Higher Biofuel Blending Implementation

A Case Study for Natural Science III

Almarry Francisco
Justine Olaivar
Sabrina Regalario
Melanie Salgado
Ma. Mitzi Ruth Resurreccion
September 26, 2015

I.

Introduction
Most developing countries have invested in renewable energy resources including solar
energy, wind power, geothermal energy, and biomass or biofuel to reduce dependence on oil and
natural gas which are usually imported from top producing countries. Nowadays, investments in
such energy resources are continuously increasing primarily because of the inflation of fossil fuel
energy systems prices and the heavy weight of the import process considering the cost of
transportation with high value added tax. Developing these energy resources also create energy
portfolios that are less vulnerable to price rises and that are also less expensive. In addition, these
types of energy resources are given more attention today to address the worsening environmental
issues especially global warming.
Philippines is one of the many countries that relies heavily on imported fossil fuel and the
abundance in its natural resources makes it possible to generate renewable energy. Establishing
these energy resources improve its energy efficiency and produce sustainable energy. Among the
big game players of renewable energy is the biofuel industry. The use of biofuels for transport is
a major thrust of the Philippines to reduce the countrys dependence on imported fossil fuels and
to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. To pursue this objective, the Congress enacted Republic
Act. No 9367 otherwise known as the Biofuels Act of 2006. In accordance to the mandate of the
said law, the government is presently implementing the National Biofuels Program (NBP) to
promote investments in biofuel productions and encourage the utilization of this product. It also
has support mechanisms to ensure adequate supply of feed stocks and the adoption of appropriate
technology for vehicle or engines to be able to use alternative fuels. In compliance with the
mandate of the law, presently available liquid fuels in the market are blended with biofuels.
Diesel engine fuel contains 2% blend of biodiesel by volume while gasoline fuel contains 5%
blend of bioethanol by volume. (Invest Philippines, n.d.) This would also empower the labour
manpower and help the local farmers by bring added income to them. (Ethanol Producer
Magazine, 2007)
In an article entitled: Biofuel program under review published by Inquirer in 2014, there
has been market buzz that local biofuel suppliers are still unable to meet required demand and
that the mandate of 5% blending of biodiesel has no assurance of implementation even on the
target year of 2015 as well as the current 10% mandate for ethanol. A recent publication in
Biofuels Digest concluded that the Philippines is not likely to implement B5 in 2015 and that it is

moved to a target year of 2016. The Department of Energy is waiting for a study from the
National Biofuels Board analyzing the impact of this implementation while a separate study is
about its economic impact (Sapp, 2015).
II.

Problem Analysis
The Biofuel Act of 2006 mandated that local gasoline and diesel be blended with
coconut oil or ethanol. As of the moment, the required blend are 2% biodiesel and 10%
bioethanol. The program's initial plan to increase the blend of biodiesel to 5% on 2015 has been
delayed. DOE delayed the implementation since the study on the impact of the increase was still
incomplete. Meeting the demands of the increased blend is problematic for local manufacturers.
Typhoon Haiyan, which made its landfall in the Philippines damaged several coconut-producing
areas. Maintenance of coconut trees has also been problematic due to infestations and dying out
of aging trees. Investments for the program has also been lacking.
The compliance of manufacturers to the 10% ethanol blend mandate also proved
to be problematic. Since local producers aren't able to meet demands for the ethanol blend,
manufacturers have resorted to the import of ethanol. Sugarcane distilleries, which are the
country's main source of producing ethanol, are lacking. Due to low productivity and high
production cost, investments for the distilleries are hard to come by. In addition, the regional free
agreement that opens the door to Thailand's ethanol adds to the challenges met by local
production (Corpuz, P. 2013). One of the goals of the Biofuel Act of 2006 is to increase rural
employment and income. The manufacturers preference to the import of ethanol over the
increase local production is counterproductive to the objectives of the Biofuel act.
III.

Review of Related Studies and Cases

A.

Coconut oil as a biofuel in Pacific islands

The steadily increasing world market prices for fossil fuels in the past years have
significantly increased interest in the development of indigenous sources of energy in the Pacific
islands. As an import substitution strategy, many Pacific island Governments are looking into the
use of local biomass resources to replace traditionally imported fuels such as petrol and diesel by
biofuels. There are strong linkages between developments in the various Pacific island countries

and lessons to be learned from experiences and policies implemented among Governments in the
Pacific region. The paper concludes that there is a need for standardization, quality control and
testing facilities for biofuels in the region. Governments need to investigate further the level of
support that is required to make biofuel operations viable and maximize macroeconomic and
environmental benefits. (Cloin, 2007)
B.

