edgard.gnansounou

The bio-refinery Concept

Contacts

Process Synthesis and Life Cycle Assessment

@

Edgard Gnansounou+41 (0)21 / 693 06 27

epfl.ch

Laboratory of Energy SystemsStation 18 EPFLCH-1015 Lausanne lasen.epfl.ch

09.11.2007 2 LASEN

Co-production in Biofuels chains: Potential of the sugar-lignin platform

Hemicellulose(Pentosans-Xylan)

Cellulose(Hexosans-Glucan)

Lignin

BiomassPre-treatment

SugarsC5/C6 sugars

(Xylose-Glucose)

Xyiytol Chemical pathway from pentoses

Direct Product use

Non-nutritive sweetenerBuiding block for Xylaric acid, glycols

Sorbitol Chemical pathway from hexoses

Non-nutritive sweetenerBuilding block for Isosorbide, propylene

glycol

Product’s derivatives use

Antifreeze, unsaturated polyester resins

PET like polymers, anrifreeze, water soluble polymers for water treatment

HO

OH

OH

OH

OH

OH

OH

OH

OH

OHHO

Levulinic acid Chemical pathway from hexoses/

pentoses

Building block for Methyl tetrahydrofuran, butyrolactone,

Diphenolic acid

Fuel oxigenates, pesticedes,solvents, polycarbonate resins

O

O

HO

Succinic acidBiotechnological pathway from hexoses

Building block for Butanediol (BDO),Tetrahydrofuran (THF), gamma-

Butyrolactone (GBL). pyrrolidones

Fibers such as Lycra, green solvents, water soluble polymers for water

treatmentHO

O

O

OH

3-Hydroxypropionic acidBiotechnological pathway from hexoses

Building block for 1,3 propane diol, acrylates

Sorona Fiber, contact lenses, super adsorbant polymers (Diapers)HO OH

O

EthanolBiotechnological pathway from hexoses/

pentoses

Fuel for transport, Building block for Ethylterbutylether (ETBE), ethyl esters

Fuel, Fuel Oxigenate,

Ferulic acidBiotechnological pathway from lignin by

enzymatic depolymerizationBuilding block for vanilin, polymers Flavouring agents, phenolic resins

O

OH

O

HO

OH

Furfural Chemical pathway from pentoses

Solvent in petrochemical refining, Building block for Tetrahydrofuran

(THF), Nylon 6 Nylon 6,6Thermoplastic fibers, resins, solvents

O

H

O

Lactic acidBiotechnological pathway from hexoses

Building block for polylactides such as polylactide acid (PLA)

Biodegradable Polyethylene-like polymers

OH

OH

O

Sulfur-free solid fuelPelletization of lignin rich solid residue

Fuel for heat and power generation

Product

09.11.2007 3 LASEN

Co-production in Biofuels chains: The allocation issue in the bio-refinery concept

Axis 2 Process synthesis and

Optimization

Rigorous material and energy balances are needed to improve relevance of LCA outputs and refine cost estimation

Production function is no necessarily linear and plant size influence in overall techno-economical and environmental viability must be investigated

A multicriteria optimization approach taking into account economical and environmental sustainability factors is needed

A bio-refinery is a process in which biomass conversion leads to a multifunctional system including fuels, value added chemicals and power generation.

Axis 1 Allocation

In the LCA framework, the allocation of environmental burdens between co-products becomes crucial

Production volume, function and market value varies greatly among co-products allocation

Some biorefinery products does not have an established market and

09.11.2007 4 LASEN

Allocation StrategiesStrategy Characteristics Pertinence

SubdivisionReduces system complexity by separate it into sub-processes.

Generally it is not possible to completely avoid allocation Sub-processes must be separated in space or in time.

System expansion

(allocation by substitution)

Recommended by ISO-14044 as a first choice method to avoid allocation

Consist of assigning to the co-products environmental burdens of products with equivalent functions

Function equivalent products do not necessarily have equal environmental burdens. Introduces uncertainty into LCA (ad infinitum substitution). Must include dynamic market evolution (consequential LCA)

Allocation by physical properties

According to ISO-14044 allocation must be done based in physical causalities when it is not possible to avoid it. Consists of determining factors to distribute environmental burdens between co-products according to a selected physical property (mass, energy content, carbon contents)Easy interpretation and implementation

Restricted to process where all co-products have similar function, i.e. energy content when all co-products are used as fuels Weight-based allocation could favor biofuels with high volume of co-products Is not always straightforward to determine a direct correlation with selected physical property

Allocation by economic value

Consist of determining factors for the distribution of environmental burdens between co-products according to the share on sales volume

It is pertinent if demand and search of profit are considered to be the driving factor for productionIf market value is used as the allocation criterion, time dynamics becomes important as in the case of substitution (Price variability, subsidies and other market distortions)Does not necessarily reflect physical reality.

09.11.2007 5 LASEN

Ongoing research and questions Research Axis 1 Allocation

– What allocation method is suitable for a multifunction process such as a bio-refinery

– Is market value an adequate criterion when allocation is based on economic principles?

– Should the social utility of a co-product be used instead of market value for allocation?

– What are the trade-offs between improving the significance of LCA conclusions and the operability of the methodology?

Research Axis 2 process design– Develop a Modular Platform for

Integrated Assessment of Lignocellulosic Biochemical Refineries (LCBR-MPIA), using process engineering software and multicriteria optimization algorithms.

– Coupling process modeling and optimization with LCA development

– Evaluate different technological options to increase functionality of Biofuels production

Ligno-cellulosic feedstock

Biomass fractionationCatalist, steam, acid, enzyme etc

Hemicellulose(pentoses, hexoses)

Xylose

Xylite

Furfural

Furan resines

Nylon 6,6

Nylon 6

Lignin (phenol polymer)

Ligninases, lignin peroxydases, laccases, etc

Natural binder and adhesives

Sulfur free solid fuel

Sub-bituminous coal

Cellulose(Glucose polymer)

Enzimatic depolimerization

Mono aromatic hydrocarbons

Flavouring agents, polycarbonates, resins

Glucose (hexose)

Hydrolysis

Fermentation products:

· Fuels· Organic acids (lactic acid)· Solvents (acetone, butanol)

HMF, Levulinic acid

Softner+solvents

Softner+solvents

Softner+solvents

Laboratory of Energy Systems (LASEN)

Station 18 EPFLCH-1015 LausanneSwitzerland