Collaborative Research: SusChem: Enabling the Biorefinery: Isolation, Fractionation, and Transformation of Bio-based Feedstocks into Fuels and Chemical Products

合作研究：SusChem：实现生物精炼：生物基原料的分离、分馏和转化为燃料和化学产品

• 批准号: 1437595
• 负责人: Eric Beckman
• 金额: $ 16.3万
• 依托单位: University of Pittsburgh
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2014-09-01 至 2017-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1437595&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; SusChem; Enabling; Biorefinery

1437965 (Zimmerman), 1437595 (Beckman), and 1437688 (Soh). Biomass has potential to meet many of society's energy and chemical needs, replacing the need for fossil fuels, while minimizing environmental impact. In this project, a biorefinery approach will be explored to achieve viable and sustainable utilization of biomass for fuels and valuable co-products. Analogous to petroleum refining for a wide spectrum of products, biorefining maximizes utilization of all fractions, reducing economic and environmental barriers. In addition to fuel, some of the components also represent a palette of higher-value, non-fuel products such as nutritional supplements and feedstocks for bioplastics. There are orders of magnitude differences in the value of products that can be produced depending chemical structure and intended end-use (i.e., fuel, fine chemicals, nutraceuticals). Advances in selective, efficient, and sustainable technologies for the extraction and conversion of lipids from crude biomass are essential to enhance a transition to a biobased economy. This project will develop separation and processing techniques that are robust, selective, and tolerant of varying biomass compositions, to gain economic and environmental benefits through a biorefinery approach. The overall aim of this work is to fundamentally understand the system variables for extraction, fractionation and transformation of minimally processed biomass to produce fuel and other value-added co-products using a carbon dioxide and methanol mixture for efficient processing and separation. The work will model the fundamental system properties based on experiments with representative compounds and in turn the model will be used to control processing of real world wet biomass samples. The specific aims of the project are: 1) Ascertain and model the phase behavior of systems consisting of methanol, CO2, trans-esterification reaction substrates (reagents, intermediates, and products/byproducts), with or without water, to better understand the necessary operating conditions for conversion and fractionation of fatty acid methyl esters; 2) Evaluate and optimize heterogeneously catalyzed trans-esterification in CO2-methanol for selective conversion of model lipids and recovery of specific methyl ester fractions; 3) Apply experimentally determined parameters and model outcomes to optimize conversion and fractionation of real world biomass feedstocks including pre-extracted oils, waste feedstocks, and wet algal biomass; 4) Perform process design, life cycle assessment, and techno-economic analyses for informing system design to integrate this technology into a biorefinery setting. As such the efforts of this collaborative research will provide information on system fundamentals as well as the broader economic and environmental impacts of the system if implemented effectively. The project intrinsically provides student-learning opportunities in terms of high level research as well as educational resources regarding sustainability. The design approach modeled in this project provides an example of life cycle thinking mitigating the potential for unintended consequences. Graduate student researchers will have the opportunity to translate experimental results into educational materials, to be delivered on campus, in the community, and also globally via online curricula. Undergraduate researchers will be recruited through campus programs that support students from groups that are historically underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The project will be used in undergraduate process design courses, integrating sustainability and green design into the core chemical engineering curriculum. Further, a short-course will be developed between the collaborators in the topic of green engineering and sustainable design, using this project as an example platform with developed materials made publically accessible. In terms of K-12, the project will be used to expand on established relationships serving underrepresented populations. Efforts will range from "greener" school competitions for Grades 6-8, to a focused experience for early high school students associated with a 3-week program in residence on campus. A new course, "Energy and Sustainability" will be designed and implemented to reinforce scientific principles that students will have learned in their 9th grade physical science class and to prepare these students for their 10th grade biology and 11th grade chemistry classes while introducing concepts of green design.

1437965（齐默尔曼）、1437595（贝克曼）和 1437688（Soh）。生物质有潜力满足社会许多能源和化学品的需求，取代对化石燃料的需求，同时最大限度地减少对环境的影响。在该项目中，将探索生物精炼方法，以实现生物质的可行和可持续利用作为燃料和有价值的副产品。与多种产品的石油精炼类似，生物精炼最大限度地利用所有馏分，减少经济和环境障碍。除了燃料之外，一些成分还代表了一系列高价值的非燃料产品，例如营养补充剂和生物塑料原料。根据化学结构和预期最终用途（即燃料、精细化学品、营养保健品），可生产的产品价值存在数量级差异。从粗生物质中提取和转化脂质的选择性、高效和可持续技术的进步对于促进向生物经济的过渡至关重要。该项目将开发稳健、选择性和耐受不同生物质成分的分离和加工技术，通过生物精炼方法获得经济和环境效益。 这项工作的总体目标是从根本上了解最低限度加工的生物质的提取、分馏和转化的系统变量，以使用二氧化碳和甲醇混合物进行有效的加工和分离来生产燃料和其他增值副产品。这项工作将根据代表性化合物的实验对基本系统特性进行建模，反过来该模型将用于控制现实世界湿生物质样品的处理。该项目的具体目标是： 1) 确定并模拟由甲醇、CO2、酯交换反应底物（试剂、中间体和产物/副产物）组成的系统（有水或无水）的相行为，以更好地了解必要的脂肪酸甲酯转化和分馏的操作条件； 2) 评估和优化CO2-甲醇中的非均相催化酯交换反应，以选择性转化模型脂质并回收特定的甲酯馏分； 3) 应用实验确定的参数和模型结果来优化现实世界生物质原料的转化和分馏，包括预提取的油、废物原料和湿藻类生物质； 4) 进行工艺设计、生命周期评估和技术经济分析，为系统设计提供信息，以将该技术集成到生物精炼厂环境中。因此，如果有效实施，这项合作研究的努力将提供有关系统基础知识以及该系统更广泛的经济和环境影响的信息。该项目本质上为学生提供了高水平研究的学习机会以及有关可持续发展的教育资源。该项目中建模的设计方法提供了生命周期思维的示例，可减轻意外后果的可能性。研究生研究人员将有机会将实验结果转化为教育材料，在校园、社区以及全球范围内通过在线课程提供。本科生研究人员将通过校园项目招募，这些项目为历史上在科学、技术、工程和数学 (STEM) 领域代表性不足的群体的学生提供支持。该项目将用于本科生工艺设计课程，将可持续性和绿色设计纳入核心化学工程课程。此外，合作者将开发一个关于绿色工程和可持续设计主题的短期课程，使用该项目作为示例平台，并公开开发的材料。就 K-12 而言，该项目将用于扩大为代表性不足的人群服务的既定关系。活动范围包括为 6 至 8 年级的“绿色”学校竞赛，以及为高中低年级学生提供与为期 3 周的校园住宿项目相关的重点体验。将设计和实施一门新课程“能源与可持续性”，以强化学生在 9 年级物理科学课程中学到的科学原理，并为学生准备 10 年级生物和 11 年级化学课程，同时引入绿色概念设计。