANÁLISE E DESENHO DE SISTEMA PARA LAGOA DE ESTABILIZAÇÃO. In: II SIMPÓSIO DE RECURSOS HÍDRICOS DO NORDESTE, 1994. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO II SIMPÓSIO DE RECURSOS HÍDRICOS DO NORDESTE, 1994. p. 44-52.

81.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . MODELAGEM DE DADOS E SIMULAÇÃO PARA PROJETOS INDUSTRIAIS E ENGENHARIA UTILIZANDO PLANILHA ELETRÔNICA. In: CONGRESSO E FEIRA DE INFORMÁTICA E TELECOMINICAÇÕES DO CEARÁ, 1994. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO CONG. E FEIRA DE INFORMÁTICA E TELECOMUNICAÇÕES DO CEARÁ, 1994.

82.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . SÍNTESE DE BIOCATALISADORES PARA SACARIFICAÇÃO E FERMENTAÇÃO SIMULTÂNEA DO AMIDO DE MANDIOCA PARA ÁLCOOL.. In: VII SEMINÁRIO BRASILEIRO DE CATÁLISE, 1993. ANAIS DO VII SEMINÁRIO BRASILEIRO DE CATÁLISE, 1993. v. 2. p. 450-459.

83.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . DEVELOPMENT OF TECHNOECONOMICAL MODEL FRO RAPID COST ESTIMATING OF BIOMASSS UTILIZATION PROJECT FOR FUEL AND FOOD.. In: III BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON THE CHEMISTRY OF LIGNINS AND OTHERS WOOD COMPONENTS, 1993, BELO HORIZONTE-MG. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO III BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON THE CHEMISTRY OF LIGNINS AND OTHERS WOOD COMPONENTS, 1993.

84.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; MELO, H. N. S. ; MELO, J. L. S. . ESTUDO PRELIMINAR DO COMPORTAMENTO HIDRODINÂMICO DE UM SISTEMA DECANTO-DIGESTOR SEGUIDO DE FILTRO BIOLÓGICO. In: 17 CONGRESSO BRASILEIRO DE ENGENHARIA SANITÁRIA E AMBIENTAL, 1993, 1993. v. 2. p. 21-30.

85.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTANA, H. B. ; MOREIRA, K. M. S. . LIGNOCELULOSIC BIOMASS UTILIZATION IN BRAZIL: PRETREAMENT PROCESS FOR INCREASE IN ENZYMATIC DIGESTIBILITY . In: III BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY OF LIGNIN AND OTHERS WOOD COMPONENTS, 1993. LIVRO DE ANAIS DO III BRAZILIAN SYMPOSIUM ON CHEMISTRY OF LIGNIN AND OTHERS WOOD COMPONENTS, 1993. v. IV. p. 348-351.

JOURNAL PUBLICATION

SANTIAGO, B. H. S. ; SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; FRANÇA, Gustavo Henrique ; MOURA, Johnson Pontes ; SILVA, Rosália Tatiane . Estudo de Viabilidade Tecno-Econômica Preliminar para Produção de Carvão Ativado no Brasil a Partir dos Resíduos do Coco: Estudo Comparativo de Cenários de Produção.Acta Analytica, São Paulo, v. 17, p. 52-55, 2005.

2.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; LIMA, Fernando A M ; DANTAS, Bruno S ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. ; FERNANDES, Maria Roseane P ; LS, Sivam R . Desenvolvimento de Projeto para Produção de Fibra de Coco com Inovação de Tecnologia Limpa e Geração de Energia.Acta Analytica, São Paulo, v. 15, p. 56-62, 2005.

3.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; SANTIAGO, B. H. S. . Conservação e cogeração de energia com produção de biocombusiveis derivados da lenha.Accta Obstetric and Gynaecological Scandinavic, Espanha, 2003.

4.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; ARAÚJO, K M . Biodiesel Production using Brazilian Biomass.Environmental Management, India, 2003.

5.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; WOLFF, D. M. B. ; MELO, H. N. S. . Process, cost modeling and simulations for integrated project development of biomass for fuel and protein.JOURNAL OF SCIENTIFIC AND INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH, INDIA, v. 57, n. ESPECIAL, p. 567-574, 1998.

6.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; CARIOCA, J. O. B. ; PARK, Y. K. ; TAVARES, F. C. . Adoçantes Calóricos.REVISTA DE QUIMICA INDUSTRIAL, v. 691, n. JANEIRO, p. 17-20, 1993.

7.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; CARIOCA, J. O. B. ; ARORA, H. L. ; PARK, Y. K. ; TAVARES, F. C. . Produtos não calóricos e novos adoçantes.REVISTA DE QUIMICA INDUSTRIAL, v. 691, n. ABRIL, p. 19-22, 1993.

8.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . Extração e hidrólise de inulina da alcachofra de jerusálem.Journal Agron Fortaleza, FORTALEZA-CE, v. 19, n. 1, p. 61-66, 1988.

9.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; CARIOCA, J. O. B. ; ARORA, H. L. . Energy from biomass.Impact Of Science On Society, n. 148, p. 305-315, 1988.

10.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; CARIOCA, J. O. ; ARORA, H. L. ; HORTA, E. A. . Lignocellulosic biomass fractionation solvent extraction using novel reactor.BIOTECHNOLOGY LETTERS, v. 7, n. 3, p. 213-216, 1985.

11.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; GHOSE, T. K. ; GHOSH, P. . catalytic solvent delignification of agricultural residues: inorganic catalysts.Process Biochemistry, p. 13-18, 1983.

12.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . Catalytic solvent delignification of agricultural residues: organic catalysts..Bioengineering and Biotechnology, v. XXV, p. 2577-2590, 1983.

13.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; GHOSE, T. K. . Pre-treatment of agricultural residues for enzymatic sacharification by the culture filtrate of trichoderma ressei qm 9414..PROCEDING OF INDIAN INSTITUTE OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING, New Delhi, v. I, n. March, p. 263-278, 1980.

14.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; GHOSE, T. K. . Studies on pretreatment of agricultural residues.Proceedings Of The Indian Institute Of Chemical Engineering Meeting, New delhi, v. I, p. 30-34, 1980.

PUBLICATIONS IN BOOK AS CHAPTER

1.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir . CHARACTERIZATION OF RESIDUES . In: JOSÉ OSVALDO BESERRA CARIOCA. (Org.). RECYCLING OF RESIDUES. 1 ed. (via publicação) Natal: EUFC - EDITORA DA UNIVERSIDADE FEDERAL DO CEARÁ, 2000, v. UNICO, p. 56-66.

SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; WOLFF, D. M. B. ; ALLOUFA, M. A. I. . FOOD, FUEL, FEED, FIBER AND FERTILIZER FROM BIOMASS WASTES USING SUSTAINABLE AGROFORESTS AND BIO INDUSTRIES. . In: ASHOK PANDEY. (Org.). ADVANCES IN BIOTECHNOLOGY. 1 ed. NEW DELHI: EDUCATIONAL PUBLISHERS & DISTRIBUITORS, 1998, v. ÚNICO, p. 129139.

3.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; ARORA, H. L. . EFFICIENT FRACTIONATION REACTOR DEVELOPMENT FOR LIGNICELLULOSIC RESIDUES PROCESSING.. In: KENNEDY, J. F.; CARIOCA, J.O.B; ARORA, H. L.. (Org.). CELLULOSE: Sources and Exploitation. Ellis Howard - Chichester: Ellis Howard, 1990, v. , p. 489-495.

4.	SELVAM, P. V. Pannir ; CARIOCA, J. O. B. ; ARORA, H. L. . BIOMASSA E A INDÚSTRIA QUÍMICA. In: CARIOCA. J. O. B. E ARORA. H. L.. (Org.). BIOMASSA - FUNDAMENTOS E APLICAÇÕES. I ed. FORTALEZA: BNB/UFC, 1984, v. , p. 551-579.

MY WEB SITES

WEB2 GREEN EDU RESOURCE

Bioenergy appropriate alternate technologyShared with everyone in biomassa.eq.ufrn.br Eco products, eco design, agroenergy
Ciencia do Ambiente,CIAM educationalShared with everyone in biomassa.eq.ufrn.br Site do Prof Pannir Curso online
Planejamento e Projetos Industrials engenhariaShared with everyone in biomassa.eq.ufrn.br Online learning course
Small Biofuel Project DesignShared with everyone in the world
SmallEnergyEcoEnterprise energy,enterpriseShared with everyone in biomassa.eq.ufrn.br On Line Course
Browse sites within biomassa.eq.ufrn.br

WEB2 GREEN ECOTECNOLOGY

Online Courses LMS:SAKAI, USP,TIDIA

Online group study Course

Environmental Science and Engineering , CIAM,ciencia do ambiente ,google grupo)

Applied Ecology and Engineering :Advanced on line Study

RESEARCH PROPOSAL

Computer aided system design of the Process,Product and Energy
Project developments for small scale agroindustry .

Integrated small biosystem and dream energy farm projects.
Cost Engineering and profit planning and viability

Ceramic Small pyrogas reactor
Wood Gas stove
Crystalised fruits
Protein from soyabeans

Pectine from Fruit wastes

Biofuel blend
Coconut product Development
Cashew nut shell product development
Bioreactor for Micro Algae , Fish and Prawn
Small scale bioethanol project.
Small Biodiesel project
Tropical Fruit vitamine Product developments

TEACHING

Assistant Professor,Physical chemistry. Chemistry Department, Federal University CE,UFC,BR;1984Professor, Mechanical. Engineering Deptt., UNIFOR, BR Sept. 1986-June 1993Associate Professor,Chemical . Engineering Deptt., Youngstown State University, Sept. 1993-PresentVisiting Professor of International university , Aaian University , Bangkok , thailand
National Reseach fellow at UFC , Brazil, 1983-1993
Posdoctrate TWAS/CSIR Reseach fellow,NEERI, India , 2005

Luminotes.com

My name is Pagandai Vaithianathan Pannir Selvam and I am native of little village Pagandai on the bank of the big river Ponnai , near Panrutui , in the state Tamil Nadu, near french Pondicherry , next to the beautiful green state Kerala, India.

I liked ecology , chemistry ,mathematics in school , has been honoured
as the first rank student in higher secondary school with medal , Kozhipakkam higher secondary School , nearby Panruti ana Nellikupam , Cuddalore district

Educational Experience

Later I went to Annamalai university , has obtained distinction in Chemistry and Mathematics in Pre university and I studied Engineering in Annamali University
Chemical (B.E)-Annamalai university ,TN,INDIA.(1970-75)
Chemical(M.E)- Annamalai university ,TN,INDIA.(1977-1977)
Biochemical(PHD) -IIT DELHI,New DELHI,INDIA.(1977-1983)
Ecological (Pos DR) ,NEERI, NAGPUR .INDIA. (2001)

After I obtained my B.E [chemical ], M.E. [Biochemical] from Annmalai University in the first class in the field of biochemical Engineering and Doctoral Degree in Biochemical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology , Delhi worked on Biomass refining for fuel and food .

After UNIVERSITY ,I started my careeras a RESEARCH WORKER in biochemical engineering with IIT DELHI . In 1983, I joined BRASILIAN BIOFUEL FROM CASSAVA AND BIOMASS /CNPQ/UFC . - which was a nice and small firm then - to work on fuel ethanol and biodesiel development in BIOENERGY technologies. My RESEARCH PROJECT also was Animal Feed from Biomass waste . In March 1993, I joined UFRN -Federal univesristy of Riogrande state , Natal city , Brasil as university professor and the research group leader . As an Integrated Bio Systems developer and consultant based on the ecological engineerig and Super Pro -Process software simulation tool expert in the past 20 years.. Since April 2002, I work for the the small scale enterprise for the food, fuel, feed ,fertilizar and the natural products ,in BRAZIL as well as the Federal university of Riogrande Norte , Natal .

Present field of work

My fields of specialization are Ecological system engineering , Green Technolgy , Networked multimedia education .Co generation and Energy Conservation (waste Minimization ), and Bio Energy and biofuel Systems Planning ,Modeling and Optimization

Prior to the present charge Associate Professor and Research group Coordinator GPEC/UFRN , Federal University, I was research fellow , Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi. I also served as Lecturar D.D.I.T, Nadiad Gujarat,India , Project leader of university extensions and research group UFRN , Federaluniversity and senior Research Professor in UNIFOR

Teaching in graduate and post graduate programme :

Project Planning and Engineering economics.Environmental science and technology.Ecological engineering .Process optimization wit economic objetiveSimulation and optimzation of Enginerring project

Research Experience

I was visiting professor at Federal university , UFC Fortaleza, Brazil in 1983-87 for 4 years.
I was Brazilian CNPQ Fellow as Senior research Felow on Bioenergy projects with project on biofuel alchol , biogas and Biodiesel for 10 yerars (1983-1993) contributing advanced researh on Brazilian Biofuel research and participating and contributing International seminars on Bioenergy Systems for Food and Feed.

Research Publications

Contributed 95 original research in Brazilian and International Conference and Published 25 research papers and international journals and conferences, guided 1 PhDs, 5 MTechs, authored chapters in 4 books in Bio and Ecological Systems Design and optimizations and other allied areas. I delivered few invited lectures abroada and also at both national and international conferences on Biomass and Bio Energy Systems.

The product we have developed:

New product from Cashew and Fine apple, Bannana and Cactus Brix
Alcohol from Cane ,Cassava, Jerusalem Artichoke ,Grass and woodNatural nutriceutical products from cassava , fruits and Honey.

Software for education: Engineeering cost Analysis.Procees economic viablity analysis.Project development using simulation softwaere:Superpro Design and optimization of small proect design and operation using Lindo and lingo syem as well as genetic algorithem EVOLVER

EUCATIONAL ON LINE SOFTWERE DEVELOPMENT: GOOGLE ENTERPRISE PARTNER ,GOOGLE EDUCATION FOR TRAINING , INTEGRATION OF GOOGLE AND SAKAI ,OLAT AND INTERACT LMS CMS , PLE SOFTWARE

The Process developed:

The Integrated ecological biosystems for Food, Fuel and Feed. The integrated processing of cassava. The integrated processing of Coconut . The integrated processing of cashew. The integrated processing of Banana. The integrated processing of Fine apple. The Biodigestor system for solid wastes . The low cost Air pump for solid removal. The integrated Biophonics of fish , prawn and vegetables

Software for education: Engineeering cost Analysis.Procees economic viablity analysis.Project development using simulation softwaere:Superpro Design and optimization of small proect design and operation using Lindo and lingo syem as well as genetic algorithem EVOLVER
EUCATIONAL ON LINE SOFTWERE DEVELOPMENT: GOOGLE ENTERPRISE PARTNER ,GOOGLE EDUCATION FOR TRAINING , INTEGRATION OF GOOGLE AND SAKAI ,OLAT AND INTERACT SOFTWARE OF LMS, CMS E PLE

Personal Field of Interests :

Project design based on ecological system engineering and green chemistry
Eco business project developments.

Integrated biosystem for food , fuel, feed and fertilizer production
Sustainable Rural developments with biofuel and from Biomass waste .

Professional Experience and Preference

Teaching on Eco product developments
Teaching clean green technology developments
Rural developments project Developments
Reserach coordinator of university Extension for comunity Developments
Network based Multimedia Transdicipline education
Professional Skill

Computer aided Social Network for Comunity Development.
Research and developments of green enviornmental ecotechnology
Project deveopments based on Natural resources
Integrated Biosystem for Sustainabale rural developments
Education for Social Entrepreuner and Comunity Developments

Optimization models of small systems

pannirbr — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 14:29:15 CDT

http://www.evernote.com/pub/pannirbr/Otimizacao/

Sweet from my native Village Pagandai

pannirbr — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 12:02:29 CDT

Why sugarcane farmers are better off than those who are into rice cultivation...

