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The Effectiveness of Banana (Musa Balbasiana) Peelings and Mango (Mangifera Indica) Peelings As A Bioethanol Fuel
The Effectiveness of Banana (Musa Balbasiana) Peelings and Mango (Mangifera Indica) Peelings As A Bioethanol Fuel
An Investigatory Project
Presented to the faculty of Calamba City Science High School
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
of Research IV
By
October 2014
Abstract
This study would not be successful without the help of the following individuals:
Foremost God, for letting the study be smooth, safe and also he gave enough
wisdom and ability to the researchers to successfully do the experimentation and the
whole paper.
Ms. Mary Grace Salom, Mr. and Mrs. Sanchez and Mr. and Ms. Quirao for
supporting their children in doing the research study specifically in finance.
Mr. Ralph Lawrence R. Silaya for sharing facts regarding their past research,
which is related to this study.
Ms. Ruth Anne Ramos, research adviser, was highly appreciated because of her
patience in correcting the papers that were submitted to her and consideration when it
comes to deadlines. Also for influencing her students to be organized and on time. Lastly,
for being present in all times to guide and keep the safety of her students.
Introduction
Background of the Study
A biofuel is a fuel that contains energy from geologically recent carbon fixation.
These fuels are produced from living organisms. These fuels are made by a biomass
conversion (biomass refers to recently living organisms, most often referring to plants or
plant-derived materials). This biomass can be converted to convenient energy containing
substances in three different ways: thermal conversion, chemical conversion, and
biochemical conversion.
Biofuels have been around as long as cars have. Biofuel is treated as a great solution
to global warming. Cars are a major source of carbon dioxide, thus being a main
contributor to global warming.
Bioethanol is an alcohol made by fermentation, mostly from carbohydrates produced
in sugar or starch crops such as corn, sugarcane, or sweet sorghum. Cellulosic biomass,
derived from non-food sources, such as trees and grasses, is also being developed as
a feedstock for ethanol production. Ethanol can be used as a fuel for vehicles in its pure
form, but it is usually used as a gasoline additive to increase octane and improve vehicle
emissions. Current plant design does not provide for converting the lignin portion of plant
raw materials to fuel components by fermentation.
Main feed stocks for bioethanol production are sugarcane (in Brazil) and corn grains
(in USA), while many other agricultural raw materials are also used worldwide. Among
the three major types of raw materials, the production of ethanol from sugary and starchy
materials are easier as compared to lingo cellulosic materials since it requires additional
technical challenges such as pretreatment . Furthermore, many agricultural raw materials
rich in fermentable carbohydrates were tested worldwide for bioconversion from sugar to
ethanol, but the cost of carbohydrate raw materials has become a limiting factor for large
scale production by the Laboratory experiments were conducted to evaluate the chemical
composition of fruit wastes (pulp and peels) of Banana and Mango in order to explore
their potential application in bio-ethanol production. The proximate composition of
banana fruit pulp was 76.63% moisture, 5.65% protein, 1.37% lipid, 19.75% ash and
0.632% starch. Similarly for mango, the proximate composition of fruit pulp was 81.26%
moisture, 7.96% protein, 1.48% lipid, 13.08% ash and 0.507% starch. The total dietary
fibre content ranged from 3.54% to 73.04% in the fruit samples and found at higher level
in mango peels. A maximum polyphenol content of 54.45% was observed in mango fruit
peels and a minimum of 10.97% was recorded in banana fruit pulp. The dilute acid
(H2SO4) pretreatment (DAP) followed by enzymatic hydrolysis showed maximum
reducing sugar yield of 64.27% in the mixed fruit pulps, followed by the banana fruit
pulp (57.58%). The banana fruit peels also yielded a maximum reducing sugar content of
36.67% whereas the lowest of 31.29% was observed in mango fruit peels. (Arumugam
and Manikandan, 2011)
Fermentation is a metabolic process that converts sugar to acids, gases
and/or alcohol. It occurs in yeast and bacteria, but also in oxygen-starved muscle cells, as
in the case of lactic acid fermentation. It takes place in the absence of oxygen (when
the electron transport chain is unusable) and becomes the cell’s primary means
of ATP (energy) production.
The researchers chose to study this because the world is facing global warming and
it should be prevented or be cured. This study would give insights, since it would discuss
about a harmless process which would produce a safe, cheap and effective fuel that can
lessen pollution.
Definition of Terms
Bio ethanol
- Mainly produced by the sugar fermentation process, although it can also be
manufactured by the chemical process of reacting ethylene with steam.
Fermentation
- A metabolic process in which an organism converts a carbohydrate, such as
starch or a sugar, into an alcohol or an acid. For example, yeast performs
fermentation to obtain energy by converting sugar into alcohol.
Saccharomyces cerevisiae
- Commonly known as "baker’s yeast" or "brewer’s yeast". The yeast ferments
sugars present in the flour or added to the dough, giving off carbon
dioxide (CO2) and alcohol (ethanol).
Review of Related Literatures
Source of Materials
The materials such as: banana and mango peelings, yeast and cans for the
distillation set up were bought or collected from Calamba area only. The measuring
instruments and laboratory apparatus like: 500mL beaker, 10mL and 100mL graduated
cylinders, evaporating dishes and digital weighing scale were borrowed from the
Calamba City Science High School’s laboratory property.
