Iranian Journal of Chemical Engineering (IJChE)
Scientific Journal

Technical-Economic Analysis of Chemical Hydrolysis of Microalgae for Bioethanol Production using SuperPro Designer®

Document Type : Regular Article

Authors

Elham Bahmani
Hanieh Shokrkar
Reza Alizadeh

Sahand University of Technology

https://doi.org/10.22034/ijche.2024.456072.1531
Abstract
This study simulated the production of bioethanol from mixed microalgae to the assess economic feasibility on an industrial scale. For the first time, the kinetic study of the chemical hydrolysis of mixed microalgae was carried out using the AQUASIM software. The chemical hydrolysis for the pretreatment of microalgae was carried out using H2SO4 (2.5%, 5%, 10% (v/v)), H3PO3 (2.5%, 5%, 10% (v/v)), and NaOH (1%, 2%, 4% (v/v)) at the different biomass concentrations (25 to 100 g/L) at the temperature of 121 ℃ for 70 min. Kinetic constants were calculated using experimental data and the AQUASIM software. It was found that the optimum yield of sugars, which was obtained, was about 93%. From the comparison of the values ​​of the reaction rate constant (k), it was observed that the hydrolysis rate ​​at 50 g/L by using H2SO4 2.5% (v/v), is higher compared to 25, 75, and 100 g/L, and the higher reaction rate constant supports the faster hydrolysis of algal biomass. These kinetic constants were applied in simulating the process on an industrial scale using the SuperPro Designer software. Experimental and simulation results showed that 3.6 g/L of bioethanol is produced from the 9.3 g/L of glucose under optimal conditions. Also, simulation results using the SuperPro Designer software demonstrated that eliminating the algal biomass drying stage has the potential to save up to 713,000 $ in operational expenses.

Keywords

Bioethanol
Microalgae
Chemical Hydrolysis
SuperPro Designer
AQUASIM
Subjects
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Iranian Journal of Chemical Engineering (IJChE)
Volume 21, Issue 3
Autumn 2024
Pages 34-48

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