Techno-economic analysis for the production of novel, bio-derived elastomers with modified algal proteins as a reinforcing agent

Bocheński, Tomasz; Chan, Wui Yarn; Olsen, Bradley D.; Schmidt, Jens Ejbye

doi:10.1016/j.algal.2018.06.012

Cited by 3 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 21 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The materials that contribute to the major portion of the costs was the copolymer PEGMA (51%), followed by WPC (45%) and methacrylic anhydride (3%). This is similar to the results found in [33], where the price of PEGMA contributed the most, followed by methacrylic anhydride and proteins. Figure 2 illustrates the percentage contribution of each material in the annual cost.…”

Section: Economic Resultssupporting

confidence: 90%

“…Scenario 2 showed a very high ROI of 42.24% with a reduced payback time of only 2.37 years, compared to 3.69 years in Scenario 1. These values are much lower compared to the plastic produced from algae proteins using the same copolymerization process which has a payback time of 8.4 years [33]. These values show that the economic return is very positive and that the project is very profitable to be operated.…”

Section: Economic Resultsmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…The unit selling price of plastic was set at $7000/t which is lower than the MSP for both the scenarios, to account for uncertainties of the production; like equipment and machines breakdown, lower annual hours of operation or fewer batches per year. In addition, this was the reported price set for algae-derived plastics using the same methods of methacrylation and polymerization [33]. The price for the whey protein-based plastic in this study should be greater, since it is postulated to be of better quality than the algae-based plastics, and hence, sensitivity analysis is done on a range of prices that the plastic obtained can be sold at too.…”

Section: Economic Resultsmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Bulk prices of the chemicals used were estimated as average values from different suppliers on www.alibaba.com, as well as values found in literature [33]. These are compared to the Sigma Aldrich prices to check for consistencies.…”

Section: Other Chemicalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The base case scenario assumed the produced plastic to be sold at $7000/t, which is the same as the price of the plastic obtained from algae biomass [33]. However, due to the better mechanical and thermal properties of whey-protein plastics, confirmed in our previous work [23], they can be sold at higher prices.…”

Section: Selling Price Of Plastic Productmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Techno-Economic Assessment of Whey Protein-Based Plastic Production from a Co-Polymerization Process

et al. 2020

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Bio-based plastics, produced from natural and renewable sources, have been found to be good replacers to petroleum-based plastics. However, economic analyses have not been carried out for most of them, specifically those from whey. In this study, a techno-economic assessment of the industrial-scale production of plastics from whey protein is carried out considering two different scenarios: (1) low-cost dairy waste whey (DWP) and (2) purchased whey protein concentrate (WPC), as feedstocks, using SuperPro Designer software. Key economic indicators such as operating cost, capital investment, annual revenue, payback time, and return-on-investment (ROI), were analyzed. Sensitivity analyses of different parameters were performed to account for market fluctuations and other uncertainties, using Scenario 2 as the base case. Results showed that both scenarios have the capacity of producing over 3200 metric tons/year (t/yr) (or 5.5 t/batch) of plastic. With the unit selling price of plastic set at $7,000/t, both the scenarios showed profitable outcomes with the plant’s payback time of 3.7 and 2.4 years, and ROI of 27.1% and 42.2%, for Scenario 1 and Scenario 2, respectively. Sensitivity analyses showed that the unit plastic selling price was the most sensitive parameter, followed by the amount of feedstock WPC, and the number of batches.

show abstract

Section: Economic Resultssupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Economic Resultsmentioning

confidence: 90%

Section: Economic Resultsmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Other Chemicalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Selling Price Of Plastic Productmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Techno-Economic Assessment of Whey Protein-Based Plastic Production from a Co-Polymerization Process

et al. 2020

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Bioproducts from high-protein algal biomass: an economic and environmental sustainability review and risk analysis

Quiroz‐Arita

Shinde

Kim

et al. 2022

Sustainable Energy Fuels

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Evaluation of Marine Synechococcus for an Algal Biorefinery in Arid Regions

et al. 2019

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Implementing microalgae biorefinery in arid environments requires utilization of strains that can grow at high temperatures (above 28 °C) and salinity levels (above 30 ppt). In this study, we investigate the newly isolated seawater strain, Synechococcus, native to the United Arab Emirates, and evaluate its value as a perspective organism for cultivation (for fuel and bio-products) in regions with freshwater scarcity. The strain displayed tolerance to a wide range of temperature (22–37 °C) and salinity (20–41 ppt), with maximum biomass concentration of 0.72 g L−1 and a maximum growth rate of 82 mg L−1 d−1 at 25 °C and 33 ppt salinity. Lipids accumulation reached up to 26% of dry weight in nitrogen-depleted conditions (with 1.8 mM of nitrates addition to the media), whereas protein content exceeded 50% dry weight. In this study, harvesting is investigated using three chemical agents: Ferric chloride, sodium hydroxide, and chitosan. Cell disruption is analyzed for four distinct treatments: Enzymatic, alkaline, ultrasonic, and hydrothermal. Among tested methods, flocculation with sodium hydroxide and ultrasonication were found to be the most efficient techniques for harvesting and cell disruption, respectively. The growth characteristics of the local strain and the potential to derive protein and lipids from it makes it a promising biomass in a biorefinery context.

show abstract

Techno-economic analysis for the production of novel, bio-derived elastomers with modified algal proteins as a reinforcing agent

Cited by 3 publications

References 21 publications

Techno-Economic Assessment of Whey Protein-Based Plastic Production from a Co-Polymerization Process

Techno-Economic Assessment of Whey Protein-Based Plastic Production from a Co-Polymerization Process

Bioproducts from high-protein algal biomass: an economic and environmental sustainability review and risk analysis

Evaluation of Marine Synechococcus for an Algal Biorefinery in Arid Regions

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About