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BIBTEX RIS

Energy Balance for Ethyl Alcohol Production from Crops

1978; American Association for the Advancement of Science; Volume: 201; Issue: 4359 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1126/science.201.4359.903

1095-9203

José Gomes da Silva, Gil Eduardo Serra, José Roberto Moreira, José Carlos Conçalves, José Goldemberg,

Coffee research and impacts

Energy requirements to produce ethyl alcohol from three different crops in Brazil (sugarcane, cassava, and sweet sorghum) were calculated. Figures are presented for the agricultural and industrial phases. The industrial phase is always more energy-intensive, consuming from 60 to 75 percent of the total energy. Sugarcane is the more efficient crop for ethyl alcohol production, followed by sweet sorghum and cassava from a net energy viewpoint. The utilization of sweet sorghum stems might increase the total energy gain from this crop to almost the same level as sugarcane. Cassava has a lower energy gain at the present state of agriculture in Brazil.