Análisis del Ciclo de Vida de la producción de Azúcar Crudo en la Empresa Azucarera “Ecuador”
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Fecha
2009-06-25
Autores
Companioni Rojas, Daniel
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Editor
Universidad Central "Marta Abreu" de las Villas
Resumen
En la actualidad, uno de los métodos novedosos para evaluar cuantitativamente los
impactos ambientales generados por productos y procesos, es el Análisis de Ciclo
de Vida (ACV), metodología que es muy usada en los países desarrollados, pero
aún es incipiente en América Latina. Los resultados obtenidos en Cuba aportan
una metodología que permite un análisis ambiental científico e integral que evalúe
cuantitativamente el impacto ambiental total generado por la industria azucarera,
incluyendo las dos etapas del proceso: Etapa Agrícola y Etapa Industrial. En el
presente trabajo se aplica dicha metodología para cuantificar el impacto ambiental
de la empresa azucarera “Ecuador” mediante el Análisis de Ciclo de Vida (ACV)
con el Ecoindicador 99 y el Software SimaPro 7,1. Los resultados muestran que la
metodología utilizada constituye una herramienta valiosa para evaluar el
desempeño ambiental de la producción de azúcar y se comprueba científicamente
que la mayor contribución al impacto del proceso esta dada por la etapa industrial y
en ésta, por el proceso de cogeneración de electricidad con bagazo, evidenciando
la necesidad de mejorar la gestión energética en la empresa. El mayor impacto en
la etapa agrícola está dado por la producción y el consumo de combustibles. Las
categorías que mayor impacto presentan son los efectos respiratorios por
compuestos inorgánicos y Acidificación Eutroficación en la etapa industrial y
combustibles fósiles en la etapa agrícola.
At present, one of the novel methods to quantitatively evaluate the environmental impacts generated by products and processes is the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA), methodology that is very used in developed countries, but still is incipient in Latin America. The results obtained in Cuba contribute an integral methodology that allows a scientific environmental analysis and that quantitatively evaluates the total environmental impact generated by the sugar industry, including the two stages of the process: Agricultural Stage and Industrial Stage. In the present work this methodology is applied to quantify the environmental impact of the sugar mill “Ecuador” by means of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) with the Eco-indicator 99 and Software SimaPro 7,1. The results show that used methodology constitutes a valuable tool to evaluate the environmental performance of the sugar production and is verified scientifically that the greater contribution to the impact of this process is given by the industrial stage and in this one, by the co-generation of electricity with bagasse, showing the necessity of improving the energetic management of this enterprise. The greater impact in the agricultural stage is given by the fuels production and consumption. Then, the categories that major impact show are the respiratory inorganic compound effects and Acidification / Eutrofizcation in the industrial stage and fossil fuels in the agricultural stage.
At present, one of the novel methods to quantitatively evaluate the environmental impacts generated by products and processes is the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA), methodology that is very used in developed countries, but still is incipient in Latin America. The results obtained in Cuba contribute an integral methodology that allows a scientific environmental analysis and that quantitatively evaluates the total environmental impact generated by the sugar industry, including the two stages of the process: Agricultural Stage and Industrial Stage. In the present work this methodology is applied to quantify the environmental impact of the sugar mill “Ecuador” by means of the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) with the Eco-indicator 99 and Software SimaPro 7,1. The results show that used methodology constitutes a valuable tool to evaluate the environmental performance of the sugar production and is verified scientifically that the greater contribution to the impact of this process is given by the industrial stage and in this one, by the co-generation of electricity with bagasse, showing the necessity of improving the energetic management of this enterprise. The greater impact in the agricultural stage is given by the fuels production and consumption. Then, the categories that major impact show are the respiratory inorganic compound effects and Acidification / Eutrofizcation in the industrial stage and fossil fuels in the agricultural stage.
Descripción
Palabras clave
Análisis de Ciclo de Vida, Industria Azucarera, Impacto Ambiental, Procesos de Azúcar, Empresa Azucarera “Ecuador”, Acidificación, Acidification, Eutroficación, Eutrophication, Combustibles Fósiles, Fossil Fuels