A model for evaluating the economic feasibility of small-scale biodiesel production systems for on-farm fuel usage
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Date
Authors
Pienaar, Johan
Brent, Alan Colin
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Elsevier
Abstract
Farming operations in Africa have, in general, not adopted small-scale biodiesel production
technology well for on-farm fuel usage. This is mainly due to the lack of an acceptable method to
assess the economic feasibility of constructing small-scale biodiesel production facilities, and the
impact of such operations on existing farming production processes. The research study
summarised in this paper subsequently set out to develop a model, termed the Biodiesel Production
System Optimisation Model (BPSOM), which predicts the cost of producing biodiesel on a smallscale,
and optimises on-farm production processes to maximise profits. The model was validated
using a South African case study to evaluate the predicted cost of biodiesel per litre produced, and
the economic impact of a small-scale facility on the production profits of a farm. A proxy indicator,
profit per hectare cultivated land, is introduced to measure the impact. BPSOM predicts a positive
profit increase of 33% for the specific farm case study, which proves the economic potential of
small-scale biodiesel production facilities for fuel usage at farm level in Africa.
Description
Keywords
Bioenergy, Biofuel, Biodiesel, Financial model, Economic feasibility, Farming, Africa
Sustainable Development Goals
Citation
Pienaar, J & Brent, AC 2012, 'Model for evaluating the economic feasibility of small-scale biodiesel production systems for on-farm fuel usage', Renewable Energy, vol. 39, no. 1, pp. 483-489.