Abstract
AbstractBACKGROUNDEthyl levulinate (EL) is an important chemical that can be used as a bio‐based replacement of fuel additives such as methyl tert‐butyl ether (MTBE) and tert‐amyl methyl ether (TAME). EL production from lactic acid and ethanol is a viable option, as both precursors can be obtained from biomass. However, the problem of EL production by esterification is that this reaction is hindered by the chemical equilibrium limitations and the boiling points ranking, which is not the most favorable.RESULTSThis study provides novel optimally designed reactive distillation (RD) processes for the production of EL, taking into account costs, environmental impact and safety. The thermally coupled RD process is the most appealing, with the lowest energy use (1.667 MJ kg−1 EL), minimal investment cost, major energy savings (up to 54.3% lower than other RD processes), reduced environmental impact (up to 51% lower ECO99 index value) and similar safety as other RD processes considered (less than 2% differences in the individual risk (IR) indicator).CONCLUSIONThe multi‐objective optimization approach used here showed its robustness, practicality and flexibility to provide multiple optimal designs of intensified processes that are economically attractive, environmentally friendly and inherently safe. © 2019 The Authors. Journal of Chemical Technology & Biotechnology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.
Highlights
Levulinic acid (LA) is a key biobased chemical used among others in the production of ecofriendly herbicides, flavor and fragrance ingredients, skin creams and degreasers
A Pareto optimal is a set of solutions on the border of the feasible solutions, and the utopic corresponds to the solution were two or more objectives are in equilibrium and these objectives cannot improve anymore.[51]
The constrasts are explained by the fact that the implementation of a multi-objective optimization algorithm needs some adjustments to the rigorous process simulation: e.g. for the thermally coupled and heat integrated RD (THRD) process, the withdrawal side stage number and the side molar flow rate in the first separation column are both variables subject to optimization, while an additional constraint was added for the minimum temperature difference as it was found that only a fraction of the condenser energy of RC-2 was feasible to be utilized
Summary
This study provides novel optimally designed reactive distillation (RD) processes for the production of EL, taking into account costs, environmental impact and safety. The thermally coupled RD process is the most appealing, with the lowest energy use EL), minimal investment cost, major energy savings (up to 54.3% lower than other RD processes), reduced environmental impact (up to 51% lower ECO 99 index value) and similar safety as other RD processes considered (less than 2% differences in the IR indicator)
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