Life cycle assessment of a non-food product : Palm biodiesel
2010
Puah Chiew Wei | Choo Yuen May | Ma Ah Ngan | Halimah Muhamad | Zulkifli Hashim | Vijaya Subramaniam | Tan Yew Ai | Mohd Basri Wahid
The Malaysian oil palm industry is a key pillar in the nation's economy, and accounts for 70% of the agricultural gross domestic product. This sector is pivotal in addressing rural poverty and employment generation, currently providing employment to about onemillion people covering the upstream and midstream sectors of the industry. However, the oil palm industry has been scrutinized from the perspective of the environment, especially with regard to its carbon footprint. One of the issues debated fiercely today is theenvironmental impact from the use of biodiesel as a diesel substitute. Palm biodiesel has long been found to be a potential diesel substitute. It has been found suitable and can be used neat or blended with petroleum diesel in any proportion in an unmodified diesel engine. However, the great concern related to the greenhouse gas emissions from the production and use of biodiesel to the atmosphere has received much attention and has been discussed negatively by environmentalists worldwide. A comprehensive life cycleassessment has thus been conducted on the production and utilization of palm biodiesel.Results show that palm biodiesel reduces greenhouse gas emissions as compared to petroleum diesel. The results from this study provide the scientific evidence that palm oiland its derivatives are sustainable and environmentally friendly.
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