equipment_sizingcostingefuel
Pre-feasibility sizing and costing for a liquid ethanol receiving, storage and transfer asset delivering stable flow to a downstream unit, including tanks, pumping/metering, safety systems, plot space, losses and levelized handling cost.
Design (nameplate) continuous flow the receiving/storage system must reliably supply to the downstream unit.
min 0.1 · max 500 · step 0.1 · t/h
Total ethanol expected to be delivered from the asset to the downstream unit per year. Used to infer annual operating hours.
min 0 · max 5000000 · step 1000 · t/y
Used to select typical density values; does not change chemistry because this calculator models logistics (not synthesis).
Select a typical buffering autonomy to cover delivery interruptions and operational smoothing. Maps to 3/7/14 days by default.
Number of storage tanks
Ceiling vs maximum practical single-tank size
Installed geometric storage capacity
Total tank geometric volume sized from autonomy and working fill fraction
Effective storage autonomy
Autonomy achieved with rounded tank count and fill fraction
Full storage cycles per year
Annual delivered volume divided by total working volume
Estimated plot space
Tank footprints + transfer area with integration margin
Transfer pumping power (motor)
Screening hydraulic head model
Annual electricity consumption
Pumping electricity based on annual operating hours
Annual ethanol losses
Breathing/handling losses as fraction of throughput
Total installed CAPEX
Installed capex used for annualization (includes installation factor within the model boundary)
Equipment purchase cost (total)
Tanks + transfer + metering/QC + safety (excludes installation and owner costs)
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Average electricity price used to monetize pumping electricity consumption.
Project discount rate used in the CRF for annualizing CAPEX (e.g., 0.08 = 8%).
Levelized handling cost (energy basis, LHV)
Total annual cost per MWh-LHV of ethanol delivered
Levelized ethanol handling cost
Total annual cost per tonne of ethanol delivered
Used only to value throughput-based losses (breathing/handling). Set to 0 if you do not want to monetize losses.
Amortization period used in the CRF.
Calculator context
This calculator screens the sizing, plot space, energy use, and cost of a liquid ethanol receiving and storage facility that delivers a stable ethanol flow to a downstream unit. It is intended for early-stage (pre-feasibility) optioneering under a global cost context (currency set by the user; default EUR) and reflects the operating scope provided: unloading, storage tanks, pumping, metering, safety systems, and basic quality control.
Methodologically, it uses mass/volume balances for tank sizing, simplified hydraulic pumping power, and power-law scaling for CAPEX with fixed O&M fractions and periodic replacement annualization. Safety and tank design context aligns with commonly used industry practices (e.g., API 650-type atmospheric tanks and flammable liquid handling practices such as NFPA-style requirements), while the costing approach aligns with public techno-economic methodologies (IRENA/IEA-style screening estimates).
Key computed steps (variables in calculator inputs unless stated):
Operating intensity
Storage sizing
Pumping power and electricity (screening hydraulics)
Costing and levelization
Notes on e-fuels scaffold: this asset is logistics, not synthesis; therefore H2/CO2 stoichiometric consumption is set to zero (constants) and not costed.
59 assumptions used in the calculations
Division guard to prevent NaN/infinite results in scaling and unit conversions.
Market range Not applicable
Used to cap annual throughput and compute utilisation.
Market range 8760 (non-leap year)
Converts days of autonomy to hours.
Market range 24
Mass flow conversion to kg/s for pumping power.
Market range 3600
Mass unit conversion for volumetric flow and energy conversion.
Market range 1000
Converts MJ (from LHV) to MWh for energy-basis levelized cost.
Market range 3600
Converts utilisation fraction to percent for reporting.
Market range 100
Tank geometry and footprint approximation.
Market range 3.14159
Used in cylinder diameter back-calculation.
Market range 4
Used for squared terms.
Market range 2
Converts diameter to radius.
Market range 0.5
Cubic-root exponent for tank diameter approximation from volume.
Market range 0.3333
Accounts for ullage/freeboard and operational constraints; working volume < geometric volume.
Caps single-tank size to force multi-tank solutions at large capacities (construction/logistics and risk management).
Assumed height-to-diameter ratio for atmospheric storage tanks to estimate footprint.
Represents bund/dike width, access road, and spacing around each tank for operations and safety.
Represents unloading bays, pump skid area, metering, and basic QC area baseline.
Adds plot space for larger pumps/piping/unloading infrastructure as flow increases.
Adds allowance for pipe-racks, maintenance clearances, drainage, and future tie-ins.
Used for hydraulic power calculation.
Market range 9.81
Represents friction, elevation, control valve, and metering losses for transfer to downstream.
Represents pump hydraulic efficiency at typical operating point.
Represents motor efficiency for medium-to-large electric motors.
Converts W to MW.
Market range 1000000
Used to convert delivered ethanol to an energy basis for EUR/MWh-LHV reporting.
Converts mass to volume for tank sizing and hydraulics.
Assumed equal to fuel-grade ethanol density for screening.
Represents breathing/handling losses and small spills over a year as a fraction of throughput.
Reference purchase cost for storage tank package capacity used in power-law scaling.
Scaling denominator for tank purchase cost curve.
Represents economies of scale for tank purchase cost vs capacity.
Reference purchase cost for transfer system (pumps, piping manifold, unloading interface) at reference flow.
Scaling denominator for transfer system cost curve.
Economies of scale for transfer equipment vs flow.
Reference purchase cost for metering and basic quality control (sampling, density/water checks).
Scaling denominator for metering/QC cost curve.
Economies of scale for metering/QC package vs flow.
Reference purchase cost for safety systems (firewater tie-in allowance, foam, gas detection, ESD logic allowance).
Scaling denominator for safety cost curve (linked to inventory/hazard).
Models how safety system scope scales with inventory.
Converts equipment purchase cost to installed cost (installation labor, piping, E&I, civil, indirects within boundary).
Prevents unrealistic extrapolation to extremely low specific CAPEX at very large scales.
Prevents unrealistic extrapolation to extremely high specific CAPEX at very small scales.
Fixed O&M fraction of installed CAPEX (labor, maintenance contracts, inspections, insurance-like allowances within O&M bucket).
Scaling denominator for O&M fraction scaling.
Represents weak economies of scale in fixed O&M fraction with larger facilities.
Lower bound for fixed O&M fraction to avoid underestimation.
Upper bound for fixed O&M fraction to avoid overestimation at small scales.
Represents periodic replacement/overhaul of pumps, seals, meters, safety instruments as a fraction of purchase cost.
Typical interval for major refurbishment/replacement cycles of certain terminal subsystems.
Typical minimal buffer autonomy.
Typical one-week autonomy buffer.
High-resilience buffer option.
Minimum valid autonomy option index.
Market range 1
Maximum valid autonomy option index.
Market range 3
Minimum valid ethanol type index.
Market range 1
Maximum valid ethanol type index.
Market range 2
This calculator models ethanol logistics only; no synthesis, so no H2 consumption.
Market range 0 (not applicable)
This calculator models ethanol logistics only; no synthesis, so no CO2 consumption.
Market range 0 (not applicable)
