Project Cassava - Establishing Cassava Derived Ethanol as a Sustainable Alternative Cooking Fuel in Equatorial Africa

C.A.S.S.A.V.A.

Project CASSAVA Establishing Cassava Derived Ethanol as a Sustainable Alternative Cooking Fuel in Equatorial Africa

Andrew Carr Edward Crocker Athith Krishna Marshall Mucasey

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Project CASSAVA Team Red Cornell University ENGRD 3500

FAO United Nations

Dear FAO, We submit below a proposal for a grant in order to fund Project CASSAVA. This project will turn cassava into ethanol, a usable cooking fuel. This fuel will benefit communities in in Eastern Africa, specifically Mozambique to start. Project CASSAVA will greatly help the area by the lessening of the costs of fuel and by reducing the reliance on more harmful cooking fuel alternatives. With your organizations help, this project will help communities in Eastern Africa advance to a modern standard. Regards, Project CASSAVA

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TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ............................................................................................................. 5 2. INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................... 7 3. HISTORY OF PROBLEM IN THE LOCATION .................................................................................. 8 4. PROJECT SCOPE AND PILOT SITE ................................................................................................ 8 5. CURRENT USE OF CASSAVA IN THE PILOT LOCATION ............................................................... 12 6. CASSAVA PROCESSING AND STARCH YIELD ........................................................................... 13 7. CREATION OF GLUCOSE AND FERMENTATION ........................................................................ 14 8. DISTILLATION ......................................................................................................................... 16 9. HEATING SOURCE FOR DISTILLATION .................................................................................... 17 10. MONITORING OF THE DISTILLATION PROCESS ...................................................................... 18 11. DAILY ETHANOL DEMAND ................................................................................................... 19 12. DISTRIBUTION AND USE OF ETHANOL FUEL ......................................................................... 20 13. COST ANALYSIS AND TIMELINE ........................................................................................... 21 14. COMPETING TECHNOLOGIES ................................................................................................. 23 15. OUTLOOK AND IMPROVEMENTS ........................................................................................... 25 16. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................ 26 17. REFERENCES ......................................................................................................................... 27

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LIST OF FIGURES 1. EXACT LOCATION OF LURIO, OUR CHOSEN SITE FOR THE PILOT PROJECT ................................. 9 2. PROJECT CASSAVA’S BUSINESS MODEL................................................................................... 11 3. CURRENT COMMERCIAL USAGE OF CASSAVA IN NORTHERN MOZAMBIQUE ................................. 13 4. CHEMICAL FERMENTATION OF GLUCOSE INTO ETHANOL ........................................................ 19 5. DISTILLATION STILL AND CONDENSER SYSTEM DESIGN .............................................................. 16 6. COMPARISON BETWEEN CONVENTIONAL AND FRESNEL LENSES ............................................... 147 7. OPERATION OF LIGHT-DEPENDENT RESISTORS ....................................................................... 19 8. ETHANOL STOVE DESIGN ........................................................................................................ 171 9. THREE YEAR PROJECT TIMELINE .............................................................................................. 21 10. PERCENTAGE OF HOUSEHOLDS WITH ELECTRICITY ................................................................. 24

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ABSTRACT Studies have shown that cooking fuels currently in use in the majority of Equatorial East African communities (specifically Mozambique) have a lot of adverse effects on the livelihood and health of the citizens and the environment. Kerosene and firewood cause of lot of respiratory problems in the users and also their prices are completely unstable. Project CASSAVA proposes cassava-sourced, ethanol-based cooking fuel as an alternative for these communities. Inspired by the existing models of operation in Nigeria and Zambia we plan to have a holistic and sustainable business model which is extremely favorable to both the investors and the users. Project CASSAVA plans to provide an end-to-end solution to the issue at hand by setting up versatile systems that will handle specific tasks including the processing of cassava and the cooking stove itself. The technical maintenance for this endeavor will be done in partnership with Universidade Lúrio, mainly to save on the costs of transportation and solving the problem of the language barrier. Project CASSAVA will be beneficial in terms of boosting rural agriculture, creating jobs, alleviating poverty, conserving forest from fuel wood exploitation, and preventing indoor pollution. The proposed technical and business design is available in detail, in the paper, with the aim of highlighting the benefits of this project for the development of the “other 90%” of the global population. Keywords: Project CASSAVA; ethanol cooking fuel; Mozambique; kerosene; fuel wood; cassava processing