Procedures
The banana- mango peelings with Saccharomyces cerevisiae was placed in a thin
can attached to a distillation setup and let to ferment for fourteen days. After
fermentation, the can was heated for at least 4 hours to get enough precipitate. The
distilled liquid was then combined with 70% solution of isopropyl alcohol with a
proportion of 1mL: 2.5mL isopropyl alcohol and left to react for four days until it turned
brownish- black. The solution was then filtered. The percent ethanol of banana- mango
peelings bioethanol was tested at UP NIMBB and measured by ethanol- gas
chromatography.
Data Gathering Process
The cotton balls with two mL of the fuels were lit and its firing duration was
recorded separately per set- up and listed in tabular form. While the percent ethanol of the
banana- mango peelings bioethanol was measured by ethanol- gas chromatography.
Statistical Analysis
The t- test was used for comparing the means of two samples (or treatments),
even if they have different number of replicates.
After measuring the banana- mango peelings bioethanol fuel’s fire duration, the t-
test was used since banana- mango peelings bioethanol fuel would only be compared to
diesel gasoline. The results would be considered statistically significant at 95%
confidence to determine significant differences between the two fuels.
Flow Chart
Gathering of Materials
(500g of banana and mango peelings each)
Distillation process
Product
Tabulation of Data
Results and Discussion
Duration of Fire
Table 1 Duration of each fuel’s combustion
Duration (seconds)
Fuel
Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 3 ̅
𝒙
Banana- Mango Peelings
74.55 82.53 72.85 76.38
Bioethanol
Table 4.1 shows that Banana-Mango Peelings bioethanol burns faster than diesel
gasoline. In all trials, diesel lasted longer and Banana- mango peelings ethanol lasted
almost only half of its time.
Statistical Analysis
For determining significant difference between the Banana-mango Peelings
Bioethanol and Diesel’s fire duration, t test was used. The mean of the two fuel’s fire
duration was computed, value of t and degrees of freedom to get the critical value which
is statistically significant at 95% confidence.
Fuel ̅
𝒙 t
The degree of freedom used was 2 where the critical value was at 4.303. Based
from the computed values, the value of t was less than the critical value. Meaning, there
was a significant difference between banana- mango peelings bioethanol and diesel in
terms of fire duration. So the null hypothesis was rejected.
Percentage Ethanol
Table 3 Official result from UP Biotech
From the results, it was hypothesized that the ethanol could have been able to
rival the results of the diesel gas if it went through the distillation process in a more
proper way. If it was done so, the resultant fuel would have a higher concentration of
ethanol which would thusly lead to longer fire durations.
Summary, Conclusion and Recommendation
Summary
This study deals with the production of a biofuel from banana and mango
peelings. It was tested if it was more effective than diesel in terms of its fire duration. It
also determined what the fuel’s percent ethanol is. The null hypothesis states that
Banana- Mango Peelings bioethanol and diesel gasoline has no significant difference in
terms of firing duration. The alternative hypothesis states that Banana- Mango Peelings
bioethanol and diesel gasoline has significant difference in terms of firing duration.
The fermentation process was conducted at Calamba City Science High School.
However, the distillation was done at Villa de Calamba, Calamba City. The peelings were
combined with 100g Saccharomyces cerevisiae and were left to ferment for two weeks.
After fermentation, it underwent distillation and was added with 70% isopropyl alcohol
which was left to react for four days. The banana- mango peelings bioethanol fuel and
diesel gasoline’s firing duration was tested by putting 2mL of fuel to a cotton ball, lit by a
lighter and measured time by stopwatch. The t-test was used for comparing the two
means of the two fuels’ firing duration and to determine significant differences between
the two.
Summary of Findings
The banana- mango peelings bioethanol and diesel were compared in
terms of fuel combustion by soaking cotton balls with 2mL of each substance and
then setting them on fire. The results show that the banana- mango peelings
bioethanol was able to last for an average of at least a minute while diesel was
able to go for twice as long. The results of the given data were analyzed using t-
test at 95% significant difference in the confidence interval of p<0.05. The value
of t yielded to -0.08, which was lower than the critical value of 4.303 at degree of
freedom of 2. This shows that the fuels’ combustion rates have a significant
difference between them. Therefore, the null hypothesis was rejected. The
banana- mango bioethanol was sent to the National Institute of Molecular Biology
and Microbiology at the University of the Philippines, Los Baños to determine
how much ethanol is present in the sample. Results of which showed that the
Banana-Mango Peelings bioethanol’s percent ethanol was at 2.23±0.09.
Conclusion
From the given computed data, it show that there is a difference between the fire
duration of the Banana- Mango Peeling bioethanol and the diesel.
The results given by the National Institute of Molecular Biology and
Biotechnology showed that the percent ethanol of the product was at 2.23 ± 0.09.
Recommendation
It is advised to undergo the fuel in a thorough distillation. Using more than
makeshift apparatuses would possibly lead to better results. Various fermentation
durations should also be taken into account. The number of fermentation weeks may
affect the quality of the fuel produced.
Bibliography
Borah, D., & Mishra, V. (2011). Production of Biofuel Out of Fruit Waste. International
Journal of Advanced Biotechnology Research, 1, 71- 74. Retrieved June 23, 2014,
from the Research Gate database.
Klein, D. W., M., L., & John, H. (2006). Microbiology: 6th Edition. New York: McGraw
Hill Financial, Inc.. (Original work published 2005)