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Introduction to sustainable and 1
alternative ecofuels
†
*
*
Kalam Azad , M.G. Rasul , M.M.K. Khan , Subhash C. Sharma *
*School of Engineering and Technology, Central Queensland University, Melbourne, VIC,
†
Australia, School of Engineering and Technology, Central Queensland University,
Rockhampton, QLD, Australia
1.1 Background
The total global energy demand has increased at the rate of 1.52% per year [1], which
is faster than the total population growth of 1.14% per year [2]. This increase is attrib-
uted to the development of modern civilization, improvements of lifestyle, depen-
dency on more electronic devices, increased usage of automobiles, increasing
industrialization, and recent commercial development, particularly in developing
countries. Fig. 1.1 illustrates the history and projection of world total population
growth and total energy consumption. The world total energy consumption will
increase about 56% between 2010 and 2040, as projected by the International Energy
Outlook [1]. The total energy consumption includes liquid fuel, coal, natural gas, and
nuclear energy. Fig. 1.2 shows the world’s total energy consumption by various
sources. The highest consumption of liquid fuels was recorded at about 33% of total
energy consumption in 2015, which is one of the main concerns with regard to energy
security, environmental sustainability, and higher oil prices in the near future [1]. Liq-
uid fuel, more specifically liquid fossil fuel, consumption is increasing at the rate of
about 2.1% per year and is mainly consumed by the transport sector [1]. This sector
accounts for about 28% of global energy consumption since 2000 [3]. For example,
the transport sector (including aviation, road, rail, and marine) consumed about 25%
of total world energy in 2012, and this is expected to increase at the rate of 1.4% per
year from 2012 to 2040 as projected by the IEO [1]. This increasing energy demand in
the transport sector could be met by low-emitting, renewable, and liquid ecofuels
(such as biofuels) as an alternative transport fuel [4]. The Renewables 2016 Global
Status Report revealed that biofuels met about 4% of global transport energy demand
in 2015 [3]. Worldwide, the transport sector constitutes around 67% road transport,
23% shipping, 4% rail, and the remainder in aviation transport [3]. The ecofuel usage
includes biodiesel for the road, rail, and marine, and bioethanol for light passenger
vehicles throughout the world [5].
In recent years, ecofuel has created new markets, including its usage in the aviation
sector as aviation biofuel [3]. The aviation sector consumes about 10% of the total
global energy, which is responsible for 2% of total CO 2 emissions worldwide as
reported by Chiaramonti and Prussi [6]. The United States Environmental Protection
Advances in Eco-Fuels for a Sustainable Environment. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-102728-8.00001-2
© 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
