Coproduction of ethanol and power from switchgrass

Three process designs for producing ethanol and electricity from switchgrass are evaluated: a base-case technology scenario involving dilute acid pre-treatment and simultaneous saccharification and fermentation, and two mature technology scenarios incorporating ammonia fiber expansion pre-treatment and consolidated bioprocessing – one with conventional Rankine power coproduction, and one coproducing power via a gas turbine combined cycle. Material and energy balances – resulting from detailed Aspen Plus models – are reported and used to estimate processing costs and perform discounted cash flow analysis to assess plant profitability. The mature technology —designs significantly improve both process efficiency and cost relative to base-case cellulosic ethanol technology, with the resulting fossil fuel displacement being decidedly positive and production costs competitive with gasoline, even at relatively low prices. © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

[1]  Shahab Sokhansanj,et al.  Large‐scale production, harvest and logistics of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) – current technology and envisioning a mature technology , 2009 .

[2]  Lee Rybeck Lynd,et al.  Fermentation of Cellulosic Substrates in Batch and Continuous Culture by Clostridium thermocellum , 1989, Applied and environmental microbiology.

[3]  Gautam Sarath,et al.  Internode structure and cell wall composition in maturing tillers of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum. L). , 2007, Bioresource technology.

[4]  Fuat E. Celik,et al.  Large‐scale gasification‐based coproduction of fuels and electricity from switchgrass , 2009 .

[5]  Anaerobic biodegradation of spent sulphite liquor in a UASB reactor. , 2002, Bioresource technology.

[6]  L. Lynd,et al.  Likely features and costs of mature biomass ethanol technology , 1996 .

[7]  Gatze Lettinga,et al.  Anaerobic-aerobic treatment of toxic pulping black liquor with upfront effluent recirculation , 1998 .

[8]  L. Lynd,et al.  Continuous fermentation of cellulosic biomass to ethanol , 1993 .

[9]  J M Luginbuhl,et al.  Changes in forage quality, ingestive mastication, and digesta kinetics resulting from switchgrass maturity. , 1997, Journal of animal science.

[10]  M. Casler,et al.  Cultivar × Environment Interactions in Switchgrass , 2003 .

[11]  Gatze Lettinga,et al.  Sequenced Anaerobic-Aerobic Treatment of Hemp Black Liquors , 1994 .

[12]  Charles E Wyman,et al.  Potential Synergies and Challenges in Refining Cellulosic Biomass to Fuels, Chemicals, and Power , 2003, Biotechnology progress.

[13]  Farzaneh Teymouri,et al.  Optimization of the ammonia fiber explosion (AFEX) treatment parameters for enzymatic hydrolysis of corn stover. , 2005, Bioresource technology.

[14]  Lee R. Lynd,et al.  Overview and evaluation of fuel ethanol from cellulosic biomass , 1996 .

[15]  Venkatesh Balan,et al.  Enzymatic hydrolysis of distiller's dry grain and solubles (DDGS) using ammonia fiber expansion pretreatment , 2006 .

[16]  W. Martin,et al.  Simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of cellulose: effect of β-d-glucosidase activity and ethanol inhibition of cellulases , 1982 .

[17]  K. Vogel,et al.  Lignification of switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) and big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii) plant parts during maturation and its effect on fibre degradability , 1992 .

[18]  Ye Sun,et al.  Hydrolysis of lignocellulosic materials for ethanol production: a review. , 2002, Bioresource technology.

[19]  C. Wyman,et al.  Features of promising technologies for pretreatment of lignocellulosic biomass. , 2005, Bioresource technology.

[20]  Lee R. Lynd,et al.  Modeling simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of lignocellulose to ethanol in batch and continuous reactors , 1995 .

[21]  D. Johnson,et al.  Strategic Biorefinery Analysis: Analysis of Biorefineries , 2005 .

[22]  L. Lynd,et al.  Consolidated bioprocessing of cellulosic biomass: an update. , 2005, Current opinion in biotechnology.

[23]  Eric D. Larson,et al.  Performance and cost analysis of future, commercially mature gasification‐based electric power generation from switchgrass , 2009 .

[24]  Roel Hammerschlag,et al.  Ethanol's energy return on investment: a survey of the literature 1990-present. , 2006, Environmental science & technology.

[25]  Farzaneh Teymouri,et al.  Pretreatment of switchgrass by ammonia fiber explosion (AFEX) , 2005, Applied biochemistry and biotechnology.

[26]  M. Penner,et al.  Influence of Extractives on the Analysis of Herbaceous Biomass , 1997 .

[27]  Kelly N. Ibsen,et al.  Lignocellulosic Biomass to Ethanol Process Design and Economics Utilizing Co-Current Dilute Acid Prehydrolysis and Enzymatic Hydrolysis for Corn Stover , 2002 .

[28]  Kenneth J. Moore,et al.  Biomass yield and quality of 20 switchgrass populations in southern Iowa, USA. , 2002 .

[29]  L. Vane,et al.  Kinetics of growth and ethanol production on different carbon substrates using genetically engineered xylose-fermenting yeast. , 2007, Bioresource technology.

[30]  Nathanael Greene,et al.  The role of biomass in America's energy future: framing the analysis , 2009 .

[31]  B. Dale,et al.  Effect of particle size based separation of milled corn stover on AFEX pretreatment and enzymatic digestibility , 2007, Biotechnology and bioengineering.

[33]  Lee R. Lynd,et al.  Distillation with intermediate heat pumps and optimal sidestream return , 1986 .

[34]  M. Galbe,et al.  Simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of steam-pretreated barley straw at low enzyme loadings and low yeast concentration , 2007 .

[35]  A. Demirbas,et al.  Bioethanol from Cellulosic Materials: A Renewable Motor Fuel from Biomass , 2005 .

[36]  L. Viikari,et al.  Hydrolysis of xylan and fermentation of xylose to ethanol. , 1984, Biotechnology advances.

[37]  M. Ruth,et al.  Lignocellulosic Biomass to Ethanol Process Design and Economics Utilizing Co-Current Dilute Acid Prehydrolysis and Enzymatic Hydrolysis Current and Futuristic Scenarios , 1999 .

[38]  R. Elander,et al.  Optimization of dilute-acid pretreatment of corn stover using a high-solids percolation reactor , 2005, Applied biochemistry and biotechnology.

[39]  Jay J. Cheng,et al.  Dilute acid pretreatment of rye straw and bermudagrass for ethanol production. , 2005, Bioresource technology.

[40]  Lee R Lynd,et al.  Cellulose utilization by Clostridium thermocellum: bioenergetics and hydrolysis product assimilation. , 2005, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

[41]  André Lemaitre,et al.  Superheated steam drying technology , 2004 .