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1. Executive Summary Many developing countries around the world suffer from a scarcity of cooking fuel options and resort to using wood or kerosene. These cooking fuel options are harmful to the users as well as the environment, and because they lack a stable price point communities suffer economically by relying on these fuels. We in the Coalition for the Advancement of Sustainability and Services for an Agriculturally Viable Africa (Project CASSAVA) seek to reduce the need for these harmful cooking fuel options by introducing ethanol as a more viable option. Communities in Equatorial East Africa produce large amounts of cassava, and we plan to convert unused cassava into ethanol that can be used in simple household stoves. The pilot location for this project will be Lúrio, Mozambique, where we can partner with the Universidade Lúrio to develop and optimize the process of converting cassava to ethanol as well as the production of stoves that will be used in households throughout the community. Ethanol will be created in a facility by fermenting processed cassava and distilling the fermented mixture to a higher concentration of ethanol. The facility will house 30 distillation systems that each produce 100L of ethanol, and the entire process of creating ethanol will be pipelined to have a steady output of 1000L per day despite a three-day fermentation time. This daily amount of ethanol would serve 500 to 1000 households. The pilot plant for Project CASSAVA would be developed and constructed over a three-year timeline. For the first year, Project CASSAVA will be testing and confirming the project plan as well as acquiring the necessary resources to create the pilot plant. In the second year, we will be working with students and professors at Universidade Lúrio to refine the cassava processing, fermentation, and distillation in order to optimize the entire process of converting cassava to ethanol. Construction on the production facility will also begin in this phase of the project. In the third year, the production facility will be fully functional, and a portion of the Lúrio community will be using ethanol stoves in their households. The entire development of the pilot site would require US$200,000. If this project succeeds in its goals, it can be expanded to include more production facilities in Lúrio and even spread to other communities, provinces, and eventually other countries. By introducing a market for ethanol as a cooking fuel option, this project will create many new jobs for members of the target communities as well as improve the living conditions within their households. Project CASSAVA will bring positive change to developing communities, and it is an idea that can spread to create a safer and more sustainable world.

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Project CASSAVA

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2. Introduction

Project CASSAVA is an initiative to solve the problem of cooking fuel in regions of the world that suffer from scarcity of existing options, pollution, and unstable prices of the existing commodity. Our ultimate aim is to make clean liquid cooking fuel sourced from cassava, available and affordable to the billions of people worldwide now cooking with solid coal, firewood, and kerosene. Our pilot project is targeted towards communities in Equatorial East Africa, specifically northern Mozambique. These communities use either firewood or kerosene for cooking fuel, both of which lack a stable price point [1], present health concerns [2], and adversely affect the environment [3]. Currently, these communities do not have access to technologies that can harness alternative sources for their day-to-day cooking needs. The main aim of our venture will be create a stable mass market alternative to the existing cooking fuel solutions in these Equatorial East African communities. We seek to use the surplus of cassava, a potato-like starchy root that is widely available in these areas, as an alternative fuel source. Our present pilot plan requires the region to have enough sunlight and cassava cultivation, but the basic idea behind the project can be adapted to other regions with similar amounts of cassava, or a related crop. Our goal is to create safer and more affordable cooking fuel in these communities by fermenting and distilling cassava mash into an ethanol fuel source. To hold true to the goal of reducing the need for wood and kerosene as fuel, each step in the production of ethanol will be done without using these fuel sources. This shift to ethanol as the main fuel source in these communities will be a safer and more eco-friendly alternative. Project CASSAVA is inspired by the Project Cassakero [4] initiative by the Federal government of Nigeria, and the Zambian Cassava Strategy [5].

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3. History of problem in the location Heating and cooking fuel are the most important components of household energy usage in developing countries or communities, accounting for over 80% of total energy consumption, especially among lower and middle class households [6]. The major cooking fuels in the households of Mozambique, which are fuel wood and kerosene, face price instabilities as well as supply difficulties, and the present safety, health, and environmental challenges. Using inefficient traditional wood cook stove especially in poorly ventilated kitchen results in poor indoor air quality that has been linked to respiratory problems prevalent among women and children in these communities [7]. Another challenge with the main cooking energy sources as currently used in traditional cook stove is the low combustion efficiencies, which often result in the loss of scarce energy resources.

4. Project scope and pilot site Project CASSAVA’s pilot location is Lúrio, a part of the Nampula province in north-eastern Mozambique. Figure 1 shows the exact location of this city. Lúrio has a population of 3,827 households [8], which makes it perfect for the implementation of our project. Another reason for choosing this site is the presence of Universidade Lúrio, one of the reputed educational institutions in Mozambique, which will be one of our main partners in the technical maintenance of the facilities that will be set up at the target location. Our project will provide an ethanol-based cooking fuel sourced from cassava first to a portion of the community and later to the entire population of Lúrio.

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Lurio

Figure 1: Exact location of Lurio, our chosen site for the pilot project Lurio is on the banks of Lurio river in the Nampula province of Mozambique. Lurio is also the site of Universidade Lurio, our academic and research partner [9].

