title: Prospects for energy recovery during hydrothermal and biological processing of waste biomass.
abstract: Thermochemical and biological processes represent promising technologies for converting wet biomasses, such as animal manure, organic waste, or algae, to energy. To convert biomass to energy and bio-chemicals in an economical manner, internal energy recovery should be maximized to reduce the use of external heat and power. In this study, two conversion pathways that couple hydrothermal liquefaction with anaerobic digestion or catalytic hydrothermal gasification were compared. Each of these platforms is followed by two alternative processes for gas utilization: 1) combined heat and power; and 2) combustion in a boiler. Pinch analysis was applied to integrate thermal streams among unit processes and improve the overall system efficiency. A techno-economic analysis was conducted to compare the feasibility of the four modeled scenarios under different market conditions. Our results show that a systems approach designed to recover internal heat and power can reduce external energy demands and increase the overall process sustainability.
authors.affiliation: College of Agriculture, Forestry & Natural Resource Management, University of Hawai'i Hilo, United States; Cornell Energy Institute, Cornell University, United States; Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, United States.
authors.forename: Léda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gerber Van Doren
authors.affiliation: Cornell Energy Institute, Cornell University, United States; Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, United States.
authors.forename: Roy
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Posmanik
authors.affiliation: Cornell Energy Institute, Cornell University, United States; Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, United States; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Bucknell University, United States.
authors.forename: Felipe A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Bicalho
authors.affiliation: Cornell Energy Institute, Cornell University, United States; Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, United States.
authors.forename: Jefferson W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Tester
authors.affiliation: Cornell Energy Institute, Cornell University, United States; Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University, United States; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Bucknell University, United States. Electronic address: deborah.sills@bucknell.edu.
authors.forename: Deborah L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Sills
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D056804:Biofuels / Q000191:economics; D018533:Biomass; D003365:Costs and Cost Analysis; D008372:Manure; D010578:Petroleum / Q000191:economics; D012037:Refuse Disposal / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods*; D013696:Temperature; D014866:Waste Products / Q000032:analysis*; D014867:Water
chemical_list: D056804:Biofuels; D008372:Manure; D010578:Petroleum; D014866:Waste Products; D014867:Water
keywords: Anaerobic digestion; Biomass conversion; Pinch analysis; Techno-economic analysis; Thermochemical processes