3 research outputs found
Inherently Safer Design and Optimization of Intensified Separation Processes for Furfural Production
Currently
furfural production has been the subject of increased
interest because it is a biobased chemical able to compete with fossil-based
chemicals. Furfural is characterized by flammability, explosion, and
toxicity properties. Improper handling and process design can lead
to catastrophic accidents. Hence it is of most importance to use inherent
safety concepts during the design stage. This work is the first to
present several new downstream separation processes for furfural purification,
which are designed using an optimization approach that simultaneously
considers safety criteria in addition to the total annual cost and
the eco-indicator 99. The proposed schemes include thermally coupled
configuration, thermodynamic equivalent configuration, dividing-wall
column, and a heat integrated configuration. These are compared with
the traditional separation process of furfural known as the Quaker
Oats Process. The results show that because of a large amount of water
present in the feed, similar values are obtained for total annual
cost and eco-indicator 99 in all cases. Moreover, the topology of
the processes has an important role in the safety criteria. The thermodynamic
equivalent configuration resulted as the safest alternative with a
40% reduction of the inherent risk with respect to the Quaker Oats
Process, and thus it is the safest option to purify furfural