Sustainability assessment of xylitol production from empty fruit bunch

Empty fruit bunch (EFB), one of the wastes from palm oil production, can be utilized into fuels and chemicals. The aim of this paper is to find the optimum capacity to produce xylitol from EFB. The optimum capacity was found by simultaneously considering its profitability, hazard potential and environmental performances. The process was developed and simulated using Aspen Plus to analyze its technical challenges and economic performances, covering net present values, internal rate of returns and payback period. On the other hand, hazard identification and ranking (HIRA) was used to evaluate its safety performances, while Simapro V.8.5.2 was used to assess the environmental impact via a life cycle assessment (LCA). The results show that the high consumption of steam in chemical hydrogenation causes the main contribution of Global warming potential (GWP) by 62%. This acid pre-treatment is also considered the most toxic part of the process while the hydrogenation of xylitol is the most hazardous part based on fire and explosion perspectives. Then, multi-objective optimization using Genetic Algorithm (GA) was performed in Matlab to find the optimum capacity. The methodology and result of this work lay the foundation of future works in utilizing

TECHNO-ECONOMIC ANALYSIS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF BUTYL CELLOSOLVE ACETATE AND EO-3 PHOSPHATE ESTER

The author’s SIP research concludes that among the grades of BGE Esters and Phosphate Esters, Butyl Cellosolve Acetate (BCA) and EO-3 Phosphate Ester are the most feasible to manufacture. This is because only mild operating conditions is required. These esters also offer large variety of applications. This study is continued to support PETRONAS’ strategy to expand the markets of their ether products. This in return aids in achieving profit in the company. This report thus analyses on the economic feasibility of BCA and EO-3 Phosphate Ester. The esterification reactions involved are between Butyl Cellosolve and Acetic Acid and between Tergitol 26L-3 and Phosphoric Acid. The products are BCA and EO-3 Phosphate Ester respectively. The yield of BCA and EO-3 Phosphate Ester is calculated to be and 64.79% and 50% respectively. The process was developed and simulated in Aspen HYSYS V8.8. BCA process shows the formation of three azeotropic mixtures which causes separation to be difficult. On the other hand, EO-3 Phosphate Ester shows the formation of aqueous phosphoric acid that is difficult to separate. Fortunately, there is market for this aqueous mixture. Hence, it is sold. Monte Carlo simulation are done for parameter uncertainties such as the CAPEX estimate, raw material price and product prices. This simulation shows that the economic potential of EO-3 Phosphate Ester is at least 200 % higher than that of BCA. Based on the results obtained, it can be concluded that EO-3 phosphate ester is the most profitable ester to produce

TECHNO-ECONOMIC ANALYSIS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF BUTYL CELLOSOLVE ACETATE AND EO-3 PHOSPHATE ESTER

The author’s SIP research concludes that among the grades of BGE Esters and Phosphate Esters, Butyl Cellosolve Acetate (BCA) and EO-3 Phosphate Ester are the most feasible to manufacture. This is because only mild operating conditions is required. These esters also offer large variety of applications. This study is continued to support PETRONAS’ strategy to expand the markets of their ether products. This in return aids in achieving profit in the company. This report thus analyses on the economic feasibility of BCA and EO-3 Phosphate Ester. The esterification reactions involved are between Butyl Cellosolve and Acetic Acid and between Tergitol 26L-3 and Phosphoric Acid. The products are BCA and EO-3 Phosphate Ester respectively. The yield of BCA and EO-3 Phosphate Ester is calculated to be and 64.79% and 50% respectively. The process was developed and simulated in Aspen HYSYS V8.8. BCA process shows the formation of three azeotropic mixtures which causes separation to be difficult. On the other hand, EO-3 Phosphate Ester shows the formation of aqueous phosphoric acid that is difficult to separate. Fortunately, there is market for this aqueous mixture. Hence, it is sold. Monte Carlo simulation are done for parameter uncertainties such as the CAPEX estimate, raw material price and product prices. This simulation shows that the economic potential of EO-3 Phosphate Ester is at least 200 % higher than that of BCA. Based on the results obtained, it can be concluded that EO-3 phosphate ester is the most profitable ester to produce

Sustainability assessment of xylitol production from empty fruit bunch

Empty fruit bunch (EFB), one of the wastes from palm oil production, can be utilized into fuels and chemicals. The aim of this paper is to find the optimum capacity to produce xylitol from EFB. The optimum capacity was found by simultaneously considering its profitability, hazard potential and environmental performances. The process was developed and simulated using Aspen Plus to analyze its technical challenges and economic performances, covering net present values, internal rate of returns and payback period. On the other hand, hazard identification and ranking (HIRA) was used to evaluate its safety performances, while Simapro V.8.5.2 was used to assess the environmental impact via a life cycle assessment (LCA). The results show that the high consumption of steam in chemical hydrogenation causes the main contribution of Global warming potential (GWP) by 62%. This acid pre-treatment is also considered the most toxic part of the process while the hydrogenation of xylitol is the most hazardous part based on fire and explosion perspectives. Then, multi-objective optimization using Genetic Algorithm (GA) was performed in Matlab to find the optimum capacity. The methodology and result of this work lay the foundation of future works in utilizing