Green Energy: Assessment of the Development of Second Generation Bioethanol

• Main Authors: Tsao Hai Chang, 張超海
• Other Authors: W. Y. Lee
• Format: Others
• Published: 2012
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/51243001860801082625

碩士 === 長庚大學 === 管理學院碩士學位學程在職專班經營管理組 === 100 === Taiwan is an island nation which, in terms of energy requirements, is experiencing a serious shortage of industrial supplies. The country is heavily reliant on imports for most of its industrial supplies; the rapid development of our nation’s industrial economy is reflected in the constant dramatic increase in demand for imported energy. Because growth is hastening in countries with emerging industrial sectors, this results in the acceleration of energy shortages, of continually rising energy prices and the continuous depletion of global energy resources. The greenhouse effect has an enormous influence on the global climate. Countries which focus heavily on industrial output have begun to face reality about the current environmental situation. Each country which signed the Kyoto Protocol has undertaken to manage their emissions and decrease the amount of carbon dioxide emitted each year. Many countries around the world have not neglected the search for sustainable alternative energies, hoping to find a suitable replacement to fulfil the role currently played by fossil fuels. Second generation Bioethanol, also known as cellulosic ethanol, uses plant fiber as the raw material. This plant fiber includes organic waste such as timber remnants, rice and corn stalks, sugar cane bagasse, bamboo and other organic matter which contains wood cellulosic. Therefore there is a diverse range of sources from which these raw materials can be obtained. Because these waste matters are rich in cellulosic they go through a conversion during processing. After the transformation of this main ingredient, the cellulosic becomes a polymer derived from glucose. Once fiber enzymes are added to this polymer, decomposition begins. When decomposition is complete hexose and pentose remain, which are fermented with yeast to produce ethanol. This fuel has the valuable characteristic of being made from raw materials which can be continuously reproduced and have inexhaustible production potential. In addition, the emissions from the burning of ethanol are far less than those released by fossil fuels. Bioethanol is also globally recognised as the most abundant and sustainable alternative energy of the future. Our nation should research this energy in advance. This research will focus on the development of second generation bioethonal and the conducting of analyses, and will also undertake in-depth investigations of the technology and techniques required in a plant which manufactures this fuel. The costs of such a venture must be evaluated and its viability determined. It is hoped that in the future any enterprise engaging with bioenergy will do so equipped with better knowledge and superior benefit assessment. In light of this investigation Taiwanese companies are encouraged to pursue bioenergy and in doing so to drive the Department of Energy to meet the 2012 market demand for E2 second generation bioethanol.