The green revolution made us self-sufficient in food but I foresee a time when we will have to import food again because generally agriculture is not so profitable, and labour shortage is increasing.
Confident voices: Arunachalam, a Parry's Corner franchisee After a long, long time it was a delight to meet Indian farmers with positive stories to tell... Whether it was a larger farmer like Radhakrishnan, who along with his two brothers' families owns 180 acres in Cuddalore district — about 80 acres in cane cultivation; or Bala Ravi, a woman farmer owning just three acres, the farmers we met in the sugarcane cultivation command region of E.I.D. Parry's factory in Nellikuppam, Tamil Nadu, greeted us with a smile. The reasons for their smiles are evident pretty soon; compared to paddy or some other crops cane cultivation is more profitable because there are fewer uncertainties, it is relatively less labour intensive, the farmers are assured that all their produce will be absorbed by the sugar company in the command region, and in several ways the sugar division of E.I.D. Parry has done a lot of handholding for the 20,000-odd farmers who supply cane to its factory. This includes access to bank credit, insurance for crop inputs, cane-related information on various aspects of cutting, transportation, etc. But of course everything is not hunky dory all the way. Interaction with farmers on their livelihood once again reinforces the fact that agriculture in India is becoming less and less attractive as a livelihood option, and most of those who continue in it have no other option, skills or wherewithal to switch professions. When you ask M. Arunachalam, who owns 40 acres in Pagandai village, about 18 km from Cuddalore, whether he has any problems in cane cultivation, the agricultural graduate (from Madras Agriculture College, 1955), who speaks flawless English, replies in Tamil: "Kashtam illatha vivasayam kidayadu. The biggest problem is shortage of labour. We have a problem in getting female labour and I guarantee you that after 10 years you won't find them at all. We pay Rs 50-60 for half a day's work. But from Pondicherry they send vehicles to transport women to biscuit factories where they get similar daily wages. But the attraction is that they can sit comfortably in the shade and work; and they prefer this to toiling under the sun." Waning agri income "The green revolution made us self-sufficient in food but I foresee a time when we will have to import food again because generally agriculture is not so profitable, and labour shortage is increasing." Adds the agriculturist with irritation: "You never know what new land ceiling law the government might bring in to usurp a chunk of your land; today I might own so many acres, tomorrow, the story could be different." Arunachalam gets about 40 tonnes of cane per acre, and Rs 8,000 profit per acre, "but a smaller farmer could get up to Rs 15,000 per acre as the labour input comes from his family". For a smaller farmer with three acres, this would mean less than Rs 4,000 income per month. Is this enough? "That depends on your needs, but you have to remember that he grows his own food; a part of his land will be used for paddy and he'd grow some vegetables too." Radhakrishnan, in Kozhipakkam village, says these days even for the biggest farmers, agricultural income has to be supplemented by business income. "It can give you food, but you cannot send your child abroad for education; you cannot become a crorepathi through agriculture." The youngsters in this joint family are in various business enterprises ranging from floor tiles and power looms to readymade garments. His land gives him income of Rs 10,000-15,000 per acre and he loves what he's doing but says: "There is no agriculture without pain; take any crop, you have to nurse it like a child, and handling labour is not easy. And now labour shortage has begun as people prefer jobs in factories or daily wages rather than work in fields." From farming to IT It doesn't come as a surprise that whether it is Arunachalam, Radhakrishnan, or Ramu, another farmer owning 8 acres in a nearby village, their sons and grandsons are qualified computer engineers working either abroad or in larger cities like Delhi or Chennai. While Arunachalam's grandson works with Accenture in Ireland (with whom he chats though a Web camera, a part of his computer ensemble as a Parry's Corner franchisee), Radhakrishnan's nephew runs an IT business in the US and Ramu's son works in Delhi, getting a salary of Rs 47,000 a month. (`Parry's Corner' is an Internet hub in the farmer's house; here farmers can check on the status of their loans, unloading from their tractors at the E.I.D. Parry factory, and get other cane-related information). So aren't youngsters moving away from their land to more alluring professions? After all, isn't the comfort and glitter of the big cities, foreign lands more tempting than village life?
Radhakrishnan leads a life of contentment in his village With a half-smile Radhakrishnan says, "Fine, let them go, but in retirement they will come back here. I just can't stand Chennai; look at the noise, pollution and traffic. There is no water, stench everywhere and will you get breeze like this? Can we sit and talk like this... is it peaceful like this?" But Ramu is more pragmatic; he put together a whopping Rs 31 lakh to buy a ground of land on the East Coast Road in Chennai a few months ago for his son to build a house. Interestingly, the Rs 31 lakh land kitty saw a contribution of Rs 15 lakh from his savings, Rs 5 lakh each from his sons, and loans from a bank and his wife's sister. So would he live in Chennai some day? "Oh no, I'll breathe my last here." But while rooted to their village life, these agriculturists have not compromised on their comfort. While Arunachalam has replaced his electric heater with a boiler for which he uses coconut husk as fuel and connected the water supply to his taps to cut down on electricity, he can't do without an air-conditioner in summer, and Radhakrishnan has a Ford Ikon parked in his compound. Ramu doesn't own a fridge because "we don't eat leftover food, but I can buy it tomorrow if I want!" The gender divide The conveniences of modern living have not escaped them either. Arunachalam is sore with his wife Gowri for rearing four cows at home. "She gets up at 4 a.m. to supervise the milking, and we have to sell the surplus milk at Rs 8 a litre; you pay more to buy a litre of water. I tell her we can buy a packet of milk and be done with it, but she talks about Hindu tradition! And I have to grow paddy on three acres of my land not for the rice — I can buy fine quality rice from a store — but to get straw for feeding the cows!" But we also notice that neither Gowri nor Lakshmi will sit down before their men, and Bala Ravi, the woman farmer, follows suit, preferring to be interviewed standing! Some things remain constant in villages. She got farming rights to her mother's land as she has no brother and her sister lives far away. But the woman who will not sit before men has quietly transformed her husband's life. R. Mouttou Coumarane, Deputy Manager (Agri-Projects), E.I.D. Parry, says initially her husband didn't work but she organised a bank loan for a tractor and now he drives it, renting it out to other farmers for transporting cane or other work. All the framers we talked to had mobile phones; a third of the 20,000 Parry farmers own mobile phones.
Bala quietly defies gender stereotypes, even while conforming - BIJOY GHOSH Bala has to work hard to ensure the land yields an income of Rs 15,000 per acre, but does face problems in getting labour. "It's a little awkward for a woman to ask men to work on her field, but I manage," she shrugs. Coumarane adds that she commutes on a cycle to her land, and no longer are eyebrows raised at this. Mechanisation the key The farmers are happy at the rate of Rs 1,026 (this year) that E.I.D. Parry gives them per tonne of cane. "We don't want more in terms of price, but the government needs to do more to ensure that the produce per acre goes up, and our input cost in terms of fertilisers, pesticide, etc comes down," says Arunachalam, adding that mechanisation is the only answer to this. "Weeds are a big problem in cane cultivation and I have now resorted to modern methods of weeding and this has cut my cost by half." Radhakrishnan wants more government support and says that 30 per cent of the subsidy meant for farmers is eaten away in corruption. He is angry that "people resent farmers getting free electricity. First of all how can you call it `free'? Don't factories such as Parry pay taxes to the government, and by supplying our produce to them don't we contribute in sugar factories making money and paying taxes on profits? So aren't we contributing in those taxes," are his valid questions that deserve a reply. Profitable partnership One of the oldest sugar factories in India, the sugar division of E.I.D. Parry was started by the East India Distilleries (hence the initials EID) and in 1983 the Murugappa group took it over. It produces 5,500 tonnes of sugar a day. M. Krishnan, DGM, Cane Operations, estimates that about 10-15 per cent of the irrigated farming land in Tamil Nadu is under sugarcane cultivation and "if you take productivity (not recovery) Tamil Nadu is number one in the world at 110 tonnes per hectare. This is because of climatic and soil conditions including micro nutrients." When you note that cane farmers in the region seem to be much better off than those growing paddy, he says, "We work very closely with our farmers. From seed to harvest we take care of them as children. From supply of seeds, fertilisers, insurance and bank loans to saving the crop from pests, harvesting and transport of cane, we support farmers. Our R&D wing is constantly looking at new varieties of cane, soil conservation and how to improve their yield." Ramu says if he owns 8 acres today, "it is thanks to E.I.D. Parry. By supporting me throughout, they made it possible for me to grow the 2 acres I had inherited from my father to 8 acres. Because they give guarantees, we get bank loans at 9 per cent; some people in our villages borrow from moneylenders at 60 per cent! The best part is that we get our payment in 15 days." V. Jayachandran is another such beneficiary. A Parry's Corner franchisee he began with 10 acres and now owns 15 acres, but also grows cane on an additional 35 acres. He is also a distributor for Parry fertiliser, runs a PCO and an ice-cream shop (his outlet is on the main road to Cuddalore) and makes extra money during weekends by using his Internet facility as a cyber café. "Children come to play games and youngsters come for e-mail and chatting." Coumarane explains that originally the company had given franchise for Parry's Corner to 22 farmers. "We arranged bank loans of Rs 48,000 for them to buy the computer, printer, etc and gave them free modems and connectivity. But in smaller villages many of them were unable to run the Internet service profitably so we bought back the computers at the actual price, and we now run the service linking all cane activities on the Net. "We've tied up with ICICI and Indian Bank to help farmers get loans speedily. We try our best to ensure that the farmer doesn't lose in any way by partnering with us." K. Raghunandan, President of the Sugar division of E.I.D. Parry, has the last word when he says: "In the hype about IT, outsourcing and BPOs, people forget that we are an agrarian society and agro-based industries have a great relevance in this country. If we can get our act together, these can become great tools for socio-economic development."
http://www.blonnet.com/life/2007/01/12/stories/2007011200040100.htm

Microbial Biohydrogen

pannirbr — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 11:07:18 CDT

“Biohydrogen”

Researched by Felix Bast (Formerly Vadakke Madam Sreejith), BBC Researcher No. U248285, sreejith@iitb.ac.in
Accepted to the journal on 7th December 2003IntroductionHydrogen gas is seen as a future energy carrier by virtue of the fact that it is renewable, does not evolve the "greenhouse gas" CO2 in combustion, liberates large amounts of energy per unit weight in combustion, and is easily converted to electricity by fuel cells. Biological hydrogen production has several advantages over hydrogen production by photoelectrochemical or thermochemical processes. Biological hydrogen production by photosynthetic microorganisms for example, requires the use of a simple solar reactor such as a transparent closed box, with low energy requirements. Electrochemical hydrogen production via solar battery-based water splitting on the hand requires the use of solar batteries with high energy requirements. Low conversion efficiencies of biological systems can be compensated for, by low energy requirements and reduced initial investment costs. Moreover, in laboratory experiments, light energy conversion efficiency as high as 7% has been obtained using a photoheterotrophic process. The basic characteristics of biological hydrogen production and experiments designed to improve the feasibility of biological hydrogen production, particularly through the use of photosynthetic microorganisms, are described in this article. Though not described in the text of this article, progress has also been made in research on anaerobic fermenters. Biophotolysis of water by microalgae and cyanobacteriaMicroalgae are primitive microscopic plants living in aqueous environments. Cyanobacteria, formerly known as blue-green algae, are now recognized as bacteria since the anatomical characteristics of their cells are prokaryotic (bacterial type). Miroalgae and Cyanobacteria along with higher plants, are capable of oxygenic photosynthesis.
Photosynthesis consists of two processes: light energy conversion to biochemical energy by a photochemical reaction, and CO2 reduction to organic compounds such as sugar phosphates, through the use of this biochemical energy by Calvin-cycle enzymes. Under certain conditions, however, instead of reducing CO2, a few groups of microalgae and Cyanobacteria consume biochemical energy to produce molecular hydrogen. Hydrogenase and nitrogenase enzymes are both capable of hydrogen production.

Hydrogenase-dependent hydrogen production
Gaffron and Rubin reported that a green alga, Scenedesmus, produced molecular hydrogen under light conditions after being kept under anaerobic and dark conditions. Following Gaffron and Rubin's work, basic studies on the mechanisms involved in hydrogen production have determined that the reducing power (electron donation) of hydrogenase does not always come from water, but may sometimes originate intracellularly from organic compounds such as starch. The contribution of the decomposition of organic compounds to hydrogen production is dependent on the algal species concerned, and on culture conditions. Even when organic compounds are involved in hydrogen production, an electron source can be derived from water, since organic compounds are synthesized by oxygenic photosynthesis. The reason for hydrogenase inactivity in green algae under normal photosynthetic growth conditions is unclear. Hydrogenase is thought to become active in order to excrete excess reducing power under specific conditions, such as anaerobic conditions. The oil crisis in 1973 prompted research on biological hydrogen production, including photosynthetic production, as part of the search for alternative energy technologies. Green algae were known as light-dependent, water-splitting catalysts, but the characteristics of their hydrogen production were not practical for exploitation. Hydrogenase is too oxygen-labile for sustainable hydrogen production: light-dependent hydrogen production ceases within a few to several tens of minutes since photosynthetically produced oxygen inhibits or inactivates hydrogenases. A continuous gas flow system designed to maintain low oxygen concentrations within the reaction vessel, was employed in basic studies, but has not been found practically applicable. Greenbaum and co-workers reported very high (10 to 20%) efficiencies of light conversion to hydrogen, based on PAR (photosynthetically active radiation which includes light energy of 400-700nm in wavelength). These authors recently reported what may represent a "short circuit" of photosynthesis, whereby hydrogen production and CO2 fixation occurred by a single photosystem (photosystem II only) of a Chlamydomonas mutant. Green algae are applicable in another method of hydrogen production. The work of Gaffron and Rubin demonstrated that Scenedesmus produced hydrogen gas not only under light conditions, but also produced it fermentatively under dark anaerobic conditions, with intracellular starch as a reducing source. Although the rate of fermentative hydrogen production per unit of dry cell weight, was less than that obtained through light-dependent hydrogen production, hydrogen production was sustainable due to the absence of oxygen. On the basis of experiments conducted on fermentative hydrogen production under dark conditions, Miura and Miyamoto's group proposed hydrogen production in a light/dark cycle. According to their proposal, CO2 is reduced to starch by photosynthesis in the daytime (under light conditions) and the starch thus formed, is decomposed to hydrogen gas and organic acids and/or alcohols under anaerobic conditions during nighttime (under dark conditions). The technological merits of this proposal include the fact that oxygen-inactivation of hydrogenase can be prevented through maintenance of green algae under anaerobic conditions, nighttime hours are used effectively, temporal separation of hydrogen and oxygen production does not require gas separation for simultaneous water-splitting, and organic acids and alcohols can be converted to hydrogen gas by photosynthetic bacteria under light conditions. A pilot plant using a combined system of green algae and photosynthetic bacteria was operated within a power plant of Kansai Electric Power Co. Ltd. (Nankoh, Osaka, Japan). Miyamoto and co-workers recently proposed chemical digestion of algal biomass as a means of producing substrates for photosynthetic bacteria, thus improving the yield of starch degradation. Asada and Kawamura determined that cyanobacteria also produce hydrogen gas auto-fermentatively under dark and anaerobic conditions. Spirulina species were demonstrated to have the highest activity among cyanobacteria tested. The nature of the electron carrier for hydrogenase in cyanobacteria is still unclear. Hydrogenases have been purified and partially characterized in a few cyanobacteria and microalgae.

Nitrogenase-dependent hydrogen productionBenemann and Weare demonstrated that a nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium, Anabaena cylindrica, produced hydrogen and oxygen gas simultaneously in an argon atmosphere for several hours. Nitrogenase is responsible for nitrogen-fixation and is distributed mainly among prokaryotes, including cyanobacteria, but does not occur in eukaryotes, under which microalgae are classified. Molecular nitrogen is reduced to ammonium with consumption of reducing power (e' mediated by ferredoxin) and ATP. The reaction is substantially irreversible and produces ammonia. However, nitrogenase catalyzes proton reduction in the absence of nitrogen gas (i.e. in an argon atmosphere).
Hydrogen production catalyzed by nitrogenase occurs as a side reaction at a rate of one-third to one-fourth that of nitrogen-fixation, even in a 100% nitrogen gas atmosphere. Nitrogenase itself is extremely oxygen-labile. Unlike in the case of hydrogenase, however, cyanobacteria have developed mechanisms for protecting nitrogenase from oxygen gas and supplying it with energy (ATP) and reducing power. The most successful mechanism is the localization of nitrogenase in the heterocysts of filamentous cyanobacteria. Vegetative cells (ordinary cells) in filamentous cyanobacteria carry out oxygenic photosynthesis. Organic compounds produced by CO; reduction are transferred into heterocysts and are decomposed to provide nitrogenase with reducing power. ATP can be provided by PSI-dependent and anoxygenic photosynthesis within heterocysts. Investigations into prolongation and optimization of hydrogen production, revealed that the hydrogen-producing activity of cyanobacteria was stimulated by nitrogen starvation. The presence and physiological roles of hydrogenases in nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria remains controversial, but 'uptake' hydrogenase appears to consume and re-use hydrogen gas, resulting in a decrease in net hydrogen production. Asada and Kawamura reported aerobic hydrogen production by a nitrogen-fixing Anabaena sp., believed to be an uptake hydrogenase-deficient strain. After being cultured for 12 days, the strain accumulated approximately 10% hydrogen and 70% oxygen gas within the gas phase of the vessel, by the nitrogenase side reaction, even in the presence of air. Miyamoto et al. conducted outdoor experiments on hydrogen production by Anabaena cylindrica, in California. A nitrogen-starved culture of the cyanobacteria was continuously sparged by argon-based gas, while the hydrogen content of the effluent gas was measured. The average conversion efficiency over a period of one month (combustion energy of hydrogen gas produced by cyanobacteria/incident solar energy into the photo-bioreactor area) was approximately 0.2%. Mitsui and co-workers extensively screened cyanobacteria for their hydrogen-producing ability, and tested Miami BG-7, one of the most potent hydrogen-producing cyanobacteria, in an outdoor culture. These workers also isolated a unicellular aerobic nitrogen fixer, Synechococcus sp. Miami BG043511, and with the use of synchronous culture techniques, discovered a new mechanism for protecting and driving oxygen-labile nitrogenase in non-heterocystous and oxygen-evolving cells. This strain is also a potent hydrogen-producer, having an estimated conversion efficiency of 3.5% based on PAR using an artificial light source. Hydrogen production by photosynthetic bacteriaPhotosynthetic bacteria undergo anoxygenic photosynthesis with organic compounds or reduced sulfur compounds as electron donors. Some non-sulfur photosynthetic bacteria are potent hydrogen producers, utilizing organic acids such as lactic, succinic and butyric acids, or alcohols as electron donors. Since light energy is not required for water oxidation, the efficiency of light energy conversion to hydrogen gas by photosynthetic bacteria, is in principle much higher than that by cyanobacteria. Hydrogen production by photosynthetic bacteria is mediated by nitrogenase activity, although hydrogenases may be active for both hydrogen production and hydrogen uptake under some conditions. Miyake and Kawamura demonstrated a maximum energy conversion efficiency (combustion energy of hydrogen gas produced/incident light energy) of 6 to 8% using Rhodobacter sp. in laboratory experiments. Combined photosynthetic and anaerobic and bacterial hydrogen productionAnaerobic bacteria metabolize sugars to produce hydrogen gas and organic acids, but are incapable of further breaking down the organic acids formed. Miyake et al. proposed the combined use of photosynthetic and anaerobic bacteria for the conversion of organic acids to hydrogen. Theoretically, one mole of glucose can be converted to 12 moles of hydrogen through the use of photosynthetic bacteria capable of capturing light energy in such a combined system. From a practical point of view, organic wastes frequently contain sugar or sugar polymers. It is not however easy to obtain organic wastes containing organic acids as the main components. The combined use of photosynthetic and anaerobic bacteria should potentially increase the likelihood of their application in photobiological hydrogen production. Enhancement of hydrogen-producing capabilities through genetic engineeringAlthough genetic studies on photosynthetic microorganisms have markedly increased in recent times, relatively few genetic engineering studies have focused on altering the characteristics of these microorganisms, particularly with respect to enhancing the hydrogen-producing capabilities of photosynthetic bacteria and cyanobacteria. Some nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria are potential candidates for practical hydrogen production. Hydrogen production by nitrogenase is, however, an energy-consuming process due to hydrolysis of many ATP molecules. On the other hand, hydrogenase-dependent hydrogen production by cyanobacteria and green algae is "economic" in that there are no ATP requirements. This mechanism of hydrogen production is not however sustainable under light conditions. Water-splitting by hydrogenase is potentially an ideal hydrogen-producing system. Asada and co-workers attempted to overexpress hydrogenase from Clostridium pasteurianum in a cyanobacterium, Synechococcus PCC7942, by developing a genetic engineering system for cyanobacteria. These workers also demonstrated that clostridial hydrogenase protein, when electro-induced into cyanobacterial cells is active in producing hydrogen by receiving electrons produced by photosystems. Another strategy being examined is the enhancement of hydrogen-producing capabilities of photosynthetic bacteria. In nitrogenase-mediated hydrogen-producing reactions, a considerable amount of light energy which is converted to biochemical energy by the photosystem, is lost through various biochemical processes. Control of the photosystem at an appropriate level for nitrogenase activity, would result in reduced energy losses, and thus improved light energy conversion. To this end, with the objective of utilizing genetic engineering techniques in controlling the photosystem level in the potent hydrogen-producing photosynthetic bacteria Rhodobacter sphaeroides RV, the puf operon encoding photoreaction center and light-harvesting proteins was isolated and characterized. Research and development on biological hydrogen productionAs explained in the introduction to this article, biological hydrogen production is now receiving much attention as an environmentally acceptable technology. Although a few research groups are active in basic or applied fields of hydrogen production, recent world-wide environmental problems have prompted the formation of national projects for biological hydrogen production. The German Federal Ministry for Research and Technology funded a biological hydrogen production project (1989-1994), in which universities undertook basic research. In Japan, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry is promoting a project for biological hydrogen production by environmentally acceptable technology (1991-1998) through the Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth (RITE), with financial support of the New Energy and Industrial Development Organization (NEDO). The project includes development of total technologies for biological hydrogen production, the screening and breeding of microorganisms, and basic research and development of photobioreactors and anaerobic bioreactors. The Hydrogen Committee of the International Energy Agency (IEA, under the auspices of the OECD) has rearranged Annex Committees for hydrogen technologies. The target of Annex 10 is the photoproduction of hydrogen. This consists of three subtasks: i) photoelectrochemical hydrogen production, ii) photobiological hydrogen production, and iii) standardization. The three-year plan (1995-1997) aims to establish a closely collaborative world-wide research network to promote hydrogen production technologies. Future prospectsBiological hydrogen production is the most challenging area of biotechnology with respect to environmental problems. The future of biological hydrogen production depends not only on research advances, i.e. improvement in efficiency through genetically engineering microorganisms and/or the development of bioreactors, but also on economic considerations (the cost of fossil fuels), social acceptance, and the development of hydrogen energy systems.