The choice of the pilot site was made after detailed research into the demographics of the target region and various other constraints which included fuel need, cassava cultivation, ability to produce returns on the investment, etc. On the basis of the studies by DADTCO (Dutch Agricultural Development & Trading Company), a Dutch private sector company, Africa has a great potential to be the home of a Cassava Revolution which would simultaneously develop the continent and meet the food and energy needs of the citizens in the years to come [10]. Nigeria, Mozambique, and Ghana (in that order) happen to be the largest producers of Cassava in Africa [11]. Nigeria currently possesses one of the most stable economies in Africa, so we divert our attention to Mozambique. Mozambique requires the help of the international scientific and engineering community to commercialize the nation and aid its development. Based on “Cassava Commercialization in Mozambique” by the International Development department at Michigan State University, we can see that 61% of all small scale farming and about 30% of all calorie consumption in Mozambique is cassava [12].

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Surplus production is often wasted as citizens lack the technical knowledge necessary to apply the surplus in constructive uses. According to a 2012 report by FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) and OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) [13], increasing cassava production would not only contribute to reducing poverty and hunger in the rural areas; it would also contribute towards reducing the country’s food import bill and consequently reducing the trade deficit – one of the biggest problems affecting Mozambique’s economy. The report also realizes the growing problems due to unstable cooking fuel prices in Mozambique and calls for alternatives. Central and Northern Mozambique have areas that are most suitable for the growth of cassava [13], and coincidentally they house the majority of the population suffering from the unstable economy of the country. Our areas of concern are narrowed down to the four provinces of Zambezia, Nampula, Cabo Delgado and Niassa. Studies since 2005 have shown a steady growth of cassava in these regions and also a consistent waste of excess cassava [14]. Studies by the FAO and BEFS (Bioenergy and Food Security Projects) also mention the presence of large areas of land that have the potential to be developed agriculturally and industrially [14]. On gathering more concrete information on the possibilities of actual logistics of the project and applying that data while keeping these four provinces as models, we chose Lúrio in the Nampula province as the initial site for our project. In the short term Project CASSAVA aims to provide cooking fuel to the target population in exchange for the marketing rights of the by-products of the production (which includes sulfur & cassava slag). In the longer term we aim to improve the economic status of the target population by providing the local population with technical knowledge and employment at each of the plants that are built. We plan to eradicate the poverty in the area by enhancing the wealth of the local population with this new market. Project CASSAVA will follow a highly sustainable business model, as shown in Figure 2, which will ultimately make the target area economically stable and self-sufficient in terms of cooking fuel for the households. The basic needs of Project CASSAVA are:

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a) Crop that can be profitably converted to biofuel, b) land that can be developed industrially, c) non-technical labor in the region, d) preferably an educational institution that can be partnered with for technical maintenance.

Objective1 : Objective 5: Research & Development, and Agronomic support

Target Markets, Requirement Information & Communication

Objective 2: Finance

Objective 6: Production, Processing & Commercialization

Objective 4:

Objective 3:

Policy Creation & Adoption

Capacity Building, Quality Assurance & Extension

Figure 2: Project CASSAVA’s business model The 6 highlighted objectives will be carried out step-by-step to achieve maximum sustainability. The first objective has been researched and mentioned in this report. The second objective will be determined and finalized by the investors. The remaining objectives have been thought out in a logistical sense and will be carried out once the pilot plant is set up. Adapted from [15].

Today, 2.6 billion people around the globe face a dire need for a sustainable clean cooking fuel alternative [16]. The areas they live in generally satisfy most of the above stated needs. This gives a global scope to Project CASSAVA and highlights the fact that it is not just a one-off solution for the problem in northern Mozambique. But, in the near future we must first aim to use this project for improving Africa and then expand this to other parts of the world, as some research on the fuel convertibility of other crops is currently happening around the world. Page 12 of 29

5. Current use of cassava in the pilot location

Agricultural research on cassava cultivation in Northern Mozambique shows the average annual cassava cultivation to be 3.5 million tons of fresh produce. On average, 1.3 million farm households in the region manage 0.5 hectares of cassava, of differing maturities, and harvest 2.2 tons of fresh cassava per household per year. For family consumption, they harvest in small lots throughout the year [12]. During the dry season, they harvest extra that is dried for on-farm seasonal storage. This can occur because cassava is a drought tolerant crop. These dried roots provide the family with cassava flour during the rainy season when cereal crops are scarce, food prices spike, and rainy weather prevents sun-drying of their cassava. Cassava is used as a food security crop in the region. The reasons for this include drought tolerance, high yield, and farm flexibility – it can be harvested over a period of many years – as well as seasonal and spatial price stabilization. Out of the cultivated cassava, 3 million tons are used for noncommercial purposes, and the remaining 0.5 million is used for various commercial purposes [12]. Although this constitutes a very small percentage of the overall number, majority of this surplus is wasted. Figure 3 shows the existing commercial uses of cassava in the chosen region.

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Figure 3: Current commercial usage of cassava in Northern Mozambique Only a small percentage of the overall cassava cultivation is currently put into commercial. The majority, roughly 65% of cultivated plants, are wasted. Adapted from [17].

