biofuels from coconuts - ver3

7/31/2019 Biofuels From Coconuts - Ver3

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BIOFUELSFROMCOCONUTS

KrishnaRaghavan

August2010


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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 POTENTIAL FOR BIOFUELS FROM COCONUTS 1

1.1 QUANTITYANDENERGYCONTENTOFPARTSOFTHECOCONUTPALM 1

1.2 POTENTIALFORPOWERGENERATIONFROMUNUSEDCOCONUTBIOMASS 2

1.3 DECENTRALISEDPOWERGENERATIONFROMCOCONUTRESIDUES 5

1.4 DIESELSAVINGSANDEMISSIONSREDUCTIONS 6

2 POST HARVEST TREATMENT AND PROCESSING 8

2.1 NUTSTORAGE 8

2.2 DEHUSKING 9

2.3 NUTTRANSPORTATION 11

2.4 CRACKING 11

2.5 COPRAMANUFACTURE 11

3 COCONUT OIL - COMPOSITION AND PROPERTIES 13

3.1 COMPOSITION 13

3.2 FUELRELATEDPROPERTIES 13

4 OIL PRESSING & REFINING 15

4.1 DRYPROCESSANDOILREFINING 15

4.2 WETPROCESS 17

4.2.1 RamPress 17

4.2.2 DME DirectMicroExpelling 18

5 UTILIZATIONOFLIQUIDBIOFUELS 20

5.1 COCONUTOILFORDIESELENGINES 20

5.1.1 InternalCombustionEngines 20

5.1.2 FuelInjection

20

5.1.3 QualityStandardsforCoconutoil 26

5.2 BIODIESEL 27

5.3 CASESTUDIESINPACIFICANDLESSONSLEARNED 30

5.3.1 Islandfuel,Vanuatu 30

5.3.2 Cocogen,Samoa 34

5.3.3 CoconutoilforpowergenerationinFiji 40

6 UTILIZATIONOFSOLIDBIOFUELS SHELLS&HUSK 46

6.1 CHARACTERISTICS 46

6.2 BASICPRINCIPLESOFCOMBUSTION 46

6.3 CURRENTUSES 48

6.4 WASTEHEATUNIT(WHU) 48

6.4.1 WHUforCopraProduction 51

6.4.2 ProductRecovery 54

7 REFERENCES 58

8 ANNEXES 61


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8.1 THECOCONUTPALM 61

8.1.1 PartsandUses 61

8.1.2 OriginandDistribution 62

8.1.3 WorldProduction 63

8.1.4 Plantingmaterial,SelectionandBreeding 64

8.1.5 Plantingpractices

67

8.1.6 Greenmanuring,OrganicManuring&ChemicalFertilizerapplication 71

8.2 DRYINGMETHODSOFCOPRA&STORAGE 80

8.2.1 BasicPrinciplesofCoconutDrying 80

8.2.2 TypesofDryers 82

8.2.3 CopraStorage 102

LISTOFTABLES

Table1 CompositionofonematureCoconutbyWeight............................................................ 1

Table2 QuantityandEnergyContentofpartsoftheCoconutPalm.......................................... 2

Table3 PotentialforPowergenerationfromCoconutResidues............................................... 4

Table4PowerGenerationPotentialfromUnusedResidues(1,000tonscopraequiv./year)......5

Table5 DieselsavingsandEmissionsReductions....................................................................... 6

Table6 DieselPriceandSavings................................................................................................. 6

Table7 EffectsofStorageTimeonDehuskedNuts.................................................................... 8

Table8 Thechemicalcompositionofcoconutoil..................................................................... 13

Table9 Fuelrelatedpropertiesofvegetableoilsandpetroleumdiesel...................................14

Table10 DraftQualityStandardsforCoconutOilasaFuelinengines....................................27

Table11 PhysicoChemicalpropertiesofCoconutMethylEster(CME)...................................28

Table12 ComparisonofMoistureandOilContentfromWHUwithothermethods...............56

Table13 Waterholdingcapacityofairinatropicalcountry.................................................... 80

Table14 MaterialsrequiredforconstructionofaSolarDryer................................................. 87Table15 PropertiesofLLD andLD PolyEthyleneplasticsheets............................................ 88

Table16 AssumptionsforSolarDrying..................................................................................... 89

Table17 QualityStandardforCoprainthePhilippines.......................................................... 104

Table18 GradesofCopraUsedinthePhilippines.................................................................. 105

Table19 ContractTermsfortradingCoprainIndia................................................................ 105

Table20 ClassificationofCopraforexportinPapuaNewGuinea......................................... 106

LISTOFFIGURES

Figure1 CompositionsofMatureandDryCoconutbyweight................................................... 1

Figure2 Ratioofweightsofpartsofthecoconutpalm.............................................................. 2

Figure3 EnergyfromUnusedCoconutBiomass......................................................................... 3

Figure4 PowerGenerationpotentialofCoconutResidues........................................................ 3

Figure5 Schematicofdryprocessforcoconutoilextraction................................................... 15

Figure6 DirectIgnitionengine.................................................................................................. 21

Figure7 IndirectIgnitionengine............................................................................................... 21

Figure8 Effectofchambertemperatureoncombustionofcoconutoil..................................23


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Figure9 A2tanksystemforusingCoconutOilinaDirectinjectionengine...........................25

Figure10 Heatcontentsintheconversionofshellstocharcoal.............................................. 48

Figure11 SchematicoftheWasteHeatUnit............................................................................ 51

Figure12 TypicalTunnelDrierandLayoutofWHUbasedcopradryingsystem......................54

Figure13 DryingCurve.............................................................................................................. 81

Figure14 TheSeeSawDrier..................................................................................................... 84Figure15 EnergyFlowsinaSolarDryer.................................................................................... 85

Figure16 SolarDryerdesignedbythePhilippineGermanCoconutProject............................86

Figure17 DryingCurvesforSunDryingandSolarDrier........................................................... 88

Figure18 SchematicofTapahandryer...................................................................................... 92

Figure19 SchematicofUPLBdryer........................................................................................... 94

Figure20 VISCACopraDrier...................................................................................................... 97

Figure21 SchematicofModifiedKukumdryer......................................................................... 98

Figure22 SchematicofCocopugonDryer............................................................................... 101

LISTOFPHOTOS

Photo1 ManualCoconutDehuskingTool................................................................................... 9

Photo2 CoCoMaNdehushingmachine................................................................................ 10

Photo3 BreakingcoconutsformakingCopra........................................................................... 11

Photo4 EdibleBallcoprawholeandcutintohalves............................................................. 12

Photo5 CoconutoilextractionusingtheRamPress................................................................ 17

Photo6 Effectsofimpropercombustionofcoconutoilinengine........................................... 22

Photo7 Heatexchangerusedforconversionofcarstorunoncoconut oil............................22

Photo8 Auxiliaryequipmentusedwitha2tanksystem......................................................... 25

Photo9 IslandFuelFillingStation............................................................................................. 30

Photo10 RangeRoverandToyotaRunningonVanuatuCoconutOil......................................32

Photo11 CumminsDirectInjection400kWDieselEnginetestedwith10%coconutoil.........35Photo12 FilteringofCoconutOilwithaSheetBeforemixinginthedaytank........................39

Photo13 CoconutOilproductionequipmentatWelangi......................................................... 41

Photo14 45kVAdieselgensetatWelagi.................................................................................. 42

Photo15 The90kVAdieselgensetatVanuabalavu.................................................................. 43

Photo16 Traditionalmethodofburningcoconutshellsinapit.............................................. 49

Photo17 PrototypeWasteHeatRecoveryUnittestedbyNRI,Culham,UK............................50

Photo18 TraditionalCopraDrying............................................................................................ 52

Photo19 AWasteHeatUnitinSriLanka.................................................................................. 55

Photo20 CoprafromTraditionalsmokedriersandfromtheWHUprocess............................55

Photo21 CharcoalproducedbytheWasteHeatUnit.............................................................. 57

Photo22 Sundryingcopra........................................................................................................ 83

Photo23 DirectSmokeCopraDryer......................................................................................... 92

Photo24 SemiDirectSmokeCopraDryer................................................................................ 95

Photo25 ModifiedKukumhotairdryer................................................................................... 99

Photo26 CocopugonHotAirBrickCopraDryer..................................................................... 100

Photo27 CopraMoistureMeter............................................................................................. 106


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1 POTENTIAL FOR BIOFUELS FROM COCONUTS

1.1 QuantityandEnergycontentofpartsoftheCoconutPalm

Whenamaturecoconutisharvestedafter11or12months,itisfilledwithcocowateranditskernel,shellandhuskareinawetcondition. Generally,thecoconutisdehuskedandtheshell

splitopensothatthekernelcanbetakenoutanddriedintocopra. Insomecountries,

especiallyinthePacific,thewholenutissplitopenwithoutdehusking. Compositionsofboth

thematurecoconutwhenharvestedandafterithasbeendriedareshowninFigure1.

Figure 1 Compositions of Mature and Dry Coconut by weight

Note: HusksarecomposedofCoirandCoirdust.

Theweightofacoconutdependsonthecultivarorhybrid. Thebreakupintoitscomponents

ofanaveragecoconutthatweighs1.2kgsisgiveninTable1.

Table 1 Composition of one mature Coconut by Weight

Part Weight [ kgs]

Whole Coconut 1.2

1 Husks (Coir + Coir dust) 0.39

2 Shells 0.17

3 Coco water 0.24

4 Green Copra 0.37

4a Dry Copra 0.2

4b Moisture 0.17

4a-1 Copra Meal 0.08

4a-2 Copra Oil 0.12

Note: Averagevaluesfor1,000nuts

Source: Cloin,2005

Copra,thedriedkernelthatisusedtoextractcoconutoil,isthemostimportantproductfrom

thecoconut,andcoconutproductionisveryoftengivenintonnesofcopraequivalent. The


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ratioofweightsofthedifferentpartsofacoconutpalmtothedriedkernelisshowninFigure2

andTable2. Thefronds(leaves)havethemaximumweightatover4timestheweightofthe

kernel,androughlyonenewleafisproducedandanoldonedropsonceeverymonth. The

trunk(stem)isnextat1.45timesthekernel,butthestemcanonlybeharvestedonceatthe

endofitslifetime. Theweightofthehusk(coir+coirdust)is1.3timesandoftheshellis0.9

timestheweightofthekernel,allthreebeingproducedtogetherinonenut. Finally,the

kernelitselfconsistsoftwoparts: CoconutOilisroughly60%;

CoconutMeal(orOilCake)thatremainsaftertheoilisextractedweighsabout40%.

Table 2 Quantity and Energy Content of parts of the Coconut Palm

Dry Kernel CN-Oil CN Meal Shell Coir Coir dust Fronds Trunk Combined

Ratio to "Dry" Kernel (%)

(@ 4% moisture content) 100% 61% 39% 90% 39% 91% 426% 145% 991%

Energy Content (GJ /t) 29.1 37.7 15.7 18.2 16.7 16.7 16.7 16.7 16.2

Source:Hagen,1995

Figure 2 Ratio of weights of parts of the coconut palm

Source:DatafromHagen,1995.

1.2 PotentialforPowerGenerationfromUnusedCoconutBiomass

Globalannualproductionofcoconutsin2005wasaround59.6billionnutequivalentor11.9

milliontonnescopraequivalentharvestedfrom1.2billionpalmson12.2millionha(APCC,

2006). Thetotalbiomassproduction(excludingthecocowaterbutincludingthekernel)is

106,100kilotonnes,ofwhich60.5%amountingto64,200kilotonnesisunprocessed. To

estimatethepowerthatcanbegeneratedfromunusedcoconut,thefollowingprocedurehas

beenfollowed(Hagen,1995):

1. Estimatethequantityofbiomassproducedbythecomponents(CNoil,CNmeal,shell,

huskconsistingofcoiranddust,fronds i.e.leaves,andtrunk).

