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 A
small-scale ethanol processing plant, which uses cassava,
sugar sorghum, and sweet potato as raw materials, has been
unveiled at CIAT to mark the 10th anniversary of Clayuca—a
consortium that supports cassava research and development
in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The so-called "social bio-ethanol" plant, installed
at CIAT's headquarters in Palmira, is based on low-cost technologies
and can be easily operated by rural communities with limited
resources. CIAT and Clayuca believe it marks a significant
milestone in sustainable energy development for rural populations
lacking access to electric power services and who depend on
wood, coal or dung as energy sources.
The pilot plant has the capacity to produce between 400-500
liters hydrated ethanol per day. The ethanol produced has
a 95% concentration and can operate a stationary plant to
yield 110-220 volts of electricity; 4 liters of hydrated ethanol
can generate 1 hour of electricity. The plant can generate
between 8,000-10,000 watts during 1 hour of operation, depending
on the type of generator used. This kind of bio-refinery also
has the advantage that effluent and waste material can be
used as animal feed and fertilizers.
With the opening of this plant, Clayuca and CIAT—a strategic
partner of the Consortium—will be able to consolidate
a work approach known as Rural Social Bio-Refineries (BIRUS)
and make it available to thousands of rural communities. The
preliminary phases of the project were funded by Colombia's
Ministry of Agriculture, and the Federal University of Rio
Grande do Sul (UFRGS) and the company Usinas Sociales Inteligentes
(USI), both of Brazil, provided valuable technical assistance
during the final phases.
"Any rural community that does not yet have connection
to electric power can set aside 3-5 hectares to grow cassava
as an energy crop and what is produced would be sufficient
to provide electric power for 6 hours a day, all year round,"
says Bernardo Ospina, Executive Director of Clayuca. The same
result can be obtained with other crops such as sweet potato
and sugar sorghum. "The impact potential of this approach
is enormous if we consider that, according to the United Nations,
nearly 2 billion people worldwide still do not have access
to electric power."
According to Ospina, "we are talking about a technology
that uses a biofuel as the first step to allow other technologies
to be used to promote socioeconomic development in marginal
rural areas… a biofuel for the poor."
The hydrated ethanol can also be used in cooking stoves,
saving rural families both time and energy by not having to
continuously collect wood and dung, while helping to reduce
environmental degradation and contamination of their surroundings.
Hydrated ethanol can also be used to operate specially adapted
cars, as in Brazil and other countries. Another advantage
of this type of bio-refinery is the practical use of effluents
and wastes, which can become animal feed and fertilizers.
Contact: Bernardo Ospina (b.ospina@cgiar.org),
CLAYUCA-CIAT. Tel: +57 (2) 4450157, A.A. 6713, Cali. www.clayuca.org
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