The Role of Process Integration in Reviewing and Comparing Biorefinery Processing Routes: The Case of Xylitol
Document Type
Book
Year
2015
Authors
Mountraki, A.D., Koutsospyros, K.R., Kokossis, A.C.
Source
Chapter 12, p.309-329, Design Strategies for Biomass Conversion Systems, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2015
Keywords
biotechnological process, catalytic process, energy integration, process integration, sustainable biorefineries, xylitol production
Abstract
The effective utilization of biomass is essential for setting up sustainable biorefineries. In order to evaluate the most remunerative paths for incorporation to the biorefinery, this chapter examines the energy requirements of the selected pretreatment process (CIMV Process) as well as the energy requirements of each candidate process. The design of a biorefinery requires the selection of the feedstock type and the valorization processes while keeping the cost low. The chapter then describes the three-layer approach proposed by Kokossis and Yand, including process synthesis, process integration and process flowsheeting. In an effort to evaluate the impact of energy integration on the rating of a process among the competition, the chapter compares different production paths to xylitol before and after the heat integration analysis. The production of xylitol in industry follows two different process paths, namely the catalytic process and the biotechnological process.