2. Estimatereportedindustrialproductionofcomponents.

3. Theunusedcoconutbiomassfromthepalmsprocessedistakenasindustrialwaste.

4. Estimatethequantitiesusedbysmallholders.

5. TheremainderisAvailableUnprocessedBiomass.


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6. MultiplyunprocessedportionofeachcomponentwithitsEnergyContenttogivethe

GlobalUnusedBiomassEnergy.

7. Estimatethebiomassenergyavailableforelectricitygenerationas70%oftheunprocessed

biomass.

8. CalculatetheElectricityGenerationPotentialinGigaWattHours(GWh)basedontheNetEfficiencyofthetechnologyusedforpowergeneration(Steamengines:10%; Gasifier+ IC

engine:18%)9. EstimatethetotalcapacityofpowergenerationinMegaWatts(MW)bytakingaLoad

Factorof50%.

Figure 3 Energy from Unused Coconut Biomass

Figure 4 Power Generation potential of Coconut Residues1

1AsperSystemeInternational(SI)usage,tonnereferstothemetrictonof1,000kg;PJ=petajoule=1015

Joules.TJ=terajoule=1012

J;GJ=gigajoule=109

Joules;MJ=megajoule=106

Joules.


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TheresultsaregiveninTable3:

TheGlobalUnusedBiomassEnergyis1,125PetaJoules (PJ)ofwhich70%amountingto

788PJisassumedavailableforpowergeneration.

Ifthisbiomassisburnedinasteamengine,itcangenerate21,900GWhofelectricity. Ifitisburnedinagasifieritcangenerate39,400GWh.

Ata50%LoadFactor(12hoursperday),thetotalpowergenerationcapacityis5,000MW

usingefficientsteamengines. However,bygasifyingthebiomassandusingInternalCombustionengines,thetotalcapacityis9,000MW.

Table 3 Potential for Power generation from Coconut Residues

PORTION > Kernel CNOil

CN

Meal Shell Coir

Coir

dust Fronds Trunk Combined

AirDryMatter/FreshWeight

assumed* % 95% 62% 62%

Ratioto"Dry"Kernel(@4%

MC)* % 100% 61% 39% 90% 39% 91% 426% 145%

Total Global Coconut

Production kt 11,913 7,267 4,646 10,722 4,646 10,841 50,749 17,274 106,144

Industrial "Production" % of

Total* % 43% 43% 43% 55% 55% 55% 55% 55%

Industrial"Production" kt 5,145 3,138 2,007 5,897 2,555 5,962 27,912 9,501 56,972

Commercial Consumption

Copra kt 4,776 2,917 1,761 843 291 5 11,410 356 17,377

DesiccatedCN+CNCream kt 323

%Commercial/Total* % 40.1% 40.1% 37.9% 10.5% 8.4% 0.1% 30.0% 2.7% 21.8%

%Commercial/lIndustrial % 99.1% 93.0% 87.8% 19.1% 15.2% 0.1% 54.6% 5.0% 40.0%

Industrial"Waste" kt 46 221 245 4,771 2,167 5,956 12,672 9,026 35,058

%Industrial"Waste"* % 0.9% 7.0% 12.2% 80.9% 84.8% 99.9% 45.4% 95.0% 61.5%

Smallholder eating/cooking

etc. kt 3,574 2,180 1,394 536 232 542 13,854 864 19,602

%Smallholderuse* % 30.0% 30.0% 30.0% 5.0% 5.0% 5.0% 27.3% 5.0% 18.5%

Available Unprocessed

Biomass kt 3,194 1,948 1,246 9,060 4,023 10,288 21,670 15,944 64,179

Global Portion

Unprocessed % 26.8% 26.8% 26.8% 84.5% 86.6% 94.9% 42.7% 92.3% 60.5%

EnergyContent* GJ/t 29.1 37.7 15.7 18.2 16.7 16.7 16.7 16.7 16.2

Global Unused Biomass

Energy PJ 93 73 20 165 67 172 362 266 1,125

Biomass available for

Electricity@70% PJ 65 51 14 115 47 120 253 186 788

NEElectricity Generation

Potential

GWh 10% 1,809 1,429 381 3,209 1,308 3,343 7,042 5,181 21,893GWh 18% 3,256 2,573 685 5,776 2,354 6,018 12,676 9,327 39,408


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PowerGenerationPotential

@50%Loadfactor

MW 10% 413 326 87 733 299 763 1,608 1,183 4,998MW 18% 743 587 156 1,319 537 1,374 2,894 2,129 8,997

Table 4 Power Generation Potential from Unused Residues (1,000 tons copra equiv./year)

Portion>> Kernel CNOil

CN

Meal Shell Coir

Coir

dust

Fronds

(Leaves) Trunk Combined

EquivalentMassRate

@50%Loadfactor kg/hr 228 139 89 205 89 208 973 331 2,988

EquivalentHeatrate kW 1,846 1,458 388 1,036 412 960 4,504 1,535 13,445

MinimumEnergyAvailable % 15.1% 15.1% 15.1% 79.4% 0.0% 99.0% 42.7% 50.0% 37.7%

PowerwithGasifierGenset kW 18% 40 11 148 172 347 138 855Source:AuthorscalculationswithAssumptions(*)fromHagen,1995;

Note: (a)NE=NetEfficiency; (b)AsperSystemeInternational(SI)usage,tonnereferstothemetricton

of 1,000 kg; PJ = petajoule = 1015 Joules. TJ =terajoule = 1012 J; GJ = gigajoule = 109 Joules; MJ =megajoule=106Joules.

1.3 DecentralisedPowerGenerationfromCoconutResidues

Generally,thefarmerdriesthekernelandsellsthecoprathroughmiddlementothelarge

coconutoilmillsthatarelocatedinurbanareasandprocesscopraintococonutoilandmeal

(oilcake). Forexample,around100coconutprocessingplantsinthePhilippinesaregenerally

verylarge(500,000to5,000,000nuts/dayor30,000to300,000tonscopra/year). However,

over90%ofcoconutsaregrownbysmallholdersmanyofwhomdonothavepowersupply.

Coconutscanbeprocessedlocallyinsmallerprocessingplants,andtheenergyoftheunused

biomasscanbeusedtogeneratepowerforthepopulationresidingnearby.

Asmallprocessingplantthatcoverts1000tonnescopraequivalentperyearisanalysedin

Table4. Onanaverage,5millionnutsarerequiredtoproduce1000tonnescopra(5nutsper

kgcopra). Thiscancomefrom1,000smallholderseachproducinganaverageof1tonnecopra

peryear,orfrom2,000smallholderseachproducinganaverageof0.5tonnecopraperyear.

If70%oftheunusedbiomassisusedforpowergenerationinaBiomassGasifier+ICengine

systemoperatingatanetefficiencyof18%,1,000kWofelectricitycanbegeneratedfor10

hourseveryday(50%loadfactor). If25%oftheworldscoconutproductionisprocessedin

thisway,thereisaglobalpotentialfornearly3,000suchdecentralizedpowerplantsof1MW

capacity.

Evensmallermicroscaleprocessingunitsmaybethemostappropriatesolutioninmany

locationsespeciallyonsmalltropicalislandsmostofwhichgrowcoconuts. Thegasifier+IC

enginesystemalsoproduceswasteheatthatcanbeusedfordryingthecopra. Forexample,in

combinationwithanoilmillprocessing10tonnesofcopra/year,a10kWgasifier+gasengine

powerplantcanbeinstalled. Thiswillutilizethecoconutproductionofabout20smallholders

andcatertotheirelectricityneedsaswell. Ifonly1%oftheglobalcoconutproductionis

processedinsuchmicrooilmills,thereisapotentialfor12,000powerplantsof10kWcapacity

thatcanprovidepowerto240,000smallholders.


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Smallscalepowergenerationintheruralareascanstimulatedevelopmentofsmalland

mediumscaleindustriesthataddvaluetolocallyavailablerawmaterials. Byproviding

additionalemploymentopportunitiesandincomegenerationitcanalleviatepoverty.

1.4 Dieselsavings

and

Emissions

Reductions

DieselSavings

Ifelectricityfromdieselpowerplantsisdisplacedbytheelectricityproducedfromcoconut

residues,then11.8billionlitresofdiesel(74millionbarrels)canbesavedinayear. Thiswill

leadtoareductioningreenhousegasemissionsof32milliontonnesofCO2(Table2).

Table 5 Diesel savings

ElectricityproducedfromResidues 39,408 GWh/year

Dieselsavings 11.8 billionlitres/year

= 74 millionbarrels/year

Assumptions:

Dieselusageforelecticitygeneration= 0.30 litres/kWh

Thevalueof11.8billionlitresofdieselatvariouscrudeoilpricesisgiveninTable3. Thevalue

ofdieselis5.2and10.4billionUS$atacrudeoilpriceof50and100US$/barrelrespectively.

Table 6 Diesel Price and Savings

CrudeOil Diesel Dieselsavings

US$/bbl US$/litre billionUS$

50 0.44 5.20

100 0.88 10.41150 1.32 15.61

200 1.76 20.82

Assumption:DieselPriceis40%morethanCrudeOilprice

(Refining&Profit=32%;Distribution&Marketing=8%)

Source:EIA,USA

EmissionsReductions

Atareductionof2.7kgcarbondioxide(CO2)foreverylitreofdieselsaved,thetotalemissions

reductionsfromthedieselsavingsalonewillbe32milliontonnesCO2/year.

However, this is not the total CO2 emissions reductions resulting from electricity generation

usingbiofuelsfromcoconutinsteadofdiesel. ThereareCO2emissionsduringtheproduction

and processing of coconuts, and usage of coconut biofuels in engines that have to be taken

intoaccount. Theseemissionsareduetofossilfuelsusedin:

Production of coconuts from fossil fuels used to produce fertilisers used, in farm

mechanisation,etc.;

Processing coconuts from fossil fuels used for transportation of coconuts and its

products,andforproducingheat&electricityatoilmill,etc.;


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Engine modifications from fossil fuels used in producing biomass gasifiers,

componentsusedtomodifyenginestorunoncoconutoil,etc.

Togetafairpictureofcarbonsavingsbyreplacingdieselbycoconuts,afulllifecycleanalysisof

the coconut fuel chain has to be carried out in which all these CO2 emissions have been

accountedfor.


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2 POST HARVEST TREATMENT AND PROCESSING

2.1 NutStorage

Nutsaregenerallydehuskedsoonafterharvesting,ifpossibleonthesameday. Storageofthe

nutsisnotreallyrequiredbeforedehusking,exceptforverygreennutswhichareeasierto

dehuskaftersomestorage.Duringperiodsofpeakharvests,notallnutsharvesteddailycanbe

dehuskedthesameday,andstoragewillbenecessary.Tomaintainacertainstockmayalsobe

necessarytokeepthedehuskingteamconstantlysuppliedwithcoconuts.

Storageofnutsshouldbedoneinasdryconditionsaspossible,preferablyunderaroofand

closetothedehuskingsite.Toreducetransportationcosts,nutsaresometimesstoredunder

thetreesforlocaldehusking,butthisincreasestheriskofnuttheftandrodentattack.Local

experienceisthebestindicatorofthepossibilitiesforstorageduringthewetandthedry

seasons.

Table7givestheeffectsofstoragetimeonthegermination,moisturecontentandformation

ofballcopra.