Felix Bast [alias Vadakke Madam Sreejith] is a Junior Research Fellow at Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay, India. He is a BBC correspondent in Popular Science Division and has published several essays in leading magazine

Fuel from algae

pannirbr — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 10:36:53 CDT

http://biopact.com/2007/01/in-depth-look-at-biofuels-from-algae.html

Friday, January 19, 2007

An in-depth look at biofuels from algae

Over the past few years, several companies have issued press releases
about technologies they have developed to produce biofuels from
algae. The claims in these stories are that algae yield 'enormous'
amounts of biomass that can be turned into liquid fuels at low cost.
Most of the projects involve the use of closed photobioreactors, in
which the micro-organisms are grown in a controlled manner by feeding
them CO2 and nutrients. Sadly, after decades of development, none of
those projects have ever demonstrated the technology on a large
scale, let alone over long periods of time. This is why it is time to
have a look at the possible reasons as to why algae biofuels are
being talked about, but don't seem to get off the ground.

The biofuel potential of algae has been the object of considerable
research efforts in the past. Both in Europe (France and Germany),
Japan and the US, scientists have been working on algae systems since
the 1950s and especially since the oil crisis of the 1970s. One
program stood out, because it was so comprehensive. This is the
so-called "Aquatic Species Program" (ASP), which ran from 1978 to
1996 under the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), funded
by the Office of Fuels Development, a division of the US Department
of Energy. The program's conclusions offer a handy guideline for
those of us who want to explore the challenges and opportunities of
producing biofuels from algae.

The focus of this program was to investigate high-oil algaes that
could be grown specifically for the purpose of wide scale biodiesel
production. The research began as a project looking into using
quick-growing algae to sequester carbon in CO2 emissions from coal
power plants. Algae had already been used in experiments to manage
waste water and were found to make good substrates for biogas
production, even though the sludge they fed on yielded more biogas.
Noticing however that some algae have very high oil contents, the
project shifted its focus to growing algae for another purpose -
producing biodiesel. Some species of algae were supposed to be
ideally suited to biodiesel production due to their high oil content
(between 10 and 50%, depending on many different factors), and fast
growth rates in laboratory situations. But after two decades of
fundamental research and large-scale trials, the results of the ASP
have been a mixed bag.

The following is an in-depth look at the conclusions of the different
projects carried out under the program. All quotes are taken from "A
look back at the U.S. Departmenf of Energy's Aquatic Species Program"
[*.pdf], the close-out document that was written after the program
was terminated in 1996.

For readers who want a shortcut: Table 1 offers a quick overview of
the results of all the studies under the ASP, as well as those of
some earlier research on which the program drew (click to enlarge).
Note that the results on biomass yields in the table only refer to
yields that were actually obtained in the field, not to projected,
desired or predicted yields.

Our overview includes a look at the most common problems and
challenges encountered during the program (low yields, unstable algae
cultures, harvesting difficulties, pond design, the impractability of
photobioreactors) and at the results of the separate experiments
conducted from the late 1970s to the early 1990s. We compare the
biomass yields of ordinary terrestrial tropical energy crops with
those of algae and analyze some basic risks involved in both biomass
production systems. Finally, we have a look at recent developments in
the production of gaseous fuels (biohydrogen and biogas) based on
algae.

Limited success with engineering algae
The ASP's original aim of genetically manipulating algae so that they
produce more lipids did not yield any significant results. The
researchers discovered a lot of information about the genetics and
environmental factors that play a role in the biology of different
algae species, but they failed to identify the magic 'lipid trigger'
they were looking for. The ASP concluded that:
biomass :: bioenergy :: biofuels :: energy :: sustainability ::
biogas :: biodiesel :: biohydrogen :: algae :: cyanobacteria ::
diatoms :: energy balance :: life-cycle analysis :: energy crops ::
tropical ::

"Although much remains to be done, significant progress was made in
the understanding of environmental and genetic factors that affect
lipid accumulation in microalgae, and in the ability to manipulate
these factors to produce strains with desired traits. The evidence
for a specific lipid trigger is not overwhelming." [page 142]

However, another, non-genetic way of increasing the amount of lipids
within the cells was discovered. It consisted of depriving the algae
of certain nutrients:

"Interpreting exactly what is happening in the nutrient-deprived
cells is difficult, particularly when cells are starved for N, as the
lack of an important nutrient is likely to produce multiple and
complex reactions in a cell. However, lipid accumulation in some
algal species can be induced by nutrient limitation." [142]

Even though this technique did increase the lipid content of some of
the micro-organisms, it also resulted in a decrease of the overall
biomass productivity of the algae. The net-result in terms of total
lipid production was negative:

"One of the most important findings from the studies on lipid
accumulation in the microalgae is that, although nutrient stress
causes lipid to increase in many strains as a percentage of the total
biomass, this increase is generally accompanied by a decrease in
total cell and lipid productivity." [143]

Finally, preliminary experiments were also performed within the ASP
to use the knowledge obtained on the genetic transformation system in
order to

"introduce genes into the algal cells, with the goal of manipulating
lipid biosynthesis. Additional copies of the ACCase gene were
introduced into cells of C. cryptica and N. saprophila. Although
ACCase activity was increased in these cells, there was no detectable
increase in lipid accumulation." [144]

The program was terminated before further research into this path was
undertaken. Given the rapid developments in biotechnology (a decade
has passed since the ASP was ended), we think it is very likely that
ideal algae can be engineered in the future, even though the
challenges remain high.

Such an ideal type would have to have the following properties:
1. it should have a high and constant lipid content;
2. one has to be able to grow the micro-organism continuously (the
problem of the stability of algae cultures);
3. it should have a high photosynthetic efficiency resulting in high
and constant biomass productivities;
4. it should be capable of withstanding seasonal climatic differences
and daily changes in temperatures.
5. the physical nature of the 'super' algae (especially its size)
would have to be such that it is easily harvesteable by membranes (if
the species is too small, high-strength and durable harvesting
membranes have to be designed that have to be able to withstand
fouling and water pressure drops; in the late 1970, such membranes
were deemed to be too costly) or it would have to be a type that
easily flocculates so that harvesting can occur without too much
losses and without the need for costly flocculants (see below).

All of the above are common problems associated with alga-culture
that were identified during the ASP.

Photobioreactors: dismissed as too costly and impractical
The Aquatic Species Program experimented with closed photobioreactors
for a while, but quickly dismissed them as being too impractical and
costly. It therefor concentrated on growing algae in open ponds from
the start, an effort it pursued over the decades that followed.

"The Japanese, French and German governments have invested
significant R&D dollars on novel closed bioreactor designs for algae
production. The main advantage of such closed systems is that they
are not as subject to contamination with whatever organism happens to
be carried in the wind. The Japanese have, for example, developed
optical fiber-based reactor systems that could dramatically reduce
the amount of surface area required for algae production. While
breakthroughs in these types of systems may well occur, their costs
are, for now, prohibitive-especially for production of fuels. DOE's
program focused primarily on open pond raceway systems because of
their relative low cost." [5]

At the end of the 1970s (when oil prices hit all time highs; US$80
per barrel in 2004 dollars), one last photobioreactor project
involving the use of a fibre-optic lighting system was abandoned very
soon:

"Anotherbiophotolysisproject tested an optical fiber system for
diffusing solar light into algal cultures, thereby overcoming the
light saturation limitation to photosynthetic efficiencies. This was
shown to be impractical and was abandoned after only some very
initial work." [161]

At the time, Japanese scientists started working on the same
fibre-optic lighting technology, but this effort yielded no major
breakthroughs. Fibre-optics were thought to offer a solution to the
problem of light saturation limits experienced in closed
photobioreactors. A theoretical advantage of such reactors is the
limited amount of space they need; algae move through them in a
controlled flow, so that they recieve an optimal amount of light. But
it quickly became apparent that this theory doesn't work out in
practise.

If reactors are designed in the form of large tubes or spheres, the
algae located at the center do not receive enough light. So
scientists introduced fibre-optic wires at the center of the reactor,
which continuously emit light. The kinetics of the algae would then
be finetuned so that all of them circle around the surface of the
reactor (where they receive ambient light) and near the center, where
they receive light from the fibre-optic wires. Obviously, this was
quite a costly affair, compared to simply growing algae on a
horizontal plane (in shallow ponds) where they can make use of
sunlight. Like ordinary terrestrial crops.

In the end, the ASP decided to take the latter route, and abandoned
photobioreactor research alltogether. Instead, it started designing
open ponds, to be located in the open air, in sunny deserts and other
locations that receive a lot of sunshine (like Hawaii). From then on,
the argument that algae take up "less space to grow" than ordinary
crops, no longer held.

Full life-cycle analysis required
Taking into account the ASP's experience with photobioreactors, we
should stress that current announcements surrounding this technology
are not very transparent nor complete. Advocates of algae biofuels
often look at the biomass productivities of algae in closed
photobioreactors, and compare those to the yields of energy crops or
to algae grown in open ponds. But there is more to bioenergy than
mere crop yields. Both from an economic as well as from an
environmental point of view, the entire life-cycle of the biofuels
must be analysed.

Press releases from algae-biofuel companies never disclose any
information on the actual energy balance, the greenhouse gas balance
and the costs involved in manufacturing and operating
photobioreactors. They don't because it is their obvious weak point.
As one analyst (Jonas Van Den Berg) once said: "growing algae in
reactors or in plastic ponds is like growing sugarcane in
greenhouses, it makes no sense." As the following analyses in this
essay will show, there is some truth to this observation.

There are many techniques and problems associated with life-cycle
studies of biofuels (earlier post). Depending on the chosen
parameters (system boundaries and byproduct credits), results will
differ. But in the case of closed photobioreactors, it would be
legitimate to use the technique used by an often quoted scientist
like David Pimentel (Cornell University), who made a comprehensive
energy balance analysis of ethanol, and who used a very broad "system
boundary" in his study. For example, he included the energy inputs
required to manufacture farm machinery that will be used to harvest
the corn.

It would be interesting to make a similar life-cycle analysis for
photobioreactors. The Aquatic Species Program did not do this
explicitly, but we guess that when it said reactors are "too costly",
it hinted at the overal life-cycle of the technology.
Photobioreactors are made of resources that require a lot of energy
to make. Steel, aluminum, polymers, glass, shaped in special forms
(spheres and tubes). A lot of energy goes into (building the machines
needed for) mining the raw resources (iron, aluminum ore, petroleum
for the polymers, and so on). The ores then have to be transported to
processing plants where another amount of energy is required to smelt
and cast them. The finished pieces then have to be brought together
(requires transport energy) and assembled. All this happens before
any biofuel has been produced.

When the reactor is in place, it needs to be heated and cooled in
order to operate efficiently during cold winter and hot summer
months. This too requires a considerable amount of energy. Without
heating, algae cultures die or become extremely unproductive (the ASP
showed that cultures grown in open ponds yield as low as 2g/m�� of
biomass per day (on a yearly basis this equals to around 7,3 metric
tons) during winter months.

Furthermore, the ASP showed that there is a fine balance between the
optimal kinetics of the algae (the speed at which they move through a
system in order to receive enough light) and the energy inputs needed
to achieve this balance: in several experiments, the costs of keeping
the algae flowing (by pumping the medium in which they grow),
exceeded the energy the algae produced. In photobioreactors, this
same observation holds. Some reactors consist of vertically,
diagonally and horizontally stacked tubes through wich the algae are
circulated; if under the ASP's horizontal pond conditions, the energy
balance already was negative in some experiments (speeds >30cm/s), it
is not unreasonable to assume that it will be negative in such
complex reactors where the algal medium has to be pumped several
metres high through vertical tubes.

In short, comparing the biomass productivities of algae and their
resulting energy content without taking into account the entire
energy balance, is a futile exercise. Journalists and the media
should not forget this. At the Biopact, we also think that this is
one of the reasons why so many algae projects issue a press release,
but never actually implement their technology on a large scale. If
closed photobioreactors work and succeed in delivering cheap
biofuels, then all the better for us. But if they don't, we should
have the courage to say so too.

NREL's ASP research abandoned photobioreactors alltogether and
instead focused on the development of algae farms in desert regions,
using shallow saltwater pools for growing the algae. Using saltwater
eliminates the need for desalination, but could lead to problems as
far as salt build-up in ponds. Building the ponds in deserts also
leads to problems of high evaporation rates and temperature control
(at night, it can get very cold and heating ponds would be very
costly). Moreover, during winter months, biomass productivities
declined sharply, lowering the overal biomass yields per year.
Harvesting the algae posed engineering challenges. Finally, another
recurring problem was keeping the algae cultures stable. Cultures
that performed well under laboratory conditions were often lost in
the field trials, because they were invaded by stronger algae; the
experiments were often halted and new cultures had to be reintroduced
into the ponds.

All these challenges are nicely illustrated in the separate
large-scale experiments that were carried out from the late 1970s to
the early 1990s. Let us have a cursory look at them.

STUDIES PRECEDING THE ASP

Species Control in Large-Scale Algal Biomass Production (1976)
From the very beginning, in the 1950s up until today, the problem of
the stability of algae cultures in open ponds has not been resolved.
In a first series of experiments, aimed at growing algae for
waste-water treatment in open ponds, there was a consistent gap
between the stability of laboratory cultures and the instability of
cultures grown in open ponds.

This 'Species Control' project addressed this problem and at the same
time looked at potential harvesting technologies. Because the
dominant algal species found in a pond could range from small
unicellular to large colonial or filamentous species, harvesting of
the algae for biomass conversion would require a universally
applicable harvesting technology, such as centrifugation or chemical
flocculation, to enable the recovery of any algal type. However,
these processes proved to be very expensive.

If, however, algal species could be controlled in the ponds, then
filamentous microalgae species might be grown that would be easier
and cheaper to harvest using microstrainers. Microstrainers, which
are rotating screens (typically 25 to 50 �m openings) with a
backwash, are already widely used for removing filamentous algae,
mainly filamentous cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) from potable
water supplies.

Thus, the first objective of this project, initiated in 1976, was to
investigate how to selectively cultivate filamentous microalgal
species in waste treatment ponds

"Both at short and long retention times the algal cultures invariably
became unharvestable with microstrainers. Intermediate hydraulic
retention times selected for larger colonial algal species that were
more readily harvestable. However, long retention times also resulted
in low productivities. There was an optimum residence time, which
varied with depth of the culture and climatic variables that selected
for harvestable cultures. However, biomass recycling was only
marginally effective in improving biomass harvestability by
microstraining. " [148]

Problems were encountered with zooplankton grazing off the algal
cultures. Coarse (150-�m) screens did not effectively remove the
grazers. Shorter retention times reduced grazer pressures, but also
made the cultures less harvestable by microstrainers. In all the
ponds, the Scenedesmus species dominated in the winter and spring,
and then was replaced with Microactinium. Loss of dominance
correlated with the breakup of the colonies, which may have been
related to zooplankton grazing.

"The best productivity was 13.4 g/m2/d, during a 10-month period,
irrespective of harvest efficiency. For the most harvestable pond,
productivity was only 8.5 g/m2/d (of which only 7.2 g/m2/d was
harvested by the microstrainers). Clearly, optimizing for
productivity and harvestability required quite different operating
conditions. It was concluded that the use of microstrainer harvesting
and biomass recycling was unlikely to lead to both a high algal
productivity and effective harvesting process." [152]

Large-Scale Freshwater Microalgal Biomass Production for Fuel and
Fertilizer (1977-1979)
Both microstrainer harvesting and biomass recycling were seen as
unfeasible harvesting strategies, but researchers kept experimenting
with the techniques, only to abandon them relatively soon:

"Initially the approach to establish microstrainable cultures using
the 12-m2 ponds, continued to be investigated. Essentially the same
results as before were obtained: detention time was found to be the
key environmental variable determining algal colony size (but not
necessarily species composition) and a negative correlation was found
between numbers of algal grazers and the large colonial algal types
easy to harvest with microstrainers. Apparently the grazers
preferentially consumed the smaller algae. Overall, the
harvestability results with the microstrainers continued to be poor,
so this line of research was abandoned during the initial period of
this project." [156]

They then focused on another technique: harvesting after
bioflocculation. Bioflocculation refers to the tendency of normally
repulsive microalgae to aggregate in large flocs, that then exhibit a
rather high sedimentation velocity. The mechanisms of bioflocculation
involve extracellular polymers excreted by the algae. Once the algae
have flocked together, they can be harvested.

The bioflocculation research zoomed in on a "phase isolation"
process, in which the algal cells were allowed to spontaneously
settle when sewage inflow was stopped. Although generally long times
were required for this settling process (2-3 weeks), it was decided
to investigate this general phenomenon of "bioflocculation" in high
rate ponds. The process involved removing the algae from the paddle
wheel-mixed ponds and placing them in a quiescent container, where
they would spontaneously flocculate and rapidly settle.