This data is for the entire Northern Mozambique. Since the targeted provinces are the largest producers in the area, the above data can be extrapolated accordingly. The surplus wasted cassava constitutes over 50% of the total cassava produce dedicated to commercialization. Hence, we direct our interest to utilizing this for the production of the ethanol based cooking fuel.

6. Cassava Processing and Starch Yield

Cassava’s uniquely high levels of starch create an excellent opportunity for its use as the raw ingredient in the production of ethanol for cooking applications. Cassava starch is obtained from the roots of the plant, which results in a starch yield ranging from 73.7-84.9% of the plant’s dry root weight [18].

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Cassava is a highly versatile plant that can be grown in markedly dryer environments and lower soil qualities than comparable starchy plants. The plant can be harvested as soon as the tuberose roots have reached adequate size, which can occur as soon as 6 months after planting or can be delayed for up to three years [19]. The process to extract starch compounds from raw cassava involves a fairly straightforward process that has been established and utilized around the world for many years. Several detrimental qualities of the starchy root, however, necessitate that the process be carried out in a clarified manner. Raw cassava root in its unprocessed state contains low levels of cyanogenic glucosides which are converted into hydrogen cyanide, a highly poisonous chemical, through an enzyme called limarase present mainly in the skin of the root. Levels of active hydrogen cyanide in the root skin can range from 10 to 450mg/kg of fresh root [19]. In order to avoid contamination of the cassava starch product, the skin of the roots must be removed either manually or mechanically and separated from the inner root. After proper processing, cyanide only remains in extremely low concentrations making it safe for consumption and use in further treatment processes. Skinning reduces overall fresh weight by roughly 30% on average [19]. Skinned roots are highly susceptible to degradation and rotting. The starchy inner roots can be left submerged in water for two to four days to further lessen the cyanide content of the root, especially when using bitter varieties of the plant. The raw roots are then chipped or grated, creating greater surface area. At this point, cassava can either be dried or proceed on towards fermentation and use in ethanol production [19].

7. Creation of Glucose and Fermentation The simple sugar glucose needed for the production of ethanol can be created be created from the complex starch chains present in processed cassava. Yeast, an essential catalyst to ethanol production, cannot utilize starches to create byproducts, thus starches must be broken into the simple sugar glucose. Page 15 of 29

Using a process known as enzymatic hydrolysis, these chains can be broken down by adding a two enzymes to facilitate the conversion from starch to glucose. The first enzyme, α-amylase, is a liquefying agent that prevents gelatinization while the second, glucoamylase, acts as a clarifying agent breaking apart the starch chains into the simple sugar glucose. These reactions take place under heating to speed the rate of glucose production by providing the necessary activation energy to facilitate the process [20]. Glucose produced through enzymatic hydrolysis is a consumable energy source for yeast sells. Live yeast cells are the key catalyst in the chemical process known as fermentation. Through fermentation, glucose (C6H12O6) is converted via yeast catalyst into two natural byproducts, carbon dioxide and ethanol. This exothermic reaction creates roughly equal levels of carbon dioxide gas (CO2) and liquid ethanol (C2H5OH) (see Figure 4). This reaction must be allowed to take place in the absence of oxygen, which is toxic to yeast cells, and therefore it cannot take place in the open air [20]. This fact, combined with the ample production of carbon dioxide, necessitates the use of a one-way valve in order to seal the contained reaction while releasing excess gas pressure.

Figure 4: Chemical fermentation of glucose into ethanol Glucose is chemically broken down through a catalyzed exothermic reaction in yeast cells. Byproducts of this process are liquid ethanol, carbon dioxide gas, and heat. In an ideal reaction, 1kg of glucose will produce 511g of ethanol, 489g of carbon dioxide, and 144Kcal of heat energy.

For optimum ethanol yield, the reaction is generally allowed to progress over four to five days so that the yeast can fully break down available starches [21]. After the conclusion of this reaction, the resulting mixture of physical residue and ethanol is referred to a mash and is considered ready to proceed to distillation. Page 16 of 29

8. Distillation

The process of extracting ethanol from mash is known as distillation and is carried out in the same manner as consumable alcohol in beverages. The process makes use of two thermal treatments in order to take advantage of the evaporation and condensation properties of the ethanol. In addition to the lack of pleasant flavor, the final product produced by this process should never be ingested as another byproduct of fermentation is the chemical methanol which can cause permanent blindness in humans if consumed in ample quantities [21]. In the production of commercial consumable alcoholic beverages, methanol is separated from the product through careful temperature control, but this further treatment is unnecessary for the production of cooking ethanol. The initial stage of distillation consists of heating mash in a steel vessel known as a still. This still is heated through the application of heat to the outer steel wall which then conducts this heat to the contained mash. The internal temperature is monitored and controlled, allowing for the still to be used to selectively evaporate ethanol while leaving the mash byproducts behind. This is possible due to the fact that ethanol’s boiling point, 78.35°C, is below that of water [21]. By heating the still to an internal temperature just higher than the point where ethanol evaporates, it is possible to obtain purified gaseous ethanol with very low levels of water dilution. Figure 5: Distillation still and condenser system design The distillation still is heated to approximately 78.35°C causing ethanol contained in the mash to evaporate. Ethanol steam is then forced via pressure through coiled copper tubing submerged in cold water in the condenser, causing the steam to return to its liquid state. The purified ethanol is then ejected through a tap or spout at the end of the system.