Table 7 Effects of Storage Time on Dehusked Nuts

StorageTime(months) Germination MoistureContent

1 1% 80%

2 9% 66%

3 27% 55%

BallCopraFormation

6 10%

7 33%8 70%

9 100%

Source:(Ohler,1999)

Theadvantagesofstoringorseasoningharvestednutsbeforetheyareprocessedfurtherare:

Moisturecontentofthemeatdecreases;

Germinationpercentageincreases;

Moreuniformcopraquality;

Dehuskingbecomeseasierespeciallywiththegreenercoconuts.Trialsindicatedthat

whole12montholdnutsdriedsufficientlywithintwomonthstofacilitatehuskingand

copraextraction.

Shellingbecomeseasierandcleaner;

Greatermeatresistancetobacterialslimingduringsundrying;

Underverydryconditionsnutsmaydryoutduringstoragewithoutgerminating.Thismayfacilitatedehuskingandscoopingoutofthecoprafromtheshell.

(Ohler,1999)


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2.2 Dehusking

Thesimplestmethodofremovingthekernelfromthenutisbysplittingthenutintotwo

halvesorthreepartswiththeuseofaaxewithoutdehusking,andthisisdoneinseveral

islandsinthePacific. Thekernelcanthenbescoopedwithaknifeouttobesundriedortaken

tothekiln,butmoreoftenitistransporteddirectlytoaprocessingfactorywithhotairdryers

forcopramanufacture.Thehuskwiththeshellattachedtoitisusedasfuelforthedryer

typicallyabout50%isrequiredfordrying.

Thismethodhasseveraldrawbacks:

Thewetendospermstickstotheshellandcannotberemovedinhalvesorlargepieces.Thekernelisscoopedoutwithaflatmetalimplementresultinginfingercutkernels.

Theincreasedsurfaceofthecutendospermexposedtotheairincreasesdeterioration.

Thereisalsoanincreasedriskofcontamination withdirtintheplantation.

Whentheendospermistransportedinbagsandpoundedtoreduceitsvolume,

deteriorationwillbemuchincreased,particularlyifthesebagshavebeenusedbeforefor

thesamepurpose.

Bothhusksandshellsnotusedasfuelremaininthefield.Theshellwilltakealongtimetodecomposeandmaybecomeanuisance.

In most of the coconut growing countries, the first step in the postharvest treatment of

coconutsisdehusking,oftendoneintheneighbourhoodofthecoprakiln.

Thisishardworkandistraditionallydonemanuallybylabourexperiencedindehusking.

Dehuskingreducestheweightofnutsbyabout40%andthevolumebyabout60%.

Thecostofnuttransportationtothekilncanbereducedbydehuskingthenutsunder

thetrees,sothatonlytheunopenednutsinshellshavetobetransportedtothekiln.

Thehusksremaininthefieldforuseasanorganicmulchandfertilizersinceitisrichin

plantnutrientsanddecomposeseasily. Whennutsaredehuskedinthefield,they

mustbeshaded,sothattheydonotburstwhenheatedbysunshine. However,ifthehusksarealsotobeusedasfuelfordryingthendehuskingmightas

wellbedonenearthekilnsorhotairdryers.

Photo 1 Manual Coconut Dehusking Tool

Source:FAO

Themostfrequentlyuseddehuskingmethodisbytheuseofapointedmetalspike,securedin

thegroundinaslightlyslantingposition,withthepointupwards(Photo1).Thenutsare


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broughtdownwithforceonthespike,followedbytwistingthenutsidewaysagainstthespike,

looseningthehusk.Thismovementisrepeatedonceortwiceforthetotalremovalofthehusk.

Careistakenthatthepointofthespikeentersthehuskatthestalkendsoastoavoidthe

damagingtheshell.

Dehuskingishardwork;itislowpayingandnotverypopular,soitisoftendifficulttofind

labourforthisoperationeventhoughitcanprovidejobsfortheunemployed. Thenumberofnutsonemancandehuskperdaydependsverymuchonthetypeofthenuts,thethicknessof

thehusk,andtheskillandenergyoftheoperator. Anaverageexperiencedworkeriscapable

ofdehusking1200to1500nutsperday. AnaverageworkerinMalaysiagenerallymanagesto

process1000MalayanTallnuts,1200MAWAhybridsor1500MalayanDwarfnutsperworking

day.Inmostcountries,dehuskingandsplittingareperformedbydifferentlabour.

Variousmechanizedsystemshavebeendevelopedduringthepastdecades,butnosystem

reallymadeanimpactanddehuskingisstilldonemanuallyinmostplaces. Majorproblemsfor

mechanicaldehuskingincludedifferentsizesofnutsandshells,andthedifferentstagesof

maturityoftheharvestednuts(thiscanbeovercomebystoringthenutsforafewweeks).

DevelopmentofdehuskingmachineshasbeencarriedoutinMalaysia,theUK,Indiaand

TrinidadandTobagobutusageinlargenumbershasbeenslow. Reasonsforlowacceptability

ofthemachinesincludelowprocessingcapacityandhighlabourandotheroperatingcosts.

(Ohler,1999)

TheCoCoMaNdehushingmachineavailablefromMethodMachineWorksSdnBhdin

MalaysiaisshowninFig .(http://www.coconutmachine.com/). FOBcostin6,5007.500

USD.

Photo 2 CoCoMaN dehushing machine


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Source: http://www.coconutmachine.com/

2.3 NutTransportation

Thesystemofnuttransportationdependsonthevolumeofnutstobehandledandthe

distanceoverwhichthisvolumehastobetransported. Insmallcoconutfarms,thefarmer

transportsthenutstohishousehimself. Asthesizeofthefarmsandthenumberofnuts

increases,othermodesoftransportationareusedincludinglargebasketsonbicycles,horses

ordonkeysandanimaldrawncarts. Inlargeholdingsnutsaretransportedbytractordrawn

cartstothedryingkilnwheretheyaresplitanddrainedbeforebeingplacedinthekiln. In

somelargeplantations,nutsarebrokenimmediatelyandplacedinbagsholdingabout40

brokennutseach. However,transportationhastobereadilyavailableandwaitinghoursat

thekilnmustbelow,otherwiseopenednutswillstartmouldingwithinoneday. Trucksare

normallyusedfortransportingnutstoacentralfactoryoutsidetheplantation.

2.4 Cracking

Thesecondsolidbiofuelfromthecoconutistheshell. Theshellisseparatedfromthekernelby:

cracking ifcopraorvirgincoconutoilistobeproduced;or

shellingifdessicatedcoconutistobeproduced.

Dehuskedcoconutsarecrackedorsplitintotwohalvesalongtheequatorwithasteelrodor

heavyknife.Thisisdoneformakingcopraortofacilitategratingfordomesticusesorfor

productionofvirgincoconutoil.Crackingiscarriedoutmanually,andthereisnoneedfor

mechanization.

Photo 3 Breaking coconuts for making Copra

Source: Breagetal,1994

2.5 CopraManufacture

Coconut oil is mostly produced made in large mills fromthedried kernel calledcopra. When

making mill copra, the objective is to dry the kernel of the freshly opened nut from the 50%


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moisture level down to 6% as fast as is practically possible. The high moisture content and

presenceofproteinandsugarmakesthefreshkernelanidealmediumforthedevelopmentof

bacteria and fungi. It is therefore liable to deterioration and very susceptible to attack by

microorganisms, withthe developmentof freefattyacidsandranciditythatdegradethe fuel

qualityoftheoil,andalsotheformationofaflatoxinwhichisahighlypoisonouschemical.

Since copra is considered as a low value product, it is not economically viable to use

sophisticated dryers, or even the use of blowers for a more constant airflow. Therefore, formakingcopra,naturaldraftdryersareused. Commonmethodsofdryingcanbeclassifiedas:

1) UsingHeatfromtheSun

a) Sundryingb) Solardrying

2) UsingHeatfromburningBiomass

a) KilndryingusingSmoke DirectorSemidirectdrying

b) IndirectdryingusingHotair

DryingmethodsforproductionofcopraaredescribedinAnnex2.

Inadditiontothemillcoprawhichismilledforoilandcake,therearetwoothertypesofcopra

producedinmuchsmallerbutsignificantquantitiesforediblepurposes:

BallCopra drying iscarriedoutmainlyby storageontheplatformundercomplete

shadeforperiodsof6 8months.Duringtherainyseasonartificialdryingisdone.

Edible Copra the fuel used for drying is coconut shell charcoal, which produces an

even cleanerdirect heat. Sometimes a small amountofsulphur isburnt toobtain an

attractivewhitecolour.

Photo 4 Edible Ball copra whole and cut into halves

Source:Rethinametal,2002


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3 COCONUT OIL - COMPOSITION AND PROPERTIES

3.1 Composition

Coconutoilisamixtureofchemicalcompoundscalledglyceridescontainingfattyacidsand

glycerol.ThedifferentfattyacidspresentincoconutoilrangefromC6 C18carbonatom

chains. Theoiliscontainedinthekernelormeatofthenut. CoconutnutoilandPalmkernel

oilsarecalledlauricoilssincethemaincomponent(over50%)islauricacid.

Table 8 The chemical composition of coconut oil

Component Fraction%(1) ChemicalFormula Systematicnamea Acronymb

Lauricacid 51.0 CH3(CH2)10COOH Dodecanoicacid 12:0

Myristicacid 18.5 CH3(CH2)12COOH Tetradecanoicacid 14:0

Caprilicacid 9.5 CH3(CH2)6COOH Octanoicacid 8:0

Palmiticacid 7.5 CH3(CH2)14COOH Hexadecanoicacid 16:0

Oleicacid 5.0 CH3(CH2)7CH=

CH3(CH2)7COOH

9ZOctadecenoicacid 18:1

Capricacid 4.5 CH3(CH2)8COOH Decanoicacid 10:0

Stearicacid 3.0 CH3(CH2)16COOH Octadecanoicacid 18:0

Linoleicacid 1.0 CH3(CH2)4CH=

CHCH2CH=

CH(CH2)7COOH

9Z,12Z Octadecadienoic

acid

18:2

Source: Knotheetal,1997except(1) Hilditch,1956.

Note: a)Zdenotescisconfiguration; b)Thenumbersdenotethenumberofcarbonatomsanddouble

bondsinonemolecule.Forexample,inoleicacid,18:1indicatesthateachmoleculecontainseighteen

carbonatomsandonedoublebond.

3.2 FuelrelatedProperties

Thepropertiesofcoconutoilrelevantforitsuseasadieselsubstituteare:

SpecificEnergyindicationofthefuelsenergyreleasedwhenitisburned.Coconutoils

energy(38.4MJ/kgor34.9MJ/liter)isalittlelessthanpetrodiesel(46MJ/kgor38.6MJ/liter).

Theenergycontentofoneliterofcoconutoilistypically92%ofthatofoneliterofdiesel.

CetaneNumber(CN)indicationofthefuelswillingnesstoignitewhenitiscompressed.

CoconutoilsCN(60)isthehighest.

Viscosity

indication

of

the

fuels

ability

to

atomize

in

the

injector

system.

Coconut

oils

viscosityiscomparablewithotheroilsbutisseveraltimeshigherthanpetrodiesel.Higher

viscositywillcausepoorvolatilization ofthefuelintheinjectorsystemandpoorspraypattern.

Theviscosityofplantoilssuchascoconutoilcanbereducedbyheating,blendingortrans

esterification.

SolidificationPointindicationofthetemperatureatwhichthefuelwillturnsolid.Coconut

oilssolidificationpointalsocalledfreezingpointisaround24Csoitfreezesduringwinter


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timeeveninsometropicalcountries. Solidificationcanbepreventedbyblendingitwith

dieselorkerosene. Removingtheresidualwaterandfreefattyacidsfoundinmillrefined

coconutoilalsoreducesthefreezingpointtosomeextent.

