LAPSE:2023.15081
Published Article
LAPSE:2023.15081
Thermodynamic Analysis of Waste Vegetable Oil Conversion to Biodiesel with Solar Energy
March 2, 2023
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.
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.
Record ID
Keywords
energy analysis, exergy analysis, Renewable and Sustainable Energy, Renewable and Sustainable Energy, solar energy
Subject
Suggested Citation
León JA, Montero G, Coronado MA, Ayala JR, Montes DG, Pérez LJ, Quintana L, Armenta JM. Thermodynamic Analysis of Waste Vegetable Oil Conversion to Biodiesel with Solar Energy. (2023). LAPSE:2023.15081
Author Affiliations
León JA: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Montero G: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Coronado MA: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Ayala JR: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Montes DG: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Pérez LJ: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Quintana L: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Armenta JM: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico
Montero G: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Coronado MA: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Ayala JR: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Montes DG: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Pérez LJ: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Quintana L: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico [ORCID]
Armenta JM: Instituto de Ingeniería, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Boulevard Benito Juárez y Calle de la Normal S/N, Colonia Insurgentes Este, Mexicali 21280, Mexico
Journal Name
Energies
Volume
15
Issue
5
First Page
1834
Year
2022
Publication Date
2022-03-02
ISSN
1996-1073
Version Comments
Original Submission
Other Meta
PII: en15051834, Publication Type: Journal Article
Record Map
Published Article
LAPSE:2023.15081
This Record
External Link
https://doi.org/10.3390/en15051834
Publisher Version
Download
Meta
Record Statistics
Record Views
309
Version History
[v1] (Original Submission)
Mar 2, 2023
Verified by curator on
Mar 2, 2023
This Version Number
v1
Citations
Most Recent
This Version
URL Here
https://psecommunity.org/LAPSE:2023.15081
Record Owner
Auto Uploader for LAPSE
Links to Related Works