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Ethanol steam separated from the mash rises in the still and is forced into a transfer pipe by the building pressure resulting from the continuing evaporation in the still. The steam then travels to a secondary device known as the condenser. At the connection point between the transfer pipe and the top of the condenser unit, the pipe connects to another pipe generally made of copper tubing. The copper tubing inside the condenser is spiraled downward through the condenser and is surrounded by cold water. Copper’s optimal heat conduction properties make it the optimal choice of material [21]. As the ethanol steam travels through the copper tubing, its heat energy is transferred from the steam to the surrounding water. This causes the ethanol to gradually condense back into its liquid state. Now purified, the liquid ethanol exits the system through an external spout on the condenser and is ready for use as a cooking fuel (See Figure 5)[21].

9. Heating Source for Distillation

Because the distillation process requires a steady temperature, the heating source for the process must be consistent. The flame from combusting wood or liquid fuel could be used, but Project CASSAVA aims to eliminate the need for these materials. The best alternative heating method would be to harness solar energy by focusing it using a large lens. One particular lens that would be useful for our purposes would be a Fresnel lens, which are comprised of concentric annular rings of material that increase in slope away from the center. As shown in Figure 6, Fresnel lenses require much less material than conventional lenses of equivalent focusing power. By sacrificing image clarity, which is unnecessary for

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Figure 6: Comparison between conventional and Fresnel lenses For the same physical lens length, the Fresnel lens (bottom) requires much less material. Note that each annular ring creates an outline of a parabola, the largest of which is the outer ring [22].

heating purposes, a Fresnel lens can greatly reduce the mass of the system. To properly heat the distillation still, the focused sunlight would be directed onto a conductive object below the still. The heated conductor would then conduct heat more evenly to the rest of the tank. A Spot Fresnel Lens would focus sunlight down into a circular beam, and at the focal point the intensity of the light can even be thousands of times greater than that of ambient sunlight [23]. For this application, such extreme intensities of sunlight are not needed, so the lens will be positioned away from the conductive material at a length greater than its focal length in order to reduce the intensity of focused light. Because a large Fresnel lens has the potential to generate extremely high temperatures, it is critical to take measures to ensure the safety of those working near these lenses. One such measure would be to cover the lens with some opaque material while the distillation process is not active. The still will not be hot, and workers performing maintenance on the system will not be standing in the focused sunlight. To prevent people from accidentally getting burnt while the lens is not covered, the space between the lens and the distillation still should be closed off, only accessible to workers with the key to an access panel for that area.

10. Monitoring of the Distillation Process

Throughout the day, the sun will be moving across the sky, changing the angle and intensity of the light entering the lens. To account for these changes and maintain a constant temperature in the still, the lens must be continuously adjusted throughout the day. This readjustment can be accomplished by manually moving the lens, but the best way to maintain a consistent temperature would be to utilize a microcontroller to create an automated feedback loop that would control the adjustments. Based on the temperature of the still, the angle of sunlight, and the ambient intensity of the sunlight, the microcontroller will turn motors to reposition the lens to the correct distance from the conductor and the

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correct angle to the sun. To provide the needed electrical power for the microcontroller and the motors, a solar cell will be added to each distillation system. To detect the direction of the sunlight, pairs of light-dependent resistors (LDR) will be placed on the frame of the lens and will face outwards toward the sky. A divider will be placed between the pairs of LDRs so that a shadow is cast on the resistor farther away from the sun. The function of this divider can be seen in Figure 7 below. By correcting the lens position in order to hold the sensor readings at the calibrated values, the light hitting the distillation chamber would be held at a constant intensity.

Figure 7: Operation of Light-Dependent Resistors The divider between the resistors casts a shadow on the one farther away from the sunlight, thus changing the voltage output for that resistor. The leftmost image shows the shadow cast for sunlight shining from the right, and the rightmost image shows the reverse. Note that no shadow is cast when the sunlight is directly above, so the output for identical LDRs should be equal [24]. This system will require dual-axis adjustment, so one pair of LDRs will monitor the horizontal angle of sunlight while another monitors the vertical angle. By monitoring the error from both of these sensor pairs along with the value from a temperature sensor in the distillation still over time, the microcontroller can calculate how much adjustment is needed as well as how much prior movements have helped in order to make more accurate decisions.