IodineValue(IV)givesthedegreeofunsaturationofafatandisanindicationoftheability

ofthefueltopolymerizeduetothefuelsdegreeofbondsavailable.CoconutoilsIV(=10)is

thelowestamongalltheplantoilsshowninTable,soitislesslikelytocauseproblemsassociatedwithpolymerisationofaplantoilintheengine.

SaponificationValue(SV)indicationofthefuelsabilitytovaporizeandatomizeduetothe

fuelscarbonchains.CoconutoilhasthehighestSV(268),soitwillignitemorequicklythan

otherplantoils. SVismeasuredbythenumberofmilligramsofpotassiumhydroxiderequired

toconvert1gramoffatintoglycerine/soap.

Table 9 Fuel-related properties of vegetable oils and petroleum diesel

Specific

Energy,Gross

(MJ/kg)

Cetane

Number

Kinematic

Viscosity@

40C(cS)

Solidification

Point

(C)

Iodine

Value

Saponification

Value

PetroleumDiesel

41 49 4555 4 9

CoconutOil 42.0 60 20 24 10 268

PalmOil 39.6 37 35 54 199

RapeseedOil 39.7 38 37 10 125 175

SoybeanOil 39.6 37.9 33 16 130 191

LinseedOil 39.7 29 24 179 190

Source:Bradley,2004


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4 OIL PRESSING & REFINING

Technologiesforproducingcoconutoilfallundertwocategories:

DRYPROCESS Theoilisextractedfromthedriedcoconutkernelcalledcopra. Thiscan

bedoneinlargeoilmills(1000litresoilperhourormore)orinMinimills(10100litresper

hour). Oilmillsaremechanisedandneedtheirownpowersupplytooperatethe

equipment.

WETPROCESS Theoilisextractedfromthefreshkernelaftergratinginitswetorasemi

driedstate. TheRampressandDirectMicroExpeller(DME)havebeenusedtoproduce

VirginCoconutOil(VCO)usinghandoperatedpressessuitableforhouseholdor

communityscale. However,VCOsellsatapricethatismorethandoublethepriceofoil

fromthedryprocess,andisthereforetooexpensivetobeusedasafuel.

4.1 DryProcessandOilRefining

Figure 5 Schematicofdryprocessforcoconutoilextraction

Source:CottorInternational

DriedCoprafromthefarmisstoredinwarehouses,sometimesupto2to3months,beforeitis

processedinamediumorlargescaleoilmillwhereitundergoesthefollowingmainsteps:

Cleaning:Copraistransferredfromthewarehousetoamillbyaseriesoffloorconveyors,

rotorliftandoverheadconveyors.Copraiscleanedofmetals,dirtandotherforeign

mattermanuallybypickingorbymeansofshakingorrevolvingscreens,magnetic

separatorsandothersimilardevices.

Crushing/Cutting:Copraisbrokenintofineparticlesizesofabout1/16"to1/8"byhigh

speedverticalhammermillsorcutterstofacilitateoilextraction;

Cooking/Conditioning:Thecrushedcoprathathasabout56percentmoistureispassed

throughasteamheatedcooker.Thisbringsthetemperatureofthecopratothe


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conditioningtemperatureofabout104oC.Attheconditioner,thecopraismaintainedat

about104110oCforabout30minutestoinsureuniformheatpenetrationbeforeoil

extraction.Moderatelyhightemperaturefacilitatestheexpellingaction.Oilisabletoflow

outmoreeasilyduetodecreaseinviscosity. Moisturecontentofcopraisabout3percent

whenitleavestheconditioner.

Oilextraction:Intheexpeller,themilledcopraissubjectedtohighpressureoilextraction,

firstbyaverticalscrew,andfinallybyahorizontalscrew.Tocontrolthetemperature

duringextraction,themainshaftisprovidedwithwatercoolingandcooledoilissprayed

overthescrewcagebars.Thetemperatureoftheoilshouldbekeptatabout93102oCto

producelightcolouredoilandeffectgoodextraction.

Screening:Theoilextractedintheexpellerflowsintothescreeningtankstoremovethe

entrainedfootsfromtheoil.Thefootssettleatthebottomandarecontinuouslyscooped

outbyaseriesofchainmountedscraperswhichliftthefootstothescreenontopofthe

tank.Whiletravellingacrossthescreen,oilisdrainedoutofthefoots.Thefilteredoilflows

intoasurgetankfromwhereitisfinallypumpedtothecoconutoilstoragetank.

Filtration:Preliminaryfiltrationisdoneinoneofmoresettlingtanks. Theoiltakenfrom

thetopofthesettlingtankispassedthroughaplateandframefilterpresstofurther

removethesolidsintheoil. Maximumfilteringpressuresreachabout60psi.Thefiltered

oilflowsintoasurgetankfromwhereitisfinallypumpedtothecoconutoilstoragetank.

CoconutoilrefiningGoodqualitycoconutoilislowinfattyacidsandhasagoodaromaitcanonlybeproduced

fromgoodqualitycopra.However,afterseveralweeksormonthsinstorageand

transportation,copraislikelytobedark,turbid,highinfreefattyacids(FFA),phosphatides

andgums,andhaveanunpleasantodour.Theoilfromsuchlowqualitycoprahastoberefined

toproduceclear,odourfreeedibleoil. Lossesduringtherefiningprocesscanbe5to7.5

percentoftheweightofthecrudeoil. Themainstepsintherefiningprocessare:

Physicalrefining: Aweaksolutionofphosphoricacidisaddedtoremovephosphatides

andgumswhichareseparatedfromtheoilbycentrifugationorbydecantation.

Neutralisation: Sodiumhydroxideisusedtoconvertfreefattyacidintoanoilinsoluble

precipitatecalledsoapstockwhichsettlesdownandisremoved.

Bleaching: improvesthecolorofcrudeoilbyheatingedtoremoveexcessmoistureand

thenaddingeitheractivatedcarbonorbleachingearthsuchasbentonite. Thebleaching

agentsarethenremovedbypassingtheoilthroughafilterpress.

Deodorisation: removesvolatileodoursandflavoursaswellasperoxidesthataffectthe

stabilityoftheoiltherebyimprovingtheshelflifeoftheoil.Theoilisheatedtoa

temperaturebetween150250oCandcontactingwithlivesteamundervacuumconditions.

MiniMills

Mini Mills can be used to produce coconut oil on a small scale from copra using the Dry

process(10100litresoilperhour). Ifgoodqualitycopraisusedthentherefiningprocessis

not necessary andonlyfiltration isrequiredtoproducefuelgrade oilthat is low infreefatty

acids, moisture and particulates. An excellent discussion on MiniMills is given in the World

BankpublicationCoconutOilPowerGenerationahowtoguideforsmallstationaryengines


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(World Bank, 2009). Details of mills available from manufacturers in China, India and other

countries are provided. Indian MiniMills are designed for copra feedstock but the Chinese

mills,whicharecheaper,aredesignedforsmallerandharderoilseedsandsotheyhavetobe

modified forusewithcopratoavoidjammingtheexpeller. TheWorldBankguideexplainsthe

modificationstobecarriedoutontheChineseMinimillssothattheycanbeusedforcopra.

4.2 WetProcess

Inthewetprocessthecoconutkernelisgratedanddriedtoamoisturecontentofaround12

14%onsheetmetalplatesheatedfrombelow. Atthismoisturelevelitispossibletousehand

operated presses to extract the oil from thegrated coconuts. Two types of equipment have

beenused:

RamPress

DirectMicroExpeller(DME)

4.2.1 RamPress

Rampress(alsocalledBielenbergPress)isamethodofexpellingoilfromarangeofoilseeds

includingdriedcoconuteitherintheformofdriedfreshcoconutgratings,copraordried

residuefromaqueouscoconutprocesses. Inaqueousprocessescoconutmilkisremovedfrom

freshcoconutgratingsleavingbehindcoconutresiduecontaining47%to57%oiland4%

moisture.Thisresiduecannormallybesoldatalowprice,andprocessingitintherampressto

yieldoilcanprovidehigherreturns.

Photo 5 Coconut oil extraction using the Ram Press

Source:CFC,1998


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TheRamPressisamanuallyoperated,semicontinuous,lowcostoilpressdesignedtobeused

bysmallholderfarmers. Itcanbefabricatedandmaintainedbymostvillageworkshopsand

thesmallerversioncaneasilybeoperatedbyindividualwomen.

Feedstockpreparation

Bothfreshlydriedcoconutgratingsandground/gratedcopracanbeprocessedintheram

pressbutthefinancialreturnfromthecoconutresidueishigherthanfromcopra.Thecostof

copraismuchhigherthanthatofcoconutresiduefromtheaqueousprocessandthe

differenceisnotcompensatedbytheslightlyincreasedoilrecovery.

Coconutresiduefromtheaqueousprocessisusuallyallowedtodryoutinheapswithlittle

careorattention.Residuedriedinthismannerproducesoilwithahighleveloffreefattyacid

thatisnotsuitablefordirectedibleconsumption. Inordertoyieldoilofediblequality,the

residuehastobecarefullydriedsoonafterproductionbyspreadingitoutinthinlayersin

directsunlight. Athinlayerofcoconutresiduewillrequireaboutfourhoursindirectsunshine

tobringthemoisturecontentdowntoasatisfactorylevel.

ProductRecovery

Typicallyitispossibletoachieveathroughputof4kgcoconutresidueperhour.10kgsof

residuecanproduce3.9litresofoiland6.1kgofcake. Abouttwothirdsoftheoiloriginally

presentisextractedandapproximately1.65kg(1.8litres)ofoilremainsinthecake.

Oilfromgoodqualitycopra,freshlydriedcoconutgratingsorfreshlydriedcoconutresiduecan

beusedasfuelorconsumedascookingoilorusedforcosmeticpurposes.Poorqualityoilcan

beusedinthemanufactureofsoap. Therampresscakefromcoconutgratings,coconut

residueorcopracanbeusedasacomponentofanimalfeeds.

FurtherdetailsoftheRamPresscanbefoundintheFACTJatrophaHandbookVol.4(FACT,

2009)andintheWorldBankCoconutGuide(WorldBank,2009).

4.2.2 DME DirectMicroExpelling

TheDMEprocessextractscoconutoilfromfreshlygratedcoconutkernelthathasbeendried

toamoisturecontentof912%. ThesemidriedgratedcoconutenterstheDMEequipmentat

atemperatureof45600Cforoilextraction. Filtrationisdonebykeepingtheoilinsettling

tanksforaweek.

TheDMEequipmentconsistsofarackandpinionpresswithinterchangeablestainlesssteelcylindersandpistons,anelectrical orenginepoweredgratingmachineandasurfacedryer.

TheAustraliancompanyKokonutPacificwhodevelopedtheDMEprocessistheonlyknown

supplierofsmallscaleDMEequipmentandtrainingservices. Typically,KokonutPacificDME

equipmentcanprocess3.5kgsofgratedcoconutperbatchtoextractaround1litreofcoconut

oilwithan oilextractionefficiencyofaround80%.Undernormalconditions,itispossibleto

processupto300600nutsdailywithanoutputof2050liters(L)ofoil. EachDMEunit


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requires3to5workers.Skillsrequiredtooperatetheequipmentaresimpleandcanbeeasily

learned.

KokonutPacificisalsotryingtohelpcoconutfarmerssellthevirgincoconutoilfromDMEafter

localdemandissatisfied. Theyensurequality,purchasetheoilfromthefarmersandexportit

toEuropeanandothercountries,muchofitgoingtothecosmeticsindustry. Furtherdetails

canbefoundintheirwebsitewww.kokonutpacific.com.au/.