There are several apparently distinct mechanisms by which algae
flocculate and then settle, including "autoflocculation", which is
induced by high pH in the presence of phosphate and divalent cations
(Mg2+ and Ca2+), and flocculation induced by N limitation.

Settling tests were carried out with the cultures from the 12-m2
ponds. As with microstrainer harvesting, detention time and mixing
velocity were the most important variables in promoting a
bioflocculating culture. The rather rapid settling of many of the
cultures was very encouraging. Also, the initial experiments with the
0.25-ha pond demonstrated a fairly rapid

"Bioflocculation [being] established as the method of choice for
algal harvesting, as it seemed to be achievable even with high
productivity cultures. Culture settleability was routinely determined
during all the experiments with the high rate ponds." [157]

Interesting yield data
Table 2 summarizes productivity, settleability and harvesteability of
algae grown for more than 1 year in the two 0.1-ha ponds (click to
enlarge).

These results were the only ones so far for algae grown during all
monhts of the year. They show the sensitivity of the micro-organisms
to changes in temperature, with yields in winter and spring months
declining to very low levels (lowest: 2.6g/m��/ha).

The average gross biomass productivity was maximum 14g/m��/day (51.1
tons per hectare per year), and minimum 12g/m��/day ( 43.8 tons per
hectare per year), of which some 90% could be harvested.

The difference in harvestable biomass yields between algae grown in
large (0.1 hectares) and small (12m��) ponds was small: both small
ponds obtained an average yield of 13g/m��/day (even though they were
only used to grow algae for a period of 10 months, excluding the two
coldest months), the two large ones 14g/m��/day and 12g/m��/day
respectively.

The numbers from these trials, showing a yield per hectare per year,
allow us to make a comparison with ordinary terrestrial energy crops
(see below).

Membrane harvesting project (1978)
Professor Harry Gregor at Columbia University was funded for 2 years
to develop membrane systems for cross-flow filtration harvesting of
microalgae. However, the membranes available at the time, the
pressure drops required, and the fouling problems encountered made
this approach impractical.

Ryther and Goldman (late 1970s)
At Woods Hole Oceanographic Institutions, Drs. John Ryther and Joel
Goldman carried out extensive research on microalgae cultivation in
outdoor ponds on mixtures of seawater-secondary sewage effluent. When
Dr. Ryther relocated to the Harbor Branch Oceanographic Foundation in
Florida in the late 1970s, he was supported by DOE and later the ASP
for the production of freshwater plants (water hyacinths, etc.) and
seaweeds, as well as for microalgae culture collection work. Dr.
Goldman also wrote a review on the theoretical and practical aspects
of microalgae cultivation under contract with the US Department of
Energy.

"One conclusion was that the productivity of microalgae systems would
be limited, because of the light saturation effect and other factors,
to below 50 tons/ha/yr." [161]

A yield of 50 tons/ha/year is considerably below average yields of
ordinary tropical energy crops (see below).

MICROALGAL MASS CULTURE: THE ASP'S OWN RESEARCH
After these previous studies and field trials, the ASP tried to
improve upon both the harvesting process as well as on keeping algae
cultures stable, and embarked on its ambitious program that consisted
of:

"extensive work on [algae] strain isolation, selection,
characterization, etc., carried out by the ASP [which] was used to a
significant extent by the field projects, through the testing of a
number of the isolates in algal mass cultures." [162]

But the gap between laboratory and field results kept appearing
throughout the program:

"Unfortunately, the laboratory-level screening protocols had, in
hindsight, relatively little predictive power for the ability of the
strains to dominate and perform in outdoor ponds. Similarly, the
laboratory work on the biochemistry, genetics and physiology of lipid
biosynthesis, was difficult to apply to the goal of increasing lipid
productivities in outdoor systems. Greater integration of laboratory
and outdoor R&D is a challenge for any future microalgae R&D
program." [162]

Despite this disconnect, the ASP went ahead an initiated two outdoor
projects in 1980, one in California using a paddle wheel-mixed
raceway pond design ("high rate pond," [HRP]), and another in Hawaii.
The Hawaii project was to demonstrate a patented algal culture
system, invented by then-ASP program manager, Dr. Larry Raymond
(1981). This "Algal Raceway Production System" (ARPS) used very
shallow flumes.

HAWAII, 1980-1987
This first major project made use of Dr Raymond's patented ARPS, a
complex 48m�� raceway pond, which was expected to yield high and
consistent productivities with strains of P. tricornutum.

One difficulty noted in the laboratory experiments was the low cell
densities achieved, compared with the original reports by Raymond for
the ARPS system. Researchers tried to increase cell density by
increasing the pond depth to 0.6 m, rather than 0.1 m as proposed by
Raymond. This resulted in other problems (low cell density,
shading-see below), and the depth was again reduced to 30 cm.

Laws later reported on initial results with the 48-m2, 0.6-m deep,
airlift-mixed flume system. Cell densities were much lower than
predicted, likely because of the great depth of the culture, which
was later reduced.

The second year of this project emphasized the use of "flashing light
to enhance algal mass culture production". The basic idea was that a
"foil array" in the pond culture would generate a vortex that would
create organized mixing in the ponds, expected to result in exposure
of the cells to regular dark-light cycles.
Based on data in the literature, this effect would be predicted to
increase overall productivity. These a priori arguments were not
supported by the algal physiological literature (the flashing light
productivity enhancements are observed at much shorter time
constants), and neither were the hydraulic arguments plausible
(organized mixing would be seen only in a small fraction of the pond
volume). However, the key issue here is not the theory but the actual
experimental results.

"From November 1981 to January 1982, an average productivity of only
about 3.3 g/m2/d was recorded for the 50-m2-flume reactor, a very low
value for Hawaii, even in winter. After installation of the foils,
productivities, from February to March 1982, increased to about 11
g/m2/d." [166]

One observation was infestation of the culture by algal predators,
which could have been one reason for the rather large variability in
productivities observed during this operation. However, day-to-day
variability in productivities is a fact of outdoor pond microalgae
cultivation, even in the best of cases.

During the third year, a set of variables was tested and the
researchers concluded that "by far the most significant factor
affecting biomass production" was culture depth, arguing that the
"self-shading effects were more than offset by higher areal standing
crops." This was a rather puzzling conclusion as it is contrary to
both theory and experience, which assumes that, everything else being
equal, depth should not affect productivity. No actual productivity
data were reported.

The fourth year switched algae species, because "the fact that a
given species grows well in the laboratory is no guarantee that it
will perform well in an outdoor culture system." One reason the
project switched to different algal species was that the P.
tricornutum strain used in the experiments described above was quite
sensitive to even moderate (above 25�C) temperatures, and required
temperature control (cooling) of the reactors. A Platymonas sp. was
thus tested without temperature control in the outdoor flumes, at
several dilution rates and maximal pH levels of 7 to 8. This strain
showed a maximum productivity of about 26 g/m2/d, about the same as
observed with P. tricornutum with temperature control.

Note that, even though no energy inputs were reported, using the
tricornutum strain required continuously cooling the reactors, an
energy intensive operation.

During the fifth year, research was once again directed toward the
study of more thermotolerant species. Algal strains collected by the
ASP researchers in the southwestern United States were evaluated
using different types of water. Several species, including Platymonas
sp. (used previously), Amphora sp., C. gracilis, and Boekelovia sp.
were grown in the two water types, each at two salinities and at four
temperatures (25� to 32�C), with the data reported as the number of
doublings per day, making it difficult to compare the actual biomass
productivity with previous and later results.
One interesting, but unexplained, observation was that at higher
temperatures there was a consistent shift, among all four algae, of
maximum doubling rates to the higher salinity waters. The small
outdoor flumes were used to test this cultivation strategy. The
cultures were diluted each third day, to a concentration of 2 x 106
cells. The results were "consistent with those of earlier studies,"
with solar conversion (PAR) efficiencies close to 10% (5% of total
solar). The C. gracilis species was also tested, though at a 2-day
dilution rate (requiring a one per day doubling time), with somewhat
lower efficiencies (8%), though still rather high productivities.
Also, Tetraselmis suecica was cultivated in the ponds with good
results. Over a 78-day cycle, in spring 1984 and summer 1985,
productivity was 37+5 g/m2/d, with a corresponding PAR efficiency of
9.1%.

Research during year 6 elaborated on the two key findings mentioned
earlier: effects of a 3-day dilution interval and of the foil arrays.
The effects of foil arrays were tested over a 12-month period in the
48-m2 flume with Cyclotella sp., a diatom, which, like Chaetoceros,
is a good lipid producer. The experiment involved alternatingly
operating the pond with and without the foils for 2-week periods. The
presence of foils increased productivity by almost a third, similar
to the prior experiments.

The dilution effect was investigated with T. suecica, also in the
48-m2 flume, with similar results as before, in terms of both overall
and maximal 3rd day productivity. However, solar conversion
efficiencies were lower than observed in previous years, perhaps due
to the approximately 3�C higher temperature during this year,
compared to the previous one. The author speculated that this could
have been close to the maximal permissible temperature for growth of
T. suecica, and thus resulted in lower productivities.

However, the effect of dilution interval on production in the 48.4-m2
flume was somewhat puzzling. These findings were a subject of
considerable discussion and controversy. One possible explanation was
the measurement of actual biomass density, which varied from about
27-28 g/m2 after dilution, to 80, 140, and 160 g/m2 for the 2-, 3-,
and 4-day dilutions periods, respectively. However, this was
considered an "unlikely" explanation. Indeed, the highest
productivity was observed on day 3, with a steep decline on day 4.
However, 4-day cycle cells still had lower productivity on day 3.
Some "lingering effect of exposure to supraoptimal density
conditions" was speculated to account for this phenomenon. The
classical technique for studying such phenomena is the P versus I
curve. Such studies were carried out with T. suecica cultures grown
in the smaller 9.2-m2 flumes. However, as the author noted, the
results were "somewhat discouraging" as there was no difference as a
function of dilution intervals, and productivities were only about 24
g/m2/d, much lower than reported with the larger flumes. Thus, this
issue remained as a major focus of this project.

During the final year of the Hawaii ARPS project, the goal was to
screen for additional algal species in the smaller flumes and to
further study the effect of dilution intervals. Four species were
tested in the 9.2-m2 flumes: Navicula sp., C. cryptica, C. gracilis,
and Synechococcus sp. From prior work, photosynthetic efficiencies of
9.1% were reported with T. suecica, during a 78-day period, and 9.6%
for 122 days with C. cryptica. With the three other organisms listed
above, somewhat lower efficiencies were noted during shorter time
periods: 7.8 % for Navicula sp., 8.5% for C. gracilis, and 8.6% for
Synechococcus. Somewhat "surprisingly" (their characterization), they
observed that in a 2-day batch growth mode, initial cell
concentrations ranging from about 50 to 400 mg/L (AFDW) had no major
effect on productivity. For C. cryptica, at an initial concentration
of 40 mg/L at a depth of 12 cm, this would give an areal cell density
of about 5 g/m2. For an equal daily productivity of 30 g/m2/d,
averaged over 2 days, this would require the cells to divide 2.5
times the first day, and once the second day. Not impossible,
certainly, but somewhat problematic. There is indeed some likelihood
that some systematic measurement error influenced their productivity
measurements.

"This report also described lipid induction by Si limitation by C.
gracilis and C. cryptica. In both microalgae Si limitation greatly
reduced overall productivities, and lipid productivities, even though
lipid contents increased. Laws concluded that lipid productivities
would be maximized by maximizing total biomass production." [173]

In the final paper, Laws et al., reported on long-term (13-month)
production of C. cryptica in the large flume, with a 9.6% solar
conversion efficiency reported with the foils and 7.5% without the
foils, similar to earlier results with T. suecica. For 122 days, at
optimal dilution (2- day batch cycle) productivity of about 30 g/m2/d
was measured. This is, indeed, a high sustained productivity; on a
year's basis, it equates to roughly 15g/m2/d (54.75 ton/hectare/year).

Conclusions of the Hawaii Project
This project evolved from one that focused on a demonstration of the
ARPS concept using a single flume, to the investigation of
fundamental issues in algal mass culture, using several smaller ponds
and a simplified system design. In particular, this project reported
very high productivities achieved by two methods: organized mixing in
ponds (e.g., the foils), and optimal batch dilution (2- or 3-day
intervals, depending on species). However, the basis for these
productivity enhancements was speculative, and it proved difficult to
demonstrate the reproducibility of these effects. The effects of
foils could be better ascribed to degassing of oxygen from the ponds
with foils (e.g., higher mixing power inputs) and the results from
the 3- day dilution experiments to some uncontrolled factors, in
addition to possible methodological problems.

None of the experiments under the Hawaii Project involved growing
algae for longer than a year, which is why no final word on their
(harvesteable) biomass productivity can be said. (One experiment was
carried out for 13 months, but no yield data for it were reported.)

Laws continued his research with Electric Power Research Institute
funding for 1 year, moving the system to Kona, Hawaii. No
significantly different information was produced. However, Laws
concluded

"that lack of land area, and high costs, would make such a process
[growing algae in open ponds] impractical for fuel production in
Hawaii." [174]

CALIFORNIA, 1981-1986
The objective of this second project was to demonstrate the
functionality of a so-called High Rate Pond (HRP) system using
agricultural irrigation waters and fertilizers as nutrients. The HRP
was defined as a paddle wheel-mixed (approximately 10-20 cm/s),
moderate depth (approximately 15-30 cm), algal production system. The
R&D goal was to develop production technology for microalgae biomass
with a high content of lipids. A detailed literature review concluded
that the best option would be to use N limited (but not starved)
batch cultures of green microalgae.

The system consisted of four 200-m2 and three 100-m2 ponds, along
with three deep harvesting ponds and four water and effluent storage
ponds. This system thus provided considerable flexibility for the
testing of a large number of variables and algal species, at a scale
that would allow some confidence in the scale-up of the results. The
units were lined with 20 mil PVC, to allow complete mass balances.

Note on costs and energy balance: We wish to add an important note
here: these ponds were lined with PVC, which brings us conceptually
close to greenhouses used in terrestrial agriculture (purely speaking
from the point of view of material inputs and costs). The biomass
productivity of the algae obtained in the California ponds as well as
in previous and later projects (between 30 and 50 ton per hectare per
year) makes us conclude that the mere cost of the PVC makes such a
system uncompetitive with ordinary, rainfed, open-air (sub)tropical
agriculture. Tropical crops already yield far more biomass than algae
(see below), and if they were to be grown in greenhouses, their
productivity would be much higher still. This is why Jonas Van Den
Berg's remark - "growing algae in reactors or in plastic ponds is
like growing sugarcane in greenhouses, it makes no sense" - is not
too far-fetched.

After an initial delay and a temporary loss of funding, the actual
pond operations were initiated in August 1982.

The first inoculation of algae into one of the 100-m2 ponds consisted
of a mixed Micractinium-Scenedesmus culture, which was soon lost:

"these algae settled out due to lack of flow deflectors, and the
culture was soon dominated by a Selenastrum sp. Both biomass
concentration and productivity were quite low. Without flow
deflectors at the far end of the ponds (away from the paddle wheel)
the hydraulics were so poor that the ponds exhibited almost zero
productivity." [179]

This was due to the formation of large countercurrent eddies
resulting in "dead zones," where algal cells settled. After flow
deflectors were installed, the pond was re-inoculated with an almost
pure culture of Scenedesmus that had arisen spontaneously in one of
the 12-m2 inoculum ponds. The culture remained well suspended and
grew well.

However, a similar inoculation into a 200-m2 pond resulted in almost
complete settling of the culture, caused by poor pond hydraulics,
even with similar flow deflectors installed. This indicated that the
hydraulics of the ponds are critical to the success of the process
and further, that the hydraulics are not predictable from one scale
to another, even within a factor of two. After two flow deflectors
were installed around the bends in the 100-m2 ponds, these ponds
exhibited much improved hydraulics, with few eddies or settling of
algal cells.

In contrast, similar deflectors did not improve hydraulics
perceptibly in the larger, 200-m2 ponds. Only after two more flow
deflectors were installed at the end nearest the paddle wheels were
satisfactory hydraulics observed in these larger ponds. A
quantitative study of flow velocities was undertaken using a flow
meter. The results were counterintuitive: flow velocities are higher
on the inside than the outside of the channels. Clearly, pond
hydraulics must be customized for each pond size and design to obtain
even mixing.

"As expected, productivities were rather low in the initial
experiments carried out during October and November 1982. Maximum
productivities (measured for 2 days) were only about 9 g/m2/d and
average productivities less than 5 g/m2/d." [179]

These initial experiments included assessment of species dominance, N
limitations, and mixing velocities. Pond operations ceased by the end
of November 1982 after poor results.

In 1983-1984, a new company, Microbial Products, Inc. (EnBio was
dissolved when John Benemann left in 1983 for the Georgia Institute
of Technology), continued the project. The pond system described
earlier continued to be used for this project.

The objective was to obtain long-term productivity data with a
pilot-scale system and generally demonstrate the requirements of
large-scale algal mass cultivation

The first challenge was to obtain microalgal species that could be
grown on the fresh to slightly brackish water available at the site:

"The common experience is that either inoculated strains from culture
collections fail to grow in the outdoor ponds, or that they grow
initially but become rapidly outcompeted by indigenous strains. A
common practice is to make the best of a bad situation and cultivate
the invading organisms instead." [180]

This was also the experience and approach of this project. After
inoculation of Scenedesmus obliquus strain 1450 from the SERI Culture
Collection, a strain of Scenedesmus quadricuada invaded. This turned
out to be the most successful organism, cultivated for 13 months in
fresh water and an additional 3 months in brackish. After an Oocystis
sp. (Walker Lake isolate) was inoculated, a Chlorella sp. became
dominant and was maintained (or maintained itself) for 2 months under
semi-continuous dilution. However, some strains provided by SERI
researchers could be grown for at least a few months outdoors,
including an Ankistrodesmus falcatus and a freshwater Scenedesmus sp.

Productivity for S. quadricauda (see table 3) grown semi-continuously
which is harvested every few days (a "sequential batch" growth mode),
averaged about 15g/m2/day for the 8 month period of March through
October, with monthly averaged solar conversion efficiency ranging
from 1.2% to 2.2%. Typical biomass density just before harvest (that
is on the 3rd dilution day) ranged from 60 to 100 g/m2, except for
May, which recorded the highest standing biomass (160 g/m2) and
productivity (20 g/m2/d). The continuously diluted cultures (diluted
during the entire light period) exhibited approximately 20% higher
productivity. Over a ten month period, the average productivity stood
at 15g/m��/day (see table, click to enlarge), of which some 90% is
harvesteable.

