Environmental and economic impact of furfuralcohol production using corncob as a raw material

PurposeCorncob as agricultural waste has dramatically increased in recent years. Some corncobs are recycled and reused as bioproducts, whereas a large amount remains unused and burned in the fields. Currently, furfural production technology is one of the most commonly used technologies for corncob valorization because furfural is one of the most promising chemicals for sustainable chemical production. However, very few studies have analyzed the impact of furfural and furfuralcohol production on the environment and economy via life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle costing (LCC). This study aims to quantify the environmental and economic impacts of furfural and furfuralcohol production, identify the main pollution processes and substances, improve potentials, and build a database on the furfural industry.MethodsLife cycle assessment and life cycle costing were carried out to estimate the environmental and economic impact of corncob-based furfural and furfuralcohol production.Results and discussionThe corncob production, transport, and electricity consumption stages had the greatest impact on the environment because of direct heavy metal, phosphate, and phosphorus emissions. The overall economic impact was mainly attributed to tax, corncob, transport, electricity, and infrastructure investment. Optimizing corncob transport, raw materials and consumption efficiency, and waste disposal is highly important in reducing both environmental and economic burden.ConclusionsThe key factors that contribute to reducing the overall environmental and economic impacts are increasing electricity consumption efficiency and furfural product yield, decreasing transport distance from corncob buyers to suppliers, choosing the appropriate corncob compression technology, and optimizing the wastewater reuse system.

[1]  Prasenjit Bhaumik,et al.  Exceptionally high yields of furfural from assorted raw biomass over solid acids , 2014 .

[2]  Yanchao Zhu,et al.  Production of furfural from xylose at atmospheric pressure by dilute sulfuric acid and inorganic salts. , 2012, Carbohydrate research.

[3]  W. de Jong,et al.  Overview of Biorefineries based on Co-Production of Furfural, Existing Concepts and Novel Developments , 2010 .

[4]  Joseph J. Bozell,et al.  Technology development for the production of biobased products from biorefinery carbohydrates—the US Department of Energy’s “Top 10” revisited , 2010 .

[5]  Xiao-Xia Xia,et al.  Efficient ethanol production from corncob residues by repeated fermentation of an adapted yeast. , 2013, Bioresource technology.

[6]  Jingmin Hong,et al.  Environmental and economic life cycle assessment of aluminum-silicon alloys production: a case study in China , 2012 .

[7]  G. Marcotullio,et al.  The Chemistry and Technology of Furfural Production in Modern Lignocellulose-Feedstock Biorefineries , 2011 .

[8]  M. Huijbregts,et al.  Normalisation in product life cycle assessment: an LCA of the global and European economic systems in the year 2000. , 2008, The Science of the total environment.

[9]  Jinglan Hong,et al.  Environmental impact assessment of three coal-based electricity generation scenarios in China , 2012 .

[10]  Huanling Song,et al.  Efficient process for the conversion of xylose to furfural with acidic ionic liquid , 2011 .

[11]  Jinglan Hong,et al.  Pollutants generated by cement production in China, their impacts, and the potential for environmental improvement , 2015 .

[12]  Hans-Jürgen Dr. Klüppel,et al.  The Revision of ISO Standards 14040-3 - ISO 14040: Environmental management – Life cycle assessment – Principles and framework - ISO 14044: Environmental management – Life cycle assessment – Requirements and guidelines , 2005 .

[13]  Cheng Lei,et al.  An alternative feedstock of corn meal for industrial fuel ethanol production: delignified corncob residue. , 2014, Bioresource technology.

[14]  M. Huijbregts,et al.  Characterization factors for global warming in life cycle assessment based on damages to humans and ecosystems. , 2009, Environmental science & technology.

[15]  Jinglan Hong,et al.  Environmental and economic life cycle assessment for sewage sludge treatment processes in Japan. , 2009, Waste management.

[16]  Kai Yan,et al.  Production, properties and catalytic hydrogenation of furfural to fuel additives and value-added chemicals , 2014 .