Title:
Enhancing Sustainable Sugarcane Bioethanol Production in Mexico with the Brazilian Experience
Author(s):
López-Ortega, M.G., Junqueira, T.L., Bonomi, A., Sánchez, A.
Document(s):
Paper
Poster
Abstract:
In recent years, the Mexican government has promoted the use of sugarcane for bioethanol production to be used as fuel in the auto-transport sector, in order to reduce GHG emissions influencing climate change and to contribute to the national energy security. Most Mexican expertise on sugarcane processing relates to sugar production, therefore, the bioethanol industry would benefit from the experience gained from countries that already went through the transition from typical sugarcane mills to advanced biorefineries, e.g. Brazil. This paper proposes three biorefinery configurations for bioethanol production as alternatives for the reconfiguration of a typical Mexican sugar mill. A sustainability analysis is carried out of the proposed reconfiguration alternatives. Preliminary results show that the indicators with the highest contribution to the global sustainability were the End Use Energy Ratio and Reduction of Fossil Fuel imports. Bioethanol production from sugarcane juice is the most sustainable way to produce sugarcane bioethanol in Mexico, representing an attractive alternative to meet the domestic demand of the auto-transport sector.
Keywords:
bioethanol, Brazil, Mexico, sustainability analysis, sugarcane industry
Topic:
Bioeconomy Sustainability, Impacts and Policies
Subtopic:
Sustainability and socio-economic impacts
Event:
28th European Biomass Conference and Exhibition
Session:
4AV.1.3
Pages:
739 - 744
ISBN:
978-88-89407-20-2
Paper DOI:
10.5071/28thEUBCE2020-4AV.1.3
Price:
FREE
