Abstract
AbstractSesquiterpenes are a group of versatile, 15‐carbon molecules with applications ranging from fuels to fine chemicals and pharmaceuticals. When produced by microbial fermentation at laboratory scale, solvents are often employed for reducing product evaporation and enhancing recovery. However, it is not clear whether this approach constitutes a favorable techno‐economic alternative at production scale. In this study empirical correlations, mass transfer and process flow sheeting models were used to perform a techno‐economic assessment of solvent‐based processes at scales typical for flavors and fragrances (25 MT year−1) and the fuel market (25 000 MT year−1). Different solvent‐based process options were compared to the current state of the art, which employs surfactants for product recovery. The use of solvents did reduce the sesquiterpene evaporation rate during fermentation and improved product recovery but it resulted in costs that were higher than, or similar to, the base case due to the additional equipment cost for solvent‐product separation. However, when selecting solvents compatible with the final product formulation (e.g. in a kerosene enrichment process), unit costs as low as $0.7 kg−1 can be achieved while decreasing environmental impact. © 2018 The Authors. Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining published by Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Highlights
Sesquiterpenes are 15-carbon isoprenoids with applications in different markets like flavors, fragrances, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, foams, lubricants, and biofuels.[1,2] Normally sesquiterpenes are extracted from plants in which they naturally occur
Sesquiterpene forms a separate oil phase with lower density than water, which is very attractive from the point of view of product recovery
The unit cost obtained at 25 000 MT year−1 is within the range publicly reported in 2012 and 2015 ($9.6 kg−1 and $2.15 kg−1, respectively). At both scales, unit cost is dominated by the fermentation section
Summary
Sesquiterpenes are 15-carbon isoprenoids with applications in different markets like flavors, fragrances, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, foams, lubricants, and biofuels.[1,2] Normally sesquiterpenes are extracted from plants in which they naturally occur. Sesquiterpenes are extracted from plants in which they naturally occur This method is costly, presents low yields, and raw materials are usually scarce, resulting in high product prices ranging from ~100 to ~1000 EUR kg−1.3 The use of genetically. Several companies like Amyris, Isobionics, Allylix, and Evolva are currently developing processes at commercial scale. Amyris already produces farnesene (a precursor for farnesane, commercialized under the name of Biofene®) They have successfully developed a microorganism for the production of amorpha-1,4-diene, a precursor for the malaria medicine artemisinin, while Sanofi Aventis is currently working on scaling up and commercializing the process
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