Techno-economic analysis and life cycle assessment of a biorefinery utilizing reductive catalytic fractionation

Abstract

Reductive catalytic fractionation (RCF) is a promising approach to fractionate lignocellulose and convert lignin to a narrow product slate. To guide research towards commercialization, cost and sustainability must be considered....

Integrating lignin depolymerization with microbial funneling processes using agronomically relevant feedstocks

“…Furthermore, the selection of solvent for the hydrogenolysis process is an important factor to consider, to reduce operating pressure in the hydrogenolysis reactor. 50 The sensitivity analysis shows that the capital cost of the hydrogenolysis reactor is a factor to consider, but its effect on the MSP of PDC depends on the assumptions used regarding the material needed for the high-pressure hydrogenolysis reactor. 50 The size of the reactor is influenced by the hydrogenolysis reaction time, solvent choice (methanol in our case), and the solvent to lignin ratio, with the latter having a greater impact on the MSP according to the sensitivity analysis (Fig.…”

“…S7 †). Bartling et al 50 discussed alternative solvents that could be used in RCF to reduce reactor pressure and thus decrease capital cost, or the potential use of membranes to recover the solvent in a less energy intensive manner, both of which may be promising alternatives. From the point of view of connecting hydrogenolysis of lignin with microbial funneling, the choice of solvent cannot only consider the physical aspects of the process, but needs to take into account that not all the solvent can be recovered, and therefore, the microbial culture will be exposed to elevated solvent concentrations.…”

Effective Assessment Practices for Using Sustainability Metrics: Biomass Processing

“…The diversity of the types of processes and operations necessary to transform biomass makes it challenging to prescriptively select a finite set of metrics in this area. 4,5 We encourage the authors to review ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering articles as well as other sources to identify suitable metrics for their specific research areas. 4,6 For example, in the biomass supply and logistics area, chemical and energy inputs vary widely based on the feedstock types, production, and logistic operations.…”

“…4,5 We encourage the authors to review ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering articles as well as other sources to identify suitable metrics for their specific research areas. 4,6 For example, in the biomass supply and logistics area, chemical and energy inputs vary widely based on the feedstock types, production, and logistic operations. Typical energy inputs include the energy required to operate equipment and machineries for growing, harvesting, and infield processing as well as for transportation.…”

“…Thus, in addition to the conversion, yield, and selectivity, we encourage authors to use metrics such as the E-factor and global warming potential (GWP) to quantify the sustainability of their biomass processes. The diversity of the types of processes and operations necessary to transform biomass makes it challenging to prescriptively select a finite set of metrics in this area. , We encourage the authors to review ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering articles as well as other sources to identify suitable metrics for their specific research areas. , For example, in the biomass supply and logistics area, chemical and energy inputs vary widely based on the feedstock types, production, and logistic operations. Typical energy inputs include the energy required to operate equipment and machineries for growing, harvesting, and in-field processing as well as for transportation.…”