Techno-economic analysis of glycerol carbonate production by glycerolysis of crude glycerol and urea with multi-functional reactive distillation

Abstract

Waste crude glycerol from the production of biodiesel could be used as a raw material for a product with added value. The purpose of this research was to assess the technical and economic aspects of the production process for glycerol carbonate. An innovative multi-functional reactive distillation (RD) was designed to beyond the augmentation of chemical reactions through product separation. It also encompasses the evaporation of water from the purified crude glycerol. A high purity of 99.999% and good chemical performances of 93.20% glycerol conversion and 93.13% yield of glycerol carbonate were obtained. The net present value (NPV), payback period (PP), and internal rate of return (IRR) are 5,480,000 USD, 5.69 years, and 20.9%, respectively. The sensitivity analysis revealed that the costs of raw materials and the main product have a significant impact on both NPV and PP. To increase the process profitability, the price of crude glycerol should be less than 0.44 USD/kg and the price of glycerol carbonate should be more than 3.15 UDS/kg. This finding suggests that using crude glycerol as a by-product of biodiesel synthesis is an excellent option for developing new, higher-value products, making a significant contribution to zero-waste principles and the circular economy.