Integrated production of biodiesel from palm oil using in situ produced bioethanol
Special Symposium - EPIC-1: European Process Intensification Conference - 1
EPIC-1: Intensified Plants & Process Integration (IPPI)
Keywords: Biodiesel, bioethanol, process integration, extractive reaction, energy integration
The utilization of liquid biofuels as a source of renewable energy represents an important alternative to the fossil fuels. Currently, these biofuels (mainly biodiesel and bioethanol) are produced from oilseed crops and from sugar and starch containing materials, respectively. In mid-term, the most perspective feedstock for producing ethanol is the lignocellulosic biomass due to its low cost and big availability. The integration of the production of these two biofuels has not been studied from the viewpoint of process engineering using a single source of biomass as a raw material. This integration may allow the intensification of liquid biofuels production offering attractive alternatives for lowering production costs. In this work and using process simulation tools, the integrated production of biodiesel from palm oil including the in situ production of bioethanol is explored. Lignocellulosic residues obtained during the extraction of crude palm oil (Empty Fruit Bunches and Palm Press Fiber) are utilized for ethanol production. For this, an integrated process involving the pretreatment of biomass by dilute acid and simultaneous saccharification and co-fermentation is simulated. The oil extracted from Fresh Fruit Bunches was considered as feedstock for biodiesel production taking into account an integrated process of extractive reaction using the ethyl alcohol produced from the mentioned residues for the transesterification reaction. Overall process was simulated employing Aspen Plus. The integration of material flows between these two production lines allowed a 4.7% reduction in energy costs, whereas the material and energetic integration leaded to 21.3% decrease in these costs. This kind of integrated configuration will become an important option when the technology for ethanol production from biomass reaches such a degree of maturity that its production costs be comparable with those of the process from starch or sugars.
See the full pdf manuscript of the abstract.
Presented Wednesday 19, 16:20 to 16:40, in session EPIC-1: Intensified Plants & Process Integration (IPPI).
