Thermodynamic Analysis of Waste Vegetable Oil Conversion to Biodiesel with Solar Energy

José A. León, Gisela Montero, Marcos A. Coronado, José R. Ayala, Daniela G. Montes, Laura J. Pérez, Lisandra Quintana and Jesús M. Armenta
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José A. León: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico
Gisela Montero: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico
Marcos A. Coronado: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico
José R. Ayala: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico
Daniela G. Montes: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico
Laura J. Pérez: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico
Lisandra Quintana: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico
Jesús M. Armenta: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico

Energies, 2022, vol. 15, issue 5, 1-17

Abstract: Exergy and energy analyses of two biodiesel production processes that integrate solar energy as the main energy source were developed to determine the process with the higher efficiency from an energy and exergy approach. The biodiesel production processes were simulated in ASPEN PLUS ®, and the solar energy supply was studied in TRNSYS ® , using EXCEL ® simultaneously for the exergetic analysis. The solar thermal energy collection system can supply 81% of the energy required by the alkali process in the Flash separation equipment. For the supercritical process, solar thermal energy can supply 74.5% of the energy in the preheating and separation stages. The energy efficiency of the supercritical process is higher; nevertheless, the exergetic efficiency of the alkaline process is higher than the supercritical one. Solar collection systems contribute from 85% to 93% of the exergy destroyed by the global process for both cases. The alkaline biodiesel production process has the highest advantages when using solar energy as the main source of energy, compared to a process in supercritical conditions that presents greater irreversibilities and requires more infrastructure to collect the solar resource. However, using solar energy as the foremost energy source offers an alternative to fossil fuels, and it provides an environmental benefit concurrently with the use of biodiesel.

Keywords: solar energy; energy analysis; exergy analysis; renewable energy; sustainability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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