TY - JOUR
T1 - Technical, economic, and environmental potential of glycerol hydrogenolysis
T2 - a roadmap towards sustainable green chemistry future
AU - Minh Loy, Adrian Chun
AU - Ng, Wei Lin
AU - Samudrala, Shanthi Priya
AU - Bhattacharya, Sankar
N1 - Funding Information:
A. C. M, Loy would like to thank the Australian Government for providing financial support (Australia Commonwealth Research Training Program Scholarship) to this project. Additional data that support the findings in this study are available upon reasonable request.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Royal Society of Chemistry.
PY - 2023/6/7
Y1 - 2023/6/7
N2 - The dilemma of fossil fuel use, political versatility, and global climate change have driven motivation that has led to growing interest in developing and implementing renewable energy and green chemical technologies. Glycerol, a by-product of biodiesel production, has become a focus of interest among both industry and academic communities due to its low cost and potential as a renewable green chemical building block. This substance has various applications in industries such as cosmetics, food, and pharmaceuticals, and even as a fuel additive. The renewable nature of glycerol and its wide range of potential applications make it an attractive alternative to traditional petrochemical-based products. In this work, a conceptual design of integrated glycerol hydrogenolysis with on-site hydrogen produced from glycerol reforming was proposed. The primary objective was to evaluate the economic potential and possible environmental footprint of the production of high-value chemicals derived from the glycerol produced via the hydrogenolysis route. The Industrial Park at Victoria was identified and selected as the desired plant location to produce high-value chemicals (i.e., acetol, ethylene glycol, and propanediol) based on a framework structured by the triple bottom line. Overall, under the conversion of 10 tonnes of glycerol per day to 1,2-propanediol, the plant managed to yield a good return on investment (ROI) and a payback period of 16.01% and 8.72 years, respectively (base case). Moreover, environmental analysis shows that the global warming potential (in terms of CO2 emission) of the current work was two-fold lower than that of the conventional business-as-usual pathway (fossil-fuel route using propylene oxide as feedstock), suggesting that the conceptual design of an integrated glycerol hydrogenolysis process with on-site hydrogen produced from glycerol reforming is favorable in both economic and environmental aspects.
AB - The dilemma of fossil fuel use, political versatility, and global climate change have driven motivation that has led to growing interest in developing and implementing renewable energy and green chemical technologies. Glycerol, a by-product of biodiesel production, has become a focus of interest among both industry and academic communities due to its low cost and potential as a renewable green chemical building block. This substance has various applications in industries such as cosmetics, food, and pharmaceuticals, and even as a fuel additive. The renewable nature of glycerol and its wide range of potential applications make it an attractive alternative to traditional petrochemical-based products. In this work, a conceptual design of integrated glycerol hydrogenolysis with on-site hydrogen produced from glycerol reforming was proposed. The primary objective was to evaluate the economic potential and possible environmental footprint of the production of high-value chemicals derived from the glycerol produced via the hydrogenolysis route. The Industrial Park at Victoria was identified and selected as the desired plant location to produce high-value chemicals (i.e., acetol, ethylene glycol, and propanediol) based on a framework structured by the triple bottom line. Overall, under the conversion of 10 tonnes of glycerol per day to 1,2-propanediol, the plant managed to yield a good return on investment (ROI) and a payback period of 16.01% and 8.72 years, respectively (base case). Moreover, environmental analysis shows that the global warming potential (in terms of CO2 emission) of the current work was two-fold lower than that of the conventional business-as-usual pathway (fossil-fuel route using propylene oxide as feedstock), suggesting that the conceptual design of an integrated glycerol hydrogenolysis process with on-site hydrogen produced from glycerol reforming is favorable in both economic and environmental aspects.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85158907891&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1039/d3se00219e
DO - 10.1039/d3se00219e
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85158907891
SN - 2398-4902
VL - 7
SP - 2653
EP - 2669
JO - Sustainable Energy & Fuels
JF - Sustainable Energy & Fuels
IS - 11
ER -
