Impacts of International Commodity Trade on Conventional Biofuels Production

Mizik, Tamás

doi:10.3390/su12072626

Cited by 15 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…This is even worse if the lower energy content of biodiesel is taken into account (weighted USD/L price). Practically it means that without additional support, tax credit or blending mandate, biodiesel production could not be profitable even for the most efficient producers [1]. The major raw material is soybean in the USA, Argentina and Brazil.…”

Section: Major Characteristics Of the Biodiesel Sectormentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Besides their renewable nature, they are considered greenhouse gas (henceforth referred to as GHG)-neutral, as the previously absorbed carbon dioxide is released during their burning. However, the emission level of GHGs can be significant during their production stages from cultivation to processing [1]. Normally, the use of biodiesel results in higher nitrogen (NO x ) and lower carbon monoxide and smoke emissions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Economic and Sustainability of Biodiesel Production—A Systematic Literature Review

2021

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As Earth’s fossil energy resources are limited, there is a growing need for renewable resources such as biodiesel. That is the reason why the social, economic and environmental impacts of biofuels became an important research topic in the last decade. Depleted stocks of crude oil and the significant level of environmental pollution encourage researchers and professionals to seek and find solutions. The study aims to analyze the economic and sustainability issues of biodiesel production by a systematic literature review. During this process, 53 relevant studies were analyzed out of 13,069 identified articles. Every study agrees that there are several concerns about the first-generation technology; however, further generations cannot be price-competitive at this moment due to the immature technology and high production costs. However, there are promising alternatives, such as wastewater-based microalgae with up to 70% oil content, fat, oils and grease (FOG), when production cost is below 799 USD/gallon, and municipal solid waste-volatile fatty acids technology, where the raw material is free. Proper management of the co-products (mainly glycerol) is essential, especially at the currently low petroleum prices (0.29 USD/L), which can only be handled by the biorefineries. Sustainability is sometimes translated as cost efficiency, but the complex interpretation is becoming more common. Common elements of sustainability are environmental and social, as well as economic, issues.

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Section: Major Characteristics Of the Biodiesel Sectormentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Economic and Sustainability of Biodiesel Production—A Systematic Literature Review

2021

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“…In terms of the production methods, two processes are currently widely used: drymilling and wet-milling. The major differences of these two processes are [10]:…”

Section: Hydrolysis and Subsequent Fermentation Negativementioning

confidence: 99%

Economic Aspects and Sustainability of Ethanol Production—A Systematic Literature Review

Mizik

2021

Energies

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Meeting the increasing global energy demand in a sustainable way is a major challenge for humanity. One of the solutions in the transportation sector is ethanol, which is currently the only economically viable direct fuel substitute. In addition to the first-generation technology, which provides the vast majority of production, better results can be continuously realized by using advanced technologies. This study aims to investigate the economic aspects and sustainability issues of ethanol production with a systematic literature review. During the selection process, 64 studies from a total of 16,141 identified articles were analyzed in-depth. There is a consensus that first-generation production methods cannot result in a long-term solution. However, advanced technologies are currently immature, and ethanol production is more expensive with them. The use of wastes/residues and coproducts can improve both the economic outlook and sustainability of the advanced technologies. Overall, the newer generations of technological advancements are constantly improving the environmental performance, whereas the economic performance is deteriorating. Considering low oil prices (0.36 USD/L), none of the ethanol production methods can be competitive on a purely cost basis. This increases the importance of coproducts (further processing and more valuable coproducts). Regarding sustainability, a complex analysis is essential, which must cover at least the environmental, social, and economic aspects. At the methodology level, a complex life cycle analysis seems to be the best tool, as it can take into account these relevant aspects (environmental, economic, and social).

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“…Due to this strong correlation, any measures (e.g., home office) against the further spread of the virus are going to lower oil prices even further. This scenario, ceteris paribus, makes biofuels production uncompetitive, especially in countries with higher production costs, which basically means every country with the exception of Brazil [24]. Although the demand of different oil products increased remarkably from May to August 2020, the second wave of the pandemic has caused significant, regionally different fluctuations in gasoline markets.…”

Section: The Impacts Of the Covid-19 Pandemicmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the approximately 30% lower energy density of ethanol should be taken into account. The exportation of maize and sugarcane negatively impact ethanol production [24]. Due mainly to the environmental regulations and the limited quantity of raw materials, the share of further ethanol generations (e.g., cellulose-based) is expected to grow [25,26].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Major Driving Forces of the EU and US Ethanol Markets with Special Attention Paid to the COVID-19 Pandemic

et al. 2020

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Ethanol is a widely produced fuel, as well as a fuel additive. Its price is closely related to the price of gasoline, its major substitute. This paper focuses on the impacts of the related variables on regional ethanol prices. Additionally, the length of the price dataset made it possible to isolate the impacts of COVID-19 on the ethanol prices. Using multiple regression and Confirmatory Factor Analyses, we found no significant correlation between the European and US ethanol prices because the major influencing factors were regionally different. In the case of the European ethanol markets, the positive factors were wheat, maize, and potassium chloride prices, while the European sugar and diammonium phosphate prices were negative. In the US markets, gasoline, sugar, and most of the artificial fertilizer prices were positive, while wheat prices were negative. Based on factor analysis, artificial fertilizers and maize factors proved to be important to the European markets, while US ethanol prices were driven by the crude oil-gasoline and raw materials factors. The COVID variable showed no significant connection with the EU prices, but negatively affected the US ethanol prices. This is explained by the different market characteristics, as the US is not only the major consumer, but also the major producer of the different oil products. Therefore, COVID-19 had a double effect on their oil and ethanol markets.

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Impacts of International Commodity Trade on Conventional Biofuels Production

Cited by 15 publications

References 17 publications

Economic and Sustainability of Biodiesel Production—A Systematic Literature Review

Economic and Sustainability of Biodiesel Production—A Systematic Literature Review

Economic Aspects and Sustainability of Ethanol Production—A Systematic Literature Review

The Major Driving Forces of the EU and US Ethanol Markets with Special Attention Paid to the COVID-19 Pandemic

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