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Risk mitigation of biodiesel production through the replacement of methanol by ethanol in the production process
Author(s) -
Martins Fernanda T. M.,
Mitre João F.,
Ferreira Geraldo
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
process safety progress
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.378
H-Index - 40
eISSN - 1547-5913
pISSN - 1066-8527
DOI - 10.1002/prs.12093
Subject(s) - flammable liquid , biodiesel , production (economics) , biodiesel production , safer , methanol , waste management , process (computing) , incentive , business , risk analysis (engineering) , environmental science , engineering , chemistry , economics , computer science , computer security , organic chemistry , microeconomics , operating system , catalysis , biochemistry , macroeconomics
Abstract Although biodiesel is considered a safe substance for the environment, its production can be dangerous because it involves flammable and toxic substances, such as methanol. In addition to the risks associated with fire and explosions, methanol also implies a risk to the health of workers who are constantly inhaling this product, even in low concentrations. Despite all the associated risks, most Brazilian industries produce biodiesel from methanol. Aiming to find an alternative to make the production process of biodiesel safer, several research studies were carried out in which the advantages and disadvantages of methanol substitution for ethanol were raised. From there, it was found that the biggest advantage is actually making the production process safer. However, it has been found that this proposal is still not feasible because the production of biodiesel by an ethyl route raises the cost of production considerably. In view of the foregoing, it was concluded that the alternative presented is only feasible through measures that compensate for the increase in costs, such as fiscal incentives.