Avaliação do desempenho ambiental e energético do ciclo de vida do etanol produzido a partir da batata doce cultivada no estado do Tocantins

Abstract

Currently industrial organizations noted the importance of preserving the environment and is demonstrating a growing interest in acting in a sustainable way in the use of raw materials for generation of products. Therefore, methods and tools that enable the identification of the relationship between products and processes and the environment is necessary. This study aimed to evaluate the energy and environmental performance of the life cycle of sweet potato ethanol production grown in Tocantins, and the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was the tool that allowed us to analyze the potential environmental impacts for ethanol production, from extraction of raw materials to production at the plant, evaluating the agricultural and industrial phases of their life cycle. Based on LCA results was possible to identify the categories of environmental impact climate change, eutrophication and acidification Land had higher contributions related to the agricultural phase, whose emissions of acidifying gases, greenhouse gas emissions and "non-renewable energy resources use were" related to the use of synthetic fertilizers and the use of fossil fuels especially in the planting and management of sweet potato process, which indicates the need for a more efficient use of those resources. In the energy assessment it was found that the production of sweet potato ethanol is feasible in relation to net energy generating total of 1.36 MJ for each unit of energy consumed, and 1.76 MJ produced for each unit of fossil energy expended to manufacture.