The main conclusions of the extensive experimental program were
interesting. They included:

1. Productivities of 15 to 25 g/m2/d were routinely obtained during
the 8-month growing season at this location. However, higher numbers
were rarely seen. Algae were not grown during winter months.
2. Continuous operations are about 20% more productive than
semi-continuous cultures, but the latter densities are much higher, a
factor in harvesting.
3. Culture collection strains fare poorly in competition with wild types.
4. Temperature effects are important in species selection and culture
collapses, including grazer development.
5. Nighttime productivity losses increased to 10% to 20 % in July,
when grazers were present; nighttime respiratory losses were high
only at high temperatures.
6. There is a significant decrease in productivity in the afternoons,
compared to the mornings, in the algal ponds.
7. Oxygen levels can increase as much as 40 mg/L, over 450% of saturation, and
high oxygen levels limit productivity in some strains but not others. Oxygen
inhibition was synergistic with other limiting factors ( e.g., temperature).
[...]
9. Mixing power inputs were small at low mixing velocities (e.g., 15
cm/s) but increased exponentially. Productivity was independent of
mixing speed.
10. The strains investigated in this study did not exhibit high lipid
contents even upon N limitation.
11. The transfer of CO2 into the ponds was more than 60% efficient,
even though the CO2 was transferred through only the 20-cm depth of
the pond.
12. Harvesting by sedimentation has promise, but was strain specific
and was increased by N limitation.
13. Initial experiments demonstrated that media recycle is feasible.
14. Project end input operating costs for large-scale production (at
$50/mt of CO2, 70% use efficiency, etc.) was $130/mt of algae, of
which half was for CO2 and one-third for other nutrients, with
pumping and mixing power only about $10/mt.

This project answered a number of issues that had been raised about
this process. One initially controversial observation was the finding
that mixing speed had no effect on productivity. However, this
experiment used a strain of Chlorella that did not settle, and care
was taken to keep other parameters identical (in particular pH and
pO2 levels). Thus, the increased productivities seen in some
experiments (e.g., those of Hawaii), could possibly be accounted for
by differences other than those of mixing, such as changes in
outgassing of O2.

From the perspective of large-scale biomass production, one
conclusion from this research was that

"mixing power inputs make any mixing speed much above about 30 cm/s
impractical, as the energy consumed would rapidly exceed that
produced. The rate of mixing should only be between about 15 and 25
cm/s, sufficient to keep cells in suspension and transfer the
cultures to the CO2 supply stations in time to avoid C limitations in
large-scale (>1-ha) ponds." [181]

For low-cost production higher productivities would reduce capital,
labor, and some other costs, but nutrient (e.g., CO2) related costs
would not change. This suggested the need for low-cost CO2, and other
nutrients, as well as a high CO2 utilization efficiency. Efficient
utilization of CO2 appeared feasible based on the results obtained
with even this unoptimized system.

Another major conclusion was that

"competitive strains would be required to maintain monocultures. The
need for feedback from the outdoor studies to development of
laboratory screening protocols was a major recommendation.
Specifically, the relatively controllable parameters of CO2, pH, and
O2 were of interest in determining species survival and culture
productivity. Also, harvesting was identified as a specific area for
further research. Finally, lipid induction remained to be
demonstrated."[182]

These were the general objectives during the final year of this project.

In 1985-86, numerous microalgal strains were obtained from the SERI
Culture Collection and tested in small-scale, 1.4-m2, ponds. All
strains could be grown quite successfully in these very small units,
although some, such as Amphora sp., did not survive more than 2 or 3
weeks before they were displaced by other algae.

Cyclotella displaced Amphora under all conditions tested, even though
Amphora was the most productive strain, producing 45 to 50 g/m2/d in
very short-term experiments. The green algae, e.g. Chlorella or
Nannochloropsis, also could not be grown consistently. Their
productivities were among the lowest, about 15 g/m2/d (similar to
that in the prior year).

"Thus, one fundamental conclusion was that productivity is not
necessarily correlated with dominance or persistence." [185]

A significant factor in pond operations was the oxygen level reached
in the ponds, which influenced productivity and species survival.
Ponds were operated with air sparging (and antifoam) to reduce DO
levels, from typically 400% to 500% of saturation without air
sparing, to 150% to 200% of saturation with sparging. Foaming, caused
by air sparging, was still was a problem in some cases, as with the
Cyclotella. However this alga exhibited approximately the same
productivity with or without sparging despite the 20%-30% opaque foam
cover, suggesting some positive effect of the lower pO2. For other
algal species productivity differences of 10% to 20% were noted, and
for some (e.g., C. gracilis), no specific effect of high versus low
DO was noted.

These outdoor results were reproducible enough to detect differences
of greater than about 10% between treatments. The major result of
this project was that productivities were 50% to 100% higher than the
previous year, with some species of diatoms producing 30 to 40 g/m2/d
(AFDW, efficiency about 6% to 9% of PAR, or 3% to 4.5% total solar).
The green algae were, as mentioned earlier, less productive than the
diatoms.

A more detailed study of oxygen effects was also carried out in the
laboratory, avoiding the confounding factors of CO2 supply,
temperature, and light intensity. In general the diatoms were
insensitive to high DO; most, but not all, of the green algal strains
exhibited marked inhibition by high oxygen levels:

"None of the oxygen-sensitive algae could be grown outdoors,
suggesting this as a major factor in species dominance and
productivity." [185]

Laboratory studies were also carried out at both high light intensity
and high DO, to determine the synergism between these factors. Both
the apparent maximum growth rate and dense culture productivity were
determined for comparisons. Higher levels of DO intensified the
inhibitory effects of higher light observed in some cases. This was
true in particular for productivity, with growth rates also affected.
Of course, the actual density of the culture is a major factor
determining productivity, and dense cultures avoid most, if not all,
the deleterious effects of high
light intensity. High O2 and low CO2 are other factors influencing
the response to high light, with O2 being more inhibitory at both low
CO2 and high light levels. High oxygen also affects chlorophyll
content, although this effect is most pronounced at low light
intensities where chlorophyll levels are 50% higher compared to high
light intensities.

Outdoor experiments were carried out to determine the effect of low
CO2 (25 �M) and high (9-10) pH, which would be experienced in algal
mass cultures, at least temporarily. Compared to the control
cultures, one strain was not inhibited even at pH 10, two not at pH
9, and two were inhibited by about 33% at this pH, compared to the
control at pH 8. Lowering pCO2 also resulted in similar levels of
inhibition for the other strains. A role for bicarbonate in growth at
high pH was established from the data, with metabolic costs estimated
at about one-third of productivity, a major factor. This requires
further investigation.

One strain, a Cyclotella species, exhibited an increase of lipid
content of more than 40% of dry weight upon Si limitation. However,
lipid productivity (9 g/m2/d), was not significantly different
between Si-deficient and the Si-sufficient controls, because of the
high productivity of the Si sufficient culture. Optimizing for lipid
productivity was considered possible, but requires more detailed
study.

Perhaps most important, the data and simulations also suggest that
maximizing productivity at an acceptable CO2/pH combination from the
perspective of outgassing and CO2 loss from the ponds is possible,
with operations above pH 8.0 required (for an alkalinity of 32 meq/L,
higher for higher alkalinities) to avoid wasting of CO2.

Laboratory studies were also carried out during this project. These
included a study of light conversion efficiencies that concluded that
at low light intensities very high light conversion efficiencies can
be achieved (near the theoretical maximum of about 10 photons/CO2
fixed).

However, these and other laboratories studies carried out during this
project would require a much longer review than possible here.

Note on costs: An important note on costs is required here: the
California project investigated different harvesting techniques for
microalgae cultures. To enhance algae settling, both polymers, FeCl3
and cross-flow filtration were studied. The flocculation technique
(getting the algae to flock together so they can be harvested easily)
required the addition of organic flocculants at about 2 to 6 g/kg and
FeCl3 at about 15 to 200g/kg of algal biomass to remove 90% or more
of the algal cells. Because of the high cost of the organic
flocculants, costs were comparable for both flocculants tested. The
organic polymers were also deemed to have significant potential for
improvement and optimization. Cross-flow filtration, though
effective, was estimated to be too expensive. In short, a
considerable amount of costly inputs is needed to harvest the algae.
No lifecycle study was ever presented which included all these costs
and the energy balances of the inputs.

In conclusion, this project significantly advanced the state-of-the
art of microalgae biomass production, and provided the basis for the
Outdoor Test Facility, the ASP's final project.

ISRAEL
In the mid-1980s, the ASP researchers collaborated with scientists in
Israel, in three separate projects. All these experiments involved
the same idea: growing algae in (very small) open ponds in the
desert. It would take us too far here to discuss the results of these
projects, but for basic data, we refer to Table 1, which presents an
overview of all the field trials initiated under the ASP.

Some key findings included:
-the fact that in chemostat tests (these are lab tests) "nitrogen
limitation does not induce the production and accumulation of
lipids," but the "algae attain a low protein-carbohydrate ratio."
Previous reports in the literature describing lipid accumulation in
algae induced by N limitation were attributed to trace element
limitations.

-two cultures, C. gracilis and Nannochloris atomus grown in
laboratory chemostats and in 0.35-m2 outdoor "microponds" attained
productivities of 40 g/m2/d (C. gracilis) during June-August, which
decreased by a bout half during the winter. Lipid contents in the
N-sufficient algal cells increased almost as much, reproducing the
low-temperature effect on lipid content seen in the laboratory
cultures.

-attempts were also made to increase lipid production by Si
limitation, but this was unsuccessful due to rapid contamination with
green algae.

NEW MEXICO, OUTDOOR TEST FACILITY, 1987-1990
After the above noted projects carried out in Hawaii, Israel and
California, the ASP decided to hold a competition for the development
of a larger process development outdoor test facility (OTF) located
in the southwestern United States. Two independent designs and
proposals were commissioned, one consisting of enclosed production
units; the other of open ponds, similar to the design tested in
California.

The latter design won the competition, with a proposed facility
consisting of two 1,000-m2 ponds, one plastic lined and another
unlined, as well as supporting R&D using six small, 3-m2 ponds,
continuing and extending the work carried out in the prior projects
in California.

Although the proposal recommended establishing this facility in
Southern California, the ASP selected a site in Roswell, New Mexico
to establish the OTF. The project was located at an abandoned water
research facility. Roswell has high insolation, abundant available
flatland and supplies of saline groundwaters. The primary limitation
of this site was temperature, which, in retrospect, turned out to be
too low for more than 5 months of the year for the more productive
species identified during the prior project.

The objective of the first year of the research at this new site was
to initiate a species screening effort at this site with the small
3-m2 ponds, which were installed while designing and constructing the
larger facility. A major objective of this project was to identify
cold weather adapted strains. Building the large system required
installation of two water pipelines of 1,300-m in length (15 and 7.5
cm, for brackish and fresh waters). The ponds were about 14 x 77 m,
with concrete block walls and a central wooden divider. The paddle
wheels were approximately 5-m wide, with a nominal mixing speed of 20
cm/s, and a maximum of 40 cm/s. Carbonation was achieved with a sump
that allowed counterflow injection of CO2, to achieve high (90%+)
absorption of CO2. One pond was plastic lined; the other had a
crushed rock layer. The walls were cinder block. A 50-m2 inoculum
production pond was included.

During the first year of the project (Weissman et al. 1988), all
experimental work was carried out using the small ponds, which
allowed essentially fully automatic operation and continuous
dilution, as well as heating if needed. The objectives were to
determine long-term productivity and stability for this site with
previously studied and new species. Five of the strains inoculated
into the 3-m2 ponds were successfully cultivated, including two that
derived from local isolates (one of which had invaded these ponds).

Three of the culture collection strains could not be cultivated
stably in the small ponds.

"Productivities in the summer month of August reached 30 g/m2/d for
C. cryptica CYCLO1, but decreased to about half this level in
September and October. At this point, M. minutum (MONOR2) was used,
as this is a more cold-tolerant organism. By November productivity of
MONOR2 fell to about 10 g/m2/d, and was very low ( 3.5 g/m2/d) in
December in unheated ponds. Remarkably, despite these ponds freezing
over repeatedly, the culture survived and exhibited some
productivity." [195]

During August and September, productivities for CYCLO1 and Amphora
sp. exhibited short-term excursions above 40 g/m2/d. Faulty data are
not suspected.

The large-scale system was completed by the second year. But some
problems were encountered: the spongy clay at the site did not
compact well, resulting in an uneven pond bottom. This made it
difficult to clean and drain the ponds, and resulted in settling and
sedimentation of solids.

Significant differences were noted between the lined (north) and
unlined (south) ponds, in terms of mixing velocities, head losses,
and roughness coefficients.

Conclusions for the OTF project
The final report in this series on the New Mexico OTF operations,
reported on the demonstration of productivity for the two large ponds
for 1 full year, continuation of the small-scale pond operations, and
improvements in mixing and carbonation.

1. One major improvement in the system was an automated data
recording and operations system.
2. Mixing was improved by improving the flow deflectors and
increasing operating depths from 15 to 22.5 cm, which is probably a
better depth for large-scale systems.
3. Culture instability was a problem, particularly in spring because
of greater temperature fluctuations, and resulted in low average
productivity of only 7 g/m2/d for March through May. In contrast, the
average productivity was 18 g/m2/d for June through October,
decreasing to 5-10 g/m2/d in November (depending on onset of cold
weather), and only about 3 g/m2/d in the winter months. Overall
productivity, including 10%-15% down-time for the ponds for repairs
and modifications, was 10 g/m2/d, only one-third of ASP goals.
4. A major conclusion from this work is that scale-up is not a
limitation with such systems. Climatic factors are the primary ones
that must be considered in their siting.
5. A countercurrent flow injection system was installed in the sumps
resulting in a carbonation system that was essentially 100% efficient
in CO2 transfer. Overall CO2 utilization was higher than 90%.
6. Species stability in the lined and unlined pond exhibited no
significant difference. This work clearly established the feasibility
of using unlined ponds in microalgae cultivation. This was a critical
issue, as plastic lining of ponds is not economically feasible for
low-cost production.
7. In the small 3-m2 systems, two variables were investigated: Si
supply and pH. Both are major cost factors in pond operation, due to
sodium silicate costs and CO2 outgassing. They affect overall
productivity as well as lipid production. For Cyclotella, for
example, productivity was about 20 g/m2/d at pH 7.2 or 8.3, but only
15 g/m2/d at pH 6.2. As the higher pH range is preferred, where CO2
outgassing is minimal, this demonstrates the feasibility of operating
such cultures within the constraints of a large-scale production
system. Si additions could be halved with only a modest decrease in
productivity, suggesting that Si supply could be reduced,
particularly if low Si-containing diatoms are cultivated. Also Si
limitation can be used to induce lipid production, as was
demonstrated during this project, with lipid biosynthesis increasing
as soon as intracellular Si content dropped, with a 40% lipid content
being achieved. However, overall, lipid productivity did not increase
as CO2 fixation limitation also set in. This remains as a major issue
for future research.

Algae versus tropical energy crops
Tropical energy crops are known for their high biomass
productivities. They come in different forms (grasses, trees, annual
and permanent crops) and under such names as eucalyptus, Arundo
donax, sorghum, sugarcane, oil palm, sweet potato, cassava or sago.

The ASP produced very few field trials in which algae were
successfully grown continuously for periods of over a year. In fact,
most experiments lasted a few days or weeks only (see table 1). Since
algae are highly sensitive to changes in temperature, monthly or
weekly biomass productivity data (e.g. high yields during summer
months) can not be extrapolated into yearly data. Only two series of
data allows us to make a comparison with the yields of tropical
crops. They are the data reported in the "large scale" study of
1977-79 and the data from the OTF trials in New Mexico.

Table 4 shows that tropical energy crops yield considerably larger
amounts of biomass than algae cultures. Several crops easily produce
twice the amount of biomass.

It should be noted that the data for the tropical crop yields in
Table 4 refer to the "phytomass" of those crops. That is the entire
biomass of the plants (including roots or rhizomes). Still for the
majority of these crops (the exception being Arundo donax), the bulk
of this phytomass is actually harvesteable and can be used as a
bioenergy feedstock.

Besides differences in yields, some broad points for comparisons
between algae production systems and 'traditional' terrestrial
agriculture are the following:

-species control and scale:
algae cultures tend to be unstable and can be colonized fairly easily
by more powerful algae; these biologically stronger species are not
necessarily suitable for biofuel production (e.g. their lipid
contents are too low). Now in traditional tropical agriculture, pest
and diseases are a comparable problem: a plantation or a sugarcane
field can be invaded with weeds or pests. But relatively simple
techniques (pesticides, herbicides and phytopathological strategies
using natural predators) can be applied to the crops. In open algae
ponds this would be extremely difficult.
Moreover, experience with terrestrial agriculture has allowed farmers
to estimate the disease, pesticide and herbicide infestation risks
involved in establishing vast monocultures. For algae, the largest
facilities ever usedhad a surface of a mere 0.1 hectares, with most
of them being "micro-ponds" of a few square metres. No studies or
projections exist that allow algae-culturalists to estimate the risk
of colonisation and destabilisation of large algae monocultures.
Given the high rate of destruction of cultures grown in
"micro-ponds", it is not unreasonable to assume that this rate
increases as a function of the size of the ponds. As yet, there are
not enough datasets to look for a correlation between pond-size and
the risk of culture-loss. But one thing is certain: the ultra-large
scale production schemes ("replacing all U.S. diesel demand with
algae grown in one big pond facility located in the Sonoran desert")
that have been proposed are faced with this important lack of
knowledge on phytopathological risks involved in large scale
algae-culture.

-risk of species contamination and the uncontrolled spread of
genetically modified algae:
from the ASP we learn that mass algae production is not likely to be
feasible unless genetically modified algae are engineered which are
stable, contain a high amount of lipids and can be harvested easily.
The problem with such a development would obviously be contamination
of water bodies not destined for biofuel prodution. The genetically
altered algae species would be so strong, that they would easily
destroy species that thrive naturally in water bodies. The existing
algae colonies in natural water bodies are often caught in a fragile
balance, with 'predators' fighting each other, limiting the overall
colonisation of the water body. A genetically altered species could
unsettle this balance and cause a major pest problem.
The same can of course be said of genetically altered energy crops.
But it is clear that biomass yields of tropical crops are high enough
to maintain a positive energy balance; in theory, no genetically
modified crops are needed to produce satisfactory amounts of biomass.

