Standardization: an important tool in transforming biofuels into a commodity

Presently the world is preoccupied with concerns of soaring oil prices, energy insecurity, and increasing challenges to minimize emissions of green house gases. All these issues certainly call for major reexamination of fossil energy based present technological paradigms and in favor of decisions on investments in clean energy, which supports sustainable development. Many official documents show that the world has already acknowledged this shifting scenario, as investments in renewable energy have been growing on a steady trajectory. According to data presented by the United Nations, green energy overtook fossil fuels in attracting investment for power generation for the first time in 2008. The trend has been confirmed by the last report of UNEP, Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investment 2011, which states that in 2010 there has been a 32% rise in green energy investments worldwide. In this context, the production of biofuels on a large scale has become a dominant focus for technical and political discussions all over the world, aimed at diversifying the energy mix of countries. Nations that are capable of innovating through sound investments and breakthrough achievements will enjoy tremendous advantages, both because these emerging technologies will support their industrial expansion as well as the likelihood that high value-added exports can be generated. The enthusiasm surrounding the biofuels sector has led many countries to introduce policies of offering subsidies to stimulate the production of bioethanol and biodiesel. To speed up their introduction in the energy portfolio, a growing number of governments have been requiring that biofuels be blended with fossil fuels. In USA, for instance, bioethanol blended with gasoline can contain as high as 85% bioethanol from corn (E85), or more usually other mixtures, such as E10 and E20. Similar to bioethanol, biodiesel mixtures are denominated ‘‘BXX,’’ X being the percentage of biodiesel, e.g., B2 means 2% of biodiesel, B5, 5%, up to B100. Brazil is the most traditional economy in the production of bioethanol from sugarcane, where the first governmental decree establishing a 5% blend of bioethanol with gasoline was issued in 1931. Since then, the composition has varied and nowadays is set up to around 20%, depending on the price of the fuels. Besides, in Brazil, it is possible to find vehicles that run solely on bioethanol. Moreover, the so-called flex-vehicles can run on any mixture of gasoline and bioethanol. The country has also been making sound investments for the production of biodiesel, aiming to reach a composition level of B8 in 2013. More recently, the strategy of many producing countries, including Brazil, has moved to the forefront of turning biofuels into a full-fledged world commodity. Measures taken by some countries to protect domestic markets have been continually distorting international market of commodities for decades. Most evident and traditional measures have been related to tariffs and quotas, but other more subtle measures have been taken as well, such as subsidies to domestic producers and too harsh technical requirements. H. S. Brandi (&) R. J. Daroda T. L. Souza National Institute of Metrology, Quality and Technology (Inmetro), Av. Nossa Senhora das Gracas 50, Xerem, Duque de Caxias, RJ 25250-020, Brazil e-mail: hsbrandi@inmetro.gov.br