11. Daily Ethanol Demand The end goal for Project CASSAVA is to produce enough ethanol to sustain the cooking needs of entire communities, but the first step must be to create a single ethanol production facility. This facility

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will still have a large ethanol daily output, though it would not serve the entire population for an averagesized community. For a single facility, we would aim to provide ethanol for 1000 households each day. In a study done on rural households in Sub-Saharan Africa, it was determined that the average household uses roughly 750 kg of fuelwood every year for cooking purposes [25]. Using the combustion energy density for both wood and ethanol, this mass of fuelwood can be converted to an equivalent mass of ethanol used by a household each day: 𝑀𝐽 𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑔𝑦 𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑜𝑙 𝑘𝑔 16.2 𝑘𝑔 1 𝑦𝑟 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑓𝑢𝑒𝑙𝑤𝑜𝑜𝑑 • = 740 • • 𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑔𝑦 𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑜𝑓 𝑤𝑜𝑜𝑑 𝑦𝑟 26.3 𝑀𝐽 365 𝑑𝑎𝑦 𝑘𝑔 𝑘𝑔 𝑒𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑜𝑙 1𝐿 𝐿 ≈ 1.25 • ≈ 1.6 𝑑𝑎𝑦 . 789 𝑘𝑔 𝑑𝑎𝑦

12. Distribution and Use of Ethanol Fuel After the distillation process, the liquid ethanol sitting in the final tank can be packaged into metal fuel canisters that can be directly used for cooking. These canisters would be pressurized so that the fuel comes out of the canister readily. Households would purchase both a canister as well as an ethanol cooking stove for their own use. These tanks would hold enough for a day of cooking, so the canisters would need to be refilled each day. The cooking stoves are rather simple in design and in operation. As shown below in Figure 8, the stoves consist of a single burner and valve mechanism. To turn on the stove, the user simply needs to attach the canister to the valve, turn the nozzle to release the pressurized ethanol, and light the fumes from the burner. The burner is a two-stage burner in which the initial flame in the burn bowl vaporizes the liquid ethanol. The ethanol vapors then ignite into a self-sustainable flame.

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Figure 8: Ethanol stove design The pressurized fuel canister attaches to the stove via a knob-controlled valve. By opening the valve, ethanol would be released into the burner and can then be ignited. To adjust the flames, the user would turn the knob to allow more or less oxygen into the system [26]. This stove design has a flat top and four leg supports to ensure that the stove or the cooking equipment above it does not tip over with any slight disturbances. The stove requires very few parts and materials as well as little manufacturing time, but it is sturdy enough and effective for everyday use.

13. Cost Analysis and Timeline The timeline of the project should be within three years, see Figure 9. This projection of a three years is in line with the time it takes to learn a new task for a location. The first year would be the testing and confirming the logistics of the project. Testing will be done at the Universidade Lúrio to ensure that the project will be possible on a small scale. Once this is confirmed, optimization will occur. The logistic confirmation will make sure that the location for

Figure 9: Three year project timeline From the start of the project to the full scale implementation of the project should take three years. The first year is planning, the second year is optimizing, and the third year is implementing the project.

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the facility will be suitable for the housing of the first system. After these are done the second year should start. The second year will focus on optimization and construction. The optimization will optimize the process in Mozambique. In addition to this, the construction of the housing unit will occur. The building process should take about 18 months, a typical timescale for a build cycle. The final year will be the implementation of the system. The system will be implemented, and to make sure that any issues with the systems will be fixed before it is implemented. For the implementation of the project, we need to be aware of the costs. The total cost of the two systems needs to include the cost of the housing unit that the distillers and fermenters will be housed in. There will also be a reoccurring cost for the yeast, acid, and the maintenance of the facility. Each of the costs will have their own unique costs. The cost of system one will depend on the number of distillers and fermenters needed. We are planning to have enough systems for 1000 people, and with a three day period for the ethanol cycle, would need three times as many reactors. We plan to use 100 L batches, so this will lead to 10 reactors systems needed. A reactor system would include fermenter, distiller, and solar lens subsystems. However, there is a need for 30 reactors due to a three-day period for the fermentation process. At a cost of US$3000 a setup, this will lead to the whole of system one to be US$90,000. The cost of the stoves is split between the cost of the materials and the cost of the change in materials. The materials to make the stove are a piece of sheet metal. This sheet metal should be cheap, about US$10 per household. The manufacturing cost is comparable for the stove, costing about another US$10. This stove would be for families, as opposed to system one where the system is for the community. The only additional cost would be the transportation of both system one and two. In addition to the cost of the two systems, there are costs to the housing structure and a reoccurring cost. The housing of the system is highly determined by the housing building cost of the area. The price of the housing unit should be about US$100,000 with room for expansion, which brings the total cost for the pilot project to roughly US$200,000. The yeast and acid cost would be reoccurring, but are unknown. This is due to the optimization occurring at the university. The costs however should be Page 23 of 29

minimal due to yeast being the cheapest ever, and the acid used to be the cheapest it has been. The maintenance costs from the people running the facilities would also be minimal when compared to the start-up cost.