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5 UTILIZATIONOFLIQUIDBIOFUELS

5.1 CoconutOilfordieselengines

Theuseof vegetableoilsfor enginefuelsmay seem insignificant today.But suchoilsmay

becomein

the

course

of

time

as

important

as

petroleum

and

the

coal

tar

products

of

the

presenttime. RudolfDiesel(1912)

Theuseofplantoilsindieselenginesisasoldasthedieselengineitself. In1896whenthe

inventorofthedieselengineRudolfDieselfirstdemonstratedhisengineinParis,heraniton

peanutoil. However,thedieselengineasithasevolvedtilltodayisoptimisedandmeantto

usedieselfuel,andsoplantoilscoulddamagetheengineifcareisnottaken.

5.1.1 InternalCombustionEngines

Internal combustionengines (IC engines)now power most of our land and sea transportandsomeofourairtransportandpowerplantsaswell. ICenginesareclassifiedprimarilybythe

methodofignitionused:

a) Sparkignition(SI)enginesthatgenerallyusegasoline/petrolasfuel;theseenginesareusedinautomobiles, smallboats,aircraftandsmallelectricitygeneratingsets;naturalgas

enginesarealsoSI.

b) Compressionignition(CI)enginesthatgenerallyusedieselasfuel;theseenginesareusedinmediumandheavydutytrucksandbuses,smallerautomobiles, boatsandships,and

dieselpowerplants.

Therearetwotypesofliquidfuelsderivedfromplantsthatcansubstitutegasoline/petroland

diesel:

Ethanolproducedfrom:sugar(sugarcane,sugarbeet),starch(maize,cassava),or

cellulose(bagasse,straw,wood).

Plantoilssuchasrapeseedoil,sunfloweroil,cottonseedoil,coconutoil,etc.and

theirderivativessuchasbiodieselproducedbyesterificationoftheseoils.

WhilethetechnologyforusingethanolinbothSIandCIenginesiswelldeveloped,pureplant

oilandbiodieselcan,atpresent,beusedonlyinCIengines. Inthissectionwelookattheuse

ofcoconutoilinCIengines. Section5.2looksbrieflyatbiodieselproducedfromcoconutoil.

Averygooddescriptionofthecomponents,fuelsystemandhowthecompressionignition

engineworksisgivenintheWorldBankpublicationCoconutOilPowerGenerationahowtoguideforsmallstationaryengines(WorldBank,2009).

5.1.2 FuelInjection

While using pure coconut oil in CI engines, it is very important to understand the difference

between direct injection and indirect injection engines, and the advantages that an Indirect

injectionenginehasoverDirectinjectionsothattheengineisnotdamaged.


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c) Ensuring that the temperature in the combustion chamber is high enough (above

500oC).

Photo 6 Effectsofimpropercombustionofcoconutoilinengine

a) Carbondepositsonthenozzleandvalves b)Mechanicaldamageonpistonringsand

cylinder

Source: Vaitilingom,2009

DecreasingViscosityofCoconutOil

The viscosity of coconut oil can be decreased by using a simple shellandtube type heat

exchangerthattakeshotradiatorwatertowarmupthecoconutoil. The innercoiledpipe is

made of copper to facilitate good heat transfer while the outer cylindrical shell is made of

steel. Photo shows the components of the heat exchanger and when it is fitted in a car.

(Deamer,2005)

Viscocityofcoconut oilcanalsobedecreasedbyblendingitwithkerosene. TonyDeamerof

Vanuatu has found that a blend of 85% coconut oil and 15% kerosene works very well with

dieselengines. WiththisblendwhichhecallsIslandFuel,theheatexchangerisnotrequired,

buthestill recommends it. TheIslandFuelblend also makessure that coconut oildoes not

freezeinthefueltankataround20oC. SeeSection5.3.1formoredetails.

Photo7 Heatexchangerusedforconversionofcarstorunoncoconut oil

(a)ComponentsoftheHeatExchanger (b)HeatExchangerfittedinacar

Source:TonyDeamer


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CombustionTemperature

The temperature in the Combustion Chamber has to be high enough (above 500oC) for the

coconut oil to burn fully. Indirect injection engines have temperatures above 500oC

irrespective of the load, and so coconut oil can be used safely in these engines even at low

loads.

Figure 8 Effect of chamber temperature on combustion of coconut oil

IfTemperatureinCombustionChamber islow

(50%;

Indirect

injection

engines

at

any

load

Source:Vaitilingom,2009

2tanksystemforaDirectinjectionengine

Since Direct injection engines have temperatures above 500oC only at high loads, to ensure

complete combustion of the fuel a 2tank system must be used so that the engine is run on

diesel fuel whenever the load is below 50%. Figure9 shows one way of doing this using a

solenoidvalveforfuelswitching.


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Figure 9 A 2-tank system for using Coconut Oil in a Direct injection engine

Photo 8 Auxiliary equipment used with a 2-tank system

Solenoid Valve Heat Exchangers

Control Module Coconut oil Pump Coconut Oil Filter

Coconutoil

DieselFueltank

Filter

2x3wayssolenoid

Filter,heatexchangerandpump

engine

EXAMPLE OF A 2-TANK SYSTEM

Exhaustgastempprobe

Controlmodule

RPMsensor

Bypass


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Source:GillesVaitilingom

ApplicationsofDieselengines

Dieselenginesareusedmainlyfortwoapplications:

1. Stationerydieselenginescoupledwithgeneratorsforpowergenerationrefertothe

WorldBankCoconutGuidefordetails(WorldBank,2009).

2. Automotivedieselenginesfortrucks,buses,carsandshipsrefertoSection5.3.1for

details.

5.1.3 QualityStandardsforCoconutoil

The three most important parameters of coconut oil that need to be controlled for use in

dieselenginesare:

1) Freefattyacids,

2) Water,

3) Particulatematter.

FreeFattyAcids(FFA)andWater:Normal factoryproducedcoconutoilcontainsaround4%water and2to3%FreeFattyAcids

(FFAs). These contaminants cause the oil to solidify when the temperature of the oil drops

below 22oC,which isquitecommon duringwinter intheSouth Pacific. Oneway aroundthis

problemistoblendtheoilwithsomedieselfueltopreventsolidification.Thepresenceofthe

dieselfuelalsoaidscoldstartingwhentheambienttemperatureisbelow20oC.

TheotherproblemwithFFAsisthattheyblockthefuelfilterwhenthefuelsystemiscold.This

canbeovercomebyfittingasmallheatexchangerinthefuellinetowarmthefuelpriortothe

fuel filter. FFAscan alsobe neutralized withanalkalisuchassodiumhydroxide (NaOH).The

removal of water andFFAseliminatesthe solidificationof the fuel at 20oCand gives the fuel

greatercalorificvalue. Moreover,afterthewaterandFFAhavebeenremovedfromtheoil,it

hasbeenfoundthatthefuelpreheaterisnotrequired. (Deamer,2005)

ParticulateMatter

Particulates choke up the fuel filters. Even though a second fuel filter with a bypass valve is

normallyaddedontoadieselenginethatrunsoncoconutoil,particulateshavetobereduced

to a manageable level. Since diesel fuel filters normally filter upto 10 microns, a 10 micron

filter for coconut oil will prevent the fuel filter on the genset or automobile from clogging

rapidly. This canbe done by a Bag Filter as shown in Photo (Vaitilingom, ). It can also be

donebyusingaultrahighspeedcentrifuge(Deamer,2005).

AtpresenttherearenointernationallyacceptedQualityStandardsforCoconutOilasaFuelin

engines. Some standards proposed by Dr. Gilles Vaitilingom of the French research center

CIRADbased onhisexperience isgiven inTable . TheFijiDepartmentofEnergyandtheFiji

InstituteofTechnologyarecarryingoutsometeststoverifytheseDraftStandards.


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Table 10 Draft Quality Standards for Coconut Oil as a Fuel in engines

Quality standard for Coconut oil as fuel (proposal)

Properties/content Unit Min. Max. Test method

Characteristic properties

Density at 25C Kg/m3

0,915 - ASTM D1298

Flash Point C 210 - ASTM D93

Calorific value MJ/kg 37 -

Viscosity (Kin. @ 40C) mm2/s - 30 ASTM D445

Carbon residue Mass % - 0,40 ASTM 4530

Sulphur content mg/kg - 20 ASTM D5453

Cetane Index 40 - ASTM D4737

Variable properties

Total contamination mg/kg - 25 ASTM 5452

Acid value mg KOH/g - 10 ISO 660

Oxidation stability(110C)

h 4 ASTM D2274

Phosphorous content mg/kg - 15 ASTM D323

Ash content Mass % - 0,02 ISO 6245

Water content Mass % - 0,075 ISO 12937

Source: Vaitilingom,2008

5.2 Biodiesel

AhighcetanenumberandalowiodinenumbermakescoconutoilwellsuitedforCIengines,

butithastwomaindrawbacks:ahighmeltingpointandhighviscosity,bothofwhichcanbe

correctedbyesterifyingtheoilintobiodiesel. Biodieselmadefromcoconutoilby

transesterification,whichisalsocalledCoconutMethylEster(CME),hasameltingpointthatis

belowzerodegreeCanditscetaneandiodinenumbersarenearlythesameascoconutoil.

CMEhasotheradvantagesovercoconutoil itsviscosityandotherphysicalpropertiesare

similartopetroleumdieselsoitcanbeeasilymixed,transportedanddistributedwithdiesel,


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anddieselenginesdonotneedanymodification forusingblendsofbiodiesel. Formore

detailsaboutbiodieselreferBiodieselHandlingandUseGuide(NREL,2006)

PhilippineshasagovernmentsupportedprogramtoproduceCoconutMethylEster(CME)

fromcoconutoilandblenditwithdieselfuel. ThephysicochemicalpropertiesofCME

producedinthePhilippinesanditsblendswithdieselhavebeenmeasured. Resultsare

comparedinTable11withPhilippineNationalStandardfordieselfuelquality(PNS2020:2003)

andbiodieselproducedfromSoyabeanoil.

Table 11 Physico-Chemical properties of Coconut Methyl Ester (CME)

Source: AllemanandMcCormick,2006

Themainfindingsofthesetestswere:

CMEaswellasCMEblends(1%and5%byvolume)metthecurrentPhilippineNational

Standardfordieselfuelquality.

The5%blendofCMEindieselfuelincreasedthecetanenumberslightlyforeach

blend. ThedieselfuelsandtheCMEdieselblendsdidnottakeupsignificantamountsof

water,norwerestableemulsionsformedforanyofthefuelsorfuelblendstested.

TheCMEsample,thedieselfuelsamples,andthe5%CMEdieselblendsexhibiteda

similarlevelofstability.Thetestresultsshowedfewinsolublesweregeneratedduring

thetests,whichunderstorageconditions,maycontributetopoorengineperformance

duetopluggedfuelfiltersorcloggedinjectors.


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Sixteenindicatorsofmicrobialdegradationweremeasured. Theresultsshowedthat

theCMEsampleandtheneatdieselfuelsampleshavesimilarresistancetomicrobial

degradation,althoughthemechanismsfordegradationmayvary.

AFourierTransforminfraredtechniquewasfoundtobehighlylinearandcanbeused

toquantitativelydeterminethepercentageofCMEinadieselfuelsample.

(AllemanandMcCormick,2006).


