Title: Fuzzy Logic-based energy efficiency Life Cycle Assessment with a case study of corn-based fuel ethanol in China

Authors: Suiran Yu, Jing Tao

Addresses: School of Mechanical and Power Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China. ' School of Mechanical and Power Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dongchuan Road, Shanghai 200240, PR China

Abstract: A fuzzy logic based method of energy efficiency assessment of Biomass-based Fuel Ethanol (BFE) production is introduced in this paper. Energy relevant inventory variables are defined and described by fuzzy sets representing the differences in energy inventory data between the BFE system and its reference. A fuzzy reasoning process is developed to derive the energy efficiency from the fuzzificated inventory data. This method distinguishes itself by simple calculation, lower requirements of data accuracy and capability of processing subjectivity. A case study of corn-based fuel ethanol from Northeast China is conducted to demonstrate the application of the proposed method.

Keywords: BFE; biomass based fuel ethanol; LCA; life cycle assessment; fuzzy logic; energy efficiency; corn based fuel; China; alternative fuels; biofuels.

DOI: 10.1504/IJGEI.2009.027973

International Journal of Global Energy Issues, 2009 Vol.32 No.1/2, pp.49 - 67

Published online: 24 Aug 2009 *

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