Researchers Unlock Potential of Desert Plants for Cleaner Efficient Energy

December 26, 2024

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(Canterbury Christ Church University) Researchers have found a more sustainable way to produce energy using plants that can survive in dry conditions such as deserts. These drought-tolerant plants, also known as arid plants, could help create cleaner and more efficient biofuels on a large scale. Biofuels are renewable energy sources made from biological materials like plants and algae.

The study was undertaken by researchers from Canterbury Christ Church University in the UK, Southern University in the USA, and Universidad Autónoma Chapingo in Mexico.

The desert solution

Arid plants are nature’s survivalists, requiring minimal water, land, and care to flourish. Researchers have identified these resilient plants as sustainable feedstocks, offering a greener alternative for the biofuel industry. Unlike traditional crops like corn or wheat, which compete with food resources and require intensive care, arid plants grow in harsh conditions and their farming is mostly dry which avoids moving and separating large volumes of water (normally done in algae harvesting) meaning less pollution and less input of resources including using energy and machinery.

Project lead and Senior Lecturer in Chemical Engineering Ernesto Hernandez emphasised the importance of the research: “Our agrobiorefinery is cleaner and more energy-efficient, using just a third of the energy required by traditional systems.

“This approach addresses critical debates like the ‘Food for Fuels’ and ‘Land Use Change’ crises, which have made biofuel production controversial.”

A smarter, greener system

The new process integrates agriculture and biorefinery systems into an "agrobiorefinery," overcoming inefficiencies that have long plagued biofuel production. Traditional biorefineries rely on biomass like algae, corn, and rice straw, which are resource-intensive and contribute to air and water pollution.

Beyond biofuel

Agriculture has been the backbone of human civilisation, but modern practices face challenges in balancing economic development with resource conservation. This research demonstrates how aligning agriculture with energy production can yield solutions that support the circular economy while addressing climate change.

From reducing dependence on fossil fuels to reshaping the landscape of sustainable manufacturing, this agrobiorefinery system could play a pivotal role in achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

Dr. Hernandez added: “This innovation offers a roadmap for cleaner energy production without compromising food security or natural resources. It’s a step forward in turning the challenges of the biofuel industry into opportunities for a greener future.”

Dr. Rafael Ramírez-Arpide of the Universidad Autónoma Chapingo said, “Through life cycle thinking, we can identify hotspots of a process to find more sustainable solutions, as in this case, we analysed different scenarios to find those that reduce environmental impacts during biofuel production".

The research, published in Energy Conversion and Management, highlights the results of the study:

Energy efficiency: The system slashes energy use, requiring only a third of the input energy needed by conventional methods.

Higher bioethanol yields: Outperforms standard feedstocks like corn stover, bagasse and algae in ethanol production.

Environmental aims: Scaling this innovation could transform vast stretches of Earth into carbon dioxide-absorbing zones, significantly mitigating global warming. READ MORE

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Sustainable agrobiorefinery system for advanced ethanol production from Opuntia prickly pear cactus nopales (Energy Conservation and Management)

Excerpt from Energy Conservation and Management: Highlights

Nopales, manure, ionic liquid and loop enable a cleaner and energy-efficient system.
88.9% of soluble feedstock bypasses pretreatment and enhances the agrobiorefinery.
The best scenario had the highest energy efficiency (0.33 MJ/MJ ethanol produced).
Using unrecycled ionic liquids and acetone resulted in the worst energy efficiency.
The best scenario had a threefold energy efficiency of a traditional biorefinery.

Abstract

Cleaner industrial bioethanol production from sustainable biomass could support the circular economy to achieve Sustainable Development Goals while tackling climate change. Ethanol from the arid plants nopales (prickly pear, Opuntia ficus-indica) offers promising benefits for energy transition, water conservation and food security. However, the environmental impact and energy efficiency of nopal farming and ethanol production in plant-wide biorefineries are unknown. Inorganic production and the classic biorefinery cause undesirable environmental impacts that could be assessed to design better systems. Experiments and analyses of scenarios were performed to propose a cleaner and more energy-efficient farming and ethanol production in a plant-wide biorefinery. Four realistic scenarios considered two fertilisers, two pretreatments and two operational modes. Then, life cycle assessment, energy balances and energy efficiency principles were applied. Scenario 1 was environmentally harmful and energy inefficient (inorganic production and classic biorefinery). Scenario 4 is the cleanest and most energy-efficient (organic fertilisers and ionic liquids with acetone washing in a loop process). Scenario 4 showed the lowest impacts across all categories assessed, including global warming, acidification and eutrophication potentials (1.5 kg eq CO2, 0.004 kg eq SO2 and 0.0006 kg eq PO4, respectively). This enhanced system used the lowest amount of energy (0.33 MJMJethanolproduced-1) and showed the best energy efficiency when converting input energy into net energy as ethanol fuel (three-fold of that of scenario 1). Sustainable systems like scenario 4 may offer opportunities for climate risk mitigation, renewable energy production, carbon neutrality and green energy.