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5.3 CasestudiesinPacificandlessonslearned

5.3.1 Islandfuel,Vanuatu

OneofthepioneersinusingcoconutoilindieselvehiclesisTonyDeamer,anAustralianwho

livesinVanuatuinthesouthPacific. Fornearlytenyearshehasbeenexperimentingwith

usageofcoconutoiltorundieselautomobilesandhasnowarrivedatamixthathesellsunder

thenameofIslandFuelwhichcanbeusedindieselengineswithoutanymodifications

(Deameretal,2005). Hestartedbyusingnormalfactoryproducedcoconutoilthatcontains

around4%waterand2%to3%FFAs(FreeFattyAcids). Hefoundthatthesecontaminants

causetheoiltosolidifywhenthetemperatureoftheoildropsbelow22oC,whichisquite

commonduringwinterintheSouthPacific. Onewayaroundthisproblemistoblendtheoil

withsomedieselfueltopreventsolidification.Thepresenceofthedieselfuelalsoaidscold

startingwhentheambienttemperatureisbelow20oC. TheotherproblemwasthattheFFAs

blockedthefuelfilterwhenthefuelsystemwascold.Thiswasovercomebyfittingasmallheat

exchangerinthefuellinetowarmthefuelpriortothefuelfilter.Thewaterfortheheat

exchangerwastakenfromthethermostatbypasscircuitsothatitwaswarmwithinaminute

orsooftheenginestarting.Thiseliminatedthefuelfilterblockages.

TonyDeamernowusesaproprietaryprocessthatremovesboththewaterandtheFFAsfrom

thecoconutoil. Thefuelisthenfilteredthrougha3micronfilter. Theremovalofwaterand

FFAslowersthesolidificationtemperatureofthefuelandraisesthecalorificvalueofthefuel.

Moreover,afterthewaterandFFAshavebeenremovedfromtheoil,ithasbeenfoundthat

thefuelpreheaterisnotrequired.

Photo9 IslandFuelFillingStation


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Source:TonyDeamer

Deamerhasbeenoperatinghisfleetofvehiclesonvariousblendsofcoconutoilanddieselin

severalratios,andalsoonacoconutoilandkerosenemix. Heeventried5%methanolfora

timebutfounditevaporatedouttooquickly,sointheendhedecidedtostickwiththeproven

15%keroseneblend. TonyDeamersIslandFuelmadeinVanuatucontains85%ofthe

purifiedandfilteredcoconutoilblendedwith15%kerosene. Nomodificationsarerequiredin

thedieselenginesthatuseIslandFuel;however,enginepreheatersarerecommendedfor

colderareas.

TonyDeamersaysthatthisfuelhasbeentriedandtestedovermanyyearsandisnowready

forretailsale. Unfortunately,thelawsofVanuatudonotallowthesaleofIslandFuel,sohe

sellsonlythecoconutoiltointerestedcarowners. TheminibusfleetownersinPortaVilahave

beenblendingtheirownIslandFuelsince1995.Thebusoperatorsarecompletelysatisfied

withusingitandtheyarereportinganincreaseinkilometersperlitrewhenoperatingwiththe

IslandFuel.

Basedonhisexperiencewithproducingfuelgradecoconutoilandblends,andinusingthemasfuelsinallhisvehicles,TonyDeamerhasfoundthat:

a) Coconutoilhasbetterlubricatingqualitiesthanotherfuelsfordieselenginessoitcauses

lesswearoninternalenginepartsandprolongsenginelife.

b) Coconutoilburnsslowerthanotherdieselfuelssoitpushesthepistonallthewaydown

thecylinderinsteadofarapidexplosionatthetopofthestroke,resultinginaneven

powerrelease,lessfueluse,lessenginewearandaquieterrunningengine.

c) Coconutoilfuelleddieselenginesruncoolerduetolessinternalfrictionandtheslower

burnrate.

d) Coconutoilisnotanidealsubtropicalfuelasitwillsolidifyovernightiftemperaturesdrop

below24degreesCelsius.However,thegelpoint(thepointatwhichitbecomessolid)can

begreatlyreducedbymixingthecoconutoilwithkeroseneorbykeepingthefuelheated

usingheatingaccessoriescommonlyfoundongenerators,boatsandtransportvehicles.

e) Coconutoilbasedfuelsyieldover10%morekilometersperlitre(km/l)usedthan

petroleumdiesel. Datacollectedovera20,000km,6monthtestonanIsuzuDirect

injection2.5ltr4JAIdieselmotorinapickupthatwasgivinglessthan12km/ldiesel,

showedthatithadimprovedtoapprox13.5km/Ion"IslandFuel60".

f) AnoticeabletorqueincreaseisfeltwithIslandFuel. Itwasnoticedthat,whiledriving

uphill,achangedowntothenextgearwasoftennotrequiredastheenginekeeppullingat

thelowerRPM. Thisiseasilyexplainedbythefactthatthecoconutoilburnsslowerthan

diesel.

g) Theexhaustfumesfromcoconutoilarelessharmfulthanmineralbasedfuels. Whenburntinadieselengine,cocodieselemits50%lessparticlematter(blacksmoke)andless

sulfurdioxide(SO2). Exhaustfromcoconutoilcontainsnopolyacrylichydrocarbons

(PAH's) themaincancer causingcomponentofmineraldieselfuelexhaust.

h) Coconutoilisnontoxicandfullybiodegradable. Itissafetostoreandtotransport.Oil

spillsonlandorwaterareharmlessandthereisareducedriskoffire.Nochemicalsare

requiredtoproducethefuelsotherearenoharmfulbyproducts.


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i) Theentireprocessofmakingcoconutbasedfuelfordieselenginescanbedoneinthe

islandscreatingjobsandstimulatingtheeconomy. Alltheincomefromtheproduction

andsaleofcoconutoilstaysintheislandsinsteadofgoingoverseas.Ahighpercentageof

theincomefromcoconutbasedfuelswillgotothelocalfarmersinruralareas.

j) Allthestepsintheproductionofcoconutoilcanbefuelledbycoconutoilorcoconut

residuessothereisnoadditiontogreenhousegasesduringtheproductionofthefuel

product.

k) Onthenegativeside,somedriversandpassengersofthecoconutoilblendpowered

vehicleshavereportedheadachesiftheexhaustgasleaksintothepassenger

compartment.TheMotorTradersfleethavemadechangestotheexhaustsystemtoclear

theexhaustgasesfromthevehicle.Thenatureoftheheadachecausingagentneedstobe

determinedandifagreaternumberofvehiclesareoperatinginanurbanareaitwillneed

tobedeterminedifthisagentwillcauseproblemsforthegeneralpublic.

[Deameretal,2005]

Photo10 RangeRoverandToyotaRunningonVanuatuCoconutOil

Source:

Tony

Deamer

SomeoftheadvantagesofIslandFuelare:

Environmental Advantages

1) Coconutoildoesnotcontributetothegreenhouseeffect.Whenburnedinadiesel

engine,coconutoilreleasesthesameamountofcarbondioxide(CO2)thatwillbe

consumedbythenextbatchofcoconuts.Inthisway,thecocodieselcyclescarbon

throughtheatmospherefromplanttotheairandbacktotheplant.

2) WhenburntinaDieselengine,cocodieselemitslesssulfurdioxideSO2(theprimary

contributortotropicalplantandrainforestdepletion).

3) Coconutoilemits50%lessparticlematter(blacksmoke)thanconventionaldiesel.

4) Nochemicalsarerequiredtoproducethefuelsotherearenoharmfulbyproducts.

5) Allthestepsintheproductionofcoconutoilcanbefuelledbycoconutoilfuelsothere

isnoadditiontogreenhousegasesduringtheproductionofthefuelproduct.

6) Coconutoilisbiodegradable.

Economic Advantages


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1) CoconutoilbasedfuelsyieldmoreKmperlitreusedthanotherfuelsfordiesel

engines.

2) Thecostofcoconutoilispresentlyloweronthanthecostofotherfuelsfordiesel

enginesinVanuatu.

3) Theentireprocessofmakingcoconutbasedfuel fordiesel enginescanbedonein

Vanuatucreatingjobsandstimulatingtheeconomy.

4) AlltheincomefromtheproductionandsaleofcoconutoilstaysinVanuatu,insteadof

goingoverseas.SothetaxreceivedfromVATeach time themoneyisspentlocally

willexceedtheincomederivedfromthedutyontheimportedproduct.

5) Ahighpercentageoftheincomefromcoconutbasedfuelswillgotothelocalfarmers

inruralareas.

MechanicalAdvantages

1) Coconutoilhasbetterlubricatingqualitiesthanotherfuelsfordieselenginessoit

causeslesswearoninternalenginepartsandprolongsenginelife.

2) Coconutoilburnsslowerthanotherdieselfuelssoitpushesthepistonalltheway

downthecylinderinsteadofarapidexplosionatthetopofthestrokeresultinginanevenpowerrelease,lessfueluse,lessenginewearandaquieterrunningengine.

3) CoconutoilfuelledDieselsruncoolerduetolessinternalfrictionandtheslowerburn

rate.

Safety Advantages

1) Theexhaustfumesfromcoconutarelessharmfulthan mineralbasedfuels. Exhaust

fromcoconutoilcontainsnoPolyAcrylicHydrocarbons(PAH's) themaincancer

causingcomponentofmineraldieselfuelexhaust.

2) Coconutoilissafetostoreandtotransport.Oilspillsonlandorwaterareharmless

andthereisareducedriskoffire.

3) Coconutoilisnontoxicandfullybiodegradable.Afterall,whatotherfuelcanyouboth

cookyourfishandchipsinandrunyourtruckon??

Disadvantages

Coconut oil is not an ideal sub tropical fuel as it will solidify overnight if temperatures drop

below14degreesCelsius.However, thegelpoint(thepointatwhichitbecomessolid)canbe

greatlyreducedby mixingthecoconutoilwith Kerosene orbykeepingthefuel heatedusing

heatingaccessoriescommonlyfoundongenerators,boatsandtransportvehicles.

Commentsonmotorperformance

DatacollectedontheIsuzuDirectinjection2.5ltr4JAIdieselmotorinapickupovera20,000km6monthtestshowedanaverageof12.75kmperlitreon"CocoDiesel".This

hasimprovedon"IslandFuel60"toapprox13.5Km/I. OnDieselthevehiclewas

achievinglessthan12Km/I.(AFullsheetofallfuelusedandKmdrivenwithcomentsis

available.)

TheTwoToyota"L"and"2L"2.2and2.4ltrenginesonlyaveraged7.5Km/l.onCoco

dieselandabout8Km/lon"IslandFuel60". Topendhorsepowerwasslightlydown.


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i.e.accelerationwasnotsobriskon"CocoDiesel60/70butalmostnormalon"Island

Fuel60".Anoticeabletorqueincreasewasfelt. Itwasnoticedthatachangedownto

thenextgearwasoftennotrequiredastheenginekeeppullingatthelowerRPM.

ThisiseasilyexplainedbythefactthattheCoconutoilburnsslowerthantheDiesel

(i.e.moreora"WhooshandlessofaBang").

After12monthsofuseonUnprocessedCocoDiesel(NotIslandFuel)aNissanLD28

2.8ltrnaturallyaspirateddieselengineoperatingwithinaRangeRoverwasstripped.

Thepistons,rings,bearings,valvesandinjectorswereremovedforexamination. All

wereinmuchcleanerandbettershapethanexpectedfromadieselengine.Thebore

marksstillshowedthecrosshatchhonemarks,thevalvesandcamgearwasallclean

andinperfectorder. Theonlyproblemwasthattheenginewaspurchasedsome10

yearsagosecondhandsoTonydoesnotknowhowitwasusedinthepast. Buthe

guessesthatithadatleast100,000Kmbeforehegotitandapprox30,000Kmfromthe

timehehadittothetimehestartedusingCocoDieselinit. Themotorwasputback

togetherwithnewpistons,ringsbearingsandinjectorsnozzlesandanewtimingbelt.

Itisnowusing"IslandFuel60"inwinterand"IslandFuel70"duringwarmerweather

inthesummermonths.