14. Competing technologies There are some possible technologies that could be viable in this area, but the ethanol cooker is the best option for this area. Some of the possible competing technologies are alternative fuels, such as wood, kerosene, and liquid petroleum gas, solar cookers and electric stoves. These technologies could all be given or adapted to the location, but have aspects of the technology that make it unideal for the location. Alternative fuels are currently in use for the area, but it is from these fuels that we wanted to create a new cooking method. The current fuels that are used in Mozambique are wood and kerosene. Neither of these fuels are ideal due to cost variability and the environmental impact that these fuels create. Wood has an increasing cost due to the lack of availability and the longer-term requirements for wood growth. In addition to this, there is a negative environmental impact from the chopping down of trees which if it can be avoided would be preferable. Kerosene is an even worse alternative. The price is highly variable which can cause some of the people living in the community to not be able to cook if the cost is too high. Kerosene also has a negative environmental impact. The carbon dioxide released from this fuel is new carbon dioxide in the carbon cycle. Neither wood nor ethanol introduce new carbon dioxide to the carbon cycle, an improvement over kerosene. In addition to both of these, kerosene is unsafe to store. Kerosene is volatile and can become explosive if store incorrectly, a situation that could occur in unideal conditions. Liquid petroleum gas is similar to kerosene in all aspects, so this fuel is also un-ideal. A solar cooker would be a viable option, if the night did not exist. Solar cookers are a current technology that is used in some African countries. They can reach a desired temperature to cook food but have the flaw of being useless during the nighttime. This inability of cooking during the nighttime, and in Page 24 of 29

cloudiness is a major fault of the solar cooker. The use of the sun as a heating source is viable with a lens. Our use of ethanol prevents the variability of the sun to factor in whether a person can cook, and now people can cook in darkness. Electric stoves would be the best option but the amount of electricity present in the areas makes them unreliable as seen in Figure 10. Out of 4000 households, only 22 of them have electricity making the technology unreliable [8]. Work would need to be done in the infrastructure of the place in order make this technology viable, a much larger cost would be required in order to help these people. This help would improve the people more than the ethanol, but would be a much greater cost to the community and the organization. This small step will improve the community to a point where the next step can occur.

Figure 10: Percentage of households with electricity The pie chart above shows the number of household in Lúrio with electricity and without electricity. Of the 3870 households in Lúrio, only 22 of them have electricity. This translates to only .568% of households having electricity. This small percentage of households leads to electric cooking unviable. Adapted from [8].

15. Outlook and Improvements This project can be expanded to more locations and has a positive outlook. This plant would be a cornerstone plant for the rest of Africa. The plant could be expanded for more people in the area, become more efficient, and create a more refined product. This cornerstone plant could be the start of movement in Africa. Page 25 of 29

The plant will be built in a location that could have room for expansion to allow for more people to have access to ethanol fuel. The pilot plant can supply ethanol to a maximum of 1000 families, but the location we have planned has about 4000 families in the immediate area [8]. We realize that not all homes will want to use ethanol as a cooking fuel, but as more people see that this method will save them money, more people will want to switch to ethanol. This demand will lead to a demand of the extension of the plant. This open area will allow for expansion to suit the demand for the product. This location will allow for expansion of the demand of the product. In addition to this, this pilot plant will be a beacon for the rest of the nearby communities. The pilot plant will show other communities in other areas that the excess cassava could be very beneficial to the community, creating a demand outside the community for this product. The produce that was previously wasted is turned into a useful product for these communities. This demand will translate to more plants, and a cycle of more plants. The improvements of the plants will occur with the Universidade’s help. They will be the ones who will be running the plant, so they will want to learn more about it. As they learn more about it, they will optimize it beyond our initial projections. This will be from familiarity of the location, and the material that will be used will be the creation of the ethanol will create the most possible with the least cost. The plant will be optimized and improved to the location from the people. In addition to this, yeast can be bread to produce the most ethanol with the least amount of cassava.

16. Conclusion Our project focuses on the wide spread use of ethanol as a cooking fuel in Mozambique. The ethanol will be produced with cassava, in a two system process. The first system will be the system the turns the cassava into ethanol. This process will grind up the cassava into a powder, break down the starch with acid, ferment the glucose into ethanol, and then distill the ethanol into a more concentrated form. The heat for this process will be from the sun, made stronger through a solar lens. Once this refined Page 26 of 29

ethanol fuel is made, it will be transported to the second system. The second system is a stove that runs on ethanol. The stove will be in homes, where they can be used for cooking. This project will greatly improve the lives of these people due to the opportunities created by the increase of usable income from the project. This project will eliminate the costs associated with the purchase of kerosene or wood for cooking fuels. This extra income will improve the quality of life due to the opportunities that will be present from this money. It is with these funds that the community will develop on. In addition to this, science will infiltrate into the community, improving the education level with the wealth of the community. With this investment, the community will improve by a large amount, thanks to the committee’s funding. This investment is also not risky, seeing as the largest risk comes from the possible transformation of the system into a brewery. Africa has a large alcohol problem, which makes the investment seem risky. This is the opposite case however, due to the methanol present in the process. Methanol is toxic if consumed, leading to blindness if it is. This protective measure is in place without interference, thus insuring the investment. With the skill from the Universidade, this will ensure that the process will be manned with skillful people for its operation.

