Investing in Maine Research Infrastructure: Sustainable Forest Bioproducts

The University of Maine, the University of Southern Maine, several baccalaureate institutions in the state, along with other federal, state and local public, private, and non-profit institutions will collaborate to create the Forest Bioproducts Research Institute (FBRI) at the University of Maine. The vision of the FBRI is to advance understanding about the scientific underpinnings, system behavior, and policy implications for the production of forest-based bioproducts that meet societal needs for materials, chemicals, and fuels in an economically and ecologically sustainable manner.The research plans Integrate three themes. They are (1) forest sustainability modeling of life cycle assessment, (2) integrated biopolymer separations and residual solids modifications, and (3) biological and chemical platform conversion technologies.The research capitalizes upon Maine\u27s unique position of having a large natural resource base, existing research capacities in pulp and paper, forestry, and wood products, along with a strong industrial presence. State, national, and global collaborations, including those with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, will contribute broader benefits to society as a result of this investment in forestry research.The FBRI will serve as the forest-based carbohydrate economy center of excellence for the region, with a primary goal of transitioning developed science and technology to the state\u27s industrial arena. State, national, and global impacts will be realized as a result of the investment in this research. In addition, a cadre of future engineers and scientists in multidisciplinary disciplines as well as policy-makers will result from the expected collaborations. Support is provided through the NSF Experimental Program To Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR)

Heat Treatment of Spent Liquors to Recover Chemically Bound Xylose and Alcohol

SO₂–ethanol–water (SEW) and SO₂–isopropanol–water (SPW) spent liquors are obtained by fractionating sugarcane straw. The SEW and SPW liquors contain significant amounts of chemically bound xylose as ethyl xylosides (EX) and isopropyl xylosides (PX) respectively. The liquors are subjected to a constant temperature heat treatment to hydrolyze the alkyl xylosides to allow full recovery of xylose and alcohol. Complete hydrolysis of EX and PX is achieved at 121 °C in 70 and 30 min, respectively. The first-order kinetics of EX and PX hydrolysis are determined at temperatures from 100 to 121 °C. At full hydrolysis of the alkyl xylosides, the quantity of alcohol produced is greater than stoichiometric. Other sources of covalently bound alcohols in the spent liquors are identified to explain the excess alcohol produced

Larch Biorefinery: Technical and Economic Evaluation

In this study a forest biorefinery concept based on larch wood was technically and economically evaluated. Two slightly different cases of a larch-based biorefinery were compared to conventional kraft pulping. The wood chips of Larix sibirica (Lebed.) were pre-extracted (PE) and washed with water prior to pulping, in order to generate an additional sugar side-stream. The sugars were hydrolyzed into monosugars, which were then fermented by Bacillus coagulans into lactic acid. The lactic acid needs to be purified before sold to the market. By pulping the pre-extracted wood chips with anthraquinone (AQ) and polysulfide (PS), the pulp yield loss was reduced. The pulp was then bleached (O-D0-Ep-D1-P). The products of this larch biorefinery are bleached softwood pulp and lactic acid. Three process cases were simulated: conventional kraft pulping, PE-PSAQ with 0.5% PS, and PE-PSAQ with 2% PS, in terms of mass and energy balances. Considering the availability of larch resources, this kind of a biorefinery could suitably be located in Siberia, Russia. Market prices were collected, and based on the simulation results, cash flows were determined. Sensitivity analysis was carried out, and investment costs were estimated. Based on the simulation with the addition of a lactic acid production line to an existing pulp mill, the payback time for the investment costs would be about 16 months