Effects of Ethanol or Ethyl tert-butyl ether blending in

gasoline on evaporative emissions

In Japan, bioethanol or ETBE (Ethyl tert-Butyl Ether) which is synthesized from bioethanol (57%) and isobutene (43%), has been promoted as automotive fuel, and its practical use
is under discussion, ETBE offers equal or greater air quality benefits than ethanol, while being
technically and logistically less challenging. Effects stated for ethanol are change of fuel
properties resulting from water contamination and compatibility with vehicle fuel system
materials. Blending with ETBE, improves the combustion characteristics of petrol, and ETBE is
also more compatible with pipelines and engines than ethanol. The effects of ethanol blend on
evaporative emission were studied and compared with ETBE blend. ETBE seemed to have the
same amount of emission with that of ethanol-blended gasoline. (Tanaka, n.d.)
IV.

Short-Term Solution
Biofuel implementation in the Philippines is indeed a great innovation for the country,
both economically and environmentally. The problems that hinder the implementation of this
innovation basically are lack of sugarcane distilleries, typhoons infestations and aging trees and
insufficient investments. To be able to address these problems, short-term solutions, such as
finding alternatives, are prescribed to lessen the problems effects.
One alternative could be the use of air engines. This is a relatively newer technique that
uses emission free piston which uses compressed air as fuel. Compressed air is much cheaper
than any other form of energy. This is a relatively new technique that uses emission free piston
which uses compressed air as fuel. Compressed air is much cheaper than any other form of
energy. The economy in production makes this form so this energy is an attractive alternative of
conventional form of energy. Also, the use of renewable energy already available in the market
can be used as an alternative. The various nations of the world have shown keen interest in

tapping this form of energy which is not only environment friendly, but also economic to
produce. Solar power, wind power and tidal power are some of the forms of this energy. It can be
used to power electric cars which are also being developed in the country.
Other short-term solutions are providing farmers with financial assistance so that they can
make their lands thrive again after the typhoons and infestations that happened. Also, farmers
who contribute to biofuel production could also be given incentives so that they can use this to
improve the production of biofuel sources. The government could also provide and distribute
modern equipment which could aid the efficiency of production of these biofuels.
Alternatives like wind energy, solar energy, energy produced by tidal waves and nuclear
energy can possibly revolutionize the energy scenario in the world temporarily, because these
solutions also have their limitations. Thus, these are just the possible short-term solutions to
lessen the unwanted outcomes that are likely to happen if the problems would not be solved. All
we need is the political will, and the will to put humanity above economy.
V.

Long-Term Solution
A. Finding Other Sources of Biofuel
Jatropha curcas
The price of coconut methyl ester (CME) is higher compared to petroleum diesel.
Therefore, Jatropha curcas or tuba-tuba is being studied by the government to ensure
sustainability of the biodiesel program. Jatropha curcas is a non-edible plant that grows
mostly in tropical countries. Moreover, it is resistant to drought and can easily be
propagated. Some of the advantages of using Jatropha curcas to be promoted in large
scale production are the following: it can thrive on any type of soil, needs minimal input
or management, less incidences of pests and diseases, not browsed by cattle or sheep, can
survive under drought, easy propagation by seed/cutting, rapid growth, lesser gestation
period, and high yield with 30% oil in seed. It also has lower greenhouse gas emission
than coconut biofuel.
Cellulose in Agricultural Wastes

Another promising energy source is cellulose contained in agricultural wastes and

by-products. Cellulose is the most abundant organic substance in the world. Cellulosic
wastes from agriculture and forestry activity offer some potential as sources of ethanol
fuel. These are second-generation biofuel refined from nonedible biomass. Wood chips,
prairie grasses and corn stalks and cobs are all cellulosic feed stocks. (Thune, 2009)
Higher alcohol yields occur when starchy or cellulosic materials are utilized as feedstock.
However, saccharine materials like sugarcane molasses are favoured because of their
reduced production costs. The cost is due to the reason that production of ethanol from
saccharine materials is relatively simpler. (Convento, Abacan, Acio, 2007)
B. Modernizing Biofuel Production
To be able to improve Biofuel production, the ethanol producers association of the
Philippines is actively encouraging the domestic sugar industry to modernize so as to boost
efficiencies allowing for cheaper and more abundant ethanol production. They are proposing
to improve farming practices and modernize bio-refinery technologies. (Sapp, 2015) Another
way is by using zeolites that act as molecular sieves to sort, filter, and trap chemical
compounds, as well as catalyse chemical reactions necessary to produce and upgrade fuel and
chemical feedstock from petroleum-based and renewable resources. Since one of the last
steps of biofuel production involves the separation of ethanol from water. Researchers found
a few all-silica zeolites with superior performance that contain pores and channels with the
ability to accommodate ethanol molecules but to shun hydrogen bonding with water
molecules. (Researchers identify materials to improve biofuel and petroleum processing,
2015)

Bibliography
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