Process Design Strategies for Biomass Conversion Systems

Denny K. S. Ng, Raymond R. Tan, Dominic C. Y. Foo, Mahmoud M. El-Halwagi

• Publisher: Wiley
• Year: 2016
• Print ISBN: 9781118699157
• eBook ISBN: 9781118699133
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Chemical & Biochemical Engineering
• Index: Technology & Engineering

This book covers recent developments in process systems engineering (PSE) for efficient resource use in biomass conversion systems. It provides an overview of process development in biomass conversion systems with focus on biorefineries involving the production and coproduction of fuels, heating, cooling, and chemicals. The scope includes grassroots and retrofitting applications. In order to reach high levels of processing efficiency, it also covers techniques and applications of natural-resource (mass and energy) conservation. Technical, economic, environmental, and social aspects of biorefineries are discussed and reconciled. The assessment scales vary from unit- to process- and life-cycle or supply chain levels.

The chapters are written by leading experts from around the world, and present an integrated set of contributions. Providing a comprehensive, multi-dimensional analysis of various aspects of bioenergy systems, the book is suitable for both academic researchers and energy professionals in industry.

Part 1
Process Design Tools for Biomass Conversion Systems

1
Early-Stage Design and Analysis of Biorefinery Networks

Peam Cheali, Alberto Quaglia, Carina L. Gargalo, Krist V. Gernaey, Gürkan Sin, and Rafiqul Gani

CAPEC-PROCESS Research Center, Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Kongens Lyngby, Denmark

1.1 Introduction

The limited resources of fossil fuel as well as other important driving forces (e.g., environmental, social, and sustainability concerns) are expected to shape the future development of the chemical processing industries. These challenges motivate the development of new and sustainable technologies for the production of fuel, chemicals, and materials from renewable feedstock instead of fossil fuel. An emerging technology in response to these challenges is the biorefinery concept. The biorefinery is defined as the set of processes converting a bio-based feedstock into products such as fuels, chemicals, materials, and/or heat and power.

The design of a biorefinery process is a challenging task. First, several different types of biomass feedstock and many alternative conversion technologies can be selected to match a range of products, and therefore, a large number of potential processing paths are available for biorefinery development. Furthermore, being based on a natural feedstock, the economic and environmental viability of these processes is deeply dependent on local factors such as weather conditions, availability of raw materials, national or regional subsidies and regulations, etc. Therefore, the replication of a standard process configuration is often not convenient or impossible. Designing a biorefinery, therefore, requires screening among a set of potential configurations in order to identify the most convenient option for the given set of conditions.

Detailed evaluation of each process alternative requires a substantial amount of information such as conversions and efficiencies for the different steps involved. Moreover, consid...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Table of Contents
• List of Contributors
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Part 1: Process Design Tools for Biomass Conversion Systems
• Part 2: Regional Biomass Supply Chains and Risk Management
• Part 3: Other Applications of Biomass Conversion Systems
• Index
• End User License Agreement