At the start of 2003 Deamer ordered his own Processing Equipment and continued to make

and supply processed coconut oil only, to anyone wanting it, and left it to them to mix their

ownpetroleumproductwithit.

InhisownUnitshetriedmixingMethanolat5%foratimebutfounditevaporatedouttoo

quickly. Sointheendhedecidedtostickwiththeproven15%keroandsosince2003 the

RangeRoverandallourotherUnitshavebeenrunningonthismixaswastheVolvofrom

thestartoftheexperimentin2001.

In2005ColdpressedCrudecoconutoilwassellinginSantofor65Vatualitre(approx

US$0.59perltr). Dieselwas132Vatuatthepumps CNOrefinedsoldforabout90Vatua

ltr. andtheKerowasat120Vatu soaBlendedfuelcostapprox95Vatuper ltr.

DeamersvehicleshavenotexperiencedanyCNOrelatedproblemsinthepastfewyears.

TheydidreplaceaHeadGasketontheVolvoduetoanoverheatingproblemthatresulted

intheenginerunningdryofwaterforalongperiod,butitdidnotseizeup.

BothVolvoandRangeRoverarerunninganLD28NissanenginewithPercombustion

chambersandtheyarenotDirectinjection.

TheIsuzu withDirectinjectionengine2/5ltrisnowonthe15%keromixandtheyareno

longerhavingtheboreglazingproblemstheywerehavingwhendrivenlightlyonthe

60/40CNO/Dieselmixinthefirstyearoftheexperiments.

5.3.2 Cocogen,Samoa

TheSamoanElectricPowerCorporation(EPC)hasbeenlookingintoalternativesfordieselfuel

electricitygenerationincludingbiofuels,solarandwind. Intheearly1980s,EPChadcarried

outtrialsonusingcoconutoilfordieselengineoperationoveraperiodofsixmonths,butno

recordsorresultsofthesetestsareavailabletoday.Becauseofthetechnicalrisksassociated


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Page35

withusingfuelsthatarenotrecommendedbythemanufacturerofthegeneratingunits,these

trialswerenotcontinued.

From20022005EPChasgeneratedalittleover120GWh/yrofwhichroughlyhalfisfrom

hydropowerandtheotherhalffromdieselpowerplants. Thecurrentbaseloaddeliveredby

thedieselpowerstationisapproximately8MW,withamorningpeakof13andanevening

peakof17MW.

Throughacombinationofcostsavingsandenvironmentalconsiderations,EPCaimstoutilise

alternativefuelsfromdieselwillbeapart.Inaddition,theincreasingdependenceonimported

fossilfuelsisanothermainreasontocarryoutafeasibilitystudyintotheuseofalternative

fuelsintheEPCgenerators. Byaimingforapartialdisplacementofdieselfuel,EPCcangain

valuableexperiencebasedonwhichfurthersubstitutioncanbeconsidered.Thepricevolatility

onboththecoconutoilmarketandthefossilfuelmarketdonotsupportthecompleteswitch

tococonutoilfuel.

Dr.GillesVaitilingom, theBiofuelSpecialistintheCOCOGENteamfoundthatnoneofthegensetscurrentlyrunningatTanugamanonoorSalelologaPowerStationscouldusestraight

coconutoilasfuelwithoutchemicaltransformationsoftheoilormechanicalmodificationsof

engines. However,basedonhisexperiencewithrunningdieselgensetswithpureplantoils

includingcoconutoil,hepredictedthattherewerehighchancesofsuccessforusinga10%

blendofcoconutoilwithdieselfuel,iftheloadonthegensetiskeptover50%ofitsrated

load. Incasebadcombustionoccurs(misfiringorcyclicaldispersion)theamountofunburnt

fuel(blendofcoconutoilanddiesel)wouldbehigherthan1/1000.Thatmeans,outofthe

10,000litresoftheblendusedinthetest,10litreswouldremainunburnt,andthis10litres

wouldcontain1litreofcoconutoil. Inasumpofaroundthan100litresoflubricantcapacity,

thiswillleadtoapollutionofthelubebytriglyceridesandfattyacidsof1%,andthislevelof

contaminationiseasytodetectaccurately. Iftheanalysisofthelubesamplesrevealthatthe

levelofcontaminationbyunburntcoconutoilislessthan1%,itcanbeconcludedthatthe

combustionwasgoodand,thatforthisgenset,underthecurrentoperatingconditions,a10%

blendofcoconutoilcanbeusedsafely.

Photo 11 CumminsDirectInjection400kWDieselEnginetestedwith10%coconutoil


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Source:SOPAC,2005

SpecificationsoftheDieselGeneratingSet

Usage(Feb05) 179hrs

PercentofProduction 4%

EngineMaker Cummins

EngineModel KTTA19G2

EngineSerial# 37155000

SONo 62222

CPL 1170

HP/RPM 1500rpm

ManufacturingDate 8/11/94

RatedSpeed 1500

IdleSpeed 800(low)

#ofCylinders 6

Bore[mm] 158.75

Stroke[mm] 158.75

Type 4cycleverticalinlinecylinder

CoolingSystem WaterRadiator

CompressionRatio 13:8:1

Aspiration Turbo/cooled

Displacement[l] 18.7Rotation(flywheel) CCW

InjectionMethod CommonRailHVT

TypeofNozzle DirectInjectionHoleType

TypeofFuel BS2869A1

Governor Electric

StartingMethod Electric24V

Maker ONAN


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GeneratorModel 450DFFB

SerialNumber A92A001721

Rating Standby

Spec 5673G

KVA 563

Amps 783

KW 400

KW(derated) 250

Volts 415

AfterconsultationwiththeGeneralManager,itwasagreedthattestswith10,000litresofa

10%blendpilotwouldbecarriedoutwithengine#2A,comprisingof1,000litresofcoconutoil

blendedwith9,000litresofdieselfuel. Forthepilot,thefollowingrisks(andriskreduction

strategies)wereidentified:

NoCoconutoilavailable; ContactedandvisitedCOPStorequestthedeliveryofoilfrom

currentproduction.

BadQualityCOPSoil; Prefilteringofoilwithexistingfuelfilterstoavoidparticlesinthe

fueltank.

CarbonDeposits; Themachineshavetoberunabove50%oftheirratedcapacityto

avoidexcessivecarbondeposits.Withthederatingofthemachines,thismeansthey

shouldrunatmaximumpower.

Filterclogging; Ifcoconutoilismixedwithwaterbyaccident,theresultingmixturecan

leadtocloggingoffilters,therefore,goodworkinghygieneisrequired.

Blendpercentagenotright; Asthepilotisdesignedtominimisetheriskforthe

machines,itisimperativethattheoperatorstickstothe10%blendofcoconutoiland90%

regulardiesel.Forhigherpercentagesofcoconutoilinthefuel,engineadaptationsmaybe

required.

Lubeoilsamplenotright; Itisimperativethatthesampleofthelubeoilafterthetestis

takenaccordingtoinstructionssothattheanalysiscanbecarriedoutcorrectly.

Inordertoreduce these risks, the technicalconsultant was presentto instructthe operators

on the first day of the pilot test. Secondly, clear working instructions for the pilottest were

provided:

WorkingInstructionsfortheCoconutOilPilotTest

Engine:

Lubricant

and

oil

filters

must

be

new

or

having

less

than

250

running

hours.

Fuel: Atotalvolumeof10,000litreswillfeedengine2A.Itiscomposedof1,000litresof

coconutoiland9,000litresofdieselfuel.Themixturewillthenbepreparedas1volumeof

coconutoilplus9volumesofdiesel.Thiswillrequirethefollowingsteps:

1) Pour1volumeofcoconutoilinthedailytank;

2) Pour9volumesofdieselfuelinthedailytank;

3) Stirthedailytankfor2minuteswithastick.


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Lubricant:1) Thesamelubricantwillbeusedduringthedurationofthetest.

2) Addedvolumeoflubricantmustbeloggedexactly.

3) Twosamplesoflubeoilwillbecollectedinthesumpofthetestengineandsentto

SOPAC/Fiji:(a)onesamplebeforestartingthetest,and(b)thesecondsampleafter

completionofthetest.

Operationofthetestgenset: TheGeneratorSetbeingtestedmustnotbeusedunder50%ofitsoriginalrating,i.e.200kW.Thegensetcanonlybeallowedtorunforuptoone

houronaloadbelow200kW,afterwhichitmustbeshutdown.

Mechanical: Incaseofamechanicalinterventionontheengine,collectasampleoflubeoilbeforestartingagain.Thissamplewillbejoinedwiththesampletakenattheendofthe

test.

DatarequiredTheLogbookmustcontain:AttheStartofthetest:

1) Typeoflubricant;

2) Gradeoflubricant;

3) #ofrunninghoursofthelubricantinthesump;

4) Collectofthesampleoflubeoil.

Daily:

1) Date;

2) #ofkWh;

3) #ofrunninghours;

4) Volume

of

blend

used;

5) Volumeofaddedlubricant;

6) #ofstartsduringtheday;

7) Observation/troubleshooting.

AttheEndofthetest:

1) Collectofthesampleoflubeoil;

2) Indicatethenumberofrunninghours;

3) Completethedailylogbook;

4) SendthesampleandthelogdatasheettoSOPACinFiji.

Immediatelyafterthefieldwork,lubeoilsamplesbeforeandafterthepilotweresentthrough

tothelaboratoryoftheUniversityoftheSouthPacificinFijiandtoaspecialisedlaboratoryin

France.Thelubeoilanalysespointedthatnoharmfullevelofcontamination of(unburnt)

coconutoilcouldbedetectedinthelubricant.Therefore,thetestcanbedescribedas

successfulandtherecommendationsoftheSalelogaPowerStationmanagercanbefollowed

tocontinuethepilot.TheCocogenteamproposescontinuationoflubeoilanalysisatregular

operationintervals.


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Photo12 FilteringofCoconutOilwithaSheetBeforemixinginthedaytank

Source:SOPAC,2005

Testingofa10,000litresBlendof10%CoconutOil+90%DieselFuelinGenset2ATest:TheteststartedonSaturday2ndofApril2005inthepresenceofDrVaitilingom. He

recommendedstronglythattheloadoftheengineshouldnotbebelow80%ofnormalload.

Forthisengine,thenormalloadis200kWandthereforetheloadshouldbeabove150kWat

anytime.Iftheloadisbelow150kW,thentheenginemustbeshutdowntoavoidanysignof

unforeseenfailure.Thetesttookabout3weekstocomplete6x44gallonsofcoconutoilthat

isonApril23,2005.

ResultsoftheTestsBetweenApril2andApril232005,atotalof1,018litresofcoconutoilwasblendedwith9,167

litresofdieselinthedaytankofengine#2inSalelogaPowerStation.Theoverallfuelusage

forthetrialengineforthewholemonthofAprilwas17,162litres.Totally10,185litresofblend

wasusedduringthetest.

ThelubeoilsamplesafterthetestweresenttolabsinFijiandtoFranceforanalysis.Thelevel

ofcontaminationofthelubeoilbyunburntcoconutoilindicatedthatitwasadvisableto

continueusingacoconutoilblendinmachine#2.

Statistics:Durationoftest(days): 22

Amountofcoconutfuelused: 1,000Litresapproximately

Amountofhoursduringtest: 245


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Averagehourperday: 11

TopupOilduringtest: 26litres

TotalkWh: 46,278kWh

Comments:Thesuccessfulcompletionofthetestrevealspositivedirectionofcoconutoilasanalternative

fuel, provided that it is less expensive that diesel fuel. Mechanically speaking, there was no

signofanydefectduringthetest.

Recommendations:1) Thetestisnotlongenoughtofindouttheimpactofthetesttoenginecomponents.It

issuggestedofatleast1,000hrsofrunningisappropriate.

