scholarly journals Economic Assessment of Bioethanol Recovery Using Membrane Distillation for Food Waste Fermentation

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noor Intan Shafinas Muhammad ◽  
Kurt A. Rosentrater

Ethanol is a material that has a high demand from different industries such as fuel, beverages, and other industrial applications. Commonly, ethanol has been produced from yeast fermentation using sugar crops as a feedstock. However, food waste (FW) was found to be one of the promising resources to produce ethanol because it contained a higher amount of glucose. Generally, column distillation has been used to separate ethanol from the fermentation broth, but this operation is considered an energy-intensive process. On the contrary, membrane distillation is expected to be more practical and cost-effective because of its lower energy requirement. Therefore, this study aims to make a comparison of economic performance on FW fermentation with membrane distillation and a conventional distillation system using techno-economy analysis (TEA) method. A commercial-scale FW fermentation plant was modeled using SuperPro Designer V9.0 Modeling. Discounted cash flow analysis was employed to determine ethanol minimum selling price (MSP) for both distillation systems at 10% of the internal rate of return. Results from this analysis showed that membrane distillation has a higher MSP than a conventional process, $6.24 and $2.41 per gallon ($1.65 and $0.64 per liter) respectively. Hence, this study found that membrane distillation is not economical to be implemented in commercial-scale ethanol production.

Processes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (12) ◽  
pp. 1604
Author(s):  
Paolo Trucillo ◽  
Roberta Campardelli ◽  
Silvia Iuorio ◽  
Paolo De Stefanis ◽  
Ernesto Reverchon

Supercritical assisted Liposome formation (SuperLip) is a lab-scale process for the production of liposomes. SuperLip was recognized as being a versatile supercritical assisted technique for the encapsulation of molecules for different industrial applications, such as pharmaceutic, cosmetic, textile, and nutraceutic purposes. The aim of this work was to perform an economic analysis to assess the profitability of the SuperLip process. The liposomes market was analyzed and the SuperLip process was compared to other techniques in terms of manufacturing advantages using the Canvas and Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Treats (S.W.O.T.) models. SuperLip Plant Capital Expenditures (CAPEX) were estimated, and plant Operating Expenditures (OPEX) were also evaluated and integrated with personnel cost and other plant goods and services. A profit and loss statement was generated, together with a cash flow analysis. According to the market average selling price, liposome price is 1.8 €/mL; in order to join the market rapidly, the selling price of liposomes produced using SuperLip was set at 1.1 €/mL. A payback time has been identified at the fourth year of business. Economic indexes such as ROI and ROS were calculated on a 10-year business prospect, obtaining about a 230% return on investment and a 26.7% return on sales.


Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 436 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noor Intan Shafinas Muhammad ◽  
Kurt A. Rosentrater

Food waste (FW) is one of the most critical problems in the world. Most FW will be sent to landfills, generally accompanying some significant disadvantages to the surrounding environment. Fermentation is considered as another disposal method to deal with FW. In this study, using a techno-economic analysis (TEA) method, an evaluation of the economic impact of three different scenarios of FW fermentation is carried out. A SuperPro Designer V9.0 simulation was used to model a commercial scale processing plant for each scenario, namely, a FW fermentation process producing hydrolysis enzymes and featuring a 2-step distillation system, a FW fermentation process without enzymes, using a 2-step distillation system, and a FW fermentation process without enzymes, using a 1-step distillation system. Discounted cash flow analysis is used to estimate the minimum ethanol selling price (MESP), where the lowest MESP result of $2.41/gal ($0.64/L) of ethanol is found for the second aforementioned scenario, showing that, even without enzymes in FW fermentation, the product cost can be competitive when compared to the other scenarios considered in this study. This project thus reflects a significant positive economic impact while minimizing the environmental footprint of a commercial production facility.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noor Intan Shafinas Muhammad ◽  
Kurt A. Rosentrater

The concern of food waste (FW) impact on the environment, societies, and economies, has triggered many researchers to find alternative ways to utilize these materials. FW can be high in glucose and other sugars (depending upon the food used) and has the potential to be converted into value-added products such as ethanol. Ethanol is an organic material that has a high demand from different industries for products such as fuel, beverages, pharmaceuticals, and other industrial applications. FW fermentation to produce ethanol may be a promising method, and might results in positive impacts on economies. However, it is a challenge for the product price to compete with that of corn ethanol due to low yield and the inconsistency of FW composition. Thus, to increase the profitability, a conventional fermentation plant integrated with a combined heat and power (CHP) system might be a great combination, and was analyzed in this study. Solid waste stream from the process can be converted into energy and could reduce the utility cost. Therefore, the main focus of this study is to evaluate the economic impact of this integrated system by estimating the minimum selling price (MSP) using techno-economic analysis (TEA) and compare to conventional plants without CHP. Results from this analysis showed that the MSE value for this integrated system was $1.88 per gallon ($0.50 per liter). This study suggests that an integrated system with CHP was found to be more economical and attractive to be implemented on a commercial scale.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amir Al Ghatta ◽  
James D. E. T. Wilton-Ely ◽  
Jason P. Hallett

Process simulations allow the evaluation of the emissions and selling price for the production of the key monomer FDCA based on different feedstocks and solvent systems, alongside considerations of safety and current process development.