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17. References [1] D. Coady, J. del Granado, L. Eyraud, H. Jin, V. Thakoor, A. Tuladhar and L. Nemeth, ‘Automatic Fuel Pricing Mechanisms with Price Smoothing: Design, Implementation, and Fiscal Implications’, 2012. [2] N. Lam, K. R. Smith, A. Gauthier, M.N. Bates, “Kerosene: A review of household uses and their hazards in low- and middle-income countries.” Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B: Critical Reviews, 2012. 15(6):396-432 [3] D. New York State, 'Heating with Fire Wood? Burn it Right!', Health.ny.gov, 2015. [Online]. Available: https://www.health.ny.gov/environmental/outdoors/air/owb/heating_with_firewood.htm. [Accessed: 30- Jun- 2015]. [4] T. Sesan, 'What's Cooking? Participatory and Market Approaches to Stove Development in Nigeria and Kenya', Ph.D, University of Nottingham, 2011. [5] M. Chitundu, C. Donovan, S. Haggblade, E. Kambewa, J. Machel and V. Salegua, 'Contrasting Experiences in Cassava Commercialization in Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia', AAMP Seminar on “Smallholder‐Led Agricultural Commercialization”, Kigali, Rwanda, 2011. [6] E. Ohimain, 'The benefits and potential impacts of household cooking fuel substitution with bioethanol produced from cassava feedstock in Nigeria', Energy for Sustainable Development, vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 352-362, 2012. [7] WHO Media Centre, 'WHO | Household air pollution and health', Who.int, 2014. [Online]. Available: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs292/en/. [Accessed: 30- Jun- 2015]. [8] National Statistics Office of Mozambique, 'População Projectada por Distritos, Nampula 2007', National Statistics Office of Mozambique, 2007. [9] Google Maps, 2015. [10] Dadtco.nl, 'Mozambique - dadtco', 2015. [Online]. Available: http://www.dadtco.nl/mozambique. [Accessed: 30- Jun- 2015]. [11] T. Phillips, D. Taylor, L. Sanni and M. Akoroda, 'A cassava industrial revolution in Nigeria: The potential for a new industrial crop', INTERNATIONAL FUND FOR AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT, FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS, Rome, 2004. [12] C. Donovan, S. Haggblade, V. Salegua, C. Cuambe, J. Mudema and A. Tomo, “Cassava Commercialization in Mozambique,” Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics Department of Economics, MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY, East Lansing, Michigan, 2011. [13] P. Dias, 'Analysis of incentives and disincentives for cassava in Mozambique', MAFAP, FAO, Rome, 2012.

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[14] M. Leete, B. Damen and A. Rossi, 'Mozambique: BEFS Country Brief', BEFS, FAO, Rome, 2013. [15] FAO and International Trade Center, 'CASSAVA: A STRATEGY for ZAMBIA', All ACP Agricultural Commodities Programme, Lusaka, Zambia, 2010. [16] R. Williams, 'TOWARD A GLOBAL CLEAN COOKING FUEL INITIATIVE', Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, India, 2005. [17] V. Salegua, C. Donovan and S. Haggblade, 'Cadeia de valor de mandioca no norte de Moçambique', Instituto de Investigação Agrária de Moçambique (IIAM),Centro de Estudos Socio-Económicos., Nampula, 2011. [18] Handbook of Bioenergy Crop Plants, 1st ed., CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, 2012 [19] D. Dixon, "Cassava processing", Appr. Technol., vol. 33, no. 2, pp. 60-65. 2006. [20] Dr. J. M. Carr, PhD Carbohydrate Chemistry, Cornell Univeristy, 1989, VP Starch & Sugar Chemistry Group. Tate & Lyle UK. [21] J. Besse, D. Dechaine, "Distillery Design: Producing Vodka and Other Spirits," unpublished, 2014. [22] Fresnel Lenses, 1st ed., Fresnel Technologies Inc., Fort Worth, TX, 2014. [23] "Solar concentrators," in Solar Energy: The State of the Art, New York: Earthscan, 2013, ch. 7, sec. 22.3, pp. 405-406 [24] A.B. Afarulrazi et al., "Solar tracker robot using microcontroller," in International Conference on Business, Engineering and Industrial Applications, Kuala Lumpur, 2011, pp. 47-50. [25] E. Adkins et al., "Rural household energy consumption in the millennium villages in Sub-Saharan Africa," Energy for Sustainable Development, vol. 16, pp. 249-259, June 2012. [26] A. K. Rajvanshi et al., "Low-concentration ethanol stove for rural areas in India," Energy for Sustainable Development, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 63-68, March 2007.

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