-harvesting problems:
modern tropical agriculture (let us take the sugarcane industry as an
example) is highly mechanised when it comes to harvesting and
processing biomass. Harvesting techniques for algae have not attained
the same level of perfection. The tried technologies (membranes,
bioflocculation) are a limiting factor when it comes to choosing the
best algae; some interesting micro-organisms are physically too small
to be practically harvesteable by membranes; whereas the flocculation
technique does not yield consistent results with all species.
Moreover, flocculants are very expensive and some species need a high
amount of them in order to flocculate.

-opportunity costs, system flexibility and crop portfolios
A major disadvantage of algae production systems is that once the
investments in the technologies have been made, they must be used,
even when the economics change radically. This is not the case in
terrestrial agriculture (at least not when it involves annual crops),
where farmers can switch between crops and markets, and choose to
grow crops that promise to make most profits depending on market
predictions. In terrestrial agriculture assets (like land and
machinery) can be used for a wide variety of crops and products. This
allows for flexibility and for adapting choices to market
opportunities.
Energy farmers can produce feedstocks for biofuels one year, and
decide to grow food crops the next. This would be hard to achieve
with algae production systems, which have to be finetuned and
designed to accomodate a specific range of species, catering to a
very specific market. The volatility of oil prices influences the
volatility of bioenergy markets and is now ultimately influencing the
market for food products. Terrestrial farmers can switch between the
two. Algae-culturalists can not, which entails a definite risk.

All in all, algae-culture does not have to be seen as a strict
competitor with energy crops. Algae ponds can be located in arid
regions not suitable for agriculture (such as deserts). The only
problem is their high production costs (on an energy equivalent
basis) and the lack of flexibility of the production system, compared
to those of (tropical) terrestrial energy crops.

Algae for biohydrogen and biogas production
The ASP focused on the production of biodiesel from algae. However,
the micro-organisms have been studied as potential feedstocks for the
production of gaseious fuels such as hydrogen and biogas
(biomethane). In the 1950s and 1970s, several field trials aimed at
obtaining biogas were carried out (mentioned in the document we are
referring to here) with encouraging results.

"The idea of producing methane gas from algae was proposed in the
early 1950s. These early researchers visualized a process in which
wastewater could be used as a medium and source of nutrients for
algae production. The concept found a new life with the energy crisis
of the 1970s. DOE and its predecessors funded work on this combined
process for wastewater treatment and energy production during the
1970s. This approach had the benefit of serving multiple needs-both
environmental and energy-related. It was seen as a way of introducing
this alternative energy source in a near-term timeframe." [3]

Algae were grown on the sludge of waste water management facilities,
in open ponds, after which their biomass was harvested and used as a
substrate in a biogas digester. It was shown that many species make
for a good subtrate for anaerobic fermentation:

"The concept of microalgae biomass production for conversion to fuels
(biogas) was first suggested in the early 1950s. Shortly thereafter,
Golueke and coworkers at the University of California-Berkeley
demonstrated, at the laboratory scale, the concept of using
microalgae as a substrate for anaerobic digestion, and the reuse of
the digester effluent as a source of nutrients.
Oswald and Golueke presented a conceptual analysis of this process,
in which large (40-ha) ponds would be used to grow microalgae. The
algae would be digested to methane gas used to produce electricity.
The residues of the digestions and the flue gas from the power plant
would be recycled to the ponds to grow additional batches of algal
biomass. Wastewaters would provide makeup water and nutrients. The
authors predicted that microalgae biomass production of electricity
could be cost-competitive with nuclear energy. This concept was
revived in the early 1970s with the start of the energy crisis. The
National Science Foundation-Research Applied to National Needs
Program (NSF-RANN) supported a laboratory study of microalgae
fermentations to methane gas (Uziel et al.1975). Using both fresh and
dried biomass of six algal species, roughly 60% of algal biomass
energy content converted to methane gas." [145]

However, the researchers found that the organically rich sludge on
which the algae were fed, yielded more methane than the algae that
had grown on it. So the entire venture was seen as inefficient: why
make the detour of converting a prime biogas substrate that yields
reasonable quantities of methane, into a substrate that yields less?

Even though it would take us too far to delve into the potential of
hydrogen producing algae, some past and more recent developments are
worth noting. The oil crisis in 1973 already prompted research on
biological hydrogen production, including photosynthetic production,
as part of the search for alternative energy technologies. Green
algae were known as light-dependent, water-splitting catalysts, but
the characteristics of their hydrogen production were not practical
for exploitation.

Hydrogenase is too oxygen-labile for sustainable hydrogen production:
light-dependent hydrogen production ceases within a few to several
tens of minutes since photosynthetically produced oxygen inhibits or
inactivates hydrogenases. A continuous gas flow system designed to
maintain low oxygen concentrations within the reaction vessel, was
employed in basic studies, but has not been found practically
applicable.

Scientists later found that a particular species of algae,
Scenedesmus, does produce molecular hydrogen under light conditions
after being kept under anaerobic and dark conditions.

Basic studies on the mechanisms involved in hydrogen production
determined that the reducing power (electron donation) of hydrogenase
does not always come from water, but may sometimes originate
intracellularly from organic compounds such as starch. The
contribution of the decomposition of organic compounds to hydrogen
production is dependent on the algal species concerned, and on
culture conditions. Even when organic compounds are involved in
hydrogen production, an electron source can be derived from water,
since organic compounds are synthesized by oxygenic photosynthesis.
The reason for hydrogenase inactivity in green algae under normal
photosynthetic growth conditions is unclear. Hydrogenase is thought
to become active in order to excrete excess reducing power under
specific conditions, such as anaerobic conditions.

Very high (10 to 20%) efficiencies of light conversion to hydrogen
have been reported, based on PAR (photosynthetically active radiation
which includes light energy of 400-700nm in wavelength). Recent
findings show that a kind of "short circuit" of photosynthesis
exists, whereby hydrogen production and CO2 fixation occur by a
single photosystem (photosystem II only) of another species, a
Chlamydomonas mutant.

Green algae are applicable in another method of hydrogen production.
Scenedesmus produces hydrogen gas not only under light conditions,
but also fermentatively under dark anaerobic conditions, with
intracellular starch as a reducing source. Although the rate of
fermentative hydrogen production per unit of dry cell weight, was
less than that obtained through light-dependent hydrogen production,
hydrogen production was sustainable due to the absence of oxygen. On
the basis of experiments conducted on fermentative hydrogen
production under dark conditions, other scientists have proposed
hydrogen production in a light/dark cycle. According to their
proposal, CO2 is reduced to starch by photosynthesis in the daytime
(under light conditions) and the starch thus formed, is decomposed to
hydrogen gas and organic acids and/or alcohols under anaerobic
conditions during nighttime (under dark conditions).

The technological merits of this proposal include the fact that
oxygen-inactivation of hydrogenase can be prevented through
maintenance of green algae under anaerobic conditions, nighttime
hours are used effectively, temporal separation of hydrogen and
oxygen production does not require gas separation for simultaneous
water-splitting, and organic acids and alcohols can be converted to
hydrogen gas by photosynthetic bacteria under light conditions. A
pilot plant using a combined system of green algae and photosynthetic
bacteria was operated within a power plant of Kansai Electric Power
Co. Ltd. (Nankoh, Osaka, Japan). Researchers at this plant recently
proposed chemical digestion of algal biomass as a means of producing
substrates for photosynthetic bacteria, thus improving the yield of
starch degradation.

Finally, cyanobacteria have also been found to produce hydrogen gas
auto-fermentatively under dark and anaerobic conditions. Spirulina
species were demonstrated to have the highest activity among
cyanobacteria tested. The nature of the electron carrier for
hydrogenase in cyanobacteria is still unclear.

All in all, hydrogenases have been purified and partially
characterized in only a few cyanobacteria and microalgae.

The question remains: will these laboratory experiments ever make it
on a large scale? Most of the trials require closed photobioreactors
(in order to arrive at anaerobic conditions) and we already know that
these reactors are a major barrier to cost-effective biofuel
production from algae. Finally, no hard data are available on the
overall productivity of hydrogen-producing algae. If they convert
starches into hydrogen very efficiently, this doesn't mean that their
overall gross starch productivity and consequent gross hydrogen
productivity is equally impressive. The latter point is crucial,
because these algae systems compete with ordinary terrestrial energy
crop production, the biomass of which can already be converted into
both liquid fuels and gaseous fuels, quite efficiently (either
thermochemically, through gasification and pyrolysis, or
biochemically, through the enzymatic breakdown of lignocellulose).

Conclusions
One recurring conclusion of all the studies is that harvestable algae
biomass yields max out at around 50 tonnes per hectare per year. This
is below the biomass yields of most tropical energy crops. In most
field situations, algae also tend to be unstable, which entails the
risk of entire cultures being destroyed by invasive competitors.
Harvesting algae is not an easy task; tried cost-effective and
efficient techniques limit the number of species that can be used for
large-scale biofuel production and limit the biomass productivity of
the potentially interesting candidates somewhat. Finally, the ASP did
not succeed in developing a 'super' algae that shows all the desired
properties that make continuous biofuel production on a large scale
feasible.

Given the fact that at the height of the oil crisis (1979-1980), when
oil prices topped records that still stand today, photobioreactors
were deemed to be both impractical and too costly, we think that the
situation today is not much different. The ASP radically chose the
'open pond' option from the beginning, and if algae biofuels are ever
to succeed, this production system will most likely be the one that
is used.

Finally, the claims that algae yield 'enormous' amounts of useable
biomass, have never been demonstrated or substantiated. Algae
production in photobioreactors has never left the laboratory or pilot
phase and no energy balance and greenhouse gas balance analyses exist
for biofuels obtained from such system. The only real data we can
rely on, so far, are those of the projects carried out under the
Aquatic Species Program.

More information:
National Renewable Energy Laboratory: A Look Back at the Department
of Energy's Aquatic Species Program: Biodiesel Production from Algae
[*.pdf], close-out report, 1998.
Michael Briggs, University of New Hampshire, Physics Department,
Widescale Biodiesel Production from Algae, 2004.
BBC Journal h2g2: "Biohydrogen" -may 31, 2004.
Biopact: Biofuels from algae - new breakthrough claimed, July 22, 2006.
Biopact: Growing algae for biofuels in the Negev desert, August 17, 2006.
Biopact: Biohydrogen, a way to revive the 'hydrogen economy'?, August 20, 2006.

posted by Biopact team at 12:06 AM

2 Comments:

JPatten said...

This is a well considered if long analysis of oil production from
algae pointing to some of the failures in the past. However I don't
share the overall theme of pessimism because the studies referred to
ended at least ten years ago and in the interim technology has
continued to evolve and will continue to do so. With regard to
bio-reactors a number of clever but incremental ideas gradually
coming together could change things for the better. For instance
using magnets to alter the properties of calcium in water has long
been used by Koi pond owners to suppress blanket weed in their fish
ponds. Could a similar technique be used to stop algae attaching to
light sources in bio-reactors? Many have referred to locating
bio-reactors beside power stations in order to recycle CO2 but seem
to have missed an important additional bonus which could further
enhance matters and this is the availability of unused waste heat.
Not all power stations sited in urban areas (and elsewhere) are
suitable for hooking up to metropolitan heating schemes and there is
plenty of waste heat out there waiting to be used. Additionally could
some of this waste heat be used in some way to agitate the water
borne algae in the bio-reactors as well as providing a heat source to
encourage growth? I think if we push hard enough and if we are
imaginative enough many of the current problems to do with
bio-reactors could be solved. The worst thing would be to close our
minds from the start. Alternative energy has been continually plagued
with overly vocal nay sayers most particularly those who can see
nothing other than the oil economy. Interestingly pond production of
algae could be a fantastic development for many parts of Africa given
the availability of sunshine so I would therefore urge Biopact to
take it all just a little bit more seriously.

12:32 PM
Biopact team said...

Hi jpatten, thanks for your insights and suggestions.

The main reason why we wrote the piece is to temper some of the
unfounded and unsubstantiated enthusiasm surrounding algae. We try to
keep a critical eye on all biofuel initiatives and developments. One
of the most important aspects of such an attitude is to remain
sceptical about claims in press releases.

First and further-generation biofuels based on terrestrial crops
receive questions on energy balances and lifecycle efficiencies on a
daily basis. Why shouldn't algae biofuels?

You may have read in our previous pieces on algae biofuels that we
are in favor of the technology, provided it makes sense from an
energy efficiency point of view. If it works, then all the better for
all of us. But if it doesn't, we should devote our time and money to
technologies that make more sense.

When it comes to algae-culture in Africa: there has been a small open
pond experiment in Mozambique, carried out by a Dutch students. We
are awaiting the results of this project.

One thing is certain: we have never read a critical assessment of
algae biofuels. We wrote one, sticking to the facts (on biomass
yields), and some may not like these facts.

We have decided no longer to mimick the uncritical press releases on
algae and no longer to report on developments in this sector, as long
as no basic lifecycle assessments are made available.

_______________________________________________

Death of Cost benefit Analysis

pannirbr — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 18:12:28 CDT

http://www.precaution.org/lib/09/prn_cume_risk.090219.htm

Rachel's Democracy & Health News, February 19, 2009

Cumulative Impacts: Death Knell For Cost-benefit Analysis

[Rachel's introduction: The impacts of our various economic
activities are now adding up to a damaged world -- a world in which
Earth's natural capacity for self-renewal has been exceeded and
permanent degradation is evident. Our legal and regulatory systems
were never intended to limit the accumulation of small impacts.
Instead, U.S. law relies on cost-benefit analysis to justify
individual impacts -- a practice that is now obsolete because it is
destroying the planet as a place suitable for human habitation.]

By Peter Montague

In the beginning, planet Earth seemed limitless. Yes, humans could
see that they were making big changes locally -- hunting the wooly
mammoth to extinction, for example, or permanently altering forest
ecosystems with fire. However, for eons there was never a hint that
humans could become a force of geologic proportions, capable of
diminishing the entire planet's capacity to sustain human life. Then
in 1864 George Perkins Marsh published Man and Nature, subtitled
"Physical Geography as Modified by Human Action," the first
scientific study of accumulating harm.

In the U.S., "environment and health" only became a public issue in
the 1950s, starting with cancer-causing food additives and
radioactive fallout from A-bomb tests. In 1962, Rachel Carson's book
Silent Spring described widespread effects from pesticides, offering
evidence that humankind was damaging whole ecosystems.

Congress passed the Water Quality Act in 1965 because people knew
something was wrong when they saw rivers covered with mounds of foam
(from detergents). Even more people started paying attention when the
Cuyahoga River caught fire in Cleveland in 1969.

In 1970, M.I.T. Press published Man's Impact on the Global
Environment, which estimated that the total human "load" on the
natural environment was increasing 5 to 6% each year -- thus doubling
every 12 to 14 years. (By this measure, since 1970 the total human
impact on the global ecosystem has increased somewhere between 7-fold
and 10-fold. At these growth-rates, by 2050 (just 41 years from now),
if nothing changes, the total human impact will have grown another 7-
fold to 10-fold beyond where it is today. Can you image such a world?)

Public concern, validated by scientific information, forced Congress
to pass more than a dozen new national laws in the 1970s, intended to
limit specific harms to the environment. But those laws were not
designed (or intended) to control the cumulative effects of many
small environmental impacts.

As time passed, harm to the natural world grew more ominous and a few
scientists and legal scholars began to nibble around the edges of
this "cumulative impacts" problem. However, only in the past 2 years
have we seen a real breakthrough in analysis -- thanks chiefly to the
work of Joseph H. Guth, a biochemist and lawyer, and his colleagues
at the Science and Environmental Health Network, where Guth serves as
Legal Director.

Acknowledging the problem

In his 1980 book, Overshoot, William Catton, Jr., wrote,
"Infinitesimal actions, if they are numerous and cumulative, can
become enormously consequential." [pg. 177] And he noted that, by
1973, "The world was becoming a place wherein actions that used to be
quite harmless to others became harmful to all of us." [pg. 59]

This is the essence of the "cumulative impacts" problem. Actions that
are tolerable or even harmless at the individual level can degrade
the planet if thousands or millions of people do them. One person
fertilizing a lawn near the Chesapeake Bay makes no real difference
-- but when thousands do it, the Bay is degraded and the storied blue
crab begins to disappear.

People routinely cut down forests and woods, displacing habitat for
wildlife to make space for crops and domestic animals. One small farm
makes no difference, but in 1986 Peter M. Vitousek and others
estimated that the world's human population (then 4.9 billion) was
appropriating for its own use 40% of net primary productivity from
Earth's total available land. Net primary productivity on land is the
mass of plant material produced each year by photosynthesis using
energy from sunlight; it is the total food resource for land-based
life. (There is also net primary productivity in the oceans; if you
include this, then humans in 1986 were appropriating 25% of total
global net primary productivity, Vitousek estimated.)

Vitousek did not extrapolate into the future, but his finding meant
that humans would appropriate 100% of net primary productivity from
land when their numbers grew just 2.5-fold, which will occur around
the year 2050 at the current rate of population growth (1.3% per
year) if nothing changes.

In 1991, two researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in
Tennessee examined 11 industrial chemicals [5 Mbyte PDF] that have
contaminated the entire globe (PCBs, benzene, mercury, etc.). Using
cancer risk estimates provided by U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), they calculated that the worldwide lifetime risk of
cancer from just these 11 chemicals was one-in-a-thousand. They
commented, "Current regulatory approaches for environmental pollution
do not incorporate ways of dealing with global pollution. Instead the
major focus has been on protecting the maximally exposed individual."

This is an important point. U.S. risk assessments (used in conducting
"cost-benefit" analyses) evaluate the danger of a single risk to a
hypothetical most-endangered ("maximally exposed") individual. If the
threat to that individual is found to fall within "acceptable"
limits, then no regulation occurs and "acceptable" amounts of
contamination can be released forever after. Then another risk
assessment and cost- benefit analysis gives a green light to another
"acceptable" release of contaminants. Then another and another. No
one ever asks, "What is the total impact of all these 'acceptable'
risks?" That is the "cumulative impact" problem in a nutshell.

Now Joe Guth has analyzed this problem and offered solutions in three
scholarly papers,[1,2,3] one of which has already been published (in
the Vermont Journal of Environmental Law), and two of which are "in
press" -- soon to appear in the Barry Law Review[2] and the journal
Transnational Law and Contemporary Problems.[3]

To me, the centerpiece of this triad is the paper, "Cumulative
Impacts: Death-Knell for Cost-Benefit Analysis in Environmental
Decisions," though all three papers are essential reading.

