Inauguration of Prof. Jumina: Carbon Dioxide, a Promising Business

Average temperature increased by 0.2º C every 10 years. NASA data indicated that the temperature increase has led to the rise of sea surface by 20 cm in year 2000 compared to that in 1900.

According to Prof. Drs. Jumina, Ph.D., without serious and systemic efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the average earth surface temperature in 2009 of 14.6º C would increase to 25º C in 2500. Therefore, the earth will no longer be a comfortable place to live for human beings, animals and plants. Man may not survive in that condition.

“In other words, human beings, animals and plants will perish from the Earth. Hence, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono with the 5+1 formula during the 15th UNFCCC in Copenhagen was determined to take measures to minimise global warming,” he explained.

The statement was made by Prof. Jumina when he was being inaugurated as Professor of Maths and Natural Sciences of Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), Tuesday (23/2). The lecturer of Chemistry delivered his speech entitled “Carbon Challenge and Potential in National Sustainable Development”

Jumina said that almost everyone already realised how fuel combustion had speeded up global warming; however, man still find it difficult not to use fuels and have relied on them for ease of life. Not a few of them have triggered global warming by using big capacity machine from 2000-4000 cc and only a few use ‘green bikes’. “It’s not an exaggeration if we say that we have been pampered by the use of fuels in our daily lives,” said the man born in Kediri, 6 May 1965.

Carbon (CO2) is the main cause of global warming. The effect is actually smaller than that caused by methane and dinitrogen oxide. But due to the much higher level of CO2 in air than those of methane and dinitrogen oxide, CO2 is classified as the main cause. “The data from Energy Information Administration showed that carbon emissions in 1990 amounted to 21.6 million metric tons and increased to 23.9 million metric tons in 2001. CO2 emissions are projected to rise to 27.7 million metric in 2010 and 37.1 metric tons in 2025,” said the husband of Dra. Susilowati and the father of two sons.

Jumina said that the continuous increase of emissions has become the concerns for environmentalists. Emission reduction efforts were done through Kyoto Protocol in 1999, regulating carbon credits. In turn, carbon credit payment can be claimed by nations or organisations that have made emission reductions such as by reforestation, transfer from fossil fuels to environmentally friendly fuels and not producing CO2 emissions, such as from solar power, geothermal, seawave etc.

“The price of carbon credit varies between US$10-13 per ton of CO2 and the claim and payment mechanism is organised by a number of world organisations such as the UN, the World Bank and the European Union,” said Jumina. He added that the carbon credit is a promising business area. If greening, reforestation and geosequestration are considered as common and slow ways as well as vulnerable to leaks, there are revolutionary ways to reduce the emissions, such as by CO2 processing into usable products.

“CO2 emissions from transportation sector are unlikely to be used due to  their difficulties and complexities. But emissions in industrial sector are very likely to be processed further,” said the Head of the Applied Chemistry Studies Task Force.

With solar consumption of 12.2 million kilolitre, in 2008 the industrial sector  contributed some US$590 million or 5.9 trillion rupiah,” he explained.

At the same time, bioethanol industry using raw material of sugarcane and cassava sap with a production capacity of 240 million litre contributed CO2 emissions as side-product of 180 thousand tons. If this emission can be converted into useful products, the carbon credit value of Rp36 billion per year can be claimed by those bioethanol factories. “If the processing cost equals to the market price, factories will still benefit from the carbon credit trading,” he explained.

“The business of processing CO2 into products with high economic value is a promising one, particularly for domestic bioethanol producers or other industrial sectors using large industrial fuels,” Jumina ended.