Development of an Index to Evaluate the Environmental Performance of Sugar-Energy Production Plants

Autor(es)

Rebelato, Marcelo Girotto ^[1] ; Rodrigues, Andreia Marize ^[1] ; Saran, Luciana Maria ^[2] ; Madaleno, Leonardo Lucas ^[3] ; de Oliveira, Otavio Jose ^[4]

Afiliação do(s) autor(es)

^[1] Sao Paulo State Univ UNESP, Sch Agr & Vet Sci, Dept Econ Business & Educ, Acesso Prof Paulo Donato Castellane S-N, BR-14884900 Jaboticabal, SP - Brazil

^[2] Sao Paulo State Univ UNESP, Sch Agr & Vet Sci, Dept Technol, Acesso Prof Paulo Donato Castellane S-N, BR-14884900 Jaboticabal, SP - Brazil

^[3] Technol Coll, Paula Souza Ctr CPS, Av Eduardo Zambianchi 31, BR-14883130 Jaboticabal, SP - Brazil

^[4] Sao Paulo State Univ UNESP, Sch Engn, Dept Prod, Av Ariberto Pereira da Cunha 333, BR-12516410 Guaratingueta, SP - Brazil

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: SUGAR TECH; v. 22, n. 5 MAY 2020.
• Citações Web of Science: 0

Resumo

Few studies address how to measure the impacts of the sugar-energy industry on the environment and human health. Thus, in this paper, an index (Iepa) to evaluate the impacts of the sugar-energy manufacturing process on the well-being of ecosystems and human society is proposed. The proposed index was developed from: (1) the environmental impact potential of each waste/by-product; (2) the relative weighting of its impact potential; (3) the relative amount of the waste/by-product produced over a given period of time; (4) the relative geographic coverage (spatial dispersion) of each waste/by-product; and (4) the appropriateness of the disposal of each waste/by-product generated. For validation, the index was used to evaluate the environmental performance of a large Brazilian sugar and ethanol company. It was determined that vinasse accounted for more than half of the relative mass of the waste/by-products generated by the company and that it contributed significantly (93.23%) to the Iepa value. The final Iepa value was 73.73%, which means that the disposal of 73.73% of the waste/by-products generated by the company was determined to be ``environmentally adequate.{''} The waste whose disposal was assessed to be ``inadequate{''} consisted of the gases from the bagasse burning and those produced in the fermentation process. The latter accounted for only 1.3% of the total emissions, while the former accounted for 20% of the total emissions. CO2 was the main constituent of both types of waste. However, it should be noted that sugarcane is a renewable form of energy that captures more CO2 from the atmosphere than any other crop. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 17/18304-7 - Sistemas de gestão integrados como elemento de desenvolvimento da sustentabilidade em empresas industriais: uma contribuição ibero-americana
• Beneficiário: Otávio José de Oliveira
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Regular
• Processo FAPESP: 14/16641-8 - Desenvolvimento de estrutura metodológica para avaliação do desempenho ambiental (ADA) de processos de fabricação sucroenergéticos
• Beneficiário: Marcelo Girotto Rebelato
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Regular