Process development for sugarcane conversion to ethyl levulinate: a route for a viable biodiesel additive

• Grant number: 16/10450-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: September 01, 2016
• End date: July 31, 2018
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Chemical Engineering - Chemical Process Industries
• Principal Investigator: Rubens Maciel Filho
• Grantee: Jean Felipe Leal Silva
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia Química (FEQ). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Ethyl levulinate is a derivative of levulinic acid with potential to be used in the near future as a diesel additive because of its unique characteristics. Produced exclusively from renewable origins, ethyl levulinate is the product of the esterification of ethanol with levulinic acid, being the later obtained from hydrolysis of biomass rich in cellulose. However, the large scale production of ethyl levulinate is not feasible these days due to lack of proper conversion technology. The objective of this research proposal is to propose and investigate a process of hydrolysis of biomass focusing on the production of levulinic acid and its further conversion to ethyl levulinate, taking into account the economic factors which are the most important in reducing the production costs. Several options of process conditions and downstream processing options are going to be evaluated, and the results will be analyzed so as to optimize the production cost to a minimum. At the end, this study will provide better insight of optimal conditions for reactor design, which is still being the major obstacle for the economic success of levulinic acid and ethyl levulinate production. (AU)

Scientific publications

(7)

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

MARCHESAN, ANDRESSA NEVES; LEAL SILVA, JEAN FELIPE; MACIEL FILHO, RUBENS; WOLF MACIEL, MARIA REGINA. Techno-Economic Analysis of Alternative Designs for Low-pH Lactic Acid Production. ACS SUSTAINABLE CHEMISTRY & ENGINEERING, v. 9, n. 36, p. 12120-12131, SEP 13 2021. (16/10450-1, 15/20630-4)

LOPES, EMILIA SAVIOLI; SILVA, JEAN FELIPE LEAL; RIVERA, ELMER CCOPA; GOMES, ALANA PETRINA; LOPES, MELINA SAVIOLI; MACIEL FILHO, RUBENS; TOVAR, LAURA PLAZAS. Challenges to Levulinic Acid and Humins Valuation in the Sugarcane Bagasse Biorefinery Concept. BioEnergy Research, v. 13, n. 3, APR 2020. (17/23335-9, 16/10450-1, 15/17592-3, 15/20630-4)

LEAL SILVA, JEAN FELIPE; MARIANO, ADRIANO PINTO; MACIEL FILHO, RUBENS. Economic potential of 2-methyltetrahydrofuran (MTHF) and ethyl levulinate (EL) produced from hemicelluloses-derived furfural. BIOMASS & BIOENERGY, v. 119, p. 492-502, DEC 2018. (15/20630-4, 16/10450-1)

LOPES, EMILIA SAVIOLI; LEAL SILVA, JEAN FELIPE; DO NASCIMENTO, LETICIA ARAUJO; CUADROS BOHORQUEZ, JOSE FERNANDO; LOPES, MELINA SAVIOLI; TOVAR, LAURA PLAZAS; MACIEL FILHO, RUBENS. Feasibility of the Conversion of Sugarcane Molasses to Levulinic Acid: Reaction Optimization and Techno-Economic Analysis. Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, v. 60, n. 43, p. 15646-15657, NOV 3 2021. (15/20630-4, 15/17592-3, 16/10450-1)

ARDILA GONZALEZ, PAULA GIXINA; DE JESUS GARIBOTI, JULIO CESAR; LEAL SILVA, JEAN FELIPE; LOPES, EMILIA SAVIOLI; ABAIDE, EDERSON ROSSI; LOPES, MELINA SAVIOLI; CARDENAS CONCHA, VIKTOR OSWALDO; FELISBINO, ROMILDA FERNANDEZ; GOMES, ELIEZER LADEIA; TOVAR, LAURA PLAZAS. Soybean Straw as a Feedstock for Value-Added Chemicals and Materials: Recent Trends and Emerging Prospects. BioEnergy Research, v. N/A, p. 24-pg., 2022-09-01. (16/10450-1, 15/20630-4, 12/10857-3)

LEAL SILVA, JEAN FELIPE; GREKIN, REBECCA; MARIANO, ADRIANO PINTO; MACIEL FILHO, RUBENS. Making Levulinic Acid and Ethyl Levulinate Economically Viable: A Worldwide Technoeconomic and Environmental Assessment of Possible Routes. ENERGY TECHNOLOGY, v. 6, n. 4, p. 613-639, APR 2018. (16/10450-1)

LEAL SILVA, JEAN F.; MACIEL FILHO, RUBENS; WOLF MACIEL, MARIA R.. Process Design and Technoeconomic Assessment of the Extraction of Levulinic Acid from Biomass Hydrolysate Using n-Butyl Acetate, Hexane, and 2-Methyltetrahydrofuran. Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, v. 59, n. 23, p. 11031-11041, JUN 10 2020. (15/20630-4, 16/10450-1)

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

SILVA, Jean Felipe Leal. Desenvolvimento de um processo de conversão de cana-de-açúcar a levulinato de etila: uma rota para um aditivo de biodiesel viável. 2018. Master's Dissertation - Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Faculdade de Engenharia Química Campinas, SP.