J. Haider, G. R. Harvianto, M. A. Qyyum
Oct 1, 2018
Citations
0
Influential Citations
35
Citations
Journal
ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering
Abstract
2,3-Butanediol has attracted interest as a promising drop-in fuel, mainly due to its high antiknock index and high heating value. Microbial production of 2,3-butanediol is considered more environmentally friendly and sustainable than chemical-based production methods. However, to achieve the 99% purity required for use as fuel, the dehydration and purification steps associated with the microbial production process consume tremendous amounts of energy. This high energy consumption limits the feasibility of the microbial production process at the commercial scale. A commercially feasible and sustainable 2,3-butanediol production process is proposed based on an energy efficient extraction-assisted distillation scheme. On the basis of economic, technical, and environmental considerations, isobutyl alcohol and 1-butanol were chosen as suitable solvents for the proposed scheme. Regression analysis and data validation were applied to verify the incorporated experimental data which was then used in the well-estab...