2,5-Furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA), an eco-friendly biobased material, can replace petroleum-based terephthalic acid (TPA), in the polymer industry, for applications such as water bottle production and food packaging. In this study, an integrated process was developed for the coproduction of FDCA as a biobased plastic monomer and 1,5-pentanediol as a high-value product from lignocellulosic biomass using catalytic conversions and designing separation areas. The integrated process has several energy-intensive units that require a considerable amount of heating sources. Heat integration is performed to reduce and satisfy total heating requirements. Through a technoeconomic analysis, the minimum selling price of FDCA is determined to be US$1024/ton. Moreover, a wide range of sensitivity analyses are conducted to identify the major cost drivers among the economic and environmental parameters. Environmental impacts are compared between biomass-derived FDCA and petroleum-derived TPA productions by life-cycle assessment. In the former production, fossil depletion is lower (53%) than that of the latter production, although climate change of the former is higher (29%) than that of the latter. FDCA production can be more environmentally friendly by changing the sources for electricity generation.

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Steam methane reforming (SMR) process is regarded as a viable option to satisfy the growing demand for hydrogen, mainly because of its capability for the mass production of hydrogen and the maturity of the technology. In this study, an economically optimal process configuration of SMR is proposed by investigating six scenarios with different design and operating conditions, including CO2 emission permits and CO2 capture and sale. Of the six scenarios, the process configuration involving CO2 capture and sale is the most economical, with an H2 production cost of $1.80/kg-H2. A wide range of economic analyses is performed to identify the tradeoffs and cost drivers of the SMR process in the economically optimal scenario. Depending on the CO2 selling price and the CO2 capture cost, the economic feasibility of the SMR-based H2 production process can be further improved.

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