In "Cumulative Impacts," Guth lays out the problem in the opening paragraph:

1. We have always assumed that we could tolerate unlimited small
increments of harm as byproducts of economic growth.

2. But now things have changed because numerous studies are telling
us that the cumulative impacts of our economic activities are
degrading the Earth's capacity to support humans.

3. Therefore, humans will have to abandon the use of cost-benefit
analysis to justify individual environmental impacts and, instead,
focus on limiting our cumulative impact to a sustainable size.

As evidence of cumulative harm, Guth cites the authoritative United
Nations-sponsored Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA)[4] -- a
five-year study of the condition of the Earth's ecosystems, involving
1360 scientists from all across the globe.

When the Board of Directors of the MEA issued the first volume of the
study, they said, "At the heart of this assessment is a stark
warning. Human activity is putting such strain on the natural
functions of Earth that the ability of the planet's ecosystems to
sustain future generations can no longer be taken for granted."[5]

Guth also cites the United Nations-sponsored Global Environment
Outlook (known as GEO-4), published in 2007. The GEO-4 report
concluded (among other things) that human activities now require 54
acres (22 hectares) per person globally, but Earth can provide only
39 acres (16 hectares) per person without suffering permanent
degradation. We are living well beyond Earth's means.

(For additional corroboration, see Mathis Wackernagel and others,
"Tracking the ecological overshoot of the human economy," Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences (Vol. 99, No. 14, July 9, 2002),
pgs. 9266-9271 and see the web site of the Global Footprint Network.)

How did we get into this shape?

How did this happen? Joe Guth finds the answer in our laws, which are
the rules by which society generallly operates. If we want society to
operate differently, we've got to change the rules, change the law.

Guth examines legislative law (laws passed by legislatures, such as
the federal Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act) and the common law
(the body of law created by judges, such as negligence and nuisance).
Guth finds that both bodies of law share similar goals and
assumptions, and both assign the "burden of proof" in similar ways,
which I'll explain.

Guth writes, "Our current property and environmental law,[6]
including both federal statutes and the common law, is intentionally
designed to promote unending growth in economic activity. It harbors
the presumption that economic activity generally provides a net
benefit to society despite any accompanying damage it may cause.
Grounded almost invisibly in this starting presumption, most of our
property and environmental laws permit interference with economic
activity only where that starting presumption is proved false, that
is, where a particular activity can be demonstrated to fail to
provide a net benefit to society. These laws for the most part do not
forbid damage to human health or the environment. Rather, even when
fully enforced they permit protection of human health or the
environment only where the benefits of doing so can be proved to
outweigh the costs.... So it is that cost-benefit analysis has become
the legal system's primary tool for deciding when economic activity
may be regulated in the interest of protecting human health and the
environment."

But there's more. As Guth has said, the law does not allow economic
activity to be curtailed just because it is harming someone. The law
will only allow an economic activity to be curtailed if a
cost-benefit analysis shows that the activity is creating more harm
than good. And the law puts the burden of proof on the harmed party,
or on the government, to prove that costs are exceeding benefits
before an economic activity can be curtailed or regulated. If the
harmed party (or the government) cannot meet that burden of proof,
the law defaults to its starting presumption: it allows the damaging
activity to continue.

"This allocation of the burden of proof transforms doubt and missing
information into a barrier to legal protection of human health and
the environment," Guth writes. "This explains why industrial
interests are rationally motivated under our legal system to invest
in the manufacture and spread of doubt and confusion." [See David
Michaels' book, Doubt is their Product, describing an industry
devoted to manufacturing doubt.]

So, if information is missing, or there exists scientific doubt, then
the law presumes that an economic activity should continue -- even
when the law acknowledges that harm is occurring. The default
presumption is that the benefits of economic activity always outweigh
the costs unless a specific cost-benefit analysis can show otherwise.

This explains why the environmental movement -- which has made truly
heroic efforts since 1970 -- has been unable to stem the degradation
of human health and the environment.

Another unspoken presumption of the law is that damage to human
health and the environment can continue to grow forever. Guth shows
this in in Figure 1. The upper curved line in Figure 1 represents
endlessly growing benefits from economic activity. The lower curved
line shows smaller (but also endlessly growing) legally-permitted
harms from economic activity. The space between the upper line and
the lower line is "net benefit" or "net social benefit" or "net
social utility" -- it is the residue of good that remains after costs
have been subtracted from benefits.

The world is new: on our finite planet, ecological limits exist

What's been slowly dawning on people in the last 2 decades is that
there really are limits on how much harm the Earth can tolerate.
There are limits to the total costs the Earth can sustain before it
is permanently damaged. The lower curved line in Figure 1 (which you
can think of as the growing human footprint), by growing without
limit as the law assumes it should, will eventually make the planet
unsuitable for human habitation. And since this planet is the only
place that anyone has ever found in the universe that supports human
life, the law is now allowing -- even promoting -- the destruction of
humankind's only home.

Guth's Figure 2 includes a horizontal line that represents the
ecological limits of the Earth -- the point at which the planet
starts to be permanently degraded, the point at which human damage
has exceeded the Earth's natural capacity for self-renewal. As Guth
says, "This is a limit that our current legal system is utterly blind
to." Our legal system does not acknowledge that such a limit exists.

Joe Guth continues, "Thus we see the fatal flaw inherent in our
system of environmental decision-making. Routinely allowing all
environmental impacts except those proved to fail a cost-benefit
test, it permits those impacts to grow without limit even when their
cumulative effect results in ecological overshoot. Many of these
impacts occur not because they actually satisfy the law's
cost-benefit test but because whenever we do not know enough, the
law's default structure permits them to continue."

Importantly, Guth points out a fundamental flaw in trying to use
cost- benefit analysis after we reach ecological limits: "Even
[though] cost-benefit analysis can effectively evaluate impacts when
we are far below ecological limits, it cannot do so once we exceed
those limits. Each incremental impact, if taken alone in an empty
world, might have caused cost-benefit-justifiable harm or even, in
many cases (such as carbon emissions), no harm at all. But under
conditions of ecological overshoot each incremental impact
contributes to a total loss that is immeasurable. Indeed, the
permanent loss of the ecological integrity of the Earth, since we
need it to survive and prosper, might fairly be considered an
infinite loss."

If you are going to suffer an infinite total loss, your cost-benefit
analysis of each increment of damage ceases to have any meaning.
Under conditions of ecological overshoot, cost-benefit analysis is a
meaningless exercise and a diversion from what's really important --
shrinking the human footprint back down to a size that Earth's
ecosystem can tolerate, learning to live well below the horizontal
line in Figure 2.

Guth concludes, "To maintain the ecological integrity of the Earth,
we need a new decision-making structure designed not to promote
endless growth in net benefits, but to accommodate the ecological
limits of the biosphere, the horizontal line of Figure 2." [Emphasis
added.]

Summary: U.S. law is dominated by cost-benefit analysis

To summarize, then, Joe Guth has described how, in general, the law
works (both statutory law and common law):

** Its goal is perpetual economic growth, even if some damage occurs
as a byproduct

** It presumes that the benefits of economic growth outweigh any
costs (or harms) until someone can prove otherwise

** It places the burden of proof on anyone who wishes to curtail or
regulate any economic activity, even a harmful activity, requiring
them to prove that the harms outweigh the benefits. If such a showing
cannot be made because of missing information, or scientific
confusion or uncertainty or doubt, then the law presumes that the
economic activity should continue.

** Seeking endless growth in net benefit, the law assumes that both
benefits and costs can grow without limit. The law has no way to
acknowledge that there exist ecological limits that sooner or later
must be exceeded by the endless growth of cumulative costs (because
the planet has a finite size), and which we exceed at the peril of
making our only home uninhabitable for our species.

Federal laws contain a few limited exceptions (which I'll describe
below) but, as Guth says, "Taken as a whole... the federal
environmental statutes are not directed toward an overarching goal
such as preservation of ecological integrity. Instead, with some
exceptions, they are deeply committed to a highly fragmented, cost-
benefit-driven evaluation of each individual action proposed by the
government to protect human health and the environment."

The way our laws are written, government regulators are not allowed
to take into consideration, or try to control, cumulative impacts.

Joe Guth continues: "These laws do not permit regulators broadly to
take account of what is happening to the world around them. They
embed regulators in a decision-making structure that may seem
scientific but in fact is profoundly unscientific because it prevents
them from responding to the ever more detailed findings by the world
scientific community that we are overshooting the Earth's ecological
capacities. Rooted in the assumption that ecological overshoot does
not occur, our current statutes are incapable of containing the
cumulative scale of ecological damage. Their approach to
environmental protection is firmly based in the conception of the
world as an empty one rather than as the full one that is in fact
arising all around us. It is an approach that has become outdated
because it is based on assumptions that are no longer valid."

Guth then discusses the common law, showing that modern liability
doctrines -- both negligence and nuisance -- do not prohibit all
harmful impacts, but require the same kind of cost-benefit balancing
that is pervasive in the federal statutes:

"Negligence and nuisance apply broadly to many different
circumstances, including cases arising from damage to human health
and the environment. These doctrines do not seek to prevent or impose
liability for all harm to human health and the environment.
Negligence, for example, places the burden of proof on damaged
plaintiffs to demonstrate that defendants created an "unreasonable"
risk of harm in order to make them liable for the damage they cause.
"Unreasonable" is defined not as a moral principle, but in cost-
benefit terms that compare the social utility of the particular
challenged act to the risks of resulting harm....

"Similarly, nuisance, the quintessential environmental tort, now
places the burden of proof on plaintiffs to prove that the
defendant's intentional acts are "unreasonable." As in negligence,
"unreasonable" is defined explicitly by a cost-benefit test...."

By placing the burden of proof on those who are harmed, the common
law "resolves cases of doubt and missing information in favor of
economic actors, allowing their damaging activities to continue and
rewarding confusion and ignorance," Guth writes.

All is not lost: a new decision structure is possible

With a new decision-making structure, we can learn to enjoy the
fruits of modern technologies while living within the Earth's
ecological limits.

This is where the precautionary principle fits in. Because we can
never be certain exactly where the ecological limits lie, once we
understand that we are approaching or exceeding those limits, there
is only one way to avoid ecological overshoot: eliminate or reduce
every environmental impact that we can. This means applying the
precautionary principle to all activities, large and small, that
cause an environmental impact:

(a) shifting the burden of proof by assuming that every action that
causes an impact on the Earth may be harmful unless proven otherwise;

(b) always seeking, then choosing, the least-harmful alternative; and

(c) paying attention to consequences after decisions have been made,
monitoring, looking for evidence of environmental harm, and being
prepared to reverse course if necessary.

(d) This last requirement means we should favor decisions and courses
of action that are reversible, avoiding irretrievable commitments
(such as the current coal-industry proposal to curb CO2 emissions by
pumping liquid carbon dioxide deep below ground, hoping it will stay
there forever).

Hints of a new decision structure in some existing U.S. laws

In Section II of his "Cumulative Impacts" paper, Joe Guth argues that
"Our legal system already harbors examples of decision-making
structures that establish a principle or standard of environmental
quality or human health and do not rely on cost-benefit balancing.
These examples... show that such legal principles or standards can
enable the legal system to contain the growth of cumulative impacts."
[Emphasis added.]

However, to succeed, Guth argues, we must apply these legal
approaches broadly to our entire economy: "We must subject all our
actions to a new decision-making structure designed to defend and
maintain the ecological integrity of the Earth."

One of these approaches is to establish "environmental rights," as
several states have done by amending their constitutions to give
citizens an explicit right to clean air and water, for example. But
Guth argues that judges typically balance "environmental rights"
against other kinds of rights when they conflict, so environmental
rights (like other rights) cannot be enforced to their full extent.
"Establishing these kinds of [environmental] rights is a critical and
valuable step, one that requires care if the rights are to be
effective."

Meanwhile, as work to establish environmental rights "can and must
continue," Guth argues, "both the common law and legislation are
quite capable of defining and enforcing standards of environmental
integrity and human health."

He then shows how U.S. common law in the 18th and 19th centuries
(before the modern doctrines of negligence and nuisance were
developed) was capable of controlling cumulative impacts. The older
liability rule was expressed (in Latin) as "sic utere tuo ut alienum
non laedas" ("use your own so as not to injure another"). If your
economic activities harmed your neighbor, you were liable for the
harm regardless of what benefits your economic activity might provide
to society.

"The principle of sic utere tuo was built around the presumption that
material damage to property was socially undesirable, and it imposed
a rule of strict liability without regard to the social utility of
the interfering activity," Guth writes. In other words, there was no
cost-benefit balancing in the older doctrine -- you could not harm
your neighbor and get away with it by arguing that your actions
created net social benefits. (In his published paper, "Law for the
Ecological Age[1], Guth traces legal history, showing how the common
law changed profoundly in the 19th century, from "sic utere tuo" to
cost-benefit balancing.) Under "sic utere tuo" every economic actor
who contributed to a demonstrable harm could be held liable for the
cumulative results to which his or her actions contributed.

"Under rules of law that were focused on protecting defined interests
[usable water in a river, for example], rather than on whether a
defendant's acts provided a net benefit to society, the law was able
to protect those interests from the cumulative impact of individually
harmless acts," Guth says. He cites older cases in which businesses
contributing small amount of toxicants to a river were held liable
for the end result, which was a totally-polluted river. They were
forced to stop contributing even small increments to the problem.
Then, as industrialization increased, cost-benefit balancing was
introduced and economic actors were presumed to create "net benefits"
and were allowed to continue polluting unless their pollution could
be shown to fail the cost-benefit test.

Besides showing that profoundly different legal structures are
possible, this history of U.S. property law reveals an important and
encouraging fact: in the past, we have changed our law dramatically
to suit the goals and circumstances of the times, so we can change it
again.

Guth then offers some examples indicating that, in small ways at
least, some federal environmental laws are beginning to address
cumulative impacts of individual pollutants. He points to particular
provisions in the federal Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act requiring
the government to take into consideration total emissions of
particular pollutants into air and water and then allocate those
emissions among economic actors, holding the total emissions of each
particular pollutant within fixed limits. He points to the "cap" part
of the "cap and trade" system created to limit sulfur emissions in
the U.S. Acid Rain program. This "cap" puts a limit on cumulative
emissions from large industrial facilities emitting sulfur.

Similarly, once a species is designated as "threatened" or
"endangered" under the Endangered Species Act, government must
prevent all actions that contribute to the demise of that species.

These are examples of federal statutes and early common laws that are
able to control cumulative impacts, but they have been applied only
to a few pollutants or impacts on species or common-law-protected
interests, each controlled one at a time. They do not broadly seek to
prevent ecological degradation as a whole.

A broad legal principle of preservation of ecological integrity

Ultimately, Guth argues, the law will need to expand this conceptual
approach to define a broad legal principle of preservation of
ecological integrity: "For in ecology we can discover how to evaluate
ecological systems, what impacts the Earth can tolerate and what we
need to maintain and protect from degradation," he says,
acknowledging that it will not be simple or easy.

Some progress in this direction has already been made, he points out.
The Swedish government has set 16 environmental quality goals that
should be met and maintained for the foreseeable future, with many
measurable benchmarks. The Natural Step organization has defined four
principles of sustainability that aim to allow economic activity to
occur within ecological limits. Various ecological studies and
organizations have defined what constitutes "degradation" of an
ecosystem. Much more work is needed, but we're not starting from
scratch.

Joe Guth offers some new ideas of his own for how to restructure the
law around a principle of preservation of ecological integrity. In
his paper, "Law for the Ecological Age," Guth has proposed creating a
new "ecological tort," a "legal rule of the common law that would
presumptively impose liability for impacts on the environment that
may contribute to ecological degradation."

He has also proposed a "Model State Environmental Quality Act" that
"defines a threshold level of environmental impacts that would
trigger placing the burden of proof on defendants, a definition of
who should have standing to assert this rule of law, and a temporary
affirmative defense for those engaged in a meaningful search for less
damaging alternatives."

This does not exhaust the list of suggestions and proposals that Joe
Guth briefly describes in his "Cumulative Impacts" paper. The more
important point is that Guth's three papers have clearly outlined the
specific ways the law will have to change if we are to reverse the
slide (driven by cumulative impacts) toward ecological degradation
and irreversible destruction of humankind's only home, planet Earth.

He has also excavated our legal history to show that, in the past, we
in the U.S. have signficantly changed our law in response to new
social objectives and realities, and therefore we can do it again.

Joe Guth concludes,

"The American government and legal system bear a duty to respond to
the rise of cumulative impacts. The growing human ecological
footprint has made untenable the assumptions on which our current
environmental decision-making structure is based. The central goal of
property and environmental law must shift from promoting endless
growth in costs and benefits to maintaining the ecological systems we
need to survive and prosper.

"By adopting such a new goal, the law would transform the shape of
the economy. If the law contains the permissible scale of cumulative
environmental impacts, the economy would become one that continues to
develop but accommodates rather than undermines the ecological
systems our welfare ultimately depends on. Cost-benefit analysis
might remain useful as we seek less damaging alternatives in a quest
to reduce the scale of cumulative impacts, but it could no longer be
used to justify limitless increments of ecological degradation."

Now it's up to all of us to decide how best to change the law, and
then to get those changes made. The world is new -- because for the
first time in human history the regenerative capacity of the Earth is
being palpably damaged by the human economy. In this new world, many
of our old assumptions, attitudes, and goals are obsolete and getting
in the way. But we can fix all that, so let's get to it. Survival is
not negotiable.

==============

[1] Joseph H. Guth, "Law for the Ecological Age," Vermont Journal of
Environmental Law, Vol. 431 (2008), pgs. 431-512. Available at
http://www.vjel.org/journal/pdf/VJEL10068.pdf

[2] Joseph H. Guth, "Cumulative Impacts: Death-Knell for Cost-Benefit
Analysis in Environmental Decisions," Barry Law Review, 2009. In
press. http://www.barry.edu/law/studentLife/lawreview.htm

[3] Joseph H. Guth, "Resolving the Paradoxes of Discounting in
Environmental Decisions," Transnational Law & Contemporary Problems
Vol. 18 (Winter, 2009). http://www.uiowa.edu/~tlcp/html/view_iss
ues.html

[4] Millennium Ecosystem Assessment -- a series of reports issued by
the United Nations starting in late 2005, assessing the status of
ecosystems worldwide, including (but by no means limited to) effects
on human health. The work began in 2001 and involved 1360 scientists
http://www.millenniumassessment.org/en/Global.aspx

[5] Millennium Ecosystem Assment Board of Directors, Living Beyond
Our Means: Natural Assets and Human Well Being (2005).
http://www.millenniumassessment.org/en/BoardStatement.aspx

[6] By "property and environmental law," Guth is referring to "all
our laws that control the impacts people may have on the environment,
both by altering their own lands and by externalizing impacts onto
the lands of others, or of the commons."

