Produção de óleo de crambe refinado destinado ao processo de biodiesel

Abstract

The search for alternative sources of clean energy is a growing demand these days, as fossil resources are scarce and problems involving climate change are already occurring. Since a large part of the CO2 emission from fossil fuels comes from vehicles, the use of biofuels appears as a more immediate alternative in combating pollution. Understanding this context, the present project shows an alternative on biodiesel production using crambe oil extracted from the Crambe abyssinica Hochst seed as feedstock. Using this seed, it is possible to extract a greater amount of oil than most other oilseeds (approximately 34%) and sintetize a product with a high oxidative stability. The technological route suggested for its production includes pre extraction, mechanical and chemical extractions, and degumming steps. The process also generates two valuable subproducts: lecithin and crambe meal. With a production whose feeding involves approximately 24900 ton of crambe seeds per month, it is possible to produce 8016 ton of oil, 82 ton of lecithin and 17025 ton of crambe meal per month considering an efficiency of 100% of industrial production. For this, an initial investment of R$ 418.965.003,26 is required, and a 18000 m2 land (approximately). The project presents a theoretical economic viability, with a 4 years and 7 months Payback and a 1,14% TIR in comparison with a 0,74% p.y TMA. However, what prevents this project from being applied today is the lack of more crambe seeds on national soil. If there is capacity to have a value close to the crambe input mentioned above, the project will become viable in the future.