Novel Two-Stage Process for Manufacturing Butadiene from Ethanol

Abstract

Replacing petrochemicals with products obtained from renewable raw materials is a top challenge today. The paper deals with the design and simulation of a sustainable process for manufacturing butadiene from bioethanol with a capacity of 91,000 t/year. The two-stage process employs a selective CuO/Cr 2 O 3 catalyst for ethanol dehydrogenation and recent yield-performant Ta 2 O 5 catalyst for butadiene synthesis. The paper develops original flowsheets suitable for industrial implementation based on comprehensive kinetic models that provide a realistic description of the actual chemistry. The development of a complex separation system makes use of a systematic task-oriented methodology. Efficient separation methods are applied according to the chemical nature and physical properties of species for removing numerous impurities generated in reactions. The overall butadiene mass yield and carbon yield are 0.495 kg butadiene/kg ethanol (vs the maximum value 0.587) and 0.837, respectively. The catalyst productivity is 0.253 kg butadiene/kg cat•h. Substantial energy savings are achieved by heat recovery around the chemical reactors and by applying heat pumping for ethanol recovery and recycling. The sustainability analysis reveals low material intensity (0.227 kg waste/kg butadiene), moderate energy intensity (0.562 kW h/kg electrical energy and 15.8 MJ/kg thermal utilities), and low impact on the environment. The economic analysis pinpoints the possibility of achieving butadiene prices competitive with petrochemical products if the process is integrated in a biorefinery.

An Analysis of Fixed-Bed Catalytic Reactors Performances for One-Stage Butadiene Synthesis from Ethanol

“…The maximum level of this function depends essentially on the BD market price and the cost of energy (separation and recycling being energy-consuming operations). The market price of BD is taken as 2 USD/kg [19]. In Table 5, the dependencies of optimization results on the ratio C sep /p BD are presented .…”

Perspectives for the Upgrading of Bio‐Based Vicinal Diols within the Developing European Bioeconomy

“…Furthermore, an expensive and cumbersome purification is required through extractive distillation to obtain the highest grade possible, which is an essential requirement for polymerization purposes. [66] 2,5-Dihydrofuran (13) can also be accessed through a modified DODH of ERY or its dehydrated intermediate, namely, (3R,4S)-tetrahydro-3,4-furandiol (14). Compound 13 is a heterocyclic compound with promising future as a potential platform in the manufacturing of 1,4-epoxybutane (15), 2,3-dihydrofuran (16), 1,4-butanediol (6) or other fine chemicals including oxolane-3-carbaldehyde or cyclopropane derivatives.…”

“…Hence, the authors assumed the occurrence of a co-catalytic mechanism enabling epoxide 12 activation by hydrogen bonding via OH groups of the vicinal polyol substrate that progressively formed propylene glycol 33 (Scheme 38). It was worth mentioning that as for the transesterification of GL it is an equilibrium-controlled reaction; thus, increasing the amount of carbonation reagent propylene carbonate (66) had also a positive effect on the formation of the desired glycerol carbonate 43.…”

“…95 % of its production comes from oil refining and the isolation of C 4 hydrocarbon fractions. Furthermore, an expensive and cumbersome purification is required through extractive distillation to obtain the highest grade possible, which is an essential requirement for polymerization purposes [66] . 2,5‐Dihydrofuran ( 13 ) can also be accessed through a modified DODH of ERY or its dehydrated intermediate, namely, (3 R ,4 S )‐tetrahydro‐3,4‐furandiol ( 14 ).…”

Engineering Specific Mo–O Bond Stretching to Activate Lattice Oxygen in V-Doped Bi2MoO6 for Enhanced Oxidative Dehydrogenation of 1-Butene

“…1,3-Butadiene is an essential basic feedstock used to produce adiponitrile, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene resin, and synthetic rubber, and the demand for butadiene increases steadily worldwide. , 1-Butene, originating from the byproducts of the methanol-to-olefins process and naphtha cracking, is a plentiful but an inexpensive precursor to produce 1,3-butadiene. The oxidative dehydrogenation (ODH) of 1-butene, regarded as a promising process to produce 1,3-butadiene, has been extensively investigated over the past decades. − The ODH process displays a higher selectivity to 1,3-butadiene and a lower energy consumption in contrast to direct dehydrogenation. − Multicomponent bismuth molybdate catalysts exhibit favorable catalytic performance for the ODH of 1-butene to 1,3-butadiene, and lattice oxygen mobility has been considered as a critical factor deciding the catalytic performance. − A series of metals such as Zr, La, and Ce were added to the pure bismuth molybdates to form active phases, and hence, the oxygen mobility improved. − …”