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Process intensification approach for design and optimization of biodiesel production from palm fatty acid distillate.

ABSTRACT: Design of the biodiesel production from palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD) using process intensification approach is studied in technical, economic and environmental view points. Firstly, the transport phenomena analysis is performed to select the suitable intensified unit. The reactive distillation is selected and used in esterification - transesterification process and hydrolysis - esterification process. The optimum condition of reactive distillation in esterification - transesterification is achieved when the methanol is fed at the 3rd stage of the 4-stage column and the liquid holdup is maintained at 6 m³. The intensified esterification - transesterification process offers higher biodiesel yield and consumes less energy compared with the intensified hydrolysis - esterification process. The economic analysis shows that the intensified esterification-transesterification process is found to be economically feasible. Finally, environment assessment based on life cycle analysis (LCA) indicates that the environmental impact of both processes are similar.

SUBMITTER: Im-Orb K

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8111092 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Process intensification approach for design and optimization of biodiesel production from palm fatty acid distillate.

Im-Orb Karittha K Arpornwichanop Amornchai A Simasatitkul Lida L

Biotechnology reports (Amsterdam, Netherlands) 20210422

Design of the biodiesel production from palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD) using process intensification approach is studied in technical, economic and environmental view points. Firstly, the transport phenomena analysis is performed to select the suitable intensified unit. The reactive distillation is selected and used in esterification - transesterification process and hydrolysis - esterification process. The optimum condition of reactive distillation in esterification - transesterification is ...[more]

PMID: 34007792

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Project description:To produce biodiesel cost-effective, low-cost, high free fatty acid (FFA) oil feedstock is desirable. But high FFA creates difficulty during the base-catalyzed transesterification process by yield loss due to the formation of soap. However, these problems are overcome by the use of an acid catalyst. The acid catalysts can directly convert both triglycerides and FFAs into biodiesel without the formation of soaps or emulsions. The shortcomings of mostly used inorganic acids are that they work well for esterification of FFA present in low-cost oil, but their kinetics for transesterification of triglycerides present in oils is considerably slower. Corrosion of equipment is another major problem associated with an inorganic acid catalyst. The usage of an organic acid catalyst of the alkyl benzene sulfonic type, like 4-dodecyl benzene sulfonic acid (DBSA) minimizes these disadvantages of inorganic acid-catalyzed transesterification. The aim of the present investigation was to reduce the reaction time of transesterification of triglycerides further by using microwaves as a heating source in the presence of DBSA catalyst to achieve higher conversions under mild operating conditions. To optimize the transesterification variables for the higher conversion of biodiesel, the response surface methodology was employed to design the experiment. By using the DBSA catalyst under microwave heating at a temperature of 76 °C, conversion close to 100% in only 30 min of reaction time was obtained using a 0.09 molar ratio of catalyst to oil and 9.0 molar ratio of methanol to oil. A modified polynomial model was developed and was adequately fitted with the experimental data and could be used for understanding the effect of various process parameters. The catalyst to oil molar ratio and reaction temperature created a stronger effect on the biodiesel production than that exhibited by the methanol to oil molar ratio. It was observed that the microwave heating process outperformed conventional heating, providing a rapid, easy method for biodiesel synthesis from triglycerides in the presence of DBSA, an organic acid catalyst. The produced biodiesel was of good quality, as all the properties were within the prescribed limits of the ASTM D6751 standard.

Project description:Currently, there is increased interest in biosurfactants as a substitute for surfactants synthesized from petroleum due to their superior properties and biodegradability. Palm oil derivatives, which can be converted to various products, were selected for biosurfactant synthesis. This paper simulated the biosurfactant production process from palm fatty acid distillate, that is, methyl ester sulfonate (MES), alkyl sulfate, alkyl phosphate, and alkyl carboxylate. Aspen Plus software was used to estimate the thermodynamic properties of intermediate aliphatic organic acids, e.g., methyl ester sulfonic acid, fatty alcohol sulfuric acid, and fatty alcohol phosphoric acid. The chemical process equipment was designed and evaluated to be used in techno-economic analysis, with comparison to petroleum source surfactant production, that is, sodium dodecylbenzenesulfonate (SDBS). The total production cost of each biosurfactant was expressed in terms of minimum selling price. The profitability of each project was determined and compared using three economic indicators: net present value (NPV), payback period, and internal rate of return (IRR). The life cycle assessment methodology was then used to evaluate the environmental impact of surfactant production. The results showed that all surfactant production processes, except for alkyl phosphate, were attractive alternatives as the project yielded a positive value of NPV. The highest NPV of 13.1 million USD was obtained from the MES production process, while the maximum IRR of 79.81% and payback period of 1.49 years were obtained from the alkyl carboxylate production process at a capacity of 1 ton/h. However, the sulfate production process caused more environmental impact than the other two surfactants (MES and carboxylate) due to more CO2 emission per product unit at the level of 2.88 tons CO2/ton surfactant, which is also more than the SDBS surfactant production process that released 2.46 tons CO2/ton surfactant.

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Process intensification approach for design and optimization of biodiesel production from palm fatty acid distillate.

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Process intensification approach for design and optimization of biodiesel production from palm fatty acid distillate.

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