Overview of a biorefinery and opportunities in the Palm oil Sector
Publicación:
Revista Palmas; Vol. 28 Núm. especial, (2007); 61-69
0121-2923
Revista Palmas; Vol. 28 Núm. especial, (2007); 61-69
0121-2923
Abstract
The integrated biorefinery is a conceptual framework borrowed from the highly evolved petroleum oil refinery. Petroleum refineries presently use fossil crude to produce multiple energy (e.g. gasoline and diesel), chemical (e.g. ammonia and sulfur), and material products (e.g. plastics and lubricants) forming today's petrochemical industrial complex. In a biorefinery, different biomass conversion processes are coupled with each other such that the output (byproduct) from one process becomes the input (feedstock) for another. In its ideal form, this system will take different types of biomass as inputs and produce multiple products as outputs, where all products have value and there are no valueless wastes produced. Some of the processing steps include acid hydrolysis, fermentation, gasification, pyrolysis, combustion, separation, etc. and products from a biorefinery can include heat and power, liquid fuels, plastics, solvents, adhesives, lubricants, paints, dyes, detergents, paper and board, solvents etc. Biomass has relatively low energy density (MJ/kg) and low bulk density (kg/m3) therefore material transport to a centralized biorefinery may not be economical if distances are large. Establishing biorefineries at locations where biomass conversion already exists for producing other products (e.g. at a palm oil mill) therefore is more attractive. La biorefinería integrada es un marco conceptual tomado de la altamente desarrollada industria refinadora del petróleo. Las refinerías del petróleo actualmente usan crudo fósil para producir una variedad de compuestos energéticos (e.g. gasolina y diesel), compuestos químicos (e.g amonio y sulfuro) y materiales (e.g. plásticos y lubricantes) los cuales forman el actual complejo petroquímico. En una biorefinería, diferentes procesos de conversión de la biomasa están ligados unos con otros de tal manera que las salidas (outputs) de unos sean las materias primas de los otros. En su forma ideal, este sistema tomará diferentes tipos de biomasa como entradas y producirá múltiple productos como salidas, de tal forma que todos los productos tengan valor y no se generen residuos sin ningún valor. Algunas de las etapas del proceso incluyen hidrólisis ácida, fermentación, gasificación, pirólisis, combustión, separación, etc. Dentro de los productos de una biorefinería se destacan entre otros: calor y potencia, líquidos combustibles, plásticos, solventes, adhesivos, lubricantes, pinturas, tintes, detergentes, papeles y tableros, etc. La biomasa tiene relativamente baja densidad energética (MJ/kg) y baja densidad volumétrica (kg/cm3), por lo tanto, el transporte de este material a una biorefinería centralizada podría no ser económicamente viable si se tienen que cubrir grandes distancias. El establecimiento de una biorefinería en lugares donde ya se tenga biomasa disponible y donde se produzcan otros productos (por ejemplo una planta de beneficio del aceite de palma) es consecuentemente más atractivo.
The integrated biorefinery is a conceptual framework borrowed from the highly evolved petroleum oil refinery. Petroleum refineries presently use fossil crude to produce multiple energy (e.g. gasoline and diesel), chemical (e.g. ammonia and sulfur), and material products (e.g. plastics and lubricants) forming today's petrochemical industrial complex. In a biorefinery, different biomass conversion processes are coupled with each other such that the output (byproduct) from one process becomes the input (feedstock) for another. In its ideal form, this system will take different types of biomass as inputs and produce multiple products as outputs, where all products have value and there are no valueless wastes produced. Some of the processing steps include acid hydrolysis, fermentation, gasification, pyrolysis, combustion, separation, etc. and products from a biorefinery can include heat and power, liquid fuels, plastics, solvents, adhesives, lubricants, paints, dyes, detergents, paper and board, solvents etc. Biomass has relatively low energy density (MJ/kg) and low bulk density (kg/m3) therefore material transport to a centralized biorefinery may not be economical if distances are large. Establishing biorefineries at locations where biomass conversion already exists for producing other products (e.g. at a palm oil mill) therefore is more attractive.
Palabras clave:
palma de aceite
elaeis guineensis
biomasa
cambio tecnológico
modernización
palma de aceite
elaeis guineensis
biomasa
cambio tecnológico
modernización