INTRODUCTION:

The need for energy to carry out our day-to-day activities both at our homes and in the industries cannot be over-emphasized (Misau et al., 2013). Energy demand is increasing with growth in technology and urbanization. The fossil fuels (i.e., oil, natural gas and coal) which are our main source of Energy are depleting daily (Abdulsalam and Murtala, 2012).

The effects of the exploration of fossil fuels create environmental and sustainability concerns. Energy is very significant in the economic development of any developing nation. Due to the declining oil reserves and the rising cost of petroleum products and the environmental and sustainability concerns, this has led to the bedrock of the advocacy for Biofuels globally, especially Ethanol. Ethanol has been produced from different sources in the past. The generally accepted sources of raw material for ethanol production from starch are cereals such as corn, wheat, barley, millo (sorghum grains) rice, potatoes etc (Ademiluyi and Mepha, 2013).

Bio-ethanol production is a promising endeavour, it has the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote sustainable development. The design and development of a pilot-scale Indigenous bio-ethanol plant with fractional distillation for producing ethanol from biomass can solve the energy crisis in Nigeria and at the same time help reduce landfills and keep our environment clean and improve the health of mankind

1.3 Aim

The project aims to design and develop an innovative pilot-scale mobile bio-ethanol plant with a fractional distillation unit for the production of bio-ethanol from agricultural waste materials.

1.4 Objectives

• Comprehensive/Detailed engineering design of a mobile bio-ethanol plant with fractional distillation unit.
• Sourcing of indigenous materials/personnel for the fabrication of the bio-ethanol plant with a fractional distillation unit (to meet 90% local content).
• To fabricate a mobile/user-friendly bio-ethanol plant.
• To fabricate energy efficient bio-ethanol plant and carry out testing of the plant to produce 85% yield of ethanol.
• Waste to Energy Advocacy: To employ/deploy the bio-ethanol plant for the production of bio-ethanol from agricultural waste materials to meet the energy demand of rural/urban dwellers.