Abstract
The MixAlco process is a patented biomass conversion technology used to produce valuable chemicals. The basis of this design relies on the use of fermentation, where acidophiles utilize their own enzymatic pathways to convert a variety of biomass, such as organic wastes, into carboxylic acid salts. Unlike previous MixAlco designs in which carboxylate salts are processed further into hydrocarbon fuels, this proposed design simulates the optimization and commercialization of mixed carboxylic acid salts as the final product. Sensitivity analyses identified four critical input factors of the base case process—biomass feed rate, selling price, distribution cost, and biomass composition. Increasing the biomass feed rate or population size has the most pronounced effect on process economics. Overall, the sensitivity analyses of all four critical input factors support that the new design is flexible in its ability to support populations of varying sizes, as well as different biomass feed rates and compositions.
Highlights
As the global population continues to grow, the rates of fossil fuel depletion and subsequent greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) are steadily rising
There were a variety of key performance parameters associated with these unit operations that directly affected the base case of operations—a financial projection based on market sensitivities
The commercial robustness of the MixAlco process was demonstrated by modeling its first use in the conversion of biomass to mixed carboxylic salts/acids
Summary
As the global population continues to grow, the rates of fossil fuel depletion and subsequent greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) are steadily rising. 15,633 to 31,734 megatons during the same years [1] Such phenomena have driven extensive research in the discovery and utilization of renewable resources, such as biomass and biodegradable materials, as alternative sources of fuel and chemicals. Biodegradable materials consist of sorted municipal solid waste, sewage sludge, industrial biosludge, manure, agricultural residues, and energy crops [3]. Components of biomass such as glucose, cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, starch, pectin, fats, and proteins are found abundantly in a variety of agricultural and industrial biodegradables, leading to the opportunity to produce sustainable fuels and chemicals and to reduce such organic wastes [3,4]
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