CO2 Footprint of the Seeds of Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) as a Biodiesel Feedstock Source
Crude rubber seed oil (CRSO) is a promising but currently underutilized biodiesel feedstock alternative, extracted by pressing the seeds of the rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis). Rubber trees are cultivated across more than 11.4 million hectares worldwide, mainly in Southeast Asia. Despite their suit...
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doaj-88b7ee3ba9ba4eb3986a371aa083fd862020-11-24T23:46:51ZengMDPI AGForests1999-49072018-09-019954810.3390/f9090548f9090548CO2 Footprint of the Seeds of Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) as a Biodiesel Feedstock SourceMoritz Wagner0Melvin Lippe1Iris Lewandowski2Mirko Salzer3Georg Cadisch4Department Biobased Products and Energy Crops, Institute of Crop Science, University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, GermanyThünen Institute of International Forestry and Forest Economics, 21031 Hamburg, GermanyDepartment Biobased Products and Energy Crops, Institute of Crop Science, University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, GermanyDepartment Agronomy in the Tropics and Subtropics, Institute of Agricultural Sciences in the Tropics (Hans-Ruthenberg-Institute), University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, GermanyDepartment Agronomy in the Tropics and Subtropics, Institute of Agricultural Sciences in the Tropics (Hans-Ruthenberg-Institute), University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, GermanyCrude rubber seed oil (CRSO) is a promising but currently underutilized biodiesel feedstock alternative, extracted by pressing the seeds of the rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis). Rubber trees are cultivated across more than 11.4 million hectares worldwide, mainly in Southeast Asia. Despite their suitability as a biodiesel feedstock source, rubber seeds are currently treated as waste in the monocultural plantation system. To date, no assessments have been performed to examine the potential impact of rubber seed-based biodiesel production on GHG emissions. This study analyses the global warming potential of rubber seed methyl ester (RSME) production in Southeast Asia. The functional unit used is 1 MJ of biodiesel. A sensitivity analysis assesses the influence of key parameters (e.g., rubber seed yield) on the GHG mitigation potential. A scenario analysis evaluates the effect of using RSME by-products for energy generation. In comparison to fossil diesel, RSME has a carbon mitigation potential of 67 g CO2.eq. MJ−1, based on allocation by mass. On the condition of compliance with international sustainability standards that call for deforestation-free value chains, the generation of RSME biodiesel on rubber tree plantations in Southeast Asia would have a total mitigation potential of around 2.8 million tonnes of CO2 eq. per year.http://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/9/9/548LCAGHG emissionsrubber tree seedsbiodieselmitigation potentialCO2 footprint |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Moritz Wagner Melvin Lippe Iris Lewandowski Mirko Salzer Georg Cadisch |
spellingShingle |
Moritz Wagner Melvin Lippe Iris Lewandowski Mirko Salzer Georg Cadisch CO2 Footprint of the Seeds of Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) as a Biodiesel Feedstock Source Forests LCA GHG emissions rubber tree seeds biodiesel mitigation potential CO2 footprint |
author_facet |
Moritz Wagner Melvin Lippe Iris Lewandowski Mirko Salzer Georg Cadisch |
author_sort |
Moritz Wagner |
title |
CO2 Footprint of the Seeds of Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) as a Biodiesel Feedstock Source |
title_short |
CO2 Footprint of the Seeds of Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) as a Biodiesel Feedstock Source |
title_full |
CO2 Footprint of the Seeds of Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) as a Biodiesel Feedstock Source |
title_fullStr |
CO2 Footprint of the Seeds of Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) as a Biodiesel Feedstock Source |
title_full_unstemmed |
CO2 Footprint of the Seeds of Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) as a Biodiesel Feedstock Source |
title_sort |
co2 footprint of the seeds of rubber (hevea brasiliensis) as a biodiesel feedstock source |
publisher |
MDPI AG |
series |
Forests |
issn |
1999-4907 |
publishDate |
2018-09-01 |
description |
Crude rubber seed oil (CRSO) is a promising but currently underutilized biodiesel feedstock alternative, extracted by pressing the seeds of the rubber tree (Hevea brasiliensis). Rubber trees are cultivated across more than 11.4 million hectares worldwide, mainly in Southeast Asia. Despite their suitability as a biodiesel feedstock source, rubber seeds are currently treated as waste in the monocultural plantation system. To date, no assessments have been performed to examine the potential impact of rubber seed-based biodiesel production on GHG emissions. This study analyses the global warming potential of rubber seed methyl ester (RSME) production in Southeast Asia. The functional unit used is 1 MJ of biodiesel. A sensitivity analysis assesses the influence of key parameters (e.g., rubber seed yield) on the GHG mitigation potential. A scenario analysis evaluates the effect of using RSME by-products for energy generation. In comparison to fossil diesel, RSME has a carbon mitigation potential of 67 g CO2.eq. MJ−1, based on allocation by mass. On the condition of compliance with international sustainability standards that call for deforestation-free value chains, the generation of RSME biodiesel on rubber tree plantations in Southeast Asia would have a total mitigation potential of around 2.8 million tonnes of CO2 eq. per year. |
topic |
LCA GHG emissions rubber tree seeds biodiesel mitigation potential CO2 footprint |
url |
http://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/9/9/548 |
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