AMB Express ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanhua Yao ◽  
Guimei Zhou ◽  
Yonghui Lin ◽  
Xinqi Xu ◽  
Jie Yang

Abstract Laccases are a class of multi-copper oxidases with important industrial values. A thermotolerant laccase produced by a basidiomycete fungal strain Cerrena unicolor CGMCC 5.1011 was studied. With glycerin and peptone as the carbon and nitrogen sources, respectively, a maximal laccase activity of 121.7 U/mL was attained after cultivation in the shaking flask for 15 days. Transcriptomics analysis revealed an expressed laccase gene family of 12 members in C. unicolor strain CGMCC 5.1011, and the gene and cDNA sequences were cloned. A glycosylated laccase was purified from the fermentation broth of Cerrena unicolor CGMCC 5.1011 and corresponded to Lac2 based on MALDI-TOF MS/MS identification. Lac2 was stable at pH 5.0 and above, and was resistant to organic solvents. Lac2 displayed remarkable thermostability, with half-life time of 1.67 h at 70 ºC. Consistently, Lac2 was able to completely decolorize malachite green (MG) at high temperatures, whereas Lac7 from Cerrena sp. HYB07 resulted in accumulation of colored MG transformation intermediates. Molecular dynamics simulation of Lac2 was conducted, and possible mechanisms underlying Lac2 thermostability were discussed. The robustness of C. unicolor CGMCC 5.1011 laccase would not only be useful for industrial applications, but also provide a template for future work to develop thermostable laccases.


2021 ◽  
Vol 104 ◽  
pp. 103-112
Author(s):  
Andrea Gilang Fauzi ◽  
Cut Nanda Sari ◽  
Andre Fahriz Perdana Harahap ◽  
Muhammad Yusuf Arya Ramadhan ◽  
Misri Gozan

Surfactants are amphiphilic molecules that have been used in widely used as emulsifier and cleaning agent in various industries. These broad industrial applications made the global surfactant production increased annually. In 2020, the amount of global surfactant production estimated would reach more than 24 million per year. However, the currently used surfactants are synthetically produced from chemical or petroleum-derived products, so it is often toxic and non-biodegradable. Rhamnolipids are “surfactant like” molecules produced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which could be alternatives for more environmentally friendly surfactants. The use of rhamnolipids is quite limited due to its expensive production cost. The production cost of rhamnolipid could be reduced using by agro-industrial by-product as a substrate. One of the abundant agro-industrial by-products in Indonesia that can be used as a substrate for rhamnolipid production is Oil Palm Empty Fruit Bunch (OPEFB). This study employed SuperPro Designer v9.5 to performed process simulation and economic assessment of rhamnolipid production using OPEFB as a substrate through two different purification methods, which are solvent extraction and chromatography adsorption. Based on the process simulation that has been done, the process that used adsorption chromatography purification methods more efficient in terms of the usage of the feedstock and energy. The economic assessment also showed that these methods were more profitable and economically attractive, with the value of NPV 11.400.000 USD, IRR 11,64%, and Payback Period 6,21 years.


Author(s):  
Toluwani Oshodi ◽  
Daniel Okeke ◽  
Olanrewaju Awosanya ◽  
Emmanuel O. Ogedengbe ◽  
Adegboyega Ehinmowo

2020 ◽  
Vol 123 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vera Amicarelli ◽  
Christian Bux ◽  
Giovanni Lagioia

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to measure food loss and waste by material flow analysis (MFA) tool. Applying this methodology, the authors estimate wastage-related losses and discuss opportunities for more circular and sustainable practices in the Italian potato industry.Design/methodology/approachMFA is applied to two specific typologies as follows: ready-to-eat (chips) and dried potato products produced in Italy. The analysis refers to the year 2017 as the complete dataset useful for this study includes measurements until this year. A bottom-up and top-down mixed approach is applied, and functional unit refers to 1 t of potatoes consumed as final product.FindingsMFA is applied to quantify and qualify material balance associated with 1 t of potatoes consumed as final product. In Italy, in 2017, more than 22,000 t of fresh tubers were lost, including 3,500–4,800 t of starch, equivalent to 52,800–72,600 GJs. Moreover, fewer than 23,000 t of skins and scraps were produced within industrial plants, not available for food but suitable for animal feed (dry skins are an excellent carbohydrates source in cattle and poultry feed), starch industry and bioenergy production (biogas and/or bioethanol).Originality/valueThis research is one of the few studies proposing MFA methodology as a tool to measure food waste. This analysis shows its utility in terms of food waste quality/quantity evaluation, supporting both company management and policymakers.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document