2) After1000hrsoftest,theengineshouldbeinspectedwiththoroughchecksonits

cylinderheads,injectors,liners,pistons,pistonrings,andfuelpumpetcforany

abnormalsignsordefects.

3) Theexhaustgasduringthistestwasnotsatisfactoryandthereforesuggestedstrongly

thattherecommendedsulphurcontentofthefuelshouldbebetween0.25and0.50percentagebyweight.

Thefinancial,economicandenvironmentalimpactsoftheCocogenprojectaregiveninthe

FinalReport(SOPAC,2005). ThisreportalsocontainsdetailsoftheGISstudy(Geographical

InformationSystem)usedtoassesstheCoconutResourcesofSamoa.

5.3.3 CoconutoilforpowergenerationinFiji

CoconutsaregrownonalltheFijianislands. Coconutoilisalocalresourcethatisabundantly

availableespeciallyintheruralcoastalcommunities.Aprojecttousecoconutoilforvillage

electrificationwasplannedin199899jointlybyFijiDepartmentofEnergy,theSecretariatof

thePacificCommunity(SPC)andCIRAD. Thetechnicalexpertiseandtechnologywere

providedbyCIRADFrancethroughFrenchGovernmentfunding.TheMinistryofAgriculture

(TaveuniCoconutCentre)andPublicWorksDepartment(Electrical)werevitalpartnersinthe

projectimplementationwhichcoveredfourvillages.

Theprojectinvolvedthemodificationoftwodieselgensetsofcapacities45kVAand90kVAso

thattheycouldrunonpurecoconutoil. Twositeswerechosenfortheproject:

1) Lomaloma,NaqaraandSawanavillagesinVanuaBalavuand

2) WelagivillageinTauveni.

CIRAD had already successfully installed three diesel gensets modified for coconut oil on the

islandofOuvainNewCaledonia:

1. In1995a90KVAgensettoprovideelectricityforacopramillwithacapacityof350

kgcopraperhour.

2. In1999one180KVAandone45KVAgensettoprovideelectricityforadesalination

plant.


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The coconut oil gensets that CIRAD provided for Fiji were identical to the ones that CIRAD

installedinNewCaledonia:

These gensets were designed for fully automatic operation after a push button start

evenattemperaturesbelow24oCwhenthecoconutoilisfrozen.

Thereweretwofueltanksonefordieselandtheotherforcoconutoil.

Thegensetisstartedandstoppedondieselfuelfor10to15minutes.

The coconut oil tank had electricheaters below thetank to melt the coconut oil and

also an electric heater in the well of the tank where the outlet pipe emerged. Once

the coconut oil had been heated to the required temperature the control system

switchesthefuelsupplytococonutoilbymeansofasolenoidvalve.

Coconutoilisutilizedastheprimaryfuelsourcefor90% 95%ofthetotalrunning

timeofthegenerator.

Asecondextrafuelfilterisfittedwithabypassvalve.

Alargerfuelpumpisfitted.

Yearlyinspectionsarecarriedoutontheprojectsitesforrepairsandtrainingof

technicianstorunthegenerators.

Welagi

The45kVAWelagiCopraBiofuelProjectwascommisisioned inJuly2001,anditrantrouble

freeforafewyearsafteritsimplementation.Thisprojectservesavillagewith58households

andoilproductionisthroughasmalloilmillthatwasbuildaspartoftheproject. Thevillage

hasaspecialcommitteethatlooksaftertheaffairsofthecopraproductionandsubsequentoil

productionthat

are

used

to

generate

electricity

in

the

biofuel

generator.

Photo9showstheequipmentinstalledinWelangiforproducingfuelgradecoconutoil. Copra

cutintosmallpiecesbytthecopracutter(notinpicture)isfedintotheoilexpellerontheleft

ofthephoto. Theprefilteredcoconutoil(drumontheleft)ispumpedbyanelectricaldriven

pump(betweendrumandfilter)andpushedthroughaflowlinebagfilter(ontheright). The

hoseatthebottomrightisconnectedtothecoconutoilmaintankofthegenerator.

Photo 13 Coconut Oil production equipment at Welangi


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Source: GillesVaitilingom

Photo 14 45kVAdieselgensetatWelagi


VanuaBalavu

TheLomalomaCopraBiofuelProjectwascommissionedinApril2000. The90kVALomaloma

CopraBiofuelProjectservesthreevillages(Naqara,SawanaandLomaloma).Sincethisisthe

administrativeheartofVanuaBalavu,electricityisalsosuppliedtotwogovernmentschools,

theLomalomaHospitalandthePostOfficealongwith200customers.

AnElectricityCommitteeformedbythethreevillagesandotherconsumersintheprojects

overseestheprojectmanagement.Apowerhouseoperatorandhisassistantarebeingpaidto

maintainthegeneratorwhileameterreaderhasthetaskofbillingconsumersthrough

readingsofindividualkWhmetersandanotherpersoncollectsthesebills.Thusfourvillagers

areemployedbytheElectricityCommitteeandtheirwagesarepaidthroughthebillscollected

monthly.


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ThecoconutoilmillonVanuaBalavucloseddownshortlybeforethisprojectwas

commissionedandallcopraproducedwassentoutsidetheislandforprocessing. Leftover

coconutoilfromtheoilmilllastedabout8monthsafterwhichoilforthegensetwas

purchasedfromtheSavusavuoilmillonVanuaLevu.

Photo 15 The90kVAdieselgensetatVanuabalavu


InMarch2005the90kVAcommunitygensetfacedseriousmechanicalproblemsandwas

shutdown. SubsequentlythisgensetwassenttoSuvaforrepairsbutnothingwasdoneabout

itforseveralyears. ItwasrustingawayattheWaluBayworkshoptill2008whentheBiofuel

AdvisorattheDeptofEnergy,KrishnaRaghavan,arrangedfortheFrenchengineerGillesVaitilingomtocometoFijiandhelprepairthisgenset. SincethisisheavydutyDeutzindirect

injectiongensetitcanbeoperatedatevenlowloadsoncoconutoil. Sotheoperating

procedurewaschangedtoamuchsimpler,manualoperationwithonlyonefueltank

containingcoconutoil. Theheatersbelowthefueltanktomeltcoconutoilinwintercanstill

beusedifrequiredbymanuallyoperatinganonoffswitch. Meanwhilethethreevillageson

VanuaBalavuhavegottheirownseparategensets,sotherepaired90kVAcoconutoilgenset

willbeinstalledatanotherlocationwherecoconutoilisavailable.

A SOPAC study team visited the two sites in 2005 to evaluate these two projects for the Fiji

DepartmentofEnergy. Theirconclusionsaregivenbelow:

Thebiofuel

projects

in

Taveuni

and

Vanuabalavu

have

successfully

demonstrated

the

technicalpossibilitytousecoconutoilasafuelforruralelectrification.Theyhavehowever

notresultedintheexpectedsocioeconomicdevelopmentasanticipated.

Provisionofreliableandaffordableelectricityservicestotheremotecommunitiesof

TaveuniandVanuabalavuisahighlyvaluedservicetoimprovestandardofliving.

Dieselhasbeenfoundthemostappropriateandlowestcostfueloptionfortheprovisionof

electricityatbothsitesresearched.


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Eventhoughthoroughfeasibilitystudiesontechnology,socioeconomicsandhavebeen

carriedoutbeforetheimplementationoftheprojects,theexpectationsofthevillagersand

theresultsoftheprojectshavenotbeeninlinewitheachother.

IftheautomaticfuelswitchontheTaveunigeneratorisrepaired,thevillagershavethe

optiononwhethertouse(commerciallyproduced)coconutoilordieselasfuel.For

Vanuabalavutoutilisecoconutoilasafuel,anoilmillwouldhavetobeboughtandoil

millingorganisedasitdoesnotappeartobeeconomicallyattractivetoimportcoconutoil

fromotherislands.

TheevaluationfindingsandsocialsurveyconductedbyPCDFclearlyoutlinesthesocial

constraintsandnoncooperativenessbetweenthe3villagesparticularly,thatofLomaloma

andSawana.Theideaofhavinganelectricitycommitteecomprisingofmembersfromthe

3villagesisnotpractical.Thus,itisunlikelythatacommongeneratorforthevillagesis

suitable.

Thecurrenttariffstructureisnotsustainableasrealcostsareneithercovered,nor

equitablebecauseallhouseholdspaythesameamountirrespectiveoftheirusage.

Generally,newtechnologycansurviveandoperateasdesignedprovideditisused

accordingto

its

specifications.

The

absence

of

technology

in

acommunity

will

only

hinder

(wo)menseffortstodevelopsocially,economicallyandsustainably;

(SOPAC,2006)

Fijiscoconutindustryrevivalprogram

Fijiscoconutindustryhasbeendecliningoverthelast40yearsbecauseoflowproductivity,

lowpricesandcompetitionfromotheredibleoilssoldontheworldmarket. Althoughthere

havebeensomeeffortsinthelastfourdecadestorevivetheindustry,thelackofasustained

longtermnationalpolicyfordevelopmentofthecoconutsectorhasmadeitdifficultto

reversethedecline. Intheearly1960scopraproductionwasover40,000tons/yr;nowitis

lessthan15,000tons/yr.Moreover,abouttwothirdsofthetreeswillgooutofproduction

overthenext20years. Theoldertreesneedtobereplacedsoonotherwisetheindustrywill

declinefurtherandtheruralpeopledependentontheindustrywillmigratetourbanareas

lookingforalternativelivelihoodsaddingmorepressureonthelimitedresourcesoftheurban

centers. Inresponsetothisproblem,theFijianGovernmentcreatedtheCoconutIndustry

DevelopmentAuthority(CIDA)underanActofparliamentinNovember1998,withamandate

torevitalizetheindustry. However,CIDAhasnotbeenabletotakeovertheentire

administrationoftheindustryfromtheMinistryofAgriculturebecauseofthelackof

budgetarysupport. From2005onwards,theGovernmenthasagreedtohandovertoCIDAthe

fullresponsibilitytoadministerallaspectsoftheindustrywithadequatefundingtoenable

CIDAtoperformitsfullroleasrequiredundertheAct.

CIDAhasdrawnupa25yearCoconutIndustryMasterDevelopmentPlanthatincludesa

NationwideCoconutIndustryPromotionsProgram(NCIPP). CIDAaimstorestructurethe

coconutindustry,register20,000coconutgrowersandestablishanetworkofCoconutPlanters

Associationsthroughoutthecoconutgrowingareas. ThiswillassisttheExtensionand

Research&DevelopmentDivisionstoachievetheirtargetsfortheplantingof6milliontrees


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andtherehabilitationofanother2milliontrees. TheTaveuniCoconutCenterwithitsfour

seedgardenswillbeprovidedfinancial,manpowerandlogisticalsupporttoplayakeyrolein

thiscampaign. Amanpowerdevelopmentplanandraisingofpublicawarenessthrough

postersinschools,restaurants,hotels,publicmarketsandgovernmentoffices,etc.arealso

beingplanned.

CIDAaimstoincreasetheproductionofcoprato50,000tons/yr,ofcoconutoilto24,000tons

/yrandoftendernutsforthelocalandexportmarketto40millionnuts/yr. Product

diversification,intercroppingpractices,wholenutpurchasecentersandacentralizedcopra

dryingfacilityareenvisagedtogetherwithalargenumberofminimillsandtwobigcoconutoil

(CNO)mills. CIDAwantstoimprovethelifestyleof100,000ruralpeopleinvolvedinthe

coconutsector,empowerwomen,reducepovertyandimprovetheeducationofruralchildren.

Otherambitioustarget

biofuels from coconuts - ver3

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