Small-scale production of straight vegetable oil from rapeseed and its use as biofuel in the Spanish territory

Abstract

Biofuels nowadays are an important topic of study. The most significant point is the availability of bioethanol or biodiesel and their production from different raw materials. It is already known that large-scale production of first-generation biodiesel cannot be seen as an alternative to fossil fuels due to land requirements, competition with food, increase in fertilizer requirements and pressure on tropical forests among others. This fact does not necessarily apply to second-generation biofuels or small-scale niche productions. Straight vegetable oil (SVO) can be used directly in diesel engines with minor modifications. Our proposal is a small-scale SVO production system for self-supply in agricultural machinery. In this paper a model to provide SVO to local farmers in a specific area in Catalonia (Spain) is presented. We also present a discussion about the regulations to be changed in order to make possible the incorporation of SVO as engine fuel in diesel vehicles and a comparative analysis between the emissions of tractors fed with SVO and petrodiesel. Moreover, a quantitative economic analysis of modifying diesel engines and long-term operability costs are shown and a first-run economic analysis comparing the actual crop rotation with the proposed one and some alternatives is studied.