Liquid biofuel from biomass

pannirbr — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 17:53:17 CDT

Liquid Energy from Cane in India ByPhani Mohan, Anagha datta Trade Ayilyam apts-3, Newno-17, SadhullaSt, TNagar, Chennai-17, India. Email: phanis.kancharla@gmail.com
India lacks sufficient domestic energy resources and must import much of its growing energy requirements. India is increasingly dependent on oil imports to meet demand. In addition to pursuing domestic oil and gas exploration and production projects, India is also stepping up its natural gas imports, particularly through imports of liquefied natural gas. The country's ability to secure a reliable supply of energy resources at affordable prices will be one of the most important factors in shaping its future energy demand.
Coal accounts for more than half of India's total energy consumption followed by oil, which comprises 31 percent of total energy consumption. Natural gas and hydroelectric power account for 8 and 6 percent of consumption, respectively. Although nuclear power comprises a very small percentage of total energy consumption at this time, it is expected to increase in light of recent international civil nuclear energy cooperation deals. According to the Indian government, 30 percent of India's total energy needs are met through imports. India had 5.6 billion barrels of proven oil reserves as of January 2009, the second-largest amount in the Asia-Pacific region after China. India's crude oil reserves tend to be light and sweet, with specific gravity varying from 38° API in the offshore Mumbai High field to 32° API at other onshore basins. India produced roughly 880 thousand bbl/d of total oil in 2008, of which approximately 650 thousand bbl/d was crude oil, with the rest of production resulting from other liquids and refinery gain. India has over 3,600 operating oil wells, according to OGJ. Although oil production in India has slightly trended upwards in recent years, it has failed to keep pace with demand and is expected by the EIA to decline slightly in 2009. India's oil consumption has continued to be robust in recent years. In 2007, India consumed approximately 2.8 million bbl/d, making it the fifth largest consumer of oil in the world. Demand grew to nearly 3 million bbl/d in 2008. EIA anticipates consumption growth rates flattening in 2009 largely due to slowing economic growth rates and the recent global financial crisis. The combination of rising oil consumption and relatively flat production has left India increasingly dependent on imports to meet its petroleum demand. In 2006, India was the seventh largest net importer of oil in the world. With 2007 net imports of 1.8 million bbl/d, India is currently dependent on imports for 68 percent of its oil consumption. The EIA expects India to become the fourth largest net importer of oil in the world by 2025, behind the United States, China, and Japan. The government of India's largest crude oil import partner is Saudi Arabia, followed by Iran. Nearly three-fourths of India's crude oil imports come from the Middle East. The Indian government expects this geographical dependence to rise in light of limited prospects for domestic production.
In light of declining production at the majority of India's fields, companies are investing in enhanced oil recovery methods. ONGC plans to invest nearly $1.5 billion in such projects, and a multitude of these schemes have been approved for many of the company's fields. To help meet growing oil demand and support the country's energy security, India has promoted various E&P projects in an effort to boost domestic oil production. However, new E&P projects are expected to be difficult due to their deepwater location or terrain type. In order to address these challenges, Indian companies are recruiting foreign firms with greater experience and more sophisticated technology. For example, ONGC recently assigned a participating interest to Rocksource ASA, a Norwegian company with technological expertise in deepwater drilling, and to Petrobras for the development of an eastern offshore deepwater block. The participation of private foreign firms over the last five years has helped develop previously unexploited deepwater areas and allow India to tap more of its domestic oil resources. Fuel Subsidies Beginning in 2002, the Indian government introduced some measures aimed at deregulation in the downstream oil sector. Private refiners may now directly market some of their own petroleum products to their customers. Additionally, the government phased out the Administered Price Mechanism (APM) on oil products in 2002, replacing it with the new Market Determined Price Mechanism (MDPM). However, while the MDPM is notionally benchmarked to international oil prices, the Indian government continues to heavily subsidize domestic prices of oil products such as diesel, LPG, and kerosene for consumers. As such, demand for petroleum products in India has been substantially influenced by the government's pricing scheme. With diesel prices significantly lower than other fuels, such as gasoline, demand for diesel rose substantially, by as much as 25 percent between 2006 and the first half of 2008, according to industry analysts. In support of the country's energy security, Indian officials have declared that the country intends to develop a strategic petroleum reserve (SPR). The decision has been made to set up a strategic reserve of 5 million tons (36.6 million barrels) of crude oil in underground structures in Mangalore, Visakhapatnam, and Padur. The project is expected to come online in 2012. The location of the storage facilities was selected to be along the coast so that the reserves could be easily transported to refineries during a supply disruption. The SPR project is being managed by the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Limited (ISPRL), which is part of Oil Industry Development Board (OIDB), a state-controlled organization. Despite these plans, India does not have any strategic crude oil stocks at this time. Inspite of severe shortages and enhanced future requirements, GOI is still to Comprehend and support Ethanol Blending. It has different outlook to Biodiesel and all support mechanisms and policy decessions are for Diesel which is being heavily subsidised. Plant Biotechnology in Sugar is yet to take shape and we lag to move towards developing Biomass and second generation Cellulosic distillation technologies. Ethanol is still being viewed as Fuel and Oil Companies which discuss calorific value not taking in to account itas Oxygenate with advantages in reducing CHG emissions. Sugarcane in India:
Indian Sugar Industry has made a turnaround in last 5 years from being a seasonal and Cyclic Industry to a Biorefinery model. Here Sugar, Distillation, Cogen and Biofertilizer are produced optimizing their resources. With CDM taking shape since 2004 some of these also have utilized opportunity of Cogen by enhancing Boilers and generating additional Power to be sold to Grid and also benefit CER / VER realization. Few of them have also realized CDM for Distillation (Methanation). If UNFCCC provides benefit of CDM realization to Ethanol manufacturers then there is additional benefit that accrues to existing. Indian sugar industry operates in Zone area allocated to them; they are well networked with farming community of that zone sharing on all areas of inputs from seeding, Crop management, harvesting, and logistics and even in Loan disbursal from banks. So for two crop years once planted farmer is relieved of sale and pricing of produce and is attracted to this crop as long as it does not pinch his wallet. Harvesting Cost of Sugarcane is of growing concern and its timeliness, as Sucrose content deteriorates if not done at appropriate time. There has been marked improvement in farm equipment too in this segment.Using water shoots and Tops as Fodder has been prevalent for centuries. Indian sugar industry's success is also due to contribution from Sugar Breeding Institute (Coimbatore), vasant Dada institute, Regional Bodies in Sugarcane research and others. SBI is one of the two World repositories (the other being at Miami, Florida state, USA) of sugarcane germplasm. India is the world's largest consumer of cheap liquor and is a major revenue source of state Govt's, with potable alcohol growing above 10% each year and its impact on Social fabric catastrophic and not taken seriously; Energy & Chemical value addition has lot of relevance that need to have support of all. There is another menace of Illicit Liquor from Jaggery and if this curtailed will make more available cane for Crushing. India occupies 40% of Global sugar mkt. Of the total cane produced 12% to go in to seed production, 5% to chewing and Juice, 25-30% to Khandasari (jiggery).Only 60%would be used for actual sugar production. Percapita consumption of sugar in India: 20kg and 5Kg Jaggery. Plant/Ratoon ratio is usually 45/55 to 55/45, but almost after 3 decades it's shifting to 30/70 and to overcome this additional 14-15 milling plantation is required for Sugar alone. Moving towards Transgenetic sugar for alcohol manufacture also would enhance yields.Most of Mills have gone for Semi automation of Milling and Honeywell, Rockwell, OA, ABB, Siemens and several entered this Domain. As future is unfolding to smart grid and Plug-in technologies this Industry would see more of development. With CNG being produced of spent wash and this also being worthy template for CDM, we would see rural landscape buzzing with Flex fuel vehicles and vibrant innovations. Biofertilizer of spent wash is a must for all distillations and is still better to Incernation as to totally burn residues we need high energy and Biofertilizer would enhance soil fertility. Today most Molasses trading Companies like UMC, SVG, Peter Cremer, and Toepfer have no sellers at all and Domestically Present Indian Molasses Prices are above 7000 INR, so factories without distillation too are generating Good Revenues. Bagasse is also being completely utilized for self Cogeneration and as future is moving to whole cane crushing with Sugars induced in cane leaves no Trash would go waste or burnt in field. Bioplastics is another area which is catching the attention of Industry and Bagasse is the raw material with Sugar as binder and this also Generated CDM. Some have been using Bagasse for paper and particle board manufacturing. With Agronomy being the prime focus to bring better yields, Crop Sciences have also taken Centre stage and companies like Syngenta, Monsanto, and DuPont and several others conducting lot of research. Indian Companies like NFL, Nuziveedu Seeds, Ralli's have also seen Success. Other area of focus in Indian Biofuel Industry is Enzyme manufacturers like Novozyme, Genencor, Abmauri, Tate, Richcore lifesciences, Enzyme India etc. Traditional Practices like Black Gold agriculture which enhances carbon content and Soil health have again come back to centre stage. VAM fungus has also seen Success in Sugarcane cultivation. Optimizing Fertilizer, water, Insecticides, Pesticides, Herbicides and mapping Crop has also taken precedence. For Seed Treatment of Cane Renewable resources like Solar Power for steam and Temperature are being utilized. Future Cultivation should enable more ratoon years to bring down cost as well stop soil erosion. Manpower in Harvesting being Critical Semi and full harvesting is being studied and also to optimize cost. Mahindra Tractors is working on Solutions around Tractor suiting Asian needs. In Sugar manufacturing saving steam, minimizing usage of Lime, HCL, Sulphur and also moving towards refined Sugar has caught up attention of Industry. Using Fondant for Crystallization is visible in all plants. Sugar the Commodity is moving from being a sweetener to Fortification and Low GI Sugar bringing in value addition and take cognizance of Health & Diet.With Distillation rapidly moving towards Second generation and Stable prices for Alcohol as Fuel and also Potable usage, Sugarcane's 50% revenue stream would be from Sugar and 50% from Alcohol and Cogen.
Alcohol requirement: Alcohol based chemical Industries: 1,100 million Its Potable Alcohol requirement: 1,000 million Its @5% ethanol Blending : 600 million Its @10% ethanol Blending : + 600 million Its ---------------------------- 3,300 Million Its ----------------------------
India produces 1.3 billion Its and requires almost 2 billion Its if it has to cater 10% blending. Petrol Consumed in 2006-07: 9,295,000MT.Only 0.64% of petrol is replaced with Ethanol. Alcohol at 10% level requires another 10-15 million KIts, so a possible acreage growth of 25-30Million ton based on price rewarded to farmer. Area Under Sugarcane : 3,329,000 hectares

Production of Sugarcane (Yield) : 65 MT/Hectare
No of Factories in Operation : 500 & above
Average capacity of factory : 3500 Tone Per Day
Molasses Production : 6,500,000 MT
Molasses Percentage : 4.4%
Percapita Consumption of Sugar : 20 Kg
Percapita Consumption of Jaggery : 5Kg

Of the Total Cane Production :

12% will go in to Seed purpose and 5% goes to Chewing and Juice manufacturing.
25-30% will go in to Khandasari and Jaggery Production.
Only 60% is being used for Sugar production.India requires additional 30 million ton of cane production to its regular sugar sweetener cane requirement.

Other Liquid Fuels of Cane

Bio Butanol: Biobutanol offers several advantages. It can be transported in existing pipelines, it's less corrosive, it can be mixed with gasoline or used alone in internal combustion engines, and it packs more energy per gallon than ethanol. Until the mid-20th century, Biobutanol was produced from fermented sugars such as corn glucose. But low yields, high recovery costs and petroleum's increased availability after World War II sidelined fermentation-based systems for Biobutanol production. Biobutanol processes employed Clostridium bacteria to carry out the critical task of fermentation. Such processes normally involve four preparatory steps (pretreatment, hydrolysis, fermentation and recovery) carried out separately and sequentially. Now only three steps used. For example, enzymes and the bacteria are allowed to carry out their respective tasks simultaneously. Throughout, a procedure known as "gas stripping" is used to extract the Biobutanol as it is produced. "fed-batch-feeding," increased production even further. For example, during a 22-day fed-batch operating period, a culture of C. beijerinkcii P260 converted nearly 430 grams of sugar into 192 combined grams of acetone, Biobutanol and ethanol. Laxmi organic industries of Mumbai has announced Biobutanol plant of 1000MT/Year with Green BioLogics UK.
Methanol: (CH3OH) is a simple one-carbon alcohol that is a colorless and tasteless liquid with a faint odor. Other names are Methyl-alcohol and Wood-alcohol. It is produced from natural gas but can also be derived from renewable bio-feedstocks. Methanol is a basic building bloc and a raw material for many derivatives in the chemical industry. It is used to produce formaldehyde, acetic acid and a variety of other chemical intermediates. These derivatives are ultimately used in the manufacture of countless products that we find in our everyday lives, including: resins, adhesives, paints, inks, foams, silicones, plastic bottles, polyester, solvents and windshield washer fluid. A significant amount of methanol is also used to make MTBE (methyl tertiary butyl ether), an additive used in cleaner burning gasoline. Methanol is also widely considered to be a potential hydrogen carrier for many future fuel cell applications. Worldwide consumption of methanol is about 35 million tons which ranks it among the top 4 globally used chemicals.

Liquid Hydrogen: Comprising nano particles of rhodium and palladium, supported by larger particles of cerium oxide, the catalyst allows the reaction to occur at a temperature of around 500 degrees Celsius. The hydrogen produced is reported to be pure enough for use in fuel cells and, unlike current production methods which are 90 per cent reliant on natural gas and emit large quantities of carbon dioxide the fuel source is renewable. "As with traditional methods of hydrogen production, carbon dioxide is still created during the process we have developed. However unlike fossil fuels which are underground we are using ethanol generated from an above-the-ground source - plants or crops. This means that any carbon dioxide created during the process is assimilated back into the environment. Tata's and ISRO are working on Hydrogen Fuelled vehicles.

Biogas Engines Expanding the Use of Agricultural Waste as Renewable Power Source

pannirbr — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 17:30:11 CDT

ENBACH, Austria--(BUSINESS WIRE)--With the international community
seeking to expand the development of different types of renewable
energy, more farmers in North America and Europe are using GE Energy’s
ecomagination-certified Jenbacher engines to generate onsite power from
biogas created from converted animal waste and other agricultural organic materials.

In the European Union (EU), where agriculture is responsible for 9% of greenhouse gas emissions1, countries are being encouraged to expand the use of cogeneration technologies to reduce various industrial source points of methane gas emissions—including agricultural operations. The waste of 2,500 cows, 15,000 pigs or 300,000 chickens can create enough biogas to power one of GE’s Jenbacher cogeneration units with electrical output of 500 kW, which is enough energy to supply more than 900 EU homes.

Although the practice is more widely accepted in Europe, a growing
number of farmers in both the United States and Canada are also
installing similar systems to generate onsite power from methane-rich biogas that is created from the breakdown of organic materials, including animal manure and energy crops.

By producing biogas from animal manure as substitute for fossil fuels, any additional greenhouse gas emissions are avoided. Additionally, farmers also benefit from the biogas generation’s end-product: a high-quality, agricultural fertilizer that neutralizes acid
levels with a higher Ph-value and is nearly odorless. Using this kind
of fertilizer instead of the original manure has a positive effect on
the local water bodies.

“In the face of dwindling reserves of fossil fuels, this solution provides an attractive, renewable alternative. The use of agricultural waste to produce biogas gives farms another way to reduce their operational costs and greenhouse gas emissions,” said Prady Iyyanki, CEO of GE Energy’s Jenbacher gas engine business.

April 2009 marks the third anniversary of the installation of one of GE’s Jenbacher biogas
systems at Norswiss Farms in Rice Lake in Wisconsin, a major dairy
producing state. The 1,100-cow dairy farm is operating an 848-kW,
combined heat and power (CHP) system that uses digester biogas created from a mixture of cow manure and other waste. The electricity generated is delivered into the grid and can power about 600 U.S. homes, while the heat is delivered through heat exchangers
and used to support the manure digestion process. The separated,
digested solids are used as animal bedding—a replacement for sawdust, woodchips or sand.

GE Energy's Jenbacher gas engine business is a leading manufacturer of gas-fueled reciprocating engines, packaged generator sets and cogeneration units for power generation. GE’s gas engine
technology covers an output range of 0.25 to four MW and can operate on
a broad variety of gases while offering high levels of efficiency,
durability and reliability.

GE Energy’s Jenbacher technology is well established in many European countries, with more than 1,100 engines running on biogas, including in Germany (Europe’s leading country in this application), Austria and, most recently, for a biomass-to-energy
project in Limena, northeastern Italy. In 2008, GE’s Jenbacher
equipment was installed to process agricultural waste at the Baita del
Latte farm plant in Limena, Italy to produce 1.06-MW of electricity. The project is designed to prevent the annual release of 5,000 tons of CO2 into the atmosphere.

France also is well positioned to develop additional alternative power generation from biogas out of agricultural waste and various energy crops.
In 2009, the French government implemented a new initiative, “Objectif
Terres 2020,” to encourage the production of renewable energy derived
from agricultural sources.

Every year, France—which has the largest farming sector in the
EU—generates 300 million tons of livestock manure. This alone
represents the energy equivalent of between three and four million tons
of oil a year – enough to support the annual energy requirements of
nine to 12 million homes in France2.

Numerous GE Energy products are certified under ecomagination, GE’s
corporate-wide initiative to aggressively bring to market new
technologies that will help customers meet pressing environmental challenges. In addition to its various cogeneration applications, GE's Jenbacher biogas, landfill gas and coal mine methane engines previously received ecomagination certification, underscoring the environmental and economic benefits offered from the utilization of generating energy from high methane content waste streams.

About GE Energy

GE Energy (www.ge.com/energy)
is one of the world’s leading suppliers of power generation and energy
delivery technologies, with 2008 revenue of $29.3 billion. Based in
Atlanta, Georgia, GE Energy works in all areas of the energy industry
including coal, oil, natural gas and nuclear energy; renewable resources such as water, wind, solar and biogas; and other alternative fuels.

About GE

GE is a diversified global infrastructure, finance and media company
that is built to meet essential world needs. From energy, water,
transportation and health to access to money and information, GE serves
customers in more than 100 countries and employs more than 300,000
people worldwide. For more information, visit the company's Web site at
http://www.ge.com. GE is Imagination at Work.

Yahoo! Cocina
Recetas prácticas y comida saludable
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