In this paper we address the topic of energy and water optimization in the production of bioethanol from corn and switchgrass. We show that in order for these manufacturing processes to be attractive,there is a need t...In this paper we address the topic of energy and water optimization in the production of bioethanol from corn and switchgrass. We show that in order for these manufacturing processes to be attractive,there is a need to go beyond traditional heat integration and water recycling techniques. Thus,we propose a strategy based on mathe-matical programming techniques to model and optimize the structure of the processes,and perform heat integration including the use of multi-effect distillation columns and integrated water networks to show that the energy effi-ciency and water consumption in bioethanol plants can be significantly improved. Specifically,under some circum-stances energy can even be produced and the water consumption can be reduced below the values required for the production of gasoline.展开更多
基金the Center for Advanced Process Decision-making at Carnegie Mellon University and NSF Grant CBET096654
文摘In this paper we address the topic of energy and water optimization in the production of bioethanol from corn and switchgrass. We show that in order for these manufacturing processes to be attractive,there is a need to go beyond traditional heat integration and water recycling techniques. Thus,we propose a strategy based on mathe-matical programming techniques to model and optimize the structure of the processes,and perform heat integration including the use of multi-effect distillation columns and integrated water networks to show that the energy effi-ciency and water consumption in bioethanol plants can be significantly improved. Specifically,under some circum-stances energy can even be produced and the water consumption can be reduced below